On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — an old fox if Israeli politics ever had one — made a grave beginner’s mistake.

He had sought to put off a bill calling for Israel to annex the West Bank, so as not to antagonize the US administration. But the awkward way in which he tried to sell the move to his right-wing base ended up infuriating the White House, triggering what looked to be the first bona fide crisis between Jerusalem and Washington since Donald Trump became president.

Netanyahu’s surprising blunder is likely the result of two separate problems he faces: mounting political pressure from his pro-settlement constituency, and the sword of Damocles that is the expected police recommendation that he be indicted on two counts of corruption. The more he is pushed into a corner by the corruption probes, the more he may seek to court the pro-settlement crowd to rally around him.