At least six of the Labor faction members have openly called on party leader Shelly Yacimovich to enter into coalition talks with Likud/Beitenu. After meeting with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu last week Yacimovich stated the gap between her position and Likud’s on social economic issues was simply too great. Nevertheless, it appears the party leader is unaware that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu prefers her as a coalition partner over Yesh Atid and Bayit Yehudi.

Yacimovich admits to the mounting pressure from within her party, from the veteran members, who realize they have a more realistic chance of implementing change from within than from the benches of the opposition. The major stumbling block is Yacimovich’s statement during the elections, that she would not enter into a coalition headed by Netanyahu due to his fiscal hashkafa, which is radically different from Labor’s socialist leanings.

She reminds her colleagues via the media “Remember the shame and embarrassment of Labor in the coalition after Ehud Barak entered the government. That was a moral error in judgment. We became chair warmers instead of serving as a viable alternative in opposition.”

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)