3 Responses

1. Time to combat the pernicious lies (wrtten by the same few bloggers whose names will be left unmentioned) once and for all.

   The (Ashkenazi) chareidim have stood on principle while conversely the mizrachi have not had on which to stand.

   After Agudah walked out of Ben Gurion’s govm’t in 1953 they stayed out of every government for the next 24 YEARS.
   They only rejoined when Likud won. Likud’s general feeling and respect for judaism even when they themselves were less than observant caused Agudah and later Degel to align with them all the while keeping a distance, critiquing and guiding them.

   As for Mizrachi, well, here’s from wikipedia:

   The National Religious Party (Hebrew: מפלגה דתית לאומית‎, Miflaga Datit Leumit, commonly known in Israel by its Hebrew acronym Mafdal, (Hebrew: מפד”ל)) was a political party in Israel representing the religious Zionist movement. Formed in 1956, at the time of its dissolution in 2008, it was the second oldest surviving party in the country after Agudat Yisrael, and was part of every government coalition until 1992. Traditionally a practical centrist party, in its later years it drifted to the right, becoming increasingly associated with Israeli settlers, and towards the end of its existence was part of a political alliance with the strongly right-wing National Union. The 2006 elections saw the party slump to just three seats, the worst electoral performance in its history. In November 2008 party members voted to disband the party in order to join the new Jewish Home party created by a merger of the NRP and most of the National Union factions.[1] However, most of the National Union left the merger shortly after its implementation.
   …
   From its inception the NRP maintained an almost constant number of 12 members of the Israeli Knesset. In 1981 it shrank to 6 members. The reasons were diverse: An overall reduction in its natural voting population; the political moderation of many Orthodox Jews; its turn towards the right-wing; the growing importance of the right-left schism in Israeli politics; and the rise of Orthodox Sephardic parties such as Tami and later Shas.
   The party was unique in that it participated in all the governments of Israel until 1992. During this period it was a centrist party, interested mainly in religious matters and impervious to the left-right divisions of the Israeli public. The longtime cooperation between the Israeli Labour Party and the NRP is sometimes referred to as the historic league (הברית ההיסטורית).

   …
   Main principles
   The NRP was a Zionist party and stated that Israel was a “Jewish democratic state”. The party’s main goal was to contribute as much as it could to the state of Israel and influence its character to be more Jewish, as well as fighting for the protection of Israel and maintaining Israel’s security.
   …
   Unlike the Haredi parties – Shas and United Torah Judaism – the NRP did not promote the notion of Medinat Halacha (Halachic state),..run according to Jewish law. The party wanted to retain Israel’s democratic character while improving the Israeli people..
   They called this principle Ahavat Israel אהבת ישראל (“Love of Israel”).

   The Fourth Knesset

   The fourth Knesset started with David Ben-Gurion’s Mapai party forming the ninth government on 17 December 1959. His coalition included the National Religious Party, Mapam, Ahdut HaAvoda, the Progressive Party and the three Israeli Arab parties, Progress and Development, Cooperation and Brotherhood and Agriculture and Development. The government had 16 ministers. Mapai’s Kadish Luz became the Speaker of the Knesset.
   The government collapsed when Ben-Gurion resigned on 31 January 1961, over a motion of no-confidence brought by Herut and the General Zionists concerning the Lavon Affair. After Ben-Gurion was unable to form a new government new elections were called. At only one year and nine months, the fourth Knesset is the shortest Knesset term to date.

   The Seventh Knesset

   Golda Meir of the Alignment formed the fifteenth government, a national unity government including Gahal, the National Religious Party, the Independent Liberals, Progress and Development and Cooperation and Brotherhood. There were 24 ministers.
   Gahal resigned from the coalition on 6 August 1970 after the government had decided to adopt the Rogers Plan.
   The seventh Knesset was one of the most stable, with only one new party created (and that itself was virtually a rename of an existing party) and four MKs changing parties.

   The Eighth Knesset

   Golda Meir of the Alignment formed the sixteenth government on 10 March 1974, including the National Religious Party and the Independent Liberals in her coalition, with 22 ministers. Meir resigned on 11 April 1974 after the Agranat Commission had published its interim report on the Yom Kippur War.
   The Alignment’s Yitzhak Rabin formed the seventeenth government on 3 June 1974, including Ratz, the Independent Liberals, Progress and Development and the Arab List for Bedouins and Villagers. The new government had 19 ministers. The National Religious Party joined the coalition on 30 October and Ratz left on the 6 November, by which time there were 21 ministers.
   The government resigned on 22 December 1976, after ministers of the National Religious Party were sacked because the party had abstained from voting on a motion of no confidence, which had been brought by Agudat Yisrael over a breach of the Sabbath on an Israeli Air Force base.

   The 15th Knesset

   After winning the Prime Ministerial elections, Ehud Barak formed the 28th government of Israel on 6 July 1999. His coalition included One Israel, Shas, Meretz, Yisrael BaAliyah, the Centre Party, the National Religious Party and United Torah Judaism, and initially had 16 ministers, though the number later rose to 24. Avraham Burg was appointed as Speaker of the Knesset.
   United Torah Judaism left the coalition in September 1999 after a breach of the Sabbath. The government finally collapsed on 10 December 2000 when Barak resigned in the face of the outbreak of the Second Intifada and the Israeli Arab riots of October. Barak called new elections for the position of Prime Minister, which he lost to Ariel Sharon.

   The Sixteenth Knesset

   Ariel Sharon formed the 30th government on 28 February 2003. His coalition initially included just Shinui and the National Union (Israel BaAliya had merged into Likud soon after the election), though the National Religious Party joined the government on 3 March.
   Sharon’s decision to implement the Gaza disengagement plan led to the National Union and the National Religious Party leaving the coalition during June and November 2004 respectively. Shinui left the government in December 2004 following disagreements over the budget.

2. (cont.)
   The only time Gimmel joined a non Likud govm’t was Barak’s govm’t of ’99 and they walked out after two months. (see above)

3. Hey lady, don’t you realize that it’s not Netanyahus but your fault for signing with Lapid??? You might be “a natural partner to Likud”, but Yesh Atid isn’t… so what are you complaining about?