2 Responses

1. Shelly has nothing to offer and it is easier to sit in the Knessest doing nothing and getting a big salary than to actually try to work together.

2. It’s a good long term decision for her. The alliance between the two hareidi parties is probably at an end since the nationalist camp is leading the charge to close down yeshivos as part of the “share the burden movement.” Based on the math, Likud now has no choice but to go with Bennett and Lapid, and exclude the Hareidim. Once they start arresting hareidim, the anti-zionist hareidim (Eidis hareidis, Satmar, Toldos Aharon, even Neturei karta, will gain substantial support among the the hareidi population).

   The Hareidim have always been “left” in economic and welfare matters, and the hareidim rabbanim have never been super-hawks. This means that going into the future, Labor will be leading a potential coalition that includes the Jewish left, the Hareidim and the Arabs. Note that many on the left, and almost everyone among the Arabs, opposed conscription.

   So rather than being a very powerless junior partner in a right-center nationalist coalition, as opposition leader she’ll be able to work on building a serious alternative for the future. The only way that future can be averted is if the nationalists give up their idea of mass conscription of hareidim (and hareidiot), and limit themselves to tying yeshiva subsidies to military service with no punitive sanctions against those who refuse to be in the army – and it doesn’t look like that will happen.