Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has reportedly told people in his inner circle that even if Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Lieberman has a change of heart and wishes to enter the coalition he is no longer welcome, Yisrael Hayom reported on erev Shabbos, 18 Iyar. The report states PM Netanyahu is furious with Lieberman and he is unwilling to see him serve in the cabinet in any post, yet alone foreign minister or defense minister.
Following elections Lieberman was still speaking of his promise to voters that he would serve as defense minister. After it became clear to him that this would not occur he spoke of remaining in his post as foreign minister but with hours remaining till the deadline to build a coalition, Lieberman announced he decision to join the opposition.
Lieberman, who served as PM Netanyahu’s Bureau Chief in his first term in office, 1996-1997, has become the prime minister’s political nemesis. Despite this, some opine that if Lieberman is willing to return to the coalition and accept the prime minister’s terms, Mr. Netanyahu would accept him since he is aware a coalition with a one-vote majority does not have good prospects of serving out its term.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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2 Responses
Lieberman entering the coalition does not help Netanyahu much regarding his narrow 61 vote coalition. Liberman only has six votes. Even with Lieberman in the coalition, Kulanu, Shas and Bayit Yehudi can each bring down the government on their own. The only one Lieberman could stop is UTJ on their own; but UTJ usually goes along with Shas anyways, so it matters very little in the end.
Liberman is shrayim, as they say in yiddish.
1. His party was trounced in the election. He said “vote for me, and I’ll take over the nationalist camp” and the voters didn’t take him seriously (Bennett has the same problem).
2. One of his demands is that the Hareidim be excluded, meaning he is insisting on a Right-Left coalition rather than a Right-Hareidi coalition — some nationalist. A hawk who is demanding a coalition with doves? And if the doves joined (necessitated by the hareidim leaving), they wouldn’t need Lieberman any more.