In response to growing attacks against Moshe Feiglin, who heads the Manhigut Yehudit faction of Likud, by MK Yaakov Katz, Shmuel Sackett, the International Director of Manhigut Yehudit released the following letter, dated December 22, 2009.
The building freeze and Barak’s proposed draconian measures to enforce it have left Israel lovers the world over feeling angry and frustrated. Unfortunately, MK Yaakov Katz (Ketzaleh) has been taking out his frustration on Moshe Feiglin, accusing him of “paving the way” for the Disengagement and the current freeze. To understand what is really going on, it is important to be able to reflect on the facts in an orderly manner, which is what I propose to do in this article.
Immediately after this year’s Knesset elections (just 10 months ago), President Shimon Peres met with EVERY party in the Knesset and asked them one question: “Who, if anybody, should I give the first chance to form a government?” The National Union met with President Peres and recommended that Bibi Netanyahu be given the chance to form a government.
Allow me to repeat that – in different words: Ketzaleh and the members of his NU party: Ariel, Eldad and Ben-Ari, asked that Bibi be the next Prime Minister of Israel! Feiglin, on the other hand, has consistently run against Bibi for leadership of the Likud and is on record as recommending not endorsing Bibi for premiership after he lost to Kadima in the previous elections.
That is point #1.
After Feiglin won the 20th slot in the Likud primaries, Bibi used some political tricks to push him down to an unrealistic spot on the list so that he would not make it into the Knesset. The media in Israel agree that because of what Bibi did to Feiglin, the Likud lost 10-12 seats in the Knesset. Based on that, Ketzaleh should be thanking Feiglin for making the Likud weaker.
That is point #2.
Before Bibi starting playing around with Feiglin’s spot on the Likud list, all election polls showed that neither Hershkowitz’s “Jewish Home” party nor Ketzaleh’s “National Union” party would pass the minimum threshold for votes needed to get Knesset seats. When Bibi succeeded in pushing Feiglin down 16 spots on the Likud list, the public responded by giving 3 seats to “Jewish Home”, 4 seats to “National Union” and 4-5 more seats to “Yisrael Beitenu” (Lieberman’s party). These three parties need to send “Thank You Letters” to Moshe Feiglin!
That is point #3.
And finally, there is only one man in the world today who keeps Bibi up at night, drives up his blood pressure and makes him totally nuts. There is only one man in the world today that caused Bibi to end his family’s summer vacation in the middle in order to have an emergency meeting with his Deputy Prime Minister (Boogey Ya’alon) after that Deputy Prime Minister committed a “crime” of meeting with Manhigut Yehudit supporters. There is only one man who forces Bibi’s hand in the Central Committee, defeats him time and again in the Likud court and grabs enormous public attention away from King Bibi all of the time. The name of that man? Well, it’s NOT Ketzaleh, Marzel, Eidelberg or Rabbi Melamed. It’s not even – L’havdil – Obama, Ahmadinejad, Assad or Mubarak. It’s Moshe Feiglin.
That is point #4.
Everyone should know that we love Ketzaleh dearly, respect him tremendously for all that he has done for our people and think that he is a true Jewish hero… but on THIS POINT, he is TOTALLY mistaken and 100% wrong. We need to work TOGETHER to change the leadership and that can ONLY be done within the Likud party.
Allow me to end with this last question: Everybody told me that Barak Obama ran an incredible presidential campaign; Internet, YouTube, slogans like “Change” and “Hope” etc… Had he run the EXACT campaign – word for word and dollar for dollar – NOT as the Democratic candidate but as an Independent candidate – would he be president today?
It is common knowledge that in order to become president of the USA, you have to be either Republican or Democrat. That is some kind of “unwritten rule” and will probably not change for the next 50 years. Israel works the same way. If you come from the national camp and want to be the Prime Minister, you MUST FIRST rise to a leadership position within Likud. This is why Manhigut Yehudit is there. Ariel Sharon came from Likud and so did Olmert and Livni. Lieberman was General Manager of Likud. Like it or not, the Likud is the incubator for leadership in Israel and if you want to lead Israel – something that Moshe Feiglin truly wants to do – you MUST do it through Likud.
(YWN Desk – Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
There are just a handful of honest people in Israel’s political theater.
So sad that they feel they have to fight against each other.
Ketzaleh was “played out” by tricky Bibi after the election & he thinks he can blame Feiglin!
Ketzaleh, get your bearings right & call Bibi an impostor!
Ketzeleh is a grat man. But he is a prisoner of outmoded ideas. He and his followers must join Likud to help exert pressure on Bibi from within. Unfortunately, he can do nothing from outside the Likud. Same goes for Aryeh Eldad and all other honest lovers of Israel.
Moshe Feiglin could possibly be Israel’s 1st Frum Prime Minister…..What a mechaye to hear an Israeli political leader utter the words “Boruch Hashem”!!!
A friend of mine who considers himself a political “Maven” told me that “Feiglin hasen’t got a chance!” I reminded him that he also said that about Obama during his primary with Hillary!
…In politics you just never know!
BiMechilas Kvodo Shel YWN:
At least 99.9% of what you do is wonderful and is definitely a Kiddush HASHEM. But, unfortunately, we — and you, as well — are only human, and, therefore, not perfect.
This article definitely falls in the other 0.1%:
* It is an opinion piece, and should be labelled as such.
* By repeatedly (ad nauseum) urging Israelis to vote Likud, Moshe Feiglin is at least partly to blame for the current Netanyahu debacle.
* Many of us are unhappy with some of the devious actions of Mr. Feiglin and his supporters; e.g., calling their weekly political sheets “Divrei Torah” to fool American Rabbanim and Gabbaim into distributing them in Shul on Shabbos Kodesh together with genuine Parshas HaShavua sheets.
However, your point that good Jews should work together for Klal Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael and not blame each other is well taken.
Editors Note: Kindly read the headline. It clearly says “opinion”. Additionally, doesn’t it say it’s a letter written by someone? Where does this say anywhere that it’s an article?
Commenter #3 wrote: “Moshe Feiglin could possibly be Israel’s 1st frum Prime Minister…..What a mechaye to hear an Israeli political leader utter the words “Boruch Hashem!”
I fully agree with you. And the sooner more Bnai Torah from America make aliyah, the sooner they will tip the balance in Feiglin’s favour with their voting power. When Bnai Torah start arriving in ever larger numbers, we’ll all be saying “Baruch HaShem.” American Jews, it’s time for you to come home and stand up for Torah in our beloved Eretz Yisrael.
To editor of YWN: It says it is an article in the 2nd paragraph:
“To understand what is really going on, it is important to be able to reflect on the facts in an orderly manner, which is what I propose to do in this article.”