For one of the few times in the history of his party, Yisrael Beitenu, Avigdor Lieberman is going into the Opposition. He has turned down Bibi Netanyahu’s offer of the foreign ministry to retreat to the back benches. He claims that the Likud-led government will lack principle and refuse to destroy Hamas, among other charges.
If you know anything about Israeli politics, you know that political parties do NOT forfeit such political plums when they’re in their grasp. I’m certain there is another reason for his refusal, though I’m not certain what it is.
The problem is, Bibi has almost no time left to make new deals. His negotiating window was already extended once by Pres. Rivlin. This could mean Netanyahu will lead an exceedingly precarious government which could fall at the slightest breeze wafted by any of the coalition members.
Other reasons Lieberman may’ve balked: he is a devout secularist and has spoken out against including religious parties in previous coalitions. This one is certain to have at least two Orthodox parties (one Ashkenazi and the other Mizrahi). Perhaps Lieberman was refused a grant of immunity for his MKs and party members enveloped in a major corruption scandal. Or the chemistry between Bibi and Yvet had simply become too poisoned.
This theory may be borne out in this searing, slashing attack released by the prime minister’s office and reported by Voice of Israel radio:
A senior Likud source responds to foreign minister Lieberman’s attack on Prime Minister Netanyahu saying that the chair of Yisrael Beitenu is the last person to be teaching lessons about opportunism, since he is the greatest of opportunists…That’s why he’s now sabotaging the current political process in favor of a leftist government led by Herzog.
The source accused Lieberman of serving foreign interests both inside Israel and abroad [a reference to his ‘close ties’ to Russia] in contrast to his promise to his supporters that he would support the creation of a “national” [i.e. nationalist] government.
This is a fascinating charge against Lieberman that never seems to go away. A few years ago I reported on an anonymous flyer disseminated in Jerusalem explicitly charging him with being a Russian asset. Haaretz has also reported the Shin Bet refused to give Lieberman full briefings on matters related to Russia for fear that he would relay them to his contacts there.
There’s also innuendo appearing to claim that Russia wants a leftist governing coalition and the Lieberman is doing that country’s bidding in withdrawing support for Netanyahu. The only other way to describe this is that it accuses Lieberman of doing the bidding of the U.S. in conniving to bring a Labor government to power. But the notion that Lieberman’s in the pocket of the Obama administration seems far-fetched. But note that didn’t stop Netanyahu on Election Day from claiming the Labor Party had collaborated with “foreign money” to bring Communists and Arabs to power to the country.
The level of paranoia in this statement is characteristic of Bibi’s governing style. It’s almost Shakespearean in proportions (think Lady Macbeth). The only difference is that presumably Bibi won’t conspire to murder his rivals as she did.
The next question is who is rewarded with the foreign ministry. It doesn’t appear there are any parties needing to be wooed with a juicy plum. So the portfolio could go to a Likud loyalist.
At any rate, Lieberman is out and it changes the dynamics of Israeli politics going forward. As I’ve written here, the biggest losers in the election were Lieberman, Yair Lapid, and Naftali Bennet, whose party representations fell by half or more. The biggest winner was Moshe Kahlon, founder of the new party, Kulanu. Kahlon has a powerful mandate for economic reform in response to the calls for social justice from the Tel Aviv Occupy movement known as J14.
Personally, I don’t believe Kahlon can or will engineer such major reforms. The prerogatives of Israel’s 18 oligarchal families are too entrenched. Netanyahu always maneuvers to frustrate the agendas of his internal rivals. Plus, Israel is a society designed for stasis, nor revolutionary change.
But if Kahlon dies manage to succeed, he is Bibi’s logical successor for leadership of the Likud when he retires from politics. Kahlon projects a softer, more pragmatic image than Bibi, at least on social and economic issues. This could mean a Likud that moderates its tone (rather than substance) somewhat.
Here is Yossi Verter’s analysis of the current political predicament in Haaretz (Hebrew).
Bennet wants the Foreign Ministry portfolio. Big time.
For the life of me I have no idea where you got the idea about Kahlon beings Bibi’s “natural successor.” The Israeli public for better or worse loves it leaders charismatic – which is the last thing Kahlon is.
Bennet is Bibi’s natural successor on the right – that’s why Bibi squashes him every and any chance he has. Interesting how Israeli politics comes across in America…
@ Harry: Bennet was trounced in the election. Lost half his seats in Knesset. He’s not a natural successor if he can’t beat Bibi at his own game.
“The only thing that scares Bibi more than losing these elections is winning them”.
Lieberman has a good reason to stay out of this coalition: this government, as almost any other one in Israel’s history, will dissolve sooner than later. Until then, this government is despised by the Israeli secular public seeing it as a robbery of the state by the unproductive, greedy, ultra-religious. Bibi won these elections thanks to the Israeli public’s hate of Arabs and leftists (almost as bad as Arabs in the eyes of the voters, apparently), but the hate towards Ultrareligious is serious contender in this competition, and can yield large (even if ephemeral) electoral achievements, as Lapid, both father and son, can tell. Whatever he can achieve during this government time for his electorate and himself (not necessarily in this order), he can get better by just waiting outside a short time.
@Richard Silverstein: I’d say that Bennet has just beaten Bibi at his own game.
He lost a third of the seats he had in the previous government – and has more representatives in higher positions according to the deal due to be signed in the next few hours barring rabbits that Bibi might pull out of his hat in the interim.
I’d say that Bennet who is a newbie to politics has just demonstrated extraordinary nerve regardless if you hate what he represents. He also gets to blindside his intra-party opponents leaving them with junior positions.
2 senior ministerial positions (Education and Ministry of Justice ) and 2 representatives in the exclusive security cabinet.
Lieberman is not a “Lieber Mann”.