There’s something appropriate that the upcoming Israeli elections are being held so soon after the Purim holiday.
I would venture to say it’s the only explanation for the mishaps, mistakes, and clown-like behavior.
Let’s start with Tzipi Livni (Hatnua).
The polls showed that Livni was unlikely to pass the electoral threshold, yet both Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) and Yitzchak Herzog (Labor) courted and chased after Livni as if she was the last girl on Earth.
Like King Achashverosh of Shushan, Herzog offered Livni half his kingdom, though unlike Achahverosh, Herzog doesn’t actually have a kingdom to offer, but then again, Livni doesn’t have anything to offer in return either.
And when these two sycophants agreed to merge with one another (to the dismay of most of the MKs in the Labor party), Livni and Herzog’s “brilliant” campaign strategy to gain votes was to change the merged party’s name into “The Zionist Camp”, a name selected solely as an attempt to outwit the campaign slogans of their competitors and the Right – and not because it has much connection to reality.
(But that’s typical of the Left, hijacking normal words and phrases, corrupting them so badly they can no longer be used in their proper context – just look how they’ve corrupted the term “Freedom of Speech” — now it means shutting down newspapers.)
The two can only hope they don’t confuse and turn off their Left-wing voters who don’t want to vote for the Zionist camp.
And then we have Aryeh Deri. Like on Purim, Deri is drunk on power.
Deri is so afraid of Eli Yishai, as Yishai is considered the better, more honest, the more popular, and the more capable politician, that Deri did everything to push Yishai down and out – even though polls showed that Shas with Yishai at its head would win 2 seats more than Shas with Deri in charge.
As a result, Shas is likely to crash, and whatever new party Yishai forms will do well – which is good, because we know where Yishai stands and what he’s capable of, and his record doesn’t include jail time.
And then we have our friends in Bayit Yehudi – both sides standing up so hard for their principles that they’re just going to split the party that has the potential to become the second largest in the Knesset.
It’s right out of a Purim Shpiel, or maybe just a Greek tragedy.
And finally, there’s Avigdor Liberman.
Yes, Avigdor. The man who claims he is the most responsible adult in the room.
The man, who after the 2009 election, disappeared overseas for days, right in the middle of the February coalition negotiations, forgetting his cell phone at home, and leaving the country stuck in neutral, as he played power games and kingmaker with Netanyahu and Livni.
And yes, here is Mr. Responsible Adult, once again, playing the same childish games.
Once again Liberman won’t say if he will support the Right or Left. In fact he came out yesterday and explicitly said he might very well support Livni and Herzog for Prime Minister.
It sounded earily similar to what Liberman told Radio Kol Yisrael in 2009 (via A7), before disappearing:
“Our position is already clear and I know exactly what I am going to tell President Shimon Peres. In order to know whom we are going to recommend, we will wait six more days. I think it is too early and there is no point saying whom we support. I have met with both Livni and Netanyahu and with additional people in the political system but my position is already clear and solid. When we go to the President we will say very clear things.”