Unlike most Right Israelis, I wouldn’t at all be afraid of seeing Binyamin Netanyahu’s Likud in the Opposition.
Please remember that unlike the American and many other political/governmental systems, the losers of the Israeli elections do have official roles as Opposition.
When in the coalition an MK or minister is shackled by “coalition discipline.” It was the constant anti-government/coalition statements of Justice Minister Tsippi Livni and Treasury Minister Yair Lapid that tried the patience of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and finally convinced him to fire them and announce new elections. Now he has a smaller, tighter minimal coalition of 61 MKs, rather than the unruly large coalition he had last time.
Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid-There’s a Future Party is very Center-Left, but now that it lost support and is in the dog house aka Opposition, we’re hearing some Right sounding statements from his MKs:
‘Government is negotiating with Hamas under our noses’
Charging that instead of fighting terrorism forcefully the government is talking to Hamas, MK Haim Jelin (Yesh Atid), the former chairman of the Eshkol Regional Council near the Gaza border, on Wednesday took issue with the term “trickle” to describe recent attacks.
“This isn’t a trickle. Terrorism must be fought with determination and force, the same force with which we founded the country,” said in a plenum discussion.
“The residents of Gaza border towns deserve quiet and security and determination from the government so we can raise our children in peace like in any other place in Israel.”
Instead, Jelin posited, “There are negotiations between Hamas and Israel under our noses, via foreign embassies, and don’t try to fool us.
“I ask, in the name of Gaza-border residents: Why now?” he said of the alleged talks. (Jerusalem Post)
None of this surprises me, especially because the last few wars (aka “operations”) Israel suffered through were so pathetic.
Israeli residents in the north and south have been complaining that there are still sounds from underground of tunnels being built by terrorists.
Nobody believes the government any more.
I honestly think that it would be good for the Likud to be in a position to stop defending its Centrist policies. Of course, Leftist Labor leader Herzog would keep on blaming Bibi for all the problems, and in some ways he’d be right, though not Right in his solutions. But in the Opposition, Likud will rediscover its Right ideology, G-d willing.
Let’s see what the future holds for us. Unfortunately it seems like there will be another awful war. We must destroy our enemies and not continue to put up with the “drizzle,” “trickle” and “rain of rockets.”
ZERO TOLERANCE!!!!
That is the only policy that will bring us peace and quiet!!!