Is Buji prepared to defy the will of the majority in his faction for the sake of the last remaining unmanned first-tier ministerial portfolio – the Foreign Ministry? Netanyahu wants him very much to take it, for two reasons. One — he believes Herzog would do a better job representing Israel than, say, Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Likud), should Hillary Clinton win in November. Two — Netanyahu promised the foreign ministry to two bigwigs in his own Likud party, Israel Katz and Gilad Erdan; being “forced” to hand the office to Buji would spare Bibi the needless internal strife should either of his betrothed claim the prize.
But while Barak was able to pull a Barak with only five MKs, the rules have changed since, and Buji would need at least seven MKs, and Bibi would probably demand at least eight signatures, to split the Labor party for the second time in less than five years.
Can Habayit Hayehudi survive the expulsions? Actually, it might empower it to come back next time with as many as double its current seats. Several polls have given Bennett’s party as many as 16 seats, compared with his current 8. It would also solidify Habayit Hayehudi as the authoritative rightwing, pro-settlement party, as its members would spend the next two years giving Bibi hell for every anti-settlement move he is planning. Currently Likud is showing with a drop of 3 seats in the polls — with Bennett out, this number could also double.