Gantz insists that only he calls shot in party, after report that right-wingers opposed to Joint List partnership facing being booted, says he and Liberman agreed to work together
By Jacob Magid, TOI today, 5:23 pm
Head of the Blue and White party Benny Gantz (R) and Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman speak to the press after their meeting in Ramat Gan on March 9, 2020. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz and Yisrael Beytenu head Avigdor Liberman said Monday they would work together to form a government, as they wrapped up a meeting amid rampant speculation that their two parties were working to form a minority government reliant on outside support from the majority-Arab Joint List.
At the same time, two Blue and White MKs opposed to the formation of a government backed by the Joint List were told to toe the line or face expulsion from the party.
“We’ve just concluded a good meeting, where we discussed questions of fundamental principle and determined that we will work together to assemble a government that will pull Israel out of the political deadlock and avert a fourth round of elections,” Gantz told reporters at the Kfar Maccabiah hotel in Ramat Gan on Monday afternoon, with Liberman standing alongside him. “We’ll continue to discuss the details, formulate our common objectives, and move forward.”
Liberman added that a fourth election would be “the worst of all possible scenarios” and vowed to prevent such a development.The two declined to delve into specifics or reveal the type of government they seek to form, and Liberman said no decision on the matter would be made before President Reuven Rivlin tasks a lawmaker next week with forming a coalition.
Blue and White chair Benny Gantz (C) meeting with leaders of the Joint List alliance, Ayman Odeh (L) and Ahmed Tibi, October 31, 2019. (Ofek Avshalom)
Earlier Monday, senior officials in Blue and White told Channel 12 that the two MKs from the centrist alliance’s right-wing Telem flank were going to be kicked out of the party due to their opposition to a Joint List-backed minority government.
MKs Zvi Hauser and Yoaz Hendel have been given an ultimatum: Back the formation of a minority government relying on the outside support of the majority-Arab Joint List, or resign from the Knesset, the network had reported earlier.
Though neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud nor Blue and White mustered a majority of Knesset seats in last Monday’s election, and neither has a clear path to a majority coalition, the prime minister has the backing of 58 MKs and his Likud is the largest party. But if Yisrael Beytenu and the entire Joint List of mainly Arab parties were to recommend to Rivlin that Gantz form the new coalition, the Blue and White leader would have 62 backers.
Even if the three-member ultra-nationalist Balad faction of the Joint List chose not to back Gantz, as happened in September, the Blue and White leader would still have 59 seats backing him if Hauser and Hendel fall in line.
Gantz has spoken on the phone with the chairmen of three of the four factions in the majority-Arab Joint List, Ayman Odeh, Ahmad Tibi and Mansour Abbas. Balad head Mtanes Shihadeh was not included on the call, according to a Blue and White statement, which said the Blue and White chairman relayed his intention to form a coalition “that will serve all citizens of Israel, Jews and Arabs alike, and prevent a fourth election.”
On Sunday, Telem faction chair and Blue and White No. 3 Moshe Ya’alon held a meeting in Tel Aviv in which he tried to persuade the rebel lawmakers to support a minority government, but the conversation reportedly turned heated, and yelling could be heard from the other side of the door.
Following his Monday meeting with Liberman, Gantz responded to the Channel 12 report suggesting Hendel and Hauser’s days were numbered. He said in a statement that while many opinions are allowed in the party, “The chairman is the one who decides, not ‘senior officials,’” referring to the unnamed sources behind the report.
Liberman had also vowed not to work with the Joint List, but appeared to soften his stance in the name of pulling Israel out of a year of political deadlock.
On Sunday, he laid out five preconditions for his joining a potential coalition, consisting primarily of a set of secularist demands that have no chance of being accepted by Netanyahu’s ultra-Orthodox allies but were quickly accepted by Gantz.
Blue and White party leaders, from the left, Gabi Ashkenazi, Benny Gantz, Yair Lapid and Moshe Ya’alon greet their supporters at party headquarters after the first results of the elections in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
Likud has attempted to portray the Joint List as out of bounds of Israeli politics, terming them “terror supporters” and citing their opposition to Zionism and some extreme anti-Israel stances by members of Balad. Netanyahu said last week that their 15 seats were not part of the coalition-building “equation.”
To combat the perception that the Joint l;ist is beyond the pale, Blue and White is reportedly preparing to launch a media blitz to explain that in exchange for the support of the Joint List MKs, it will be agreeing to the same social-minded gestures to the Arab public that Likud has offered in the past.
It will then reportedly work to pass a budget before welcoming any other interested parties, including Likud, to join the coalition.
Under pressure from Likud, Blue and White repeatedly said during the election campaign it would not seek to form a government with the support of the Joint List.
So if they can Hendel & Hauser to agree to leave Blue/White Bibi would 61 MKs to form a government.
Gil Hoffman
@Gil_Hoffman
Breaking: In a blow to Gantz ‘s efforts to form a minority government,
Orly_Levy announces she won’t join a government backed by the extremist Balad party.
MKs Tzvi Hauser and Yoaz Hendel, who strongly oppose the formation of a minority government backed by the Joint List. They said Tuesday that they would remain in the Knesset and oppose the government, even if they were thrown out of Blue and White.
“Former Health Ministry Director General Professor Yoram Lass on Tuesday morning slammed the Health Ministry guidelines for preventing the spread of coronavirus.
In an interview with Channel 12, Lass said, “I’m going to say something that’s really hard to hear. For the sake of a few people who anyways don’t have a long life expectancy, you don’t ruin a country. You don’t ruin the world. You sacrifice [those people].”
“In the hospitals there are a million people hospitalized, and 5,000 of the million will die due to infection. That’s very dangerous. Its much more dangerous to die from infection in a hospital than from coronavirus. So you’re not going to go to the hospital? Normal people take risks, and certainly leaders [do]. The only thing that’s left is crazy Donald Trump. He said that last year 37,000 Americans died of flu and nothing happened, life went on. Now 22 people died, not 37,000. Think about it.
“The wild media is exaggerating the issue and it’s driving governments crazy. Governments are afraid of the public, the public is afraid of the governments, they feed off each other. Every time you see another crazy thing. You’ve gone crazy. In Italy there are 60 million people who haven’t yet died, only a few people died, like flu. I’m completely calm, it’s flu. Coronavirus is a light illness and the chance of dying from it is almost zero.”
In fact, in just over three months – since December 2019 – coronavirus has killed over 4,000 people globally.
Dr. Asher Shalmon, who runs the Health Ministry’s International Department, slammed Lass for his statements, saying: “I want to balance things out. The hysteria is not good, but neither is complacence.”
“Someone will understand you in a way that will endanger the public health. This is not flu, there is a similarity in symptoms and it’s true that most people have it lightly, but when [coronavirus] gets bad it’s a very serious disease.” ”
From today’s Arutz Sheva. My concern is that so many people, including Right MKs and ministers, will go into isolation, and then be unable to fight the conspiracy to form a government with anti-Zionist indirect representation. Perhaps these public-spirited MKs will be unable due to isolation to cast votes in the Knesset. I haven’t heard that antBlue-White, Left or Blue-White MKs have isolated themselves. I don’t think any of them will. Their only concern is power, not public health.
These folks (Gantz and Lapid) are like those who urged the people to build the Golden Calf. Perhaps Rivlin will resist…
“Will Netanyahu’s rivals band together to form a new government?
Blue and White leader Benny Gantz moves closer to securing the endorsement of Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman but the Joint Arab List has yet to pledge its support for his premiership.
by AP , Israel Hayom Staff Published on 03-10-2020 10:48 Last modified: 03-10-2020 13:20”
This is an A7 headline.
@ Bear Klein: Let’s hope they withstand the enormous pressure they are under, which according to A7 includes threatening phone calls.
“Lapid: “Establish a narrow government” with the cooperation of the Joint List
“I admit that this is not the government that we wanted, but it is far superior to the current paralysis,” Blue and White leader says.
Hezki Baruch, 10/03/20 10:36
Ya’alon, Ashkenazi and Lapid
Ya’alon, Ashkenazi and LapidMiriam Alster, Flash 90
In a Facebook post on Tuesday morning, MK Yair Lapid (Blue & White) backed away from previous assurances given during the election campaign and said that his party intends to establish a narrow minority government with the support of the Arab Joint List.
“I admit that this is not the government that we wanted,” Lapid wrote. “But it is far superior to the current paralysis. Such a government could make a budget, the government ministries would go back to work … and we can avoid mass layoffs in the economy.”
In his post, Lapid insisted that his preferred option is a unity government: “This is what we always wanted, and is what we would do today … with Gantz [as prime minister] first, as Netanyahu is facing a court case … The problem is that there’s no one to talk to. Bibi doesn’t want a unity government … which is why he’s pushing for a fourth round of elections, to try to get a coalition that will save him from prison. So, what’s left? Just two options, one hard, the second a disaster. They are either:
“Establish a narrow government with Yisrael Beytenu and Labor [and Meretz], leaving the door open for a unity government [with Likud]. Contrary to all the lies Bibi is spreading, the Joint [Arab List] will not be part of this government. They will vote once on the outside, and that will be an end of it. Bibi has cooperated with them in a similar way thousands of times …
“Or, we can go to a fourth round of elections, like Bibi wants … more elections, more hatred … What’s best for the State of Israel?” ”
From today’s Arutz Sheva.
“The pressure exerted on MKs Zvi Hauser and Yoaz Hendel from within their Blue and White party to agree to a minority government with outside support from the Joint List is mounting.
According to a report on Reshet Bet, over the past day the two have been receiving countless phone calls, curses and threats from party activists, presumably members of Yesh Atid, demanding they abide by the demand of the party’s chairman, Benny Gantz.
For the time being, Hendel and Hauser remain firm in their stance, making it clear to Gantz, as well as to the chairman of their movement, MK Moshe Ya’alon, that they do not intend to consent to such a minority government. Recall that the two were asked by the party leaders to agree to the minority government or resign, but made it clear that they did not intend to do either, even if that meant their removal from the party list in the future.
According to the report, the MKs have been receiving a huge number of threatening messages and phone calls with the aim of breaking their opposition, and the efforts are also expected to lead to demonstrations in front of the homes of the two.” This from today’s Arutz. Sheva.
@ Bear Klein:
Well, maybe you’re right, but there are still those 340,000 votes to be taken into account. Someone has to get them,, And then there are those fraudulent votes to be investigated, as they are likely doing right now.
Lieberman has dug into his position that for him to join Netanyahu, he must adopt Liberman’s position that Netanyahu must settle on a number of religious and state issues including that the Haredim must submit to the draft into the IDF at age 18. Lieberman seems more aligned with LIkud generally. It strikes me that if Liberman extracted a pledge from Netanyahu that if Netanyahui began to incrementally propose at least some of Lieberman’s views, Lieberman likely would have his Yisrael Betaynu join with Likud to form a manjority coalition government. I am surpised that Netanyahu and Lieberman can’t work out a compromise.
@ Edgar G.:
The right has 58 the vote count is not going to change I believe this just a formality at this point. Also Hendel & Hauser want a unity government at this point.
However, that said if B/W was stupid enough to throw them out of the party then the could vote with the Likud as independents. That is why I do not think they will throw them out now. They are trying to get them to resign which on their part what would that get them? Nothing I believe. Better to stay as MKs and vote with the Right Block.
@ Sebastien Zorn:Yes, Hendel & Hauser used to be Bibi’s very senior advisors. They hate his guts but ideologically very right-wing and principled. They are for a unity government as the best approach under the current circumstances.
@ Bear Klein:
LIKUD may have 59+ as the IDF and other votes have not been announced. Official announcement on 10th.
@ Bear Klein:
When Rivlin tasks Netanyahu with forming a Gvt why can’t those 3-and maybe more- bolt from B&W to LIKUD…….?
Were they the two who used to be Bibi’s aides? If they go over to Likud, now, will that give him 61 mandates or is he down to 58?
Blue and White MK Tropper will oppose minority government
3rd Blue and White MK to oppose move to establish minority government with outside support of the Joint Arab List.
It is Purim and Gantz is wearing the robes of Hayman!
He clearly has proven to be untrustworthy as he lied to the voters saying that he would NOT rely the Arab Joint List because their values are inconsistent with a Zionist worldview. Yet that is precisely what he is trying to do.
If Hendel & Hauser are kicked out of the B/W they can vote with the right-wing during the next Knesset as they are unable to kick them out of the Knesset. So this is a lose for B/W either way. So far they are holding very firm. When told they must acquiesce to what Gantz’s wants to do they stated this is NOT what was promised to them and the voters.
In fact they are encouraging protestors to push B/W not to do a deal with the Anti-Zionist meaning the Joint List!
See also this article in today’s Arutz Sheva:
“Blue and White compromises, will meet Balad
Blue and White officials to meet Joint Arab List representatives, including Balad party tomorrow.
Arutz Sheva Staff, 09/03/20 18:25
Blue and White leadership: Ya’alon, Lapid, Gantz
The Blue and White party will hold meetings with the Balad party, a senior official in the Joint Arab List stated Monday evening.
Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz had previously refrained from speaking with representatives of the Balad faction after it became clear that Balad would not support his candidacy for prime minister.
According to the official, Blue and White representatives will meet with representatives of the Joint List tomorrow, and officials from the Balad faction will also be in attendance.
He said that Blue and White would like to promote the establishment of a government that relies on support from outside the government and coalition.”
See also “ANALYSIS: How Blue and White is selling out the Jewish State
Gantz, Ya’alon are breaking their pre-election promise not to build coalition with anti-Zionist Arab parties,” by Johanna Visser, in today’s Arutz Sheva. And also my analysis of the effect of the coronavirus panic under the article “The Purim Story,” on this site.