Yisrael Beytenu leader lists civil marriage, public transport on Saturdays, and the abolishing of law against Shabbat trading as his ‘minimum’ requirements for joining coalition
Yisrael Beytenu leader MK Avigdor Liberman on Friday published a list of demands regarding religion and state, saying they are the absolute minimum to which his secular party will agree in any negotiations to form a coalition government.
In a post on his Facebook page, Liberman demanded the passing of a bill drafting members of the ultra-Orthodox community into the army, unchanged from its current form which was drawn up when he was still defense minister. The ultra-Orthodox parties, who represent a community that largely rejects the compulsory national army service, have demanded it be changed, reducing to annual quotas for call ups.
Liberman further said that a law governing the operation of mini-markets on Saturdays must be abolished. Under the so-called “mini-markets law,” passed last year, the interior minister has the power to oversee and reject local ordinances relating to whether businesses may remain open on Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest that runs from Friday evening until Saturday night.
Likewise, public transportation on Saturdays must be allowed at the discretion of each municipality, Liberman said. In Israel, buses and trains do not generally run in Jewish-majority cities on Friday night and Saturday before sundown. Secular Israelis have long chafed at their restricted mobility during the weekend and Tel Aviv recently launched a free minibus service to address the issue.
Furthermore, wrote Liberman, municipal rabbis must be given the authority to carry out conversions to Judaism and there must be unlimited rights to civil marriage.
Currently, Jewish marriage and conversion is controlled by the Orthodox Rabbinate which refuses to carry out civil marriages. Alternative routes to conversion is a key demand of the Russian-speaking community where many seek conversion to Judaism but are unwilling to adopt the ultra-Orthodox observance demanded by some parts of the Israeli rabbinate.
In addition, a government-agreed plan for a pluralistic prayer area at the Western Wall must be unfrozen and implemented, Liberman said.
“This minimum package is valid also today to anyone who is interested,” Liberman wrote.
Liberman stressed that he had published similar demands immediately after elections in September. A notable difference appeared to be that Liberman was no longer demanding that the ultra-Orthodox community implement the Education Ministry’s core curriculum, which has a focus on secular topics, in its own religious schools.
Channel 13 reported that ultra-Orthodox parties had asked Liberman to provide a final list of his demands after he said Thursday that had Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu been willing to compromise on religion and state issues, he would have joined a right-wing government alongside the religious parties.
Liberman — who refused to join a Netanyahu government in May over disagreements with ultra-Orthodox parties on the military draft law of ultra-Orthodox students — has been pushing for a unity government of Likud, Blue and White, and Yisrael Beytenu.
“We are a step away from unnecessary third elections,” Liberman wrote Friday and repeated his call for unity government.
Two rounds of elections, in April and September, failed to produce an elected government — a first in Israeli political history. The Knesset now has a December 11 deadline for lawmakers to agree on an MK to form a government, or parliament will be dissolved and third elections set, likely for March.
Since Likud’s Netanyahu and Blue and White’s Benny Gantz each failed to form a government following the September 17 election, there has been some speculation that another candidate, such as Likud’s MK Gideon Sa’ar or KNesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein, would use the period until December 11 to gather the 61 signatures of MKs that would see them tasked with forming a coalition.
@ Adam Dalgliesh:
Correct since May Yisrael Betenyu has been listed as the unity option. When we are talking historical or over the long term that has not been the case. The Arabs have been listed with the left for many years in polls but with the exception of or two cases they never supported the government. I think once when Rabin was the Prime Minister during Oslo if I remember correctly.
Yes, Saar would lose to Bibi in a primary most likely. However, if Bibi does not run obviously another Likundnik would mostly likely Saar or Barkat. Edelestein does have a chance. This alternative is what I am advocating as the best chance for the right to stay in power. Bibi is not likely going to be able to form a coalition. He has failed twice in a row.
@ Adam Dalgliesh:While Sa’ar does better than Bibi with the entire polling sample, Bibi does much better among Likud voters, suggesting that he is the favororite (at least for now) in a primary contest with Sa’ar.
@ Bear Klein: You are wrong about how Leiberman is listed, Bear.Yisrael Beiteinu has been consistently described in all of Jeremy’s polls since May as favoring a unity government, and not being a part of either of the two major blocs. Check it out for yourself, Bear.
You are correct, though, that the poll shows Sa’ar doing better than Netanyahu as the head of the Likud list. I missed that.
@ Adam Dalgliesh:The same poll also had a scenario poll with Saar running in lieu of Bibi and the right wing block got 60 seats. Just scroll down on the site a bit.
By the way it is not new that they list the Arabs as part of the left, that has been going on for a long time, in-spite of them not sitting in governments. What is new is that Liberman is listed separate as pushing a unity government.
Latest Poll from Jeremy’s Knesset Insider (Nov.29, 2019).
Seems to show strength of “blocs” tied. Note that Jeremy and all other pollsters have consitently listed the Arab MKs as part of the “left,” pro-Blue and White bloc (see bold). The pollsters have been listing the Arab representatives as part of the Blue-White bloc in both recent elections as well as projections for the possible third election.
One can sign more than one list. If one MK gets 61 signatures he then has 14 days to form a coalition.
It is reported some on the right-wing block are hesitating or not signing the List for Bibi.
According to today’s Arutz Sheva, both Likud and Blue-White are attempting to put together 61 signatures for a government by December 11. But neither at this point has much prospect of amassing 61 signatures.
Lieberman, for his part, intends to sign up his eight MKs to a petition calling for a unity government.
Unless Leiberman agrees to give up some of his demands and objections and sign for one of the two bloc leaders, there will be a third election. Since he has made it clear on many occasions that he prefers Gantz and Blue-White to Likud, I think there is still a chance that he will agree to overcome his scruples and objections to working with the Arabs and will sign for Gantz. That would give Gantz the votes he needs to to form a government without an election. Otherwise, Leiberman may end up getting the blame for forcing a third election by the voters, lose seats, and be excluded from holding any position in the next government.
I have bolded the fact that Gantz does intend to solicit the signatures of the Arab anti-Zionist MKs for his petition to President Rivlin. I think that is indicative of how and with whom he intends to govern.
Migdam poll asked the following:
Do you agree with Saar that Netanyahu can’t form a coalition?
54% Yes, 26% No, 20% Don’t know
Right: 41% Yes, 40% No, 19% Don’t know
Center-Left: 77% Yes, 16% Don’t know, 7% No
To the majority it is clear that Bibi’s best days are behind him. Unfortunately as it maybe this is reality. For the good of the country Bibi should not run in the next Likud primary. If he does not run Edeltstein, Saar and Barkat will run at a minimum . It is also possible Katz and Erdan will run.
Maagar Mochot poll also showed:
Following the indictment should Netanyahu resign?
43% Resign, 35% Keep serving, 12% Recuse himself, 10% Don’t know
So 55% want him to stop being Prime Minister!
The public believes that Likud leadership contender Gideon Sa’ar has the fitting skills to be prime minister, while giving poor grades to Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a Smith Research poll taken for the Maariv newspaper.
The poll asked whether Sa’ar and Gantz had the skills needed to be prime minister. Among those who expressed an opinion, 58% said Sa’ar had those skills and 42% said he did not, while 48% said Gantz had those skills and 52% said he did not.
Both Gantz and Sa’ar received better results among Blue and White voters than those who cast ballots for Likud, Sa’ar’s party. Conclusion Saar has a better chance of actually forming a government that Bibi who has twice failed while not under indictment. Now that he is under indictment he certainly will not do better if not worse or signifcantly worse.
Saar keeps trending higher in subsequent polls. As Likud and others get used to his candidacy and come to grips with the fact that Bibi is on his way out in short order, his acceptance is growing with many.
Recent Poll shows increase in Saar standing with Right Wing Block Larger with Saar as head of Likud, than if Bibi is head of Likud.
Maagar Mochot conducted a poll of 481 people with a 4.1% margin of error that was published by Maariv on November 28 2019. The poll was conducted the same day. The following day the poll will be broadcast on 103 FM with additional information.
33 [33] Blue & White (Gantz)
28 [32] Likud (Saar)
14 [13] The Joint List – Hadash-Taal-Raam-Balad (Odeh)
12 [03] HaYamin HeHadash (Bennett)
11 [09] Shas (Deri)
09 [08] Yisrael Beitenu (Lieberman)
09 [07] United Torah Judaism (Litzman)
04 [06] Labor (A.Peretz)
Under 3.25% Electoral Threshold
00 [05] Democratic Union (Horowitz)
00 [04] United Right List (R.Peretz)
00 [–-] Otzma (Ben Gvir)
Phase 2 Recommendations:
60 [55] Right-Religious Bloc (Nominated Netanyahu in Phase 2)
51 [54/57] Center-Left-Arab Bloc (Nominated Gantz in Phase 2)
09 [08/11] Pushing Unity Government (Did not nominate)
*Balad which was part of the Joint List withdrew the recommendations of their 3 MKs.
This is from the American haredi site Hamodia, but based on the poll conducted by Israel Hayom:
The Jerusalem Post has been giving a lot of favorable publicity to Sa’ar and more or less openly backing his challenge to Bibi. However, if the Israel Hayom poll is at least approximately correct on this point, he doesn’t stand much of a chance in a primary challenge against Bibi. And in a general election, the Likud would probably do worse with Sa’ar heading the list instead of Bibi. After all, all Likud voters know who Bibi is, and he was very popular in his own party before his legal troubles came to ahead. And he is still surprisingly popular among Likud voters even now. I doubt if many Likud voters are familiar with Sa’ar who has been in the news much less often than Bibi over the years. Voters usually prefer well-known over unknown politicians.
Liberman refuses to sit with the Arab parties and the far left Democratic Union(Meretz) and vica-versa. Also Telem and some others do not want to sit with the Arab parties.
Also Israeli law requires a budget passed per year. Minority governments fall because if they can NOT get 61 votes for a budget then the country has to go to elections.
Liberman is not a nice guy to say the least and he is not someone I would ever consider voting for. He has constituency that he caters to they are right-wing, secular and primarily older and mostly from the former Soviet Union.
They like his platform and his views on religion/state issues. That is why is his party grew several seats in the Knesset. That is why he is persistent in his demands. He is addressing his audience and not the UTJ/Shas when he speaks because he does not believe they would meet him even a quarter of the way. The draft bill they rejected was soft and previously agreed to by all but one faction of the UTJ (basically one rabbi) and was agreed to by the Shas. He was then presented with meaningless compromises which would have given the UTJ/Shas a veto over any draft of the Haredim. This law was required by the Supreme Court as the draft needed by law to be equitable.
The Likud was always in the opposition until Begin made a partnership with a Sephardic Religious party. The Likud stays the course with its religious partners UTJ/Shas because without them they have no reliable coalition partners excluding the New Right and Bayit Yehudi. This puts them out of the mainstream of Israeli society on religion/state issues and views.
Liberman is clearly not reliable and his views are the opposite of the UTJ/Shas. Shaked thinks with some effort the gap between Liberman and the UTJ/Shas could be bridged. I do not see how but I hope she is correct.
@ Wooly Mammoth:
I agree with you in nearly everything, and I can’t think right now with what I don’t agree.
@ Adam Dalgliesh:
You end up with the same monstruosity as before: a minority government. Arabs included, something Lieberman at least is wise enough to reject. But, being Lieberman, I cannot be confident of that, either.
@ Wooly Mammoth: I agree, Wooly
Adam’s “Expert” Political Forecast
Lieberman knows that the haredi parties can never agree to his demands, because they contradict their core religion-political values and those of their constituents. Both haredi parties are close to the two chief rabbis as well, and will never agree to limit their powers. I suspect that Leiberman is just going through the motions of claiming to be willing to to join a rightwing government, or a national unity government, in order to appease public opinion. He makes one demand or another that most of his potential coalition partners won’t agree to. And he is a sophisticated and experienced enough politician to realize this.
I still think Gantz should be able to line up the necessary 61 signatures to form a government by December 11. That is almost two weeks from today. All he has to do is sweet-talk everyone with private assurances that he will comply with their minimum demands for joining his coalition–even if he has to walk back some of these promises later, and even if he has to make contradictory promises to different groups. Gantz’s penchant for secrecy and not committing himself to policies in public should make this an easy task for him. Quite possibly he is working hard on this project right now in secret and will soon have an announcement to make.
For example, he could make vaguely worded promises to Leiberman that will give him the impression that he will accept Leiberman’s advice on all national security issues, without quite committing himself to this in so many words. Contrariwise, he could hint to the Arab parties that, while he won’t commit himself to accept their recommendations about national security issues, he will listen to their advice and give their views serious consideration. Even if the other party leaders are sceptical of his promises, they will give them the rationale they require to sign a 61-vote petition of Gantz’s behalf by December 11. One would think they will be willing to sign, because that would enable them to take power immediately. If they let Likud stay in power until March, they will be taking a risk.
Even if some of his initial coalition partners later decide to withdraw their support for his government and accuse him of reneging on his promises, Gantz and Blue-and White can remain in office as a minority party. The way Israel’s current law on government continuity reads, removing a sitting government requires a 61-member petition endorsing some other individual as a replacement prime minister. It is highly unlikely that 61 members of the Knesset, because Blue-White would probably remain loyal to Gantz and Lapid, while the “left” and “right” parties, and much the less the Arabs, will be unable to agree on a candidate to replace him before the next elections. The differences between the parties to the “left” of Blue White and to the “right” of it will mean they will not be able to agree on a “replacement” Prime Minister. Gantz and (after two years) Lapid will be able to complete their term of office, even if not especially popular.
Better a government without Lieberman than a country with.
Oh my. This diaspora Jew prays for Israel always. Find a way through this morass.
The problem is that Lieberman projects an unsympathetic attitude towards significant segments of the observant community.
It is well known that such communities are quite complex in their make up and are therefore difficult to impossible to generalize about.
If Avigdor were a bit more sympathetic and/or rheasonable the positions of the various players could probably be bridged.
However, the insistence that Likud form a unity government with ‘Black and Blue’ is stupid, as Gant and Hop Along Ya’alon are not compatible with Lieberman’s own red lines.
For these reasons, Lieberman and/or ‘Black and Blue’ deserves to lose support in the next election in favor of The Likud and the party of N. Bennet.
Bennet is doing a superb job. He was extremely patient and for good reason. PM Netanyahu had to be convinced before he would commit to a key ministerial appointment which could very well serve as fait accompli appointment for heir apparent, especially since he felt as though he could continue on as PM for some considerable time, virtually forever, which is essentially devoting your entire life to this existence.
In so doing, it would be quite understandable that a PM who really does care about Israel’s future would be very cautious about appointing an up and coming prince to the post of Defense Minister. Yet now he has.
Bennet’s clear headed intiative to recalibrate Israel’s deterrence could result in the saving of countless lives and he has only just begun.
Netanyahu’s decision to grant MK Bennet The Defense portfolio, whether it is argued that he had no other choice by his detractors is beside the point.
Now that the public can finally understand what Bennet is capable of and how important it is to prevent a government which will create a Palestinian State and alienate a large segment of Israeli society perhaps they will do the right thing and support Netanyahu and Bennet.
If Lieberman is reasonable, he can get tremendous progress on opening the IDF to segments of the community which has special needs. There are many ways to serve Israel. Lieberman needs to grow a heart.