The Blue and White platform – a balancing act of right and left

19 Comments / 19 Comments

1. @ Adam Dalgliesh:
   Lapid would be dangerous a Prime Minister I concur with the article from Yesha World.you posted.

2. This is from Yesha World, which although based in New York, has remarkably good coverage of Israel and general (non just haredi) news.

   Following a Hezbollah attack on northern Israel on Sunday, Blue and White leader Benny Gantz announced that he ordered a suspension of Blue and White’s election campaign. “There is no opposition or coalition regarding action against anyone who tries to harm Israeli citizens or Israeli sovereignty,” Gantz said on Sunday. “In light of the security situation, I ordered that our election campaign be suspended at this time.”

   “The government of Lebanon needs to know that it will bear responsibility for every terror act which is carried out from its territory,” Gantz warned. “We know that the IDF and Israeli security forces are prepared for every challenge and we don’t recommend that anyone try to test us.”

   Gantz’s fellow Blue and White leader, MK Yair Lapid, reacted to the tense situation in northern Israel a bit differently than Gantz. In his usual manner of playing the “blame game” Lapid didn’t hesitate to take advantage of Hezbollah’s missile barrage for his own political purposes. “The children in the north are in shelters for only one reason – because Bibi breached the successful policy of ambiguity due to the elections. This is what happens when the prime minister plays politics at the expense of security.”

   The Likud party released a statement responding to Lapid’s attack: “Yair Lapid…attacked the prime minister in the very moments that he was managing a complex security incident in the north – with responsibility and determination. Lapid made a grave error by choosing to engage in petty politics at the expense of IDF soldiers as they fight Hezbollah.”

   “At the same moment that Lapid tweeted his lies, [Benny] Gantz announced that he is suspending his election campaign,” the Likud statement continued. “As usual, there’s a lack of coordination between Lapid and Gantz. It’s forbidden to allow a dangerous and irresponsible person like Yair Lapid to be prime minister.”

3. Lapid came out very directly against any annexation without a peace deal with the Pals. Not so balanced but a completely left wing view.

   If someone wants a right wing government and annexation they should vote for Yamina. If the Likud needs Blue/White to create a coalition the government according to Lapid will not be able to apply any Israeli Civil Law (annexation) to even the Blocks let alone all the Jewish Towns and Area C as Yamina wants to do.

4. Another Jpost published article about the election. Hint it is not anti Bibi or Likud and is an analysis of the elections.

   Polls, attempted putsches and ayatollahs

   With less than three weeks left before the September 17 Knesset elections, the only two issues on which the Right and Left seem to agree is that neither bloc will be able to form a coalition, and that voter turnout is going to be lower than ever. This sad consensus was born of, and continues to be bred by, polls.

   The question of whether surveys reflect or shape public sentiment is not new. Nor is the discussion about their accuracy, particularly in the mass-communication age, when reaching voters can no longer be done by calling random numbers in what have become obsolete phone books. Furthermore, as post-election analysts around the world point out when faced with unexpected ballot-box outcomes, people lie to pollsters, or change their minds at the last minute.

   The April 9 elections that ended in an impasse, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu ultimately unable to form a government, deserve to be relegated to a different category, however.

   The surprise there was that Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman refused to join the right-wing camp to which he had previously belonged. Had he not pulled a stunt to thwart Netanyahu, his measly five mandates would have enabled the ruling Likud Party to lead a clear majority. This was not something that pollsters – whose pie charts had put Yisrael Beytenu on the same side as Likud – could have predicted.

   At least this time around, they don’t need to guess. Liberman has made it clear since April 10 that he will only join a coalition that excludes the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties.

   Rather than being punished for pretending that he has been standing on principle – when his higher aim all along has been to oust and eventually replace Netanyahu – Liberman has been rewarded. In the polls, that is, according to which he has doubled his seats, you know, for ostensibly being a lone champion of synagogue-state separation.

   Herein lies the rub. The only way to keep the haredim on the back benches of the Knesset is through the creation of a national-unity government between Likud and Blue and White, headed by Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid. Oh, and of course with Yisrael Beytenu, though why the two largest parties would need Liberman if they joined forces is not clear. This point is moot at the moment anyway, since Blue and White has announced that it will not agree to such an arrangement as long as Netanyahu remains chairman of Likud.

   To tackle this little hurdle, Liberman’s latest maneuver has involved encouraging an anti-Netanyahu putsch within Likud.

   ACCORDING TO a Ynet report on Wednesday, in a “closed” gathering of Yisrael Beytenu activists at the party’s Or Yehuda campaign branch headquarters, Liberman recounted meeting this week with many MKs, mayors and Likud Central Committee members who, he claimed, are “praying” for Netanyahu to fail.

   “It’s hard to believe how the very people who not long ago signed a declaration of loyalty to Netanyahu are so desperate to get rid of him,” Liberman reportedly said.

   He also quoted these unnamed Likud sources as having stated that if Netanyahu does not succeed in garnering the 61-seat bloc he needs to form the next government, they will reject another disbanding of the Knesset and additional round of elections. Instead, according to Liberman, they will use legal means to instate a temporary replacement for Netanyahu, and hold new primaries after the next government is up and running.

   The anti-Netanyahu press is none too fond of Blue and White in general, and of Gantz and Lapid in particular. Yet its adherence to the “anybody but Bibi” school of thoughtlessness is nothing if not intact.

   As a result, stories of internecine strife within Likud have been multiplying. Some are undoubtedly even true, since the goal of all politicians is to become head honcho, and internal party rivalries always exist. Likud politicians yearning for a shortcut to the top are no exception.

   The trouble is that, so far, no Likud member – or any other party leader for the last decade – has been deemed by the public to possess the leadership qualities or experience necessary to steer Israel through stormy weather. In fact, if Bibi had bowed out months ago, Likud’s popularity probably would have plummeted.

   This is why Gantz, Liberman and the left-wing media have been ramping up their focus on Netanyahu’s so-called “impending” indictments, though not a single one has been issued. That all of them appear to be pretty bogus is another matter, and indicates that Bibi’s opponents see no way of ousting him without police intervention.

   Which brings us back to the daily polls, which do not show any real fluctuation in support for Netanyahu in relation to his corruption probes. What they do illustrate is that his natural coalition partners are liable, like last time, to be detrimental. Small right-wing parties that do not pass the electoral threshold amount to thousands of wasted votes for the bloc, after all.

   So much for politics in general and dirty politics in particular. No wonder so many people are threatening not to show up on Election Day, and a host of others are scheduling their annual High Holiday vacations for mid-September, to avoid having to cast a ballot.

   THE GOOD NEWS, if there is anything positive about Israel’s current shadow-war with Iran, is that Netanyahu is at the helm. While fending off the forces at home working tirelessly to push him out at best and imprison him at worst, Bibi has been fighting an actual battle abroad to defend the country’s borders, from dispatching the IDF to strike Tehran-initiated targets in Syria, for example, to preventing the mass slaughter of Israelis on the Golan Heights and elsewhere in the Jewish state.

   He even summoned Gantz – who has no official capacity as the leader of the opposition – to participate in the brainstorming about how to counter the looming threat. But about this act of statesmanship on Netanyahu’s part, Gantz has had nothing to say, since it might put a dent in his narrative that Bibi is too preoccupied with his legal troubles and fear of electoral defeat to be governing.

   Talk about the pot calling the kettle a useless scrap of metal.

   Army Radio anchor Erez Tadmor summed up this hypocrisy in a Twitter post on Wednesday:

   “As Netanyahu moves from the Kirya [defense headquarters in Tel Aviv] to his office, and from meetings with the heads of the defense establishment to talks with world leaders, and manages a military campaign alongside a diplomatic one, Lapid, Gantz and their Blue and White lie factory are hopping from studio to studio, running a campaign claiming that Netanyahu cares only about Netanyahu. Shame is dead. It’s amazing that anybody still buys [their line].”

   Tadmor is an open Likud supporter, so his defense of Netanyahu may be nothing to gape at. But anecdotal evidence suggests his attitude might be gaining traction among a number of people who vowed not to back Bibi next month, and among some who did or did not vote for him in April. Admittedly, these are not liberals, but rather conservatives who hope for a ruling Likud-led coalition that will tilt heavily rightward.

   Realizing that this strategy could have the exact opposite effect – and usher in a left-wing government – such citizens are beginning to question the wisdom of ideological purity. Mullahs with their sights and missiles aimed at annihilating innocent Israelis will do that.

   Nobody knows at this point how large a group this actually is. And the polls predicting a repeat gridlock performance only serve to confuse the question further. They also contribute greatly to the growing public malaise with the system.

   For this sorry state of affairs to lead people to conclude that there’s no point in voting, however, is beyond mysterious. Now is not the time for apathy. On the contrary, it is a moment that requires each and every Israeli to show up and be counted.

   The ayatollahs are watching.

   Clearly the Post publishes articles that are also pro Bibi.
   https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Right-from-Wrong-Polls-attempted-putsches-and-ayatollahs-600127

5. @ Adam Dalgliesh:Nice try and good attempt at deflection. You are simply wrong and I will leave it at that. You made a serious of big pronouncements and have gone down rabbit holes trying to back them up but basically failed.

6. @ Bear Klein: Bear, in the end your judgment as to whether someone might have done wrong, or is biased, etc. always seems to boil down to the fact that they are your personal friends. I think that when someone is a public figure, such as a journalist or a politician, one should do one’s best to judge their conduct, opinions, etc. by an impartial assessment of whatever published information one receives about him/her, rather than assuming that all criticisms of him or her must be must be unfair because he/she is your friend.

7. @ Adam Dalgliesh:

   Frankly I think you have made an error in judgment. The Jpost views themselves as a news organization and not a partisan paper. For most papers unfortunately now a days that is highly unusual. HaAretz, Ynet, and TOI of Israel lean left or very far left in the case of HaAretz. Arutz 7 is right wing and Israel Today is right wing. The same can be said of the Hebrew papers.

   A couple of my current friends who work at the Post would disagree with you as they are voting Likud and have for years. Yes, the Post has assigned a writer to report on the Cases pending against the PM, as it is news.

   If the post were anti Bibi they would not have published the following article today:

   Netanyahu: Israel acted with determination, kept citizens safe
   “The man in the bunker in Beirut knows exactly why he is in the bunker,” he said, referring to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

   By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
   September 2, 2019 18:09

   “We acted with determination and responsibility yesterday,” Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benjamin Netanayhu said on Monday in a video message, adding that “We kept our citizens safe and maintained the peace of our soldiers.”
   
   “The man in the bunker in Beirut knows exactly why he is in the bunker,” he said, referring to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

   Full article at https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Netanyahu-Israel-acted-with-determination-kept-citizens-safe-600414

8. You are correct, Bear, that Katz does make some serious criticisms of Gantz towards the end of his editorial. He suggests that he doesn’t have sufficient political experience and savvy to be an effective leader. But we have to compare that to what Katz has to say about Bibi in the beginning of the article.

   At the end of July, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video in which he accused Benny Gantz of collaborating with the Obama administration to advance a plan that would have led to Israel withdrawing from most of the West Bank, including the Jordan Valley.

   The narrative in the video was far from the truth. Besides getting Gantz’s title right – IDF chief of staff – almost everything else was made up. Gantz was in the military at the time of the Obama administration, and didn’t set political policy. That was done by Netanyahu, who as prime minister, asked Gantz to work with General John Allen, who had been tasked by Barack Obama to prepare a plan that would ensure Israeli security in the event that it withdrew from parts of the West Bank.

   The plan never materialized, and work on it was stopped at a certain point by then-defense minister Moshe Ya’alon, who warned Netanyahu that a withdrawal from the Jordan Valley would pose an unimaginable threat to the Jewish state.
   This story stands out for one primary reason: it is the only example in these elections when material was used from highly secretive security consultations for political purposes. In this case, it was started by Netanyahu and then followed by Gantz, who responded with his version of what had happened.

   We also need to consider the over-all tone of the editorial. Katz says a great deal about Gantz,s positive qualities, although he also makes some criticisms of him. As far as I can see, he has nothing good to say about Netanyahu. He portrays him as dishonest, malicious, and even as a national security risk. There is no suggestion that any of this applies to Gantz. I believe that a reasonable person would conclude from this that while Gantz may be a flawed leader because of his political inexperience, Bibi is an absolutely awful leader who must be removed from office at all costs. The overwhelming majority of readers of the JP, in my opinion, will conclude that the JP editors think that they should vote for Blue and White or one of its political allies.

9. This is what some are now thinking about Gantz and the Blue/White.

   Chaos at the Blue and White HQ is testimony party chairman’s ineptitude
   Opinion: Conspiracies are emerging about double agents who have ties to Netanyahu and the Likud, leaks gossip and partial information reaching the media, all causing concern that Gantz is unprepared to lead the country.

   But Gantz’s conduct seems to give people outside the party access to sensitive information, such as finding the mole and locating leakers.

   It’s not clear why Gantz prefers to act solo and not confide in his partners to the leadership, Yair Lapid, Moshe Ayalon and Gabi Ashkenazi.

   All this doesn’t matter anymore, what does matter is the outcome.

   Gantz re-hired an advisor who had fallen out with Yair Lapid with whom he shares the leadership.

   That shows a lack in judgement.

10. @ Adam Dalgliesh:
    You are correct there are things that actually are facts which I believe you have missed in saying Katz endorsed Gantz ,while he actually was analyzing him as a candidate He has pointed out he has a clean reputation (positive), he has pointed out that he has made errors in campaigning and has shown no drive to be a tough campaigner (negatives). However, you say that is all that is negative in what factually is his analysis not endorsement of Gantz. He also said the following,

    There was the hacking of his phone ahead of the April election, and the report that came out on Wednesday that two of his cellphones were again recently hacked by the Russians. There is the ongoing tension within the party’s leadership, particularly between Gantz and Yair Lapid, and news that Gantz rehired publicist Ronen Zur despite the public fight he had with Lapid following the election four months ago.

    Blue and White members like to shrug off all of these problems as “bumps in the road.” That might be true, and the proof is in the numbers – right now polls show them steady at 30-to-31 seats.

    On the other hand, these so-called bumps might be indicative of a larger problem: what will Blue and White look like after the vote on September 17? Will it last as a unified bloc, or will it fall apart and be taken over by mudslinging between its different factions? And if Gantz can’t keep his party members in line, how will he succeed in managing a coalition with competing parties?

    
    This is throwing some real negative shade on Gantz’s capabilities to be Prime Minister and managing a coalition.

    My own view is that Gantz is too inexperienced to be the Prime Minister as he has no political experience. His brief business experience after retiring from the IDF was not successful.

    Bibi has all the experience in the world and has been very successful in many spheres for Israel. Yet he has become tainted by the cases looming against him. He has squashed possible Likud Prime Minister alternatives to him for years. It is not healthy for Israel for how long he has served. Just as Katz wrote in his analysis that the voters will have to decide what is best for Israel.

    I personally am tired of Netanyahu but trust Gantz and the Blue/White even less. Too bad Yamina led by Aylet Shaked will be no higher than the third largest party at best.

11. Blue and White chairman Gantz suspends campaign after Hezbollah missile barrage in the north. Minutes later, Lapid attacks Bibi.

    Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz
    Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz responded to the firing of anti-aircraft missiles at IDF forces along the northern border by Hezbollah on Sunday and ordered a temporary suspension of the party’s election campaign.

    “The Lebanese government needs to know that it will be held accountable for any terrorist activity carried out on its territory. We know that the IDF and security forces are prepared for every challenge and we do not recommend to anyone to put us to the test,” Gantz said.

    “Regarding action against anyone who tries to harm Israeli citizens or its sovereignty, there is no opposition and coalition,” Gantz continued. “In light of the security situation, I gave an order to suspend our campaign at this time.”

    Minutes later, fellow Blue and White leader MK Yair Lapid responded to the missile barrage on the northern border by attacking Netanyahu. “The children in the north are in shelters for only one reason: because Bibi violated the successful ambiguity policy due the elections,” Lapid said. “This is what happens when the prime minister plays politics at the expense of security.”

    MK Miki Zohar (Likud) responded to Lapid: “Where did you get this nonsense from? Do you know what happens when you play politics at the expense of the sensitive security situation? You lose elections.”

    Gantz plays the statesman and refuses to criticize Bibi or campaign in time of war. But at the same time, his No.2, Lapid, hits hard at Bibi. It looks to me like they are playing “Good cop, bad cop.”

12. Today’s Arutz Sheva has a very interesting report about Gantz and Lapid’s reaction to the most recent fighting between Israel and Hezbollah:

13. Katz does make some criticisms of Gantz, but they entirely focus on campaign “glitches.” On the other hand, he accuses Bibi of being a malicious liar. He praises Gantz’s integrity” to the skies, while making clear that he thinks Bibi has no integrity. It take no prophetic powers to see that heKatz prefers Gantz to Bibi as Prime Minister. Gantz is a statesman who sometimes makes political blunders; Bibi is a liar and a crook.

    Perception can generate opinions or more likely be generated by them. But it cannot create truth. As China’s late dictator Teng-Tsiao-ping observed, “learn truth from facts.”

14. @ Adam Dalgliesh:

    Perception is one’s own truth. The people that hate Bibi think he is dirty. As Katz says Gantz main strength is that he is not Bibi.

    I do not believe this anything but an analysis. He is not cheer leading for Bibi or Gantz If he was cheer leading he would not be bringing up his mistakes.

    “SINCE THE beginning though, Gantz’s campaign has been riddled with glitches. In December, the night before Gantz gave his first speech announcing he was entering politics, the text of his speech was leaked to Channel 12 News. In a single night he had to write a new one”

15. @ Bear Klein: Bear, while the article does criticize Gantz for not campaigning vigorously enough and ffor not hitting back at netanyahu, the contrast that Katz makes between an allegedly super-moral, super-clean, highly experienced Gantz and a super dirty scoundrelly Netanyahu is difficult to read as anything but an endorsement of Gantz. In effect, Katz is saying, “Maybe Gantz is too good and too pure for politics. But that’s preferable to having a ruthless immoral crook and criminal as Prime Minister” Minister.”

16. @ Adam Dalgliesh: I read the article and do NOT consider it an endorsement but an analysis with strengths and weaknesses of Gantz as a candidate . Quoting from the article.

    In politics though, it doesn’t work that way. You have to get your hands dirty, and you have to be willing to fight, if only to prove to the public that you really want the job. Voters don’t only consider ideology when they go to the ballots but also the candidate’s passion, and whether she or he has fire in their eyes.

    This is precisely Gantz’s problem. While he is still strong in polls – at about 30 seats – it seems that many of his voters are voting for him since they think he has the best chance to defeat Netanyahu. It is not that they want him necessarily; it is that they don’t want Netanyahu.

    His advisers are aware of this problem, and as a result they will focus in the two-and-a-half weeks left until the elections on his attributes: his integrity, his experience, his compassion and his cleanliness.

    SINCE THE beginning though, Gantz’s campaign has been riddled with glitches. In December, the night before Gantz gave his first speech announcing he was entering politics, the text of his speech was leaked to Channel 12 News. In a single night he had to write a new one.

    In March, he flew to Washington to speak at the AIPAC Policy Conference. His speech and delivery were impressive, and skeptics were impressed by his ability to shine on a stage usually reserved for Netanyahu. But then the next day, he went on Channel 12 for a live interview from Washington and had his famous “Yo, Yo, Yo, Yonit” slipup.

    If one cherry picks parts of the article one can get to whatever conclusion they want to show. This article is no endorsement but an analysis of the Benny Gantz as a candidate strong points and weak points.

17. The Jerusalem Post’s editor-in-chief Yaacov Katz has more or less explicitly endorsed Benny Gantz for Israel’s Prime Minister. In an editorial published on August 29 , (https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Editors-Notes-What-is-happening-to-Gantz-600124) Katz writes that”Gantz is a different breed of politician than other party leaders running in this election. He prefers not to sling mud…this is an admirable trait.” . . .people who know Gantz–even some of his political rivals–talk about his high integrity,. Playing dirty politics is just not him. or the way he wants to be remembered.. . . Katz praises “his integrity, his experience, his compassion and his cleanliness. What Gantz has going for him . . .is his Mr. Clean image. His reluctance to sling mud and launch personal and launch personal attacks, is a breath of fresh air in Israeli politics, known for backstabbing and insults.”

    Katz contrasts Gantz’s alleged moral purity with Netanyahu, whom he describes as slinging mud at Gantz (for which Gantz is too decent to retaliate) and “mak(ing)up” a false accusation against him. in which the only thing that was accurate was the spelling of Gantz’s name. Everything else in the accusation–to the effect that Gantz had supported Obama’s proposal for a peace settlement based on the June 4, 1967 lines–is a lie, according to Katz.

    Katz concludes that “elections are an opportunity to recalibrate as a country. The time has come to make some decisions.” Katz leaves no doubt as to what decisions he wants the voters to make.

    I don’t agree with Katz’s assessment of Gantz. But more on that after Shabbes, which is not the time to light fires.

18. Blue & White actually is we are not Bibi vote for us. Nothing more except for resume’s do we know about this amalgamation of people calling themselves a party. Who will they be after an election and will they be singing from the same song sheet?

19. 3 wearing blackshirts ? Any message there?