Summary of Editorials from the Hebrew Press – May 9th, 2012

Yediot Aharonot believes that the agreement fits the needs of both men and ventures that "Mofaz has a surfeit of MKs and no voters.  Netanyahu has a surfeit of voters – according to the polls at least – but he has seen how his party and the coalition are slipping away from him."  Regarding the latter, the author believes that "Netanyahu recently encountered two events that made it clear to him that his party is detaching from him.  On Sunday, he ascended the podium at the Likud Convention in what was to have been the festive launch of the 2012 elections.  The delegates’ rebellion astounded him. He was also astounded by the number of religious delegates and signs in the air.  On Monday, the High Court of Justice ruled that Ulpana hill in Beit El must be evacuated.  Netanyahu knew that the High Court ruling put him in a bind: The ministers, who knew that if they supported the evacuation they would lose their Knesset seats, would not allow him to carry out the Court’s ! decision."  The paper adds that since the Prime Minister also knew that legislation to bypass the High Court would scare away centrist voters and invite international pressure, he embraced the deal with Shaul Mofaz and Kadima.  The author says that "A majority of the public, which did not understand why it was being led into unnecessary elections, will certainly be happy to hear that the elections have been rendered unnecessary," but adds that "The damage to the Israeli democracy is that as of now the Government has no parliamentary opposition," given the Knesset factions not in the coalition are badly divided among themselves.

Ma’ariv asserts that the agreement was "designed to scare away the vultures that were circling Kadima’s corpse, scare away the Feiglin supporters from the Likud and hang Livni out to dry at home for one-and-half years while Yair Lapid becomes irrelevant."  The author concludes: "Now we have to wait.  Will our heroes change the electoral system?  Will they draft the ultra-orthodox?  Will they carry out the rulings of the High Court of Justice?  The good news is that we will know soon.  The bad news is that maybe it would be better not to know.  If all of these promises happen, then it will really have been worth it.  And if not?  Then, all in all, we would have here yet another stinking trick in the increasingly smelly history of Israeli politics."

Yisrael Hayom asserts that "Today, most of the Zionist parties think in the same terms and, therefore, it is easy to split and unite," and adds that "Sixty-four years after the foundation of the state, the fact that there is a broad consensus allows for splits and unions as a matter of routine."

The Jerusalem Post believes that the new government will be able to initiate much needed electoral reform that will foster political stability, and notes that previous attempts at reform “were torpedoed by small parties that were members of consecutive government coalitions – especially religious parties that stood to lose the most.”

Haaretz exults at the new Netanyahu-Mofaz unity deal, and believes it “provides a great opportunity for Israel.” The editor states that Netanyahu’s new partnership with Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz frees him of “pressure from the extreme right and strengthens the government’s moderate wing,” and asserts: “Netanyahu can and must carry out the High Court’s decisions, evacuate Migron and Ulpana, and resume talks with the Palestinians with no evasions and no superfluous preconditions.”

 

[Nahum Barnea, Ben Caspit and Avi Shilon wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Ma’ariv and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]