Three papers discuss various issues regarding Shaul Mofaz\’s decision to pull Kadima out of the government coalition:
Yediot Aharonot believes: "One thing is clear – the biggest loser is us, the Israeli people. A unique opportunity, in which a gigantic coalition of 94 MKs could have really enacted an historic change, has been missed. And even if they convince us that there were good intentions here and that everyone entered the story with a clean heart and a sense of mission, the fact is that an historical opportunity has become a political event." The author suggests that Prime Minister Netanyahu will not be so quick to call for new elections given the public mood, now that he has been thrown back on his alliance with the ultra-orthodox.
Ma\’ariv says: "Thanks to Netanyahu, Shaul Mofaz and Kadima are leaving this partnership with flag in hand. They finally found an agenda that eluded them during three years in opposition. Maybe Kadima will crumble in the next elections, but on the way down it will inflict damage on Netanyahu, the scope of which cannot be gauged at present. In the next elections, Netanyahu will be the one who gave in to the ultra-orthodox at the expense of those who serve." The author asserts: "The last thing he needs now is elections over the Tal Law, with the social protests going in unexpected directions. Therefore, Netanyahu will try to go to elections as far away as possible from the events of recent weeks, but still soon enough not to be dragged into wars over the [2013] budget, and this will almost certainly be in early 2013."
Yisrael Hayom remarks that "At the moment of parting, one must admit that the attempt at cooperation between the Likud and Kadima entailed the potential opportunity for a major breakthrough beyond conscription into the IDF and national service, important as they are. Those responsible were not creative enough and were unwilling to take risks," and concludes: "The response of the \’suckers\’ will set the tone," regarding future developments.
The Jerusalem Post notes that “It is becoming increasingly apparent that Israel is entering an economic recession.” The editor asserts that “It is absolutely imperative that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz take a serious reassessment of the gloomy economic situation both abroad and locally and commit themselves to fiscal discipline,” and declares: “The prime minister and the finance minister must resist populist pressure and election year considerations and reign in government expenditures.”
Haaretz discusses the Zaken committee report on competition in the banking sector, and notes that “[The report] confirms that the banking system is too centralized, that there isn\’t enough inter-bank competition, that there\’s a lot of operational inefficiency, and that certain sectors, such as small businesses and households, pay fees and interest that are too high.” The editor points out that the report focuses on suggested methods for increasing inter-bank competition, but not on the need to “break up the bigger banks, merging a small bank with an institutional body that could create a new competitor, or separating the credit card companies from the banks.” The editor believes that “If all the steps recommended by the Zaken report are accepted, there\’s a good chance that in a few years the competition between banks will improve,” and warns: “the process will be evolutionary, not revolutionary.”
[Sima Kadmon, Mazel Mualem and Dan Margalit wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Ma\’ariv and Yisrael Hayom, respectively.]