Netanyahu: Likud will get 40 seats in the next election

 

"My goal is 40 seats in the next election," Netanyahu could be heard saying in a recording leaked to Army Radio and Walla News.

 

This year\’s election results, in which the Likud got 30 seats "surprised many and showed that the Israeli public gives us, the Likud and the nationalist camp, a clear mandate to lead our country. The message was clear," Netanyahu added.

 

The prime minister slammed opposition parties in the meeting, and even had some choice words for his coalition partners.

 

Netanyahu mocked "Herzog," the Channel 10 documentary about the Zionist Union campaign, saying "true, we didn\’t make a movie about our campaign, but we did a campaign and brought the best, most experienced team that will continue to lead the country in a responsible and successful way."

 

"An error happened here, and that error is simple: Six seats that were supposed to be part of the nationalist camp\’s coalition went from one side to the other. I don\’t think even one percent of Yisrael Beytenu voters would have voted for that party if they knew they would unite with the Left to bring down a Likud government," he said, referring to the party going to the opposition.

 

Netanyahu said "it was pretty clear early on [in coalition talks] that we didn\’t have Yisrael Beytenu," implying that party chairman Avigdor Liberman\’s tactic was to stay in talks as long as possible in order to increase other parties\’ demands and weaken the Likud.

 

Yisrael Beytenu responded by questioning Netanyahu\’s right-wing credibility, saying that the prime minister voted in favor of the 2005 Gaza disengagement at first and that he would not include Yisrael Beytenu policies calling to eradicate Hamas rule in Gaza, death penalty for terrorists and a commitment to build in settlement blocs and Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem in the coalition agreement.

 

"All of Netanyahu\’s actions, including his emotional warning that Arabs are rushing to the voting booths on election day and his apology immediately after the election and his embarrassing wait for the Labor Party to deign to join his government prove that Yisrael Beytenu is the only nationalist right-wing alternative on the political map," the party\’s spokesman said.

 

Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who joined Netanyahu in the meeting, joked about political parties whose names are everyday words, saying that now he can use the word "Kadima" (forward), but can no longer say "Kulanu" (all of us).

 

"That day will come too," Netanyahu chimed in.

 

"The question is if [Kulanu] will become part of us or disappear," Erdan added.

 

The purpose of Netanyahu\’s meeting with central committee members was to convince them not to support an initiative to cancel Likud\’s open primary and go back to having its lists for the Knesset chosen by its central committee.

 

Referring to the central committee\’s reputation for corruption, Netanyahu said it "received a bad name, and that can lead to voters leaving us."

 

"In every group there are those, even if they\’re just a few, just two or three, who negatively take advantage of their power," Erdan added.

 

Most of Likud\’s MKs oppose putting more power in the central committee\’s hands. The proposal will be put to a vote on June 10.