Netanyahu government exposed

PM Binyamin (Bibi) Netanyahu's speech at Bar Ilan University earlier this month did not bring forward any ideological change vis-a-vis the two-state solution. It can now be said loudly and clearly that the 'emperor has no clothes.' Bibi remains Bibi - with a tad more sophistication ultimately of no consequence to the State of Israel - with no vision, no direction, and no correctness to lead us through the required decisions. Netanyahu tried to reinvent himself but even the succession of the words 'Palestinian' and 'state' is no magic formula for covering up the political 'nudity' of Netanyahu and his government.

It is no surprise that Minister without Portfolio Bennie Begin (Likud), Minister of Strategic Affairs Moshe (Bougie) Ya'alon (Likud), Interior Minister Eli Yishai (Shas) and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and his Israel Beitenu Party did not threaten to dissolve the government or force an election. They understood that there was no reason to worry. Netanyahu was and remains a right-wing leader committed to an outlook supportive of the 'Greater Israel' solution. Talk of two-states is just a tactic designed to disguise the intention to expand settlements and to prevent any real political progress towards peace.

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'Right Now' government

The concern expressed by smaller right-wing parties over the inclusion of Kadima in a unity government is unfounded. Paradoxically, a wide government that includes Kadima head Tzipi Livni, Kadima MK Meir Sheetrit and MK Haim Ramon would serve the interests of the settlers and their supporters more than any narrow right-wing government with 65 'orange' MKs. In fact, the heads of right-wing parties must insist that Labor or Kadima join the coalition and appoint their leaders to senior positions within the government.

A narrow right-wing government supported by the National Union, Jewish Home and Shas parties would have a difficult time gaining public legitimacy to lead significant processes, for instance, settlement construction, outpost building and embarking on military operations and wars.

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Evict the thugs from Hebron

In recent weeks, due to the upcoming elections, the three candidates for the premiership, Ehud Barak, Tzipi Livni and Binyamin Netanyahu - have taken to verbally attacking negative elements within the extreme Right.  Meanwhile, the authorities' resolve in combating settler violence has weakened even as incidents grow more frequent.

None of them expected that the moment of truth would come so soon when the High Court of Justice ruled that a house invaded by several settlers in central Hebron must be evacuated. The ruling orders law enforcement authorities and the political echelon to stand alongside the court in confronting the thugs of the extreme Right, and do their utmost to turn speeches and declarations into reality.

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A rightist government in disguise

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's speech at Harvard University on the policy of settlement expansion points more than anything to the increasing gap between the government's public stance on the matter and the reality on the ground.

If we are judging based on actions, the Israeli government - disguised as a center-left government - is in fact a rightist government that continues to build settlements, which undermines the chances of reaching a political settlement, thereby turning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into an unsolvable one. Bibi Netanyahu could not have done it better.

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Now is not the time to punish Olmert

In a respectful, official and honest manner, without bold statements and dramatic speeches, Ehud Barak announced that despite the political temptation to oust Olmert and present himself a political alternative, he was choosing to stay in the government for the good of the country and to achieve personal goals.

There are no objections to the fact that in the short-term, the option to dissolve the coalition is the best possible scenario Barak could face; crushing Kadima, fulfilling his promise to go to elections and displaying responsibility and moral values which would have played to his advantage mere hours after he would have announced his resignation from the government.

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