For all who praise Bibi's "shrewdness" based on the premise that peace talks are going nowhere anyway, consider SCENARIO B: She brings his government a deal to which he is NO DOUBT opposed and once again he both personally and as the PM of Israel is viewed as the "stumbling block to peace." Is this good or bad for the State of Israel? Duh... Beyond that, to treat cabinet appointments as a low-stakes cynical game of "gotcha" is extremely harmful to The Nation and its' citizens, and is a strategy that has already done tremendous damage in every area of Israel's existence.

Time to consider if legal that Likud MK's should break away from Likud and Join Jewish Home can that be done and is that legal at this point of the coalition talks?

he turned his back on Ze'ev Jabotinsky, on Menachem Begin, on Yitzhak Shamir, on his own father. Bibi should be HALF the leader Begin and Shamir were, he would be at least credible. I wouldn't be surprised if he leaves Oblabla sitting in a Pizza Hut in Tel Aviv, while he dines on ice cream with his wife and 10,000 shekels a year allowance, just to spite him. If Bibi is a statesman (and I'm really starting to doubt that), he'll take Oblabla to taste some fruits and veggies grown on Israeli farms, have some hummus in TA or J'lem, fish in Yafo. See a lot of Jewish history and technogical achievements. In short, impress the hell out of the guy he despises so much (and who dispises him). I wonder if Bibi is that kind of leader anymore, and Israel needs a leader right now, badly.

there is absolutely no use for obama. he is very hostile to israel. he will put enormous pressure on israel. that is the sole purpose of his visit. on the other hand, israel needs a government now. bennet is acting like a spoiled brat.

Well...perhaps you are right and perhaps Bennett should had accepted what was offered to him to a debut in the Knesset of Israel... But in the other hand Bennett is correct in asking the concept by which he would work in the posts offered to him,and in this sense,Netanyahu has also been a spoiled brat,because Netanyahu is not the king of Isreal.There is a democratic system to which all must coherent. As I understand,Bennett might have accepted the posts if he knew Nrtanyahu´s goals.But nobody really know Netanyahus goals and that´s the problem.

All peace is interim Netanyahu does not want excess settlement expansion even if the Arabs settle parts of area c in the future Jews will have room look at Manhatten.

i do not like livni because she was not loyal when she was in the opposition. however, she seems to have learned her lessons and a tad humility. the attempt by the duo lapid and bennet to unseat netanyahu is utterly shameful. they are both shameless opportunists. i say this even though i agree with their position on the haredim, but they are not measured. nor do they seem to understand that right now israel faces existential issues. people in bennet's party should choose a new leader, or else some of them should split off and join likud.

It was Netanyahu who brought about the current situation.There was no need for elections now. But anyway,everything is for good and I´m sure that everything is in the right direction and in the direction that it must be. We may not realize this now,but it will be so,as always is.

look, i know that Bibi is disgusting and liar, but keep in mind that, it is better to ve a government formed of the right 61 plus a small leftist party hatnua 6 than having a government with lapid 19, lapid is snake, he wants everything, he wants four ministeries in a 18 ministers government, the foreign ministry, talks with the PA, only his draft issue to be accepted, he doesnt want the haredim means that he can make or break in the government, at the same time, Naftalli Bennett is supporting him, so Bibi needs to pressure Neftalli, so he can join the government , Neftalli alliance with Lapid is disgusting, Lapid is leftist, is hating settlers, like Livni wants to give everything to the PA, at the same time, i believe that the talks with the PA is irrevalent, Livni wont be able to do anything and she will leave the government immediately, she is not like Barak who joined just to be a defense minister, Livni wants to influence, imagine in a right wing government with a strong party like the jewish home, what can she do ??!!! so she will leave, Bennett now must go to the Likud and the haredim to reach an agreement on the draft issue, and to make sure that the next government will be loyal to the nationalist cause, so Bibi will feel obligated to respect that either his coalition will collapse, that must be done before Bibi brings Labor or Lapid or may be both, so it becomes a left wing government !!!! shalom

Israel is not only facing an existential threat from the other countries, it is ALSO facing an internal existential crisis. The domestic issues have too long been neglected. The haredim are breaking the country, and not just metaphorically. (Their recent hagglings merely show more of their true colors) Many voters showed that they have had enough of the hostage hold by Shas and UTJ; and the robber barons; and the politics. Why are you not accusing the man behind this disgusting turn of events? Is it is not obvious? Netanyahu-- he who wants to preserve the untenable current situation against the wishes of numerous voters, and his own party members. For his own agenda, not necessarily for the country's best interest. Don't scapegoat Bennett. I am sorry you thought Bennett was trying to "blackmail" Netanyahu (Just because he is not caving in? You want blackmail-look at Shas.). He was trying to get Netanyahu to act for the people. And Netanyahu sure needs a lot more than nudging.

look, i know that Bibi is disgusting and liar, but keep in mind that, it is better to ve a government formed of the right 61 plus a small leftist party hatnua 6 than having a government with lapid 19, lapid is snake, he wants everything, he wants four ministeries in a 18 ministers government, the foreign ministry, talks with the PA, only his draft issue to be accepted, he doesnt want the haredim means that he can make or break in the government, at the same time, Naftalli Bennett is supporting him, so Bibi needs to pressure Neftalli, so he can join the government , Neftalli alliance with Lapid is disgusting, Lapid is leftist, is hating settlers, like Livni wants to give everything to the PA, at the same time, i believe that the talks with the PA is irrevalent, Livni wont be able to do anything and she will leave the government immediately, she is not like Barak who joined just to be a defense minister, Livni wants to influence, imagine in a right wing government with a strong party like the jewish home, what can she do ??!!! so she will leave, Bennett now must go to the Likud and the haredim to reach an agreement on the draft issue, and to make sure that the next government will be loyal to the nationalist cause, so Bibi will feel obligated to respect that either his coalition will collapse, that must be done before Bibi brings Labor or Lapid or may be both, so it becomes a left wing government !!!! shalom

#56. There is no excuse for Bibi's betrayal of the vast majority of Israel. Israel must have a leader with the guts to stand up to Obama. Churchill was under far more pressure, to sign a peace deal with Hiter, than Bibi will ever experience. But Churchill did the right thing. No other world leader, except Bibi, has any problem telling Obama "NO". Most world leaders rightly think Obama is a very bad joke.

look, i know that Bibi is disgusting and liar, but keep in mind that, it is better to ve a government formed of the right 61 plus a small leftist party hatnua 6 than having a government with lapid 19, lapid is snake, he wants everything, he wants four ministeries in a 18 ministers government, the foreign ministry, talks with the PA, only his draft issue to be accepted, he doesnt want the haredim means that he can make or break in the government, at the same time, Naftalli Bennett is supporting him, so Bibi needs to pressure Neftalli, so he can join the government , Neftalli alliance with Lapid is disgusting, Lapid is leftist, is hating settlers, like Livni wants to give everything to the PA, at the same time, i believe that the talks with the PA is irrevalent, Livni wont be able to do anything and she will leave the government immediately, she is not like Barak who joined just to be a defense minister, Livni wants to influence, imagine in a right wing government with a strong party like the jewish home, what can she do ??!!! so she will leave, Bennett now must go to the Likud and the haredim to reach an agreement on the draft issue, and to make sure that the next government will be loyal to the nationalist cause, so Bibi will feel obligated to respect that either his coalition will collapse, that must be done before Bibi brings Labor or Lapid or may be both, so it becomes a left wing government !!!! shalom

Unfortunately the political games continue. Netanyahu brings in Livni in a position she will surely fail, considers making deal with the left and keeping the Haredi parties. In short he brings in weak partners so he can remain strongest and do whatever he wants, with whoever he wants. He most probably realized that in Bennett and Lapid he would get tough partners, necessitating compromise. He seems to have lost his sensitivity about the Israel public though. I think the government, if it shapes up as it seems will be very short lived bringing Netanyahu's "reign" to an end. Israel is sick of these kind of deals, secrecy and cover ups, the people are not stupid. Israel, especially in today's very fragile times need a united, equal society, transparent leaders who truly care about the country and its citizens. Israel has no other chance for the future but a single, family like unity, uniting worldwide Jewry around it.

Time for a shift to Centrist domination because both Right and Left only widen the internal split. What she calls "existential crisis" is, unfortunately, the strongest factor that keeps the country together. Time to bring better leadership to the fore, dynamic and young. Netanyahu is only thinking how to keep the PM seat and preserve his historical image which gets worse all the time.

I'm not sure that a centrist dominated government will achieve anything. Such a government would spend its entire time fending off gravitational pull from the left and from the right. From the looks of things, however, Netanyahu will not be able to put together a coalition. Perhaps the best solution would be to have new elections. The Israeli electorate will thus be able to vote a bit more wisely. It might also be time to consider revamping the entire system. I'm not saying a two party system, which predominates in the United States, but I do think that Israel has far too many political parties. Everytime someone disagrees with his or her party's policies, they form a new party -- and then the cult of personality takes over, and someone who should not have many mandates ends up getting more seats than they should have, and are in a position to drive hard bargains that are not necessarily in the best interests of the State.