Meir Shalev
Photo: Shauli Shem-Tov
Will you quit already?
Shas leader Eli Yishai’s constant resignation threats becoming ridiculous
Something strange is happening in Shas. Party leader Eli Yishai constantly threatens that the faction will quit the government, and every time he makes such threat he comes up with another reason for quitting. Yet despite this, Shas has not quit the government.
Is it possible that Shas does not take Eli Yishai seriously? Or perhaps Eli Yishai himself does not really want to quit the government? I am asking this because his empty threats place not only him in a ridiculous light, but also Shas’ spiritual leaders, headed by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef.
Politics
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And so, perhaps it would be a good idea to calm Eli Yishai down and tell him that he is not alone. There are many people around here who think that he is right and who would be very happy should Shas quit the government. We will even try to accommodate him and help him in every way possible. We will not even argue with him over which reasons for quitting are good and which ones are not. All of them are good.
Quit regardless of reason
So come on, Mr. Minister, and come on, Shas, quit the government, regardless of the reason. If you quit just because of some progress in negotiations with the Palestinians – that’s good enough. And if you quit because negotiations are moving forward even while we’re under fire, that’s good enough. And if you quit because Israel presents positions that look like concessions on the issue of Jerusalem, that’s even better. And if you quit because someone utters the word “Jerusalem” during the talks, that’s good enough too.
Even if you quit just because you feel like impressing someone, this will most certainly and clearly be good enough.
Should Shas quit because of all the reasons above, we shall be satisfied as well, yet until that time, perhaps it would be a good idea for Rabbi Ovadia Yosef to tell Eli Yishai to shut up. Because the way things look now, the best reason for quitting is that if Shas would finally leave the government, there is a chance that Eli Yishai would stop making so many resignation threats.
