By Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D
JERUSALEM — Prospects of the Israeli government are frightening.
Itamar Ben-Gvir will head the Ministry of Public Security, which might be expanded to include the Border Police, and Bezalel Smotrich will have two years as Minister of Finance. In that post, he’ll be given control over Jewish settlements in the West Bank, and an opportunity to affect developments in the judiciary. Associated with them is someone even more extreme, Avi Maoz, about to be given control over issues in education, even though he opposes.an opennes to women, homosexuals, and transgenders.
The appointments are being attacked by Benjamin Netanyahu’s political opponents, and by those who say that the expansions of authority for those ministries are major changes that go against established lines of authority.
The agreements carry a provision that changes in policy will be implemented in consultation with Netanyahu, but that will have to be worked out before we can tell what it means.
In an interview in English, meant for an American audience, Bibi responded that he would monitor the appointments and maintain control in a humane and liberal fashion.
It appears that SHAS will get Aryeh Deri’s appointment to the Interior and Health Ministries, and to take over Finance after Smotrich’s two year term.
But there is still a legal hurdle to be passed before Deri can be named a Minister. It’s due to his prison term for tax evasion, with contrary interpretations as to whether that determines his exclusion from Ministries. Meanwhile, there are moves to change the law in Deri’s favor.
Still unclear is which ministries will be distributed to Likud Knesset Members, the strength of opposition In that party to what’s been passed out, and what’s been left for Likudnikis. As well as the role of the Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox party in Bibi’s government.
Netanyahu has used up three weeks of his four week term to form a government, and is about to ask for another two weeks from Israel’s President.
It’s clear that he’ll get those two weeks, but it’s not clear how he’ll use them to satisfy the Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox party, and his own colleagues in Likud.
The various appointments that have been made are causing not only bitterness, but suggestions from moderate and left of center Israelis.
They are criticizing Bibi’s extremism, and urging Lapid, Gantz, Saar, and other Israeli activists to offer their services to Bibi, to take the place of Ben-Gvir, Smotrich, and Maoz.
How far beyond the probable are speculations that such events might occur? Could Bibi, or someone else from Likud, assemble a government without the rightist extremists, and with centrists, plus Knesset Members from Likud in key positions?
That’s among the possibilities, low as they seem in the scale of what’s probable.
Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D., is professor emeritus of political science at Hebrew University. He may be contacted via ira.sharkansky@sdjewishworld.com