Israel Matzav

Israelis aren't so stupid

There are new poll numbers in Yedioth Aharonoth today (and there should be a lot more poll numbers tomorrow night and Friday, which are the big poll days here), and they are a lot less confusing than last Friday's polls. All the window dressing to the contrary, Israelis realize that their leadership has failed them in Lebanon in the last month.

For example, almost two-thirds of the public (63 percent) are reasonably certain that Defense Minister, Amir Comrade Peretz, did not do his job properly - and 57% think he should resign - compared to only 36 percent who thought that he functioned well. Last week, 59% said Peretz was doing a good job. Some of you may recall that I first called for Peretz's resignation on June 27, two days after IDF soldier Gilad Shalit was kidnapped just outside the Gaza Strip.

51 percent of the public think that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert dealt with the conflict badly, as opposed to 47 percent who think that he carried it out well. 41% think he should resign. Last week, Olmert's approval rating fell from 73% to 66%, so this represents quite a drop. Unlike the others, the demands for Olmert's head should only grow, since with the impossibility of carrying out his convergence consolidation realignment surrender and expulsion of the Jews from Judea and Samaria and national suicide plan becoming obvious even to his own party, he has no program left. Kadima Achora had no platform other than this plan, and unless Olmert can re-tool quickly, we may be headed towards elections.

The public was also surveyed regarding Chief of Staff Dan Halutz. 49 percent of the public support his handling of the war, as opposed to 47 percent who think that he functioned inadequately. 42% think he should resign. But that has less to do with his handling of the war than with the revelation yesterday that three hours after IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were kidnapped, Halutz took the time to call his broker and sell his entire $27,500 stock portfolio.

69 percent of those surveyed believe in the need to create an official national inquiry committee regarding the handling of the war among the political and military echelons. Only 28 percent do not think such a committee is necessary, indicating that the IDF's suggestion on Tuesday – an internal investigative committee led by an IDF officer – is not satisfactory to the majority of the public.

30% of the country agrees with Olmert's victory speech, 30% believe Hezbullah won the war, and 36% believe it was a draw (for those who are wondering, I believe it was a draw). More significantly, 70% of the public believes that Israel should not have agreed to the hudna without Goldwasser's and Regev's return, while a mere 27% think that accepting the hudna was the correct thing to do.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:24 PM