Delusions of grandeur
"Liberman is afraid of [Bayit Yehudi chairman Naftali] Bennett after seeing in the polls that he was losing support among right-wing voters," a Bayit Yehudi source told Army Radio.
Liberman told Army Radio on Sunday that "even if there are disagreements, one cannot declare somebody an anti-Semite or an unfair mediator. I'm against lashing out."
The foreign minister went on to say that he would willingly move out of his home in the West Bank settlement of Nokdim if it meant securing a peace deal with the Palestinians and ensuring national unity.
"These are things that I've written and said in the past, back in 2004 and also during election campaigns," the minister told Army Radio. "I am in favor of a two-state solution and I support [Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's] Bar-Ilan speech."
"Yisrael Beytenu supports an agreement, but not at any price," Liberman said.
Bayit Yehudi officials accused Liberman of "veering to the left of Tzipi Livni."
"It's obvious that [Liberman] is basking in the glow of American praise thanks to his concessions," a Bayit Yehudi official said. "We will continue to look out for Israel's security, and we'll do without these compliments."Lieberman may actually just be angling for a meeting with US Secretary of State John FN Kerry. He hasn't had one yet, and he only had one or two meetings with Hillary Clinton (one of which ended in an icy Washington press conference) during his first term in office. Lieberman is looking to be taken seriously.
As to Bennett, as long as Lieberman is running with the Likud, he's going to continue to survive. The question is whether Netanyahu will be running with the Likud in the next election. Aside from Netanyahu, only one of the top 20 in Likud's last election list supports a 'two-state solution.'
Labels: Avigdor Lieberman, Binyamin Netanyahu, Jewish Home party, Likud party, Naftali Bennett, Yisrael Beiteinu
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:26 PM
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