Kadima staying independent - for now

[Jefferson23]

Party officials say Yesh Atid's political agenda similar to that of Kadima, but added that this was not a reason to merge.

Kadima will remain an independent party for the foreseeable future and not merge with another faction in the Knesset, sources in the party said Monday, following reports that a merger was being sought by both Likud Beytenu and Yesh Atid.

The two mandates Kadima won when it narrowly passed the electoral threshold in last Tuesday's election could give a big boost to either Likud Beytenu or Yesh Atid. Likud Beytenu would grow from 31 to 33 seats and solidify the ruling party.


Yesh Atid could rise from 19 seats to 21, more than the Likud's 20 MKs among the 31 in the joint Likud Beytenu faction. If Likud and Yisrael Beytenu break up, Yesh Atid could already become the largest faction in its first term.



remainder: http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=301285

[Jefferson23]

1. Likud source: Bayit Yehudi will be part of gov't

Source within PM's party denies report that Sara Netanyahu "vetoed" Bayit Yehudi's participation in coalition.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will pursue his goal of creating a coalition of more than 80 MKs that no individual party can topple, despite personal animosity between his wife, Sara, and the heads of Bayit Yehudi and Shas, Likud officials said Sunday.

Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett sparred frequently with Sara over money and her husband’s schedule when he served as the then-opposition leader’s chief of staff.

Shas co-chairman Arye Deri also angered the Netanyahu family during the campaign, when he mocked their reported hedonism.

Haaretz reported on Sunday that Netanyahu blamed Bennett for leaks that led to investigations into funding of his trips abroad. The report said that Sara “vetoed” the inclusion of Bayit Yehudi in her husband’s coalition because of her personal grudge.

The Likud downplayed the importance of such tension on Sunday, stating definitively that Bayit Yehudi would be part of the prime minister’s future coalition and that Netanyahu wanted Shas as well.

http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=301119

[Jefferson23]

2. Haredi parties push to be included in next gov't

Yesh Atid, Shas leaders in back-channel contact on cooperating in coalition; Shas downplay reports about a haredi bloc with UTJ.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will have no choice but to include Shas and United Torah Judaism in his coalition, despite Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid’s preference for a haredi-free government, sources in the two haredi parties said over the weekend.

A source in Shas said messages were being relayed between Lapid and Shas’s Arye Deri, in an effort to reach common ground on key issues to enable the two parties to work together in the next government.

The sources said that despite tough talk in public by party leaders, progress was being made behind the scenes in private.

UTJ and Shas intend to raise their asking price following reports that Netanyahu does not plan to include Bayit Yehudi in his coalition. Shas officials said they were emboldened by a Channel 2 report that Bayit Yehudi chairman Naftali Bennett had tried to incriminate Netanyahu when he was questioned about funding for the prime minister’s overseas trips in the so-called Bibi-Tours scandal.

http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=301067