Olmert announces will step down after Kadima primaries

[Scurrilous]

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announces on Wednesday evening he would not seek reelection in the upcoming Kadima primaries

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3575560,00.html

<snip>

"Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced on Wednesday evening he would not seek reelection in the upcoming Kadima primaries. Olmert said he would step down after a new chairman is elected within his party on September 17th.

"I have decided I won't run in the Kadima movement primaries, nor do I intend to intervene in the elections," Olmert said in a surprise announcement from his official residence in Jerusalem.

"When a new (Kadima party) chairman is chosen, I will resign as prime minister to permit them to put together a new government swiftly and effectively."

"I want to make it clear – I am proud to be a citizen of a country where the prime minister can be investigated like a regular citizen," Olmert said. "It is the duty of the police to investigate, and the duty of the prosecution to instruct the police. The prime minister is not above the law."

[BioDan]

1. Frankly it is about time

He has way too many skeletons in his closet, and as I understand, no one really supports him anymore. I'm hoping Livni takes over, and I suspect that she will.

[LeftishBrit]

2. Probably means that he thinks he'd lose!

I hope Livni wins; she seems to be the least objectionable of the main primary candidates.

[bemildred]

3. I have a feeling that she is a lock.

She is certainly getting good press. But we will see.

[Scurrilous]

4. Battle for power: The candidates who could succeed Ehud Olmert as Israel's prime minister

<snip>

"In September the ruling Kadima party will choose a leader to replace Olmert. There are two strong candidates, but with national elections likely to be only months away many observers believe the eventual winner will come from the opposition. Here Toni O'Loughlin looks at who is in the frame to be the prime minister.

Tzipi Livni

Tzipi Livni, the foreign minister, is considered frontrunner to lead Kadima. A Knesset member for 10 years, she abandoned Likud to support Ariel Sharon's decisions to evacuate Israeli troops from Gaza and set up Kadima. She has won the backing of Sharon's inner circle in her bid for the top job. Led the latest peace talks with the Palestinian Authority. With one eye on the leadership she was uncharacteristically outspoken in her criticism of the ceasefire with Hamas, demanding a military response to rockets fired from Gaza.

Shaul Mofaz

Shaul Mofaz, the transportation minister, said in June that Israel would attack a nuclear Iran. He said Israel's strategy would be US-led but that all options were on the table. As the army's chief of staff at the start of the second intifada, he was known for tough tactics, such as house demolitions and an unwillingness to compromise with Hamas and Islamic Jihad. In criticising Livni's handling of peace talks, Mofaz said Israel needed to create realistic expectations. He wants a Kadima-led coalition with the rightwing parties Shas, Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu.

Binyamin Netanyahu

Binyamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, leader of the hawkish Likud party and former prime minister, would most likely win a general election, with polls for several months highlighting his popularity. As PM, he negotiated the Wye River Accords in 1998 with Yasser Arafat, but there was no progress in the peace talks. Still, he turned over the West Bank city of Hebron to Palestinian jurisdiction. He was forced from government by scandals and a corruption inquiry, but was later cleared. He resigned from Ariel Sharon's government in 2005 in protest at the withdrawal of troops from Gaza."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jul/30/israelandthepalestinians.middleeast1

[LeftishBrit]

5. I don't know who would be worse, Mofaz or Netanyahu!

Netanyahu is probably a bit worse as an individual; but at least his opposition would be to his left, while if Mofaz were PM, it might push the Likud yet further to the right.

Livni does indeed seem the least of the evils.