Yamina MK heard in recordings talking about the political picture,
the Prime Minister and former political partner Bezalel Smotrich.
Recordings of MK Ayelet Shaked (Yamina) published on Monday evening by Amit Segal of Channel 12 News reveal her true feelings about which kind of government should be formed.
Shaked is heard commenting on the possibility that the mandate to form a government would be given to Naftali Bennett.
“We’ll campaign. Bennett first in a rotation for a year and a half, say, and then Bibi for another two and a half years, that would be best for everyone. If Naftali receives the mandate from the right, he will not go with the left with the mandate from the right in his hand. It will not happen,” she says.
Shaked does not spare Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from criticism and says, “Because of his trial he will go even further to the right. It is the opposite of Sharon. It is true that all he cares about now is the trial. Unequivocally he does not care about anything. It is true.”
“But it is true that all his considerations, and his behavior, and his conduct, everything is about the trial. It’s true he has to go. He has to go. But I told Gideon [Sa’ar], there is a country [to run]. So what now, do you create such an absurd coalition, with these people, just because he has to go? He got 30 seats.”
She also expresses herself in an unusual way towards the Prime Minister’s wife. “He is afraid to go to a pardon and plea deal because he is afraid of it, he is afraid that in the end he will have to admit guilt. And it will not work out. He is a very, very paranoid person, so he is afraid of it.”
“And for the presidency, he wants to stay in power. He has a lust for power and authority, he and his wife. They’re like dictators. Like dictators, they are not ready to step aside. We do not have that.”
Shaked also talks about the contacts with the “bloc of change” and says, “We are really trying to avoid it. But if we had not progressed in this channel, then Netanyahu would not have given up, you understand? If Netanyahu had not known that we have a government on the other side, then he would not have made the concession. He would have gone to a fifth election.”
“He sees reality, and because Bennett has an alternative government, he was willing to give him a year and a half. Otherwise it would not have happened. It never would have happened. He would have taken us to another election. Bennett’s move here rescued us.”
“We are paying a heavy price for it among our base, but I hope that if we can form a government, then we can explain it,” Shaked adds.
“We will be most happy if he gets Bezalel [Smotrich] to change his mind. Either with Bennett or if he gives the mandate to Bennett. But if he gives the mandate to Bennett, and we fail to form a right-wing government because Gideon and [Benny] Gantz won’t change their mind, we are not prepared to go to [new] elections.”
“So we will go for the option with the left, and we will try to persuade Bezalel to come with us, so that we do not have to take Ra’am.”
“Sorry, this is not an ideological matter; So the state does not matter to him. If the state is important to him, if he thinks that the state should not rely on [MK Mansour] Abbas, then let us prevent us from leaning on Abbas.”
“You understand that if there is an election, the left can, with considerable probability, get 61 seats with the Arabs. It already achieved that in round two and in round three. So what did we do? Now because Netanyahu has legitimized the Arabs, no one has a problem forming a government with them. This is the great damage that has already been done. This is the great damage,” Shaked clarifies.
On Gideon Sa’ar, she says, “The Likud agreed to cover his debts. I do not know how that is possible. But they really put pressure on him in this matter as well. I sat with him for hours, hours. I sit with him for an hour almost every other day, and try and try. First and foremost, he is correct.”
“The truth is, Netanyahu also has to go. He is right. But what to do. So I tell him, there is an outline that he will not have a year [in office] and we will also limit his term. This will be his last term. Accept him for another term. You should know that Gideon and Evet [Liberman] truly think that Netanyahu is a threat to the State of Israel. They are convinced of it. It doesn’t matter, we do not think the same.”
Shaked also comments on someone who until recently was a close political partner – Bezalel Smotrich. “There is sanctification of God’s name, and there is blasphemy. Naftali and I listen to the rabbis much more.”
“Smotrich is the one who does not listen to the rabbis. He considers himself as someone who listens to the rabbis all the time, even though we know it is not true.”
(Arutz 7).