In Israeli politics, everyone wants to be top dog - analysis

• Published date: 29 December 2020
• Date: 29 December 2020
• Author: HERB KEINON
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

"Hundreds of thousands of Israelis feel that they don't have a home in the present political system," he said, explaining the need for his new list.

Huh?

There are currently eight different parties in the Knesset for a nation of just over nine million people, and hundreds of thousands of Israelis can't find their place in any one of those? America has two parties for 330 million people, and that works out pretty well (or at least it used to).

No, if Huldai were truly honest with the public, he would not have said that hundreds of thousands of Israelis are politically homeless, rather he would have said, "I, Ron Huldai, cant find a home on the top of a list in the present political system – so I'll just start my own party."

And why not? If Benny Gantz could do it, setting up the Israel Resilience Party in 2018 instead of joining up with the existing center party at the time, Yesh Atid; if Gideon Sa'ar can do it, setting up the New Hope Party rather than trying to defeat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from inside the Likud; then Huldai could be excused for thinking, "Why can't I do it? Am I any less capable? Am I any less important?"

And that goes to the crux of what ails the Israeli political system. It's not about ideology, it's not about ideas, it's not about a well-defined path and set of ideals – it's all about who wants to be No. 1. And if someone thinks he deserves it, if he thinks he is uniquely able and capable but can't find an existing political framework that agrees and will catapult him to the pinnacle, he'll just start a new party on his own.

What really will be the ideological difference between Huldai's new party and, for instance, the Labor Party which is still registered as a party in this country, and even has two ministers in the outgoing government? Or, why not join Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid Party?

Could not Huldai have felt comfortable in one of those homes, or if they were not Left-wing enough for him, perhaps in Meretz?

To feel comfortable in a home do you have to like every picture hanging in the hall, the arrangement of every piece of furniture in each room, the color of the paint on every wall? Might you not be able to feel comfortable in a home, for instance, even if you would prefer the kitchen table be in the center of the kitchen, not off in the corner? Is that any reason to go out and build a brand new house?

Huldai's party will be a Jewish, Zionist left-wing party. According to a 2020 poll for the Jewish People Policy...