Likud MKs decry ‘unholy alliance’ between Livni, Herzog

Likud MKs denounced the merger between the Labor and Hatnua parties on Wednesday evening, arguing that the rotation compromise reflects the “dangerous” political concessions the merged parties would make for peace with the Palestinians.

The Likud lawmakers also took a swipe at Hatnua leader Tzipi Livni’s involvement in many different political parties during her career.

On the other side of the aisle, though, officials within Labor and Hatnua gushed over the merger, saying it hailed the end of Benjamin Netanyahu’s time as prime minister.

Herzog and Livni announced the move in a joint press conference on Wednesday night, saying their dovish center-left bloc would bid to oust Netanyahu. Under the union agreement, the two would share the premiership on rotation, with Herzog as prime minister the first two years and Livni the last two years, should they win the upcoming elections.

A statement from the Likud party following the announcement said it was now clear March 17 elections would be between “the left” of Herzog and Livni and the “national camp” led by Likud.

“Now Bujie [Herzog] and Livni can compete between them who will give in and concede more,” the statement read.

Likud MK Danny Danon termed the alliance Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s “dream party” and said Abbas will “now expect to exact twice as much from the radical left by way of dangerous concessions on Jerusalem and parts of our homeland, while neglecting Israel’s security.”

The Likud MK and candidate for the party leadership also poked fun at Livni’s membership in four different political parties during the past decade of her career — Likud, Kadima, Hatnua, and now the alliance with Labor.

“Livni breaks records during every election with her intra-party zigzagging,” Danon said.

Interior Minister Gilad Erdan, also of Likud, said Herzog’s rotation system indicates that he would give into Palestinian pressure in the course of peace talks.

“When I look at this pair, I can’t but fear what Herzog, who gave a rotation to a failed politician who wouldn’t pass the electoral threshold, would give the Palestinians during talks under heavy pressure and with empty promises,” he said, referring to polling which indicated poor results for Livni if she ran alone.

MK Ze’ev Elkin said he wouldn’t trust a “nerd” like Herzog to conduct negotiations on behalf of Israel, based on what he said was the Labor party leader’s poor choice to run with Livni.

“The left is offering a musical chairs government: they’ll divide the premiership like cake in a kindergarten,” Elkin said.

The sentiment was echoed by other Likud MKs, with Yariv Levin calling the union an “unholy alliance” and Miri Regev taking aim at Livni’s political past.

“She destroyed Kadima, destroyed Hatnua, and now she’s going to destroy Labor,” Regev said.

Livni’s decision to join Labor ended days of speculation during which she was also courted by the Yesh Atid party.

Yesh Atid sources praised the union, but expressed disappointment Livni had not chosen to join their ranks, Channel 2 news reported.

Members of the Labor and Hatnua parties hailed the deal.

In Hatnua, MK Amram Mitzna called the union a “perfect process,” while Amir Peretz, a former Labor party leader himself, welcomed the arrangement as “another stage en route to ousting Netanyahu.”

Labor MK Stav Shaffir said it “inspires hope” to see “two leaders working for the good of the state, without their egos and narrow interests.”

Earlier, Labor MK Shelley Yachimovich praised the move as well. “From this evening, it’s clear: the Netanyahu era is over,” she said. The former Labor leader called the alliance “important and intelligent,” and one which “ushers in a fierce spirit of hope.”

The merger had been widely rumored in recent days; the decision to “rotate” the prime ministership if the allied leaders win the elections was a political bombshell.

Herzog’s Labor party is far stronger than Livni’s Hatnua in the polls, and has a rich history of leading Israel for decades. Arithmetically, the agreement to rotate the prime ministership disproportionately benefits Livni. Herzog argued, however, that it would benefit all Israelis by boosting the prospects of defeating Netanyahu.

“This is a different model of leadership,” said Herzog, “a model for joint action… working together for the success of the state and the flourishing of its citizens…”

“You have to put the egos aside,” he said, predicting that he would serve two years as Israel’s next prime minister, with Livni then taking over for the rest of the term.