With an election looming closer and plummeting polls numbers, Blue and White leader Benny Gantz pitched his campaign with sharp rhetoric aimed at his coalition partner Netanyahu and called for a united front to boot him from office.
Gantz, who is facing harsh criticism from the Left, defended his decision to enter the coalition with Netanyahu, saying: “I, a soldier of the State of Israel, stepped forward. I shook the hand of this man I had promised to replace; I shook the hand of a serial promise-breaker. I shook it because Israel was at war [with the coronavirus] and I am first and foremost its soldier.”
He then, for the first time, admitted failure with his decision to do so. “I was wrong to shake his hand. You who believed in me were disappointed.”
“And while tens of thousands of businesses collapsed and the population suffered under the strains and restrictions of the pandemic [Netanyahu] continued to incite and divide, simply because it serves his personal interests, and allows him to escape justice. He deceived me, he deceived you, he deceived one too many times. Now he must pay.” Gantz said in waht appares to be his sharpest rebuke of his coalition partner to date.
He calls for an alliance of multiple parties that oppose Netanyahu, stating that he would join such a united front even if he doesn’t get a top spot.
He plead to the heads of the array of center left parties to meet and find a way forward to run on a united platform.
In his remarks he mentioned by name Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid), Ron Huldai (The Israelis), Moshe Ya’alon (Telem), Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu), Nitzan Horowitz (Meretz), Itzik Shmuli (Labor), and Yaron Zelekha (New Economic Party).
Gantz did not, however, mention Sa’ar and Bennett who challange Netanyahu from the Right.
“Let’s go into a room tomorrow, and find solutions. We will unite for the good of the country, without ego and past grievances. I am willing to sacrifice much for Bibi to go. If we get rid of our egos, we’ll get rid of Bibi.” he said at the press conference.
Political analysts anticipate that the leading center left party Yesh Atid will decline this proposel. Yesh Atid ran with Blue and White in the last election but broke off after Gantz decided to join the Netanyahu goverment, and with it breaking a central campaign promise.
In response to his blistering attack on Netanyahu, a cabinet meeting schedueld for tommorow was called off.
