My expectations from the coalition formed by Yamina leader Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Yesh Atid head Foreign Minister Yair Lapid were very low in the first place, and yet I welcomed the formation of this default government, which saved us from a fifth general election.
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For two years, Israel was in socio-political chaos, which escalated to the point of undermining its internal and external stability and security. This crisis was compounded when the global pandemic erupted wreaking havoc in its wake.
The main accomplishment of the first 100 days of the Bennett-Lapid government is the return to political normalcy. At times, it seems that Bennett is not the prime minister, rather a caretaker minister in the Prime Minister's Office, who has had to relinquish any and all ministerial whim to continue holding the coveted post.
Nevertheless, it seems that rather than taking up 100% of the news cycle, Israeli politics has shrunk back to a saner size.
The dialogue led by Bennett and Lapid is responsible and respectful. Thanks to that, the state budget stands to pass in a few weeks, and the government will finally be able to pursue policy moves.
Perhaps, after proving stability and potentially expanding, the government will also be able to deal with the ticking time bombs that are the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, and Iran. Unfortunately, the hazard that is the Palestinian Authority's takeover of Area C is likely to be sidelined, especially when Defense Minister Benny Gantz greenlights the formation of an Arab village in the heart of Gush Etzion.
When you decide to stitch together a coalitionist at all cost, ideology may be stretched too thin and you could find that you are vulnerable to pressure by any minister and any sector.
When you choose normalcy at any cost, despite a record number of individuals who test positive for the coronavirus, you place lives in harm's way and have to deal with fatalities.
Resuming the county's daily routine was a must and it was the right policy move for the government's 100 days grace period. Normalcy. But it cannot, under any circumstances, be a condition of going forward.
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