Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman all but admitted Saturday that while he understands that there is no real option of pursuing a rotating premiership with Benjamin Netanyahu after the Sept. 17 elections, he was not above using extortion to get what he wants, heavily hinting that, despite earlier statements to the contrary, he sees Blue and White leader Benny Gantz as a viable candidate for the role of prime minister.
Later on Saturday evening, he told Channel 12's "Meet the Press," that his objective was to all but force the Likud to replace Netanyahu as its leader so as to allow for the formation of a national unity government headed by Gantz and Yisrael Beytenu.
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This is incredible arrogance on Lieberman's part, thinking he can both team with Blue and White and dictate to Likud who will lead it (he suggested it be Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein). One is very hard-pressed to think he actually believes that they Likud will defer to his judgment on this issue.
Lieberman's Yisrael Beytenu reached the height of its political power in the 2009 elections, when it won 15 Knesset seats. This led many to believe that if the Right ever needed another authoritarian leader, Lieberman may be the man for the job.
Over the past decade, however, Yisrael Beytenu's power has been steadily declining. Lieberman had hoped to take another step toward his dream of one day becoming prime minister when Yisrael Beytenu merged with Likud ahead of the 2013 elections, but that bid failed, as the faction won only 31 seats. Whatever political gains Lieberman marked at the time can only be attributed to the bad deal that the Likud struck with Yisrael Beytenu.
Even when Lieberman was made defense minister in 2016, one couldn't help but feel that his premiership aspirations were increasingly dimming.
Having all but forced the Sept. 17 elections on the public with his refusal to give so much as an inch in the coalition negotiations that followed the Likud's victory in the April 9 vote, Lieberman has positioned himself as the tiebreaker in September's elections.
Yisrael Beytenu is currently polling at 10 mandates, but this relative success cannot be attributed to Lieberman's leadership skills or personal contribution to the national agenda. It, can, however, be attributed to the fact that he knows how to manipulate public opinion. He may gain centrist votes if he lambastes Netanyahu and his anti-haredi rhetoric has always served him well, as do his hollow anti-Arab slogans and repetitive statements in favor of capital punishment for terrorists.
The past few weeks have seen the media crown Lieberman kingmaker in the next elections. With polls showing the Right and Center-Left blocs at a tie, he may indeed hold the fate of the next government in his hands, including potentially forcing a rotation in the premiership.
But reinventing oneself politically and blackmailing your way into the Prime Minister's Office are worlds apart. Lieberman apparently sobered up to that fact and backtracked on the idea, telling "Meet the Press" that "no one can become prime minister unless they win at least 24 mandates."
Still, you couldn't shake the feeling that Lieberman strives to build his power on post-election manipulations rather than on actual public support. Given his manipulation skills, the Right has its work cut out for it if it wants to stop Lieberman from plunging Israeli politics into utter disorder.
