When he was prime minister, Ariel Sharon used to pop into the Knesset cafeteria every so often, mainly in times of political crises or of major achievements. When he was in trouble, it was his way of showing that it was still business as usual and that he was in control of the situation. When he had a major success, he turned his time in the cafeteria into a show of strength to the journalists crowded around his table.

In his current term, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared only once in the cafeteria. This is the era of social networks, a medium he adapted to so well that he no longer needs direct contact with the press. But at midnight Dec. 11, he showed up in the cafeteria full of energy and surrounded by an entourage of security guards and at least five advisers.

Netanyahu had returned from a trip to Europe just a few hours earlier. He showed up in the Knesset almost at once to put out the smoldering rebellions in his coalition in response to the Supermarket Law. This bill, initiated by the ultra-Orthodox, enables the interior minister to bypass municipal regulations that permit the opening of businesses on the Sabbath. The contentious law was supposed to be put up for a vote some time during the night, but it was not clear that it would have a majority, given Yisrael Beitenu's vehement opposition to it. Ultra-Orthodox Shas Chairman Aryeh Deri exacerbated the crisis when he threatened to resign from government if the law failed to pass. The law was intended to assuage the ultra-Orthodox after the government would not stop maintenance work on the railroad on the Sabbath.

In normal circumstances, it would have been up to coalition chairman David Bitan to grant Netanyahu the peace and quiet he yearned for by reining in the coalition with a high hand. Now Bitan is tangled up in criminal investigations of his own and is effectively neutralized. That is why Netanyahu made a point of trudging to the cafeteria. Someone had to fill Bitan's shoes.