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Netanyahu's New Strongman

Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid may head Israel’s second-largest party, but it is HaBayit HaYehudi chairman Naftali Bennett who actually holds the ''keys to the coalition kingdom'' in his pocket, writes Mazal Mualem.
Head of the Bayit Yehudi party Naftali Bennett waves to supporters at his party's headquarters in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv January 22, 2013. Hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emerged the bruised winner of Israel's election on Tuesday, claiming victory despite unexpected losses to resurgent centre-left challengers. Netanyahu has traditionally looked to religious, conservative parties for backing and is widely expected to seek out self-made millionaire Bennett, who heads the Jewish Home party and stol
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did all that he could during the recent coalition negotiations to keep HaBayit HaYehudi Chairman Naftali Bennett out of his new government. [By the time those negotiations ended], it was apparent that he had failed. Actually the situation is even worse than that. Not only had [Prime Minister Netanyahu] Bibi failed to exclude Bennett from his government. He made Bennett the most powerful person in it. As of now, Bennett is the one person who can decide how long this new government will last. In effect, Bennett can actually determine Netanyahu’s political destiny.  

While it is true that Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid heads the second-largest political party in Israel, Bennett has more room to maneuver. The reason for this is simple. He has much greater flexibility. He can dismantle that glorious alliance he made with Lapid whenever he wants. This, in turn, would allow Netanyahu to finally fulfill his dream and bring his “wayward sons,” the ultra-Orthodox, back into the fold. Any such overtures to the ultra-Orthodox would lead to Yesh Atid’s automatic withdrawal from the government. 

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