Education Minister Naftali Bennett, chairman of the New Right party, clarified his comments Tuesday morning regarding the Otzma Yehudit party’s worthiness of sitting in the Knesset.
"After political officials jumped on my words this morning, I will clarify in the clearest way possible: There is a huge ideological gap between my views and those of Otzma Yehudit. That’s a fact. At the same time, I will not allow the right to enter the arena with hands tied," Bennett said.
"We will not be the suckers of the left - which wants to topple a right-wing government, gallop ahead to a Palestinian state and expel thousands of Jews from their homes,” Bennett added, emphasizing: “I reject the demand of the left to prevent representatives of Otzma Yehudit from running for the Knesset while relying on Arab parties that undermine the existence of the state.”
Bennett had said earlier on Reshet Bet’s "Kalman Lieberman" show that "People who see [Rabbi Meir] Kahane as a model are unworthy of sitting in the Knesset, but those who undermine Israel are, too."
Attorney Itamar Ben-Gvir of Otzma Yehudit responded, "Minister Bennett should do a thorough investigation before he decides to attack anyone who does not cave or stutter on issues of the Land of Israel. Minister Bennett was a partner in two governments during whose terms terrorists were released, Jewish settlements - including Amona and Netiv Ha’avot - were destroyed, and the south was abandoned to the fire of hundreds of Hamas rockets and lowly kite terror without a response.”
National Union Chairman MK Bezalel Smotrich also responded to Bennett, claiming he suffers from a "credibility problem" since he had called on Smotrich to ally with Otzma in the past.
"There are those who behave responsibly, and there are those who suffer greatly from a credibility problem."