Ayelet Shaked
Ayelet ShakedFlash 90

Responding to the Noam Party withdrawal from the elections for the 22nd Knesset, the Otzma Yehudit Party called Noam's move “the deciding point in this election.”

"Noam's retirement gives Otzma close to one seat of ideological voters who will naturally not vote for Bennett or Netanyahu.

"We now expect the Likud and Yamina parties to stop infighting and take responsibility for saving the Rightist bloc."

Brothers and sisters of Otzma Yehudit: Don’t make the perfect the enemy of the good. If Otzma runs and does not get in, it potentially creates a situation of pikuach nefesh – danger to human life.

The messianic humanists who stand poised to inherit national leadership seek to make concessions to Muslims whose commitment to Israel’s elimination is so deep that it is impervious to appeasement.

And indeed, with appeasers running for national leadership, people feel their lives are at stake and political defeat means loss of life. It is understandable that Otzma’s voter base continues to hang on and base their terrifying gamble on a pollster’s capriciousness.

For this reason, I join former Hevron Jewish Community Spokesman David Wilder who wrote: “I have known and cherished Itamar Ben Gvir for years. A friend and associate. I relate to him as no less than a genius. Everyone who comes in contact with him knows this. I don't know, if I needed legal assistance, that I would chose someone else.

“Baruch Marzel too. An amazing activist, who knows how to identify and reach a goal.

“And I'm certainly not one of those who consider them racist. Their purpose and thought are clear and pure.

“And precisely because of this, they must get out of the race, the day before and not the day after.”

“After all,” Wilder writes, Otzma “knows for sure that they won't pass the electoral threshold; statistically it is impossible. Just 3 months ago, they, along with Smotrich and Peretz, received 160,000 votes. Now, to enter, they need 140,000. From where?

“The talk of getting votes from Zehut is inaccurate. Feiglin had 100,000 votes. He also knew he had no chance - this time too - otherwise he wouldn’t have cut a deal with Bibi. And it's clear that Otzma won't get all those votes.”

Itamar ben Gvir
Itamar ben GvirFlash 90

The sun will be setting sooner rather than later on the Netanyahu epoch, and a wise nation will deliberately plant the seeds of the future in the present, identify future leaders, and help them base themselves so that they may enjoy the broadest possible support and maneuver space.

These little men heading the chihuahua parties of the so-called Center and Left whose entire reason for existence is to unseat Bibi would bring disaster upon this nation. They are confused, they are misguided, and they only open their mouths to criticize and bring others down. Uninspired and uninspiring, these factotums of theocratic democracy have neither the temperament nor the inclination to leadership.

But after following her and reporting on her words virtually daily for the past three years, I can say with no reservation that Ayalet Shaked is the Iron Woman of Israeli politics. Shaked is a true stateswoman. The work she did in the Justice Ministry is simply unequaled, and Shaked has an uncanny ability to identify the precise levers of government power that need to be adjusted, and she gets the job done.

Itamar ben Gvir: Zoom out and see Jewish history in perspective. By pulling out now and instructing your followers to vote Yamina you will not have ended your political career nor betrayed Otzma’s aspirations; the opposite is the case.

You will have demonstrated the greatness we know is yours and your movement's by having the discernment to know when to fall back, regroup, and ready yourselves to fight another day.

'Iron Woman': Shaked
'Iron Woman': ShakedFlash 90