Arutz-7\'s Haggai Segal spoke today with NRP head Minister Effie Eitam, and asked him, \"David Levy of Gesher, who recently joined the government together with you, said that after yesterday\'s decision he no longer knows what he\'s doing in the government. Do you know?\"
Eitam responded:
\"We entered the government at a time of severe emergency in the areas of security, diplomacy, and now economics. There are only two choices: to stand by on the outside and watch how everything collapses and how the world forces a Palestinian state on us - or to take part and try to strengthen the leadership from within. Of course, there are moments of weakness, such as the decision yesterday, which is a terrible and dangerous one that could lead us down a very slippery slope… We work within the constraints of our political strength… Whoever thinks that he can stand aside and say, \'I wasn\'t part of this failure,\' [that won\'t work]… I admit that yesterday, the leader of the world\'s superpower twisted Israel\'s arm. Nor can I promise that it won\'t happen again. But to stand on the side and say \'I told you so\' or to prepare for the next election campaign in this manner - these are certainly not solutions… I can only promise that the NRP will fight with all its political strength - which is not great, but which will become stronger.\"
Asked why he voted in favor of the budget cuts, including those that eat into the pockets of Yesha residents [among them many NRP voters], Minister Eitam responded,
\"Look, the State of Israel is in a tremendous economic crisis. The cutback program hurts almost every single sector - the lower-earning classes, the large families, and the settlement sector as well. We sat with economic experts, and our conclusion is that the only solution is to cut back on government spending. This includes child allowances, and other benefits... We have to understand that if everyone drills a hole in his own corner of the boat, the whole ship will sink. It\'s easy to demand our share of allocations, but if everyone does that, then the economy as a whole will collapse. I decided that there can be no sectarian or electoral considerations, and that\'s the way it is: everyone has to pay his share.\"
Eitam responded:
\"We entered the government at a time of severe emergency in the areas of security, diplomacy, and now economics. There are only two choices: to stand by on the outside and watch how everything collapses and how the world forces a Palestinian state on us - or to take part and try to strengthen the leadership from within. Of course, there are moments of weakness, such as the decision yesterday, which is a terrible and dangerous one that could lead us down a very slippery slope… We work within the constraints of our political strength… Whoever thinks that he can stand aside and say, \'I wasn\'t part of this failure,\' [that won\'t work]… I admit that yesterday, the leader of the world\'s superpower twisted Israel\'s arm. Nor can I promise that it won\'t happen again. But to stand on the side and say \'I told you so\' or to prepare for the next election campaign in this manner - these are certainly not solutions… I can only promise that the NRP will fight with all its political strength - which is not great, but which will become stronger.\"
Asked why he voted in favor of the budget cuts, including those that eat into the pockets of Yesha residents [among them many NRP voters], Minister Eitam responded,
\"Look, the State of Israel is in a tremendous economic crisis. The cutback program hurts almost every single sector - the lower-earning classes, the large families, and the settlement sector as well. We sat with economic experts, and our conclusion is that the only solution is to cut back on government spending. This includes child allowances, and other benefits... We have to understand that if everyone drills a hole in his own corner of the boat, the whole ship will sink. It\'s easy to demand our share of allocations, but if everyone does that, then the economy as a whole will collapse. I decided that there can be no sectarian or electoral considerations, and that\'s the way it is: everyone has to pay his share.\"