Tally Gotliv
Tally GotlivIsrael National News

MK Tally Gotliv (Likud) on Monday expressed outrage over the decision to pause the legislation of the judicial reform, but made clear she would not disband the coalition because of it.

"The decision to stop the legislation is shameful and disgraceful, it's shameful in several aspects," Gotliv told Israel National News. "Perhaps all my friends from the right should remember the words of the sages, 'Say little and do much' and not the other way around, and it is unthinkable that after we unilaterally surrendered last week [by agreeing to a softened version of the bill on the composition of the Judicial Selection Committee], and I said that the entire reform would be taken off the table, [that we agreed to postpone the legislation]. I also said that the demonstrations would not stop and I that it was a protection payment for violence and extortion through threats."

"After all, all that is on the agenda is changing the structure of the Judicial Selection Committee, which may affect the appointment of two judges in the next two years – 12 percent of the judges of the Supreme Court, and for that they are setting the Ayalon Highway on fire? So what do we say in response? That we surrender to domestic terrorism. We don't know how to govern," she added.

Gotliv is not convinced by the promise that this is only a short-term stoppage and claimed that it is a "one-sided surrender, a surrender to actual terror, to all this promiscuous anarchism. I prefer that they tell me that to my face and not shame the people of Israel."

She clarified that she is not blaming anyone for recent happenings and that she herself is partially responsible like everyone else. To the question of what went wrong in the process, Gotliv replied, "We didn't fire [Attorney General Gali] Baharav-Miara, we failed, we let the Attorney General, who is a political appointment of Gideon Sa'ar, throw a monkey wrench into our plans."

"The President of the Supreme Court, where have you gone? Where are you ma’am? You came out and scared the people of a dictatorship, the reform is not on the table, you see the people of Israel are divided, where did you disappear to? Where are you instead of coming out now and calming the people down?"

Gotliv blasted opposition leader Yair Lapid and said, "He is not interested in the reform, what does he even understand about the Judicial Selection Committee? He has no idea, he does not understand anything related to the Judicial Selection Committee, but he completely understands his desire to be Prime Minister, he thinks that if he goes to elections now, he will have a majority, so why shouldn’t he continue to ride on the waves of hatred that may bring him to power? This is the only thing that motivates him, not the people of Israel nor the State of Israel."

She stressed that she will not resign or threaten to topple the government over the stalling of the legislation. "God forbid. The voters gave me the power to govern, we have a majority here, the coalition is not only the reform, its most important meaning is control of the government ministries, it is control over the distribution of budgets."

"I have responsibility on my shoulders and I will continue to carry it out, even if I feel ashamed, and yes, I am embarrassed to face my voters, who expected us to be a strong right-wing and to govern, and that is what we must be.”

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