Running on empty. That's the feeling that some observers have about the Likud Party's coalition negotiations with both Labor and United Torah Judaism.
Prime Minister Sharon says he hopes to have everything wrapped up with Labor by the end of this week. Progress has in fact been made on every issue - except the most controversial one: the national budget. Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, in the 17 months he has had that title, has instituted major reforms in Israel's socialist economy, turning it more towards a free-market and capitalist market. Shimon Peres accused Netanyahu just seven weeks ago of conducting a policy of "piggish capitalism" that had "created 6,000 millionaires in Israel and 6 million beggars." More acutely, the Likud plans to finalize the rough draft of its budget by the end of the week - leading Labor leaders to say, "If we can't have a say in the budget, then there's no reason for us to join the government."
Labor negotiators are threatening not to attend tomorrows scheduled coalition-talks meeting because of the issue.
Many Labor supporters still oppose a unity government with the Likud. Labor activists have begun hanging large signs across the country with the words, "Saying No to Sharon, Returning to the Way of Rabin," and "Peres Can Go With Sharon, Labor Returns to Rabin's Way."
On the United Torah Judaism front, as well, there is progress, but no one is sure if it will lead to anything. Leading hareidi rabbis still have not given their approval for the party to sit in the same government as the ultra-anti-religious Shinui party. Nor is Shinui itself fully prepared to sit with UTJ; party leaders Tommy Lapid and Avraham Poraz have reversed the party's long-held position absolutely against any partnership with a hareidi party, but many in the party's rank-and-file are still against.
Prime Minister Sharon says he hopes to have everything wrapped up with Labor by the end of this week. Progress has in fact been made on every issue - except the most controversial one: the national budget. Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, in the 17 months he has had that title, has instituted major reforms in Israel's socialist economy, turning it more towards a free-market and capitalist market. Shimon Peres accused Netanyahu just seven weeks ago of conducting a policy of "piggish capitalism" that had "created 6,000 millionaires in Israel and 6 million beggars." More acutely, the Likud plans to finalize the rough draft of its budget by the end of the week - leading Labor leaders to say, "If we can't have a say in the budget, then there's no reason for us to join the government."
Labor negotiators are threatening not to attend tomorrows scheduled coalition-talks meeting because of the issue.
Many Labor supporters still oppose a unity government with the Likud. Labor activists have begun hanging large signs across the country with the words, "Saying No to Sharon, Returning to the Way of Rabin," and "Peres Can Go With Sharon, Labor Returns to Rabin's Way."
On the United Torah Judaism front, as well, there is progress, but no one is sure if it will lead to anything. Leading hareidi rabbis still have not given their approval for the party to sit in the same government as the ultra-anti-religious Shinui party. Nor is Shinui itself fully prepared to sit with UTJ; party leaders Tommy Lapid and Avraham Poraz have reversed the party's long-held position absolutely against any partnership with a hareidi party, but many in the party's rank-and-file are still against.