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Livni: preparing to take over?
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| By Israel Insider staff May 7, 2008 |
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Never has there been an Israeli prime minister as disrespected and unpopular as Ehud Olmert. Never has there been a situation whether the government operates without a perception of legitimacy or direction sanctioned by the nation's citizens. So it comes as a relief and even a harbinger of joy that the nation's sixtieth birthday seems destined to be marked by the impending ouster of Olmert from office.
While the details of the latest scandal remain official shrouded in court-ordered secrecy, foreign press reports and the unofficial social network that binds Israelis has made it clear that the seriousness of the current affair dwarfs all previously. While the gag order clamped on publication prevents Israeli media from revealing the particulars of the alleged acts, the political echelon is already discussing immediate accession of Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to the position of Acting Prime Minister, even as Olmert's aides denied he had any intention of stepping down.
"The main scenario discussed yesterday in the political corridors, assuming Olmert does indeed leave or is made to leave, is that the Foreign Minister will replace him, in her capacity as Acting Prime Minister," right-of-center website Makor Rishon wrote Wednesday. While the Kadima party's regulations determine that a new party chairman must be chosen in primaries, Livni may circumvent the regulation that the need for stability is of primary importance.
Livni, along with virtually the entire political power structure in Israel, has offered no public backing for the Prime Minister in his time of trouble. According to the report, she is already making "careful and delicate" contact with the Kadima party's Knesset faction members in an attempt to secure their backing.
"If Olmert is forced to leave the Prime Minister's Bureau, all eyes will turn to one man: [Labor Party Chairman] Ehud Barak," wrote an analyst for Ynet. "If this scenario turns into reality, the Labor Chairman will have to reach a dramatic decision, which will lead to early elections," he estimated. "A Prime Minister's resignation will rock the political system, and Labor members are convinced that Barak will have to ride this shock wave in order to strengthen his status and his party, even if Likud turns out to be the big winner."
The Israeli publication ban regarding the investigation is likely to be lifted later this week, top legal officials estimated Wednesday. The assessment, reported by Army Radio, came a day after The New York Post published details of the investigation, including the name of the businessman -- reported to be in the "laundry" business -- alleged as the key figure and witness in the probe.
At the same time, the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court rejected a request by three media outlets - Channel 10, Ha'aretz and Yediot Aharonot -- to lift the ban imposed last week. In another development, Channel 10 police and legal affairs reporter Baruch Kra reported Tuesday evening that the prosecution had already decided to serve an indictment against Olmert.
A Justice Ministry spokesman, however, called the report "speculation" and referred the Jerusalem Post to a statement made earlier in the day by Lador to the effect that some media reports were "inaccurate."
Until Tuesday morning, the media was not allowed to report that a hearing would take place. In the morning, however, the court issued the following statement: "With the agreement of the state and after the respondents' attorneys left the decision to the discretion of the court, we direct that at this stage it may be published that a request has been filed to depose a foreign national. There is nothing in this to attest that an indictment has been submitted against the respondents in the request, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Ms. Shula Zaken. This is an investigation that began in recent days, and the request is necessary given the circumstances under discussion.
"Today, the court will discuss the deposition request. A decision on the matter, including on the question of whether to apply the ban on publication to the discussion of the deposition request, will be made after it has been heard."
"This investigation is at a stage where any conclusion that the public would draw would be incorrect," Lador told reporters. "No assumption and no evaluation could be well-founded at this point. In the past few days, the media has published facts that are not accurate."
Asked about the significance of the deposition request, Lador said it was "part of routine work procedures in these kinds of matters, even though this affair is a little different. In this case, we are investigating suspicions against a prime minister in office, and therefore it was the right thing for me to join the team of attorneys. There is no reason to draw conclusions from this that there will be an indictment."
Asked what his position on the gag order was, Zohar said, "On the one hand, it causes harm to the prime minister. On the other, our position on this matter could be interpreted as if we wanted to obstruct the investigation. Therefore, we equivocate between the two positions."
Zaken's lawyer, who was interviewed by Israel Radio later in the day, denied reports that the police had offered Zaken the option of becoming a state's witness against Olmert. Zaken was questioned for the fourth time in the past week, and for the fourth time refused to answer police questions. Fetman said his client had told the police she refused to discuss the latest affair until the investigation on the matter of the Tax Authority was concluded. |
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