{"id":71422,"date":"2019-07-06T17:05:09","date_gmt":"2019-07-06T15:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=71422"},"modified":"2019-06-29T07:51:08","modified_gmt":"2019-06-29T05:51:08","slug":"06-05-39","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=71422","title":{"rendered":"Barak said pushing to form center-left bloc that would include Blue and White"},"content":{"rendered":"<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"center alignleft\" src=\"http:\/\/www.reunion68.com\/Biuletyn\/img\/times.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"30%\" \/><\/a><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #000080;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #000080; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/barak-said-pushing-to-form-center-left-bloc-that-would-include-blue-and-white\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Barak said pushing to form center-left bloc that would include Blue and White<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>TOI STAFF<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\" \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Israeli TV reports Blue and White wary of potential alliance with ex-PM\u2019s new party, Labor and Meretz over concerns it could hurt its prospects among right-wing voters<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesofisrael.com\/www\/uploads\/2019\/06\/000_1HV5FL-e1561785676204-640x400.jpg\" width=\"100%\" \/><span style=\"color: #999999;\"><em>Former prime minister Ehud Barak speaks at a press conference announcing his return to politics ahead of national elections in September, Tel Aviv, June 26, 2019. (Jack Guez\/AFP)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">After announcing his return to politics, former prime minister Ehud Barak is pushing for an alliance of center-left factions that would also include the Blue and White party, according to Israeli television reports Friday.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Barak\u2019s envisioned tie-up, which was reported by Channel 12 and the Kan public broadcaster, would include his still unnamed party, Labor, Meretz and Blue and White.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Blue and White, however, is reportedly wary of the proposal, fearing it could hurt it ability to pick up right-wing voters.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cThis is a blow to our right flank. We need to bring votes from the right, this is the only way to expand the bloc,\u201d Kan quoted the party saying.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">According to Channel 12, Blue and White looked into possibly teaming up with Barak before April\u2019s elections, but determined allying with the former Labor leader would not help it at the polls.<\/span><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesofisrael.com\/www\/uploads\/2019\/06\/F100516KG15-e1561785793106-400x250.jpeg\" \/><span style=\"color: #999999;\"><em>Then defense minister Ehud Barak (R) and then IDF chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi at a ceremony at the President\u2019s Residence in Jerusalem, May 16, 2010. (Kobi Gideon\/Flash90)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Further complicating a potential joint run is the bad blood between Barak and Gabi Ashkenazi, who served as IDF chief when Barak was defense minister and is now No. 4 on the Blue and White list.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Barak would likely accuse any parties that didn\u2019t join him of splintering support for a center-left coalition and hampering the bloc\u2019s chances of forming a government, the reports said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The left-wing Meretz party\u2019s selection of former MK Nitzan Horowitz as its leader on Thursday was seen as boosting the chances of Barak\u2019s proposed alliance, which Labor leadership candidate MK Itzik Shmuli is also reportedly open to joining.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">MK Amir Peretz, another contender to be Labor chief, is said to be opposed to joining up with Barak, who defeated him in the center-left party\u2019s leadership primaries in 2007.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Channel 12 news reported Wednesday night that Barak and Blue and White leader Gantz had discussed cooperating ahead of the previous elections in April, but Gantz eventually cut off talks.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesofisrael.com\/www\/uploads\/2019\/05\/F190520HP43-640x400.jpg\" width=\"100%\" \/><span style=\"color: #999999;\"><em>Blue and White party leaders (R-L) Benny Gantz, Yair Lapid, Moshe Ya\u2019alon, and Gabi Ashkenazi, during a faction meeting at the Knesset on May 20, 2019. (Hadas Parush \/Flash90)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Barak said Wednesday that Blue and White lacked the \u201cpassion\u201d necessary to convince voters and claimed its leaders weren\u2019t willing to fight hard enough to defeat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He said that in the coming two or three weeks, his party would introduce a more detailed agenda and list of candidates.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">He also said \u201cit is not the size of the party that matters, it is the size of the blocs,\u201d noting Likud and Blue and White each received 35 seats, but Netanyahu easily managed to be tasked with forming the coalition instead of Gantz.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Declaring Netanyahu\u2019s political career to be over, Barak on Wednesday announced the establishment of his new political party that will compete in the September 17 elections. Barak appeared at a press conference in Tel Aviv with his new political partners: former IDF deputy chief of staff Yair Golan, law professor Yifat Biton and entrepreneur Kobi Richter.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cWe have come here today to announce the establishment of a new party that will work to reform the country and society\u2026 This is not the time to remain sitting on the sidelines,\u201d Barak said.<\/span><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesofisrael.com\/www\/uploads\/2015\/08\/F121121MA65-e1440358300155-400x250.jpg\" \/><span style=\"color: #999999;\"><em>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Ehud Barak attend a press conference at the PM\u2019s office in Jerusalem, November 21, 2012. (Miriam Alster\/Flash90)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cBibi, this is your last chance to go home on your own,\u201d he continued, imploring the prime minister \u2014 who is facing pending charges in three corruption cases \u2014 not to plunge the country into \u201cchaos\u201d in order to \u201csave yourself from prison.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Just hours after Barak announced his political comeback, a television poll said his new party would win six seats if national elections were held today.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Barak, 77, was the IDF\u2019s longest-serving chief of staff and the country\u2019s most decorated soldier before defeating Netanyahu in 1999 to become prime minister.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Following his defeat in 2001 by the late Ariel Sharon, Barak temporarily retired from politics, but returned to lead the Labor Party in 2005. From 2007 to 2013, he served as defense minister, including four years in Netanyahu\u2019s cabinet.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">In 2011, he split with Labor, forming the short-lived Atzmaut party so that he could remain in Netanyahu\u2019s coalition despite the objection of most of Labor. Atzmaut was effectively disbanded upon Barak\u2019s second retirement from politics in 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\" \/>\n<div id=\"content\" class=\"content-alignment\">\n<div id=\"watch-description\" class=\"yt-uix-button-panel\">\n<div id=\"watch-description-text\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<p><em>Zawarto\u015b\u0107 publikowanych artyku\u0142\u00f3w i materia\u0142\u00f3w nie reprezentuje pogl\u0105d\u00f3w ani opinii Reunion&#8217;68,<\/em><em><br \/>\nani te\u017c webmastera Blogu Reunion&#8217;68, chyba ze jest to wyra\u017anie zaznaczone.<br \/>\nTwoje uwagi, linki, w\u0142asne artyku\u0142y lub wiadomo\u015bci prze\u015blij na adres:<br \/>\n<\/em><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong><em><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"mailto:webmaster@reunion68.com\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">webmaster@reunion68.com<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Barak said pushing to form center-left bloc that would include Blue and White TOI STAFF Israeli TV reports Blue and White wary of potential alliance with ex-PM\u2019s new party, Labor and Meretz over concerns it could hurt its prospects among right-wing voters Former prime minister Ehud Barak speaks at a press conference announcing his return [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[26,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71422"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=71422"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71422\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71435,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71422\/revisions\/71435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=71422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=71422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=71422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}