The Likud Primary and Shalom Aleichem’s Silverware

By Tuvia Brodie

It has been said that the Yiddish writer Shalom Aleichem (born Shalom Rabinowitz, 1859-1916) once wrote that a Jew should always welcome a stranger into his home—but that he should also count his silverware after the stranger has departed. We might wish to take such wise advice today, especially when a candidate—Moshe Feiglin-- runs in a major primary election against a powerful incumbent –Benjamin Netanyahu—when that incumbent has already been quoted as exhorting his campaign organizers to make sure Mr. Feiglin gets less than twenty per cent of the vote (see Gil Ronen, Likud showdown looms: Feiglin rallies Yesha support, Arutz Sheva, January 12, 2012). Heaven Forbid anyone should think that an incumbent Israeli politician might pressure someone to commit questionable deeds on his behalf during or after an election vote. We will always assume that everyone who touches a ballot in this week’s Likud primary will naturally act honourably. We expect nothing less from Likud members. We believe in Likud. We favour Likud. We trust Likud.

But of course, we also trust Shalom Aleichem. Who can read his tales of Jewish peasantry and poverty and fail to be touched? Who does not respond to his wisdom and humor? So as we honor Likud while she prepares to vote for her next leader, let us also honour Shalom Aleichem by counting ‘silverware’ or, to use a more modern expression—monitor the voting process.

Everyone knows about counting silverware after a guest leaves. It’s simple. It’s easy. It can be done in the privacy of your own dining room. Monitoring an election is similar, except it isn’t so private. Manhigut Yehudit would be wise to be wise. Why leave hungry children in a candy store alone, unmonitored?

The monitoring process is not difficult. It requires that several volunteers deploy to each voting station, to watch for irregularities. Their goal would be to record and report the time and place of any irregularity, along with the names of those involved—and then make necessary phone calls to assure that all voting-place irregularities are corrected as soon as possible. They would be present at the opening of their assigned polling station to witness station preparations. Then they would remain throughout the voting schedule to observe the vote cast, the handling of ballots and ballot boxes, and the behaviour of station personnel.

Because monitors would take their positions before voting stations open, they will (in theory) be able to identify quickly—before voters show up--if a polling station has unexpectedly been moved from its announced location without prior public notification. In this way, monitors can help make certain that voters are not disenfranchised by decisions that essentially ‘hide’ a local voting station.

There have been whispers that last-minute voting place changes might have happened in Likud’s last primary. As a consequence, some votes possibly favouring one candidate might not have been cast, to the advantage of the other candidate. Since that might have annoyed the losing candidate, monitors this year would simply help Likud avoid such an occurrence two times in a row.

During the voting process, poll observers would make certain that voters can vote without restriction or harassment. After all, voters should not feel discriminated against or unreasonably prohibited from voting. Voters should expect that the voting station they are to travel to in order to vote will be reasonably close and accessible without unnecessary challenge or difficulty. Observers would validate that voting is open, accommodative, comfortable, secret and free.

As voting unfolds, monitors can watch to see that the voting process is run efficiently and fairly for all voters. Observers can record whether or not voting-place officials behave credibly and appropriately towards all voters, and remain impartial and helpful to all voters. Observers can also record and report any behaviour of polling-place officials that favours a particular candidate or suggests partisan advantage for one candidate over the other.

Finally, as ballot boxes are moved and then transported to counting places, monitors would follow behind, to track the ballot journey from voting booth to its final destination—the vote-counting. Manhigut Yehudit would be wise to request the presence of observers at that counting process—if such observers are not already part of it.

Naturally, the purpose of such monitoring is not punitive. It is not political. It is not intended to suggest foul play or fraud. Its purpose is to establish a verifiable transparency that will prompt the public to feel confident that all procedures have been followed properly. Both sides benefit from such transparency.

Besides, Shalom Aleichem has a point: nothing is better at proving people are honest than counting your silverware—or your votes.

The Great Debate: Shmuel Sackett on Moshe Feiglin and Manhigut Yehudit

Don't miss this video from last Sunday's debate in Beit Shemesh. Click here or on image.

The Likud Primary—and Yair Lapid?

By Tuvia Brodie

I do not know television personality Yair Lapid. I have never met him. I had never seen him on television. I have only seen photos of him—and yes, he is photogenic; or, if he isn’t photogenic, he certainly has a good photographer and a great make-up artist. Lucky man; I’m jealous. He has recently announced that he will enter politics, to run in the next national election. Even though he appears to have no political, leadership or civic experience, he apparently uses his good looks and TV fame to catapult into the spotlight. ‘Catapult into’ is a courageous concept for Israeli politics because Israel’s political stage seems crowded with big people with huge personalities and very sharp elbows. But how else would you characterize the impact of a neophyte who will—it is commonly said—put Kadima out of business?

It is a stunning example of power in the public arena: one man, with no political experience and few publicly revealed ideas, can threaten to shut down Israel’s second leading political Party, just on his looks and TV work! To put this into perspective, can you imagine an American TV personality—say, Jon Stewart or David Letterman—shutting down the Republican Party simply by running for President? In America, that would never happen: the political parties are more powerful than any media personality.

I’d like to meet Lapid’s photographer. Even his hairdresser would do. If that’s all it takes to make a splash in Israel, I could go far, especially with a make-up artist.

And yet, despite—or because of-- his reported lack of political experience, Lapid has said something worthwhile. As Arutz Sheva has reported ( Lapid Rules out joining Kadima, Eldad Benari, January 20, 2012), Lapid has posted on his Facebook page the statement that he will not join Kadima because Kadima politicians do not ‘have any idea what—if anything—they believe in’. Naturally, this may be a minority opinion—his own. But it has significant meaning for Likud members who will vote January 31 for their next head-of-Likud. They would be wise to listen to the inexperienced Lapid. If he’s right, Likud could be in trouble.

As some have already pointed out, the Israeli public wants leaders who believe in something and can communicate that belief. Lapid appears to understand this. He rejects Kadima because, he claims, they lack it. Likud voters, however, face the same issue. If they are not careful, they could create a Likud where Party leaders ‘do not know what—if anything—they believe in’—and, as Lapid has just suggested, the one thing this nation’s public does not crave is a politician who believes in nothing.

This is not public stupidity or one person’s opinion. It is an example of citizens’ understanding a universal truth which politicians may not appreciate. In America, there is a book entitled, ‘The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,’ by Stephen Covey. It’s been in print since 1989, and is one of the most influential business books ever written. Part of the book highlights values-based decision-making, which teaches how to make decisions that are consistent with our ‘true-North’ values—principles that guide us without shifting because of expediency or opportunity. Decisions based on shifting values too often lead to inconsistent results (which satisfy no one) and frustration. This is what Lapid is telling us: to be successful, you must first believe in something bigger than you. It’s a universal truth; it’s what makes that American book so powerful.

Where is the threat to Likud? The Likud Platform is strongly pro-Israel. It takes a strong stance on Jerusalem (it belongs to Israel), Judea and Samaria (they are part of Israel’s ancestral homeland) and the Jordan River Valley (it must stay under Israel control). That’s so clear, one might borrow from Lapid’s Facebook statement (above) and ask, ‘Isn’t that clear enough?’

Yes, it is.

Nevertheless, Likud has a problem-- Mr. Netanyahu. He rejects everything Likud believes in. Now, he seeks an overwhelming vote of confidence from the January 31 primary (at least 81 per cent of total vote), to ensure that his control over Likud is absolute. This is where the risk is: if the Platform says one thing and Netanyahu does the opposite with impunity, then Likud becomes meaningless. What do Likud leaders believe in when they select a Head who rejects everything? Make no mistake: the leader who rejects everything believes in nothing; and the same is true for those who vote for him.

I know nothing about Yair Lapid. For all I know, he could get eaten alive in Israel’s political arena—and deserve it. But on this subject, he’s got it right. He understands that if you believe in nothing—or if you reject everything your ‘family’ believes-- you lose. This could not be clearer than in Lapid's own analysis of the upcoming Likud primaries at his coming out party. Lapid stated that a victory or strong showing by Moshe Feiglin (the only faith -based candidate and true-to-the-Likud values Likudnik) would move the Likud to the right where they would pick up more Knesset seats in the next national elections. To prevent this, he then urged Likud voters to vote for Mr. Netanyahu.

Is this what the Likud voter wants?

Israel Must Create an Exemplary Society

Moshe Feiglin spoke this week in Tekoa. Click here or on the image for the video and English transcript.

Pharaoh's Defeat

By Moshe Feiglin

And Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh; and he said to them: 'Go, serve Hashem your God; who exactly is going?' (From this week's Torah portion, Bo, Exodus 10:8)

The real issue debated in the exchange between Pharaoh, Moses and Aaron is Pharaoh's political/theological status. "The river is mine and I made myself," says Pharaoh, according to the Midrash. Modern man has repeated this statement in varying forms, many times over. I am the focal point of creation, it is my will that determines what will be and everything else is simply a narrative or other post-modern postulation.

Pharaoh's regime is the culmination of the worship of man. It is the complete opposite of the message of liberty with which the Creator, through the Nation of Israel, imbues humanity.

The threat of the plague of locusts begins to erode Pharaoh's self confidence. He is already willing to negotiate. And like a seasoned politician, he does all that he can to keep all the cards - political and theological - in his hands.
And Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh - Pharaoh speaks to Moses through an intermediary. He protects his regal distance and status.

'Go, serve Hashem your God - not the G-d of all G-ds, but your G-d.

Who exactly is going? - Pharaoh wants a report. He shows Moses and Aaron that the Jews are still under his jurisdiction.

After the plague of hail, the seasoned politician backs down a bit from his political stand, but not from his theology. His personal status has been challenged. But he still holds firmly to the idolatrous idea that G-d is the G-d of the Jews, alone. In other words, I - Pharaoh - am god. But there is another god with whom I have entered into a conflict: And Pharaoh hurried to call for Moses and Aaron and he said, ' I have sinned to Hashem your G-d and to you.' (Exodus 10:16)

After the plague of darkness, Pharaoh no longer insists that the G-d of the Jews is theirs alone. From here on in, the G-d of Israel is the One G-d:
And Pharaoh called Moses and he said, 'Go, worship G-d. Just leave your flocks and cattle behind. Your children will also go with you.' (Exodus 10:24)

With the last remnants of his strength, Pharaoh attempts to cling to his power. As the end approaches, the fading despot becomes very dangerous:
And Pharaoh said to him, 'Leave from before me. Just beware not to see my face again, for on the day that you see my face, you will die. (Exodus 10:28)

Now Pharaoh receives the blow most dangerous to any leader:
And G-d made the nation find favor in the eyes of Egypt. The man, Moses, was also very great in the land of Egypt and in the eyes of the servants of Pharaoh and the eyes of the nation. (Exodus 11:3)

It makes no difference who is sitting on the throne. What really matters is where the heart of the nation resides. From that point on, Moses can carry out a coup and rule the empire instead of Pharaoh:
And he called for Moses and Aaron in the night and he said, 'Arise and go out from my nation, all of you and the Children of Israel, and go to worship G-d, as you said. Your flocks and cattle shall be in your midst, take them, as you have said. Go out and bless me, as well.

Pharaoh's defeat - both political and theological - is complete. Get out and stop threatening my regime. And from wherever you will be, bless me as well - for your G-d is The G-d.

Shabbat Shalom

HaRav Nachman Kahana on Parashat Bo 5772

BS"D

Parashat Bo 5772

At Moshe’s threat that the next plague would be a devastating attack of locusts Paro’s advisors appealed to him saying (10:7)

ויאמרו עבדי פרעה אליו עד מתי יהיה זה לנו למוקש שלח את האנשים ויעבדו את ה' א-להיהם הטרם תדע כי אבדה מצרים

"How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the people go, so that they may worship the LORD their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is lost?"

This one phrase, ‘Do you not yet realize that Egypt is lost?’ brought Paro to his knees, for it contains a dynamic socio-economic truth that transcends generations and societies, that people can be classified into two groups: Those who are dangerous and those who are grievously dangerous. The mundane dangerous ones are the "have nots" of the world whose ambition is to "have" something, but the more dangerous ones are those who "have" but are in "clear and present danger" of losing it all.

A demagogic leader can restrain a hungry man or a restless society by diverting their attention to a real or imaginary danger, or through the amusements of sports and the theater. But these superficial diversions are ineffectual in an affluent society where pending disaster threatens to engulf citizen and leader alike.

The Jewish slaves in Egypt would have been content had Paro restored to them the basic building material of straw to produce bricks, as the leaders said to Moshe after his failed first encounter with Paro. But for the royal entourage who were satiated with wealth, the very thought that the plagues might destroy their homes and fields, their livestock and the luxuries they were so used to, caused them to push the panic button and scream out to Paro, "Do you not yet realize that Egypt is lost!"

Civil war broke out between those Egyptians in whose interest it was for the Jews to remain slaves, versus the Egyptian first born who took Moshe’s warning of the pending tenth plague very seriously, as is stated in Tehilim 136:10.

Fast forward 3500 years. Today’s dire economic situation affects almost everyone on the planet. The "have nots" will continue not to have, and they will demonstrate "to occupy", scream, beg and then go to sleep on an empty stomach, as usual, but they will not be the ones to plunge the world into a third world war.

The grievously dangerous ones are those nations whose citizens go to bed with filled stomachs and fully packed refrigerators, but cannot sleep for fear that their jobs and health insurance are at jeopardy; their mortgage payments (and for religious Jews the day school expenses) are strangling; and their unpaid bills just keep piling up. The house, the car, the TV and all else were purchased with 10% down and the rest in 36 easy monthly payments. To lose these things is not an option, so desperate situations require desperate solutions.

Great episodes of history repeat themselves, just the names and places change.

Our rabbis informed us that during the plague of darkness, on the eve of the exodus, a deep ideological chasm divided the Jewish people. Eighty percent of the nation refused to leave, preferring to remain in Egypt in order to replace the indigenous Egyptian nation with a Jewish State on both sides of the Nile River. Twenty percent of the Jews prepared to leave the hated land of their subjugation with the aim of establishing a Jewish State on both sides of the Jordan River.

Today’s economic and political leaders in the lands of the Jewish galut know very well the true situation of their countries, and the pessimistic outlook for the coming decade or decades. When will they reach the point of "Do you not yet realize that... is lost"? No one can know, but it is not far off.

The same chasm that existed in Egypt between those who would not budge from their delusional safe financial and economic perches and those who wished to escape the evils of Egypt, exists today in the lands of the Jewish galut.

The recession "soon to be depression" plagued economies of Europe, and the 14+ trillion dollar national debt of the United States will be blamed not on the selfish materialistic nature of the people of those nations, but rather on the convenient and "time tested" scapegoat; the money grubbing, aggressive Jews in their midsts.

The galut’s bleak future will begin with limited civil unrest leading to riots and mass arrests. This will be followed by a phase of accusations about who is to blame for the economic woes and the disparity in the sharing of the nation’s wealth.

At some point, the Jews will face up to the reality that saving their lives is a bit more important than the long mahogany dining room table and overhanging chandeliers, and will call their travel agents for tickets to Eretz Yisrael, only to be told that there is a 10-month waiting list!

Then they will open to our parasha of Bo and read that when the time came for the Jewish people to leave Egypt, Hashem brought it about in circumstances of agtfeo - in great haste. And when the time of our generation’s "great haste" will arrive, I fear that very few of the Jews in the galut will merit a place on the "magic carpet," and they, like their forefathers, will leave with no more than a few dry matzot

The "Elders of the Negev" said (Tractate Tamid 32a):

איזהו חכם? הרואה את הנולד

Who is the wise man? He who can foresee the future.

How can one foresee the future? A prophet is informed of it by HaShem, but a wise man uses a formula to determine the future: the past + the present = the future. By comparing the factors of the present to those of the past, the wise man intuitively feels where the future lies.

I am often asked why I raise the scepter of fear in the galut rather than stressing the positive aspects of Eretz Yisrael? I answer that I do not want to be like the fool who wrote an approbation to the Book of Mishle (Proverbs) saying: "I too agree that King Solomon was a wise man".

Who am I to extol the sanctity of Eretz Yisrael? It is open for all to see, in the Torah, in the writings of the prophets, in the Mishna, Gemara and in the writings of our rabbis of all generations.

If in our time, the Satan let loose his pit bull called "yetzer hara" to obfuscate the thinking of certain religious leaders, and to induce their followers in the way of the 80% who did not want to follow Moshe Rabbeinu - that is their unfortunate choices in life.

We can only hope that HaShem will remove the blinders from the eyes of those religious leaders and from the eyes of their naive followers, before the curtain of history comes down on the galut in a brutal and final ending,

May HaShem have pity on His children and bring back our brothers and sisters home to Eretz Yisrael very very soon.

Shabbat Shalom

Nachman Kahana

Copyright © 5772-2012 Nachman Kahana

The Likud Primary: why Moshe Feiglin Must Replace Benjamin Netanyahu

By Tuvia Brodie

It is said that when Israelis vote Left they get a Leftist government, and when they vote Right they still get a Leftist government. Conventional wisdom says this happens because the Left is so powerful in Israel the only way a Prime Minister can survive is to lean Left. If this is true, Rightist Likud is cursed.

Is a Right-leaning Likud cursed because Israelis—and a Prime Minister--know that Left is the only way to go? Or is conventional wisdom wrong?

To answer these questions, remember that Israel has become more Right—and religious. For the first time in a very long time, the Right/religious exert a growing influence in Israeli politics. They demand steadfastness. They also have a candidate for head-of-Likud, Moshe Feiglin. Their growing influence, and the extent of Feiglin’s base, suggest that Israel’s future will be determined not simply by Likud—Israel’s most powerful political party—but by how ideological and political arguments play out within Likud. Daniel Levy (who uses the following words to argue a different case), writing in The Middle East Channel, January 17, 2011, calls this growing Right/religious influence a reality that would have appeared inconceivable to Israel’s (non-religious) founders. But its presence in Likud today is real; and that reality means that Feiglin has surprising strength. It also means that the Left’s hegemony has passed.

We certainly ignore Feiglin’s strength at our peril because history has changed us—and our leadership needs. First, religion in Israel is no longer the province of an unwanted minority. Also, Israel’s existence is so threatened that we no longer have the luxury of supporting an anti-Israel Leftist agenda. In a hostile world, Likud defends us with a strong pro-Israel advocacy. Likud attracts many who are both pro-Israel and religious just at a time when Leftists want to un-Jewish Israel. The Left insists that we become a multicultural smorgasbord that would destroy everything that a pro-Israel, increasingly religious Israel majority believes in. The Left opposes Israel’s majority. They know that. They also know that their hold on power is virtually over.

Why does a Likud leader want to turn Left? Likud has what Israel’s majority wants: a nationalist agenda. The Likud Platform has support from both religious and non-religious voters. More important, non-religious-but-Right Israelis see religious Jews working to defend Likud ideals. Religious nationalists gain respect with every headline against them. This respect grows because non-religious ‘centrists’ have been mugged by reality as the UN turns against Israel and the Left encourages Israel’s enemies. Those who stand most steadfast for Likud ideals are often the religious nationalist. This defense of Likud does not go unnoticed. To put this into context, Michael Zylberman, speaking of Gaza in an undated blog called, the guardian.blog, writes that ‘Every rocket fired into Israel from Gaza is like putting a leaflet for Likud into every letterbox in Israel;’ the same thing happens today with every Leftist decision to demolish homes of religious nationalists in Judea-Samaria: each destroyed home is another leaflet for Likud--but because Netanyahu rejects Likud when he allows this demolition, those ‘leaflets’ are not just for Likud, they are for Feiglin. That is Feiglin’s strength and his political lifeblood.

Feiglin does not lean Left. His message is clear. Likud members know where he stands. They also know how the world treats Israel—and how Mr. Netanyahu has reacted. He back-pedals. He chooses ‘Left’. Likud voters are mostly pro-Israel—by an overwhelming majority. Mr. Netanyahu’s rejection of Likud ideals to look Left does not sit well with this majority. Now a nationalist and religious Moshe Feiglin asks Likud for votes; suddenly, Likud has a leadership candidate who is steadfast and articulate. In a world that turns against Israel, Likud knows that Moshe Feiglin is pro-Israel and strong.

How will Likud vote on January 31? Clearly, the ideological line-in-the-sand has been drawn: Netanyahu and the Left versus Feiglin and Likud. Who stands a better chance of defending Israel in the battles to come—one who leans Left, or one who chooses Likud’s ideals?

Likud has to choose. Mr. Feiglin does not waffle or connive with the Left. He does not ignore Likud beliefs. He tells you what he believes. He speaks of his basic values—his religion and our land. You know him. You understand he is steadfast. You know that when the going gets tough—and it will, soon—he will know how to speak. He will know what is true. No one believes that he will lean Left under pressure.

This is why Mr. Feiglin must replace Mr. Netanyahu: the battles ahead will be too serious to waffle and connive. We will not survive by embracing what is anti-Likud. You know this. Mr Feiglin knows it. Mr Netanyahu does not, as his actions clearly demonstrate. Your choice, dear Likudnik, could not be more obvious.

United We Stand

By Moshe Feiglin

1 Shevat, 5772
Jan. 25, '12

Translated from the Makor Rishon newspaper

If the pictures of last week's destroyed outposts had been of Bedouin villages or illegal houses in the Galilee, the whole country would have been up in arms. Leftist author Amos Oz would have run to build the destroyed homes with his own two hands, the media would have incessantly interviewed the children who were thrown out of their beds in the middle of the night and enraged Arabs would have ignited all the mixed Jewish/Arab towns throughout Israel.

But Jewish children in their pajamas standing in the freezing cold outside their destroyed houses; Torah scrolls crumpled in the mud amidst the ruins of synagogues – none of that is 'news'.

There is no dearth of rivalry within the Left; both personal and ideological. But when they face off against the settlers and the Right, they present a united front. There are no 'extremists' in the Left. You can be funded by foreign governments to directly undermine your country and aid its declared enemies; you can organize violent demonstrations weekly, stoning IDF soldiers, injuring over 700 (!) soldiers and Border Police; you can refuse to serve in the army; you can break the law and riot as much as you want. If you are a leftist, fighting the Left's battle of disintegration and retreat – you are in the consensus; you have a reserved seat at the round tables, in the universities, on television and ironically – even at meetings with the settlers.

On the other hand, if you settle the Land of Israel with dedication, but not exactly according to the ideological nuances of one yeshiva or another – you are alone. On the morning after the destruction, no Amos Oz or other spiritual leaders will be there for you. The rabbi of one sub-group will be afraid to come to encourage and lend legitimacy to the outpost of the other sub-group. And vice versa.

When the home of Nati Ozeri was destroyed along with all the belongings inside and his widow and small orphans were thrown out into the frozen Hebron night, I came with just a few people to help. No settler leader or spiritual guide was there. In my eyes, this is the underlying reason that those thousands who considered themselves firmly ensconced within the consensus and the law suffered the same hell just a few years later.

The fear of supporting the basic rights of the person whom we perceive as more extreme than we are paralyzes us all. One does not have to agree with the controversial book, Torat Hamelech or the 'price-tag' operations in order to stand with the families whose husbands were expelled from their homes by army orders originally reserved for terrorists – and were then charged with spying.

As a resident of Samaria, I feel humiliated by the way we treat ourselves. Is it a surprise that we get the same treatment from the pogromchicks and Israeli society? The way that society relates to the settlers is simply a reflection of how we relate to ourselves. If the heads and rabbis of the settlement movement do not pick the Torah scroll out from the rubble and mud and rebuild Mitzpeh Avichai with their own hands their message is clear: Those people in the outposts are 'extremists', so the abomination that was perpetrated against them is legitimate. Why should the rest of the Israeli public think otherwise?
In the meantime, the evil winds are blowing and every week the militias in black show up in the middle of the night, biting off another house and another family.

When Ehud Barak sent the security forces to destroy Ramat Gilad, I came there to be with the residents of the outpost. Speaking before the large group that had assembled there, my assessment was that Netanyahu would not let it happen. "He has primaries in another month," I said. "He will not campaign for me. But as to the outposts that are not supported by the settler mainstream, Bibi calculates – unfortunately correctly – that he can destroy them now without causing himself any damage. So until January 31st you can all sleep soundly. Nobody will come to destroy your homes." It turns out that Barak had attempted to destroy Ramat Gilad without Netanyahu's knowledge; my assessment was correct.

The pressure on the Prime Minister before the Likud primaries may force him to authorize the law to 'legalize' the outposts before voting day. If that happens, it will turn out ex post facto that the fact that I am running against Netanyahu in the primaries has temporarily saved Migron and Givat Asaf.

But even if that happens, it will be just a temporary respite in the losing battle that the settlements have been waging ever since the Oslo Accords were signed. Today, nobody even remembers that Neveh Dekalim was built by the Labor party and Yitzhar by the Likud. Netanyahu has declared his intention to establish a 'Palestinian' state, every week Jewish families are thrown out of their homes, the only city being built in Judea or Samaria is the Arab Wahabi, and on their way to work, the settlers must drive through international border crossings.

The inability of the leaders of the Right and the settlement movement to give their full backing to the different sub-groups within – and their inability to establish an ideological alternative to the direction in which Zionism is retreating – plays into the hands of the Left and perpetuates the Oslo Accords.

Peace Now did not petition the court against Gush Katif and no legal problems threatened it. The evil winds that threatened Gush Katif are still threatening Ofra and Beit El, Migron and Givat Asaf – with or without the law to legalize the outposts.

You Can Sleep Soundly Until Jan. 31

This animated clip is going viral all across Israel.
Please watch it and forward it to all your friends – especially in Israel.
The translated transcript is below.
Please remember that your help makes these projects possible.
www.MFLikud.com and click on "Donate."

Transcript:

Likud member – Do you live in YESHA?
Wonderful.
Until Jan 31st you can continue to sleep quietly.
Until Jan 31st nobody will threaten you.
You have a house, a bed - you can continue to sleep.
How well will you sleep AFTER Jan 31st???
THAT is another question.


The people who prevented an additional building freeze,
And who battle against the decrees of Ehud Barak,
Are the MKs of Likud who were elected due to the influence of Feiglin.


On Jan 31st there will be primaries to elect the Chairman of Likud.
If Netanyahu receives a resounding victory,
MK’s (Danny) Danon, (Tzippi) Hotoveli, (Zev) Elkin, (Yariv) Levine and their colleagues
Will no longer feel that they have the support of the Likud membership,
And Netanyahu’s dream of “2 States for 2 People” will become a painful reality!

On the other hand
A strong showing by Moshe Feiglin will show that the faith-based and ideological camps in Likud
Are STRONG and UNITED –
Which will give those MK’s the backing and strength to continue fighting for settlement of the land
And the entire Land of Israel!


So remember what we said –
Until Jan 31st you can continue to sleep quietly.
How will you sleep AFTER Jan 31st???

It is EXACTLY FOR THAT REASON why you are going to vote!!!


So, for settlement of the Land –
Put “MOSHE” in the ballot box!

Moshe Feiglin v. Netanyahu: Last Exit to Jerusalem

By Bernie Quigley

The following article, which discusses the global importance of next week's election for Likud Chairman between Moshe Feiglin and Benjamin Netanyahu, was written by Bernie Quigley, and originally appeared on The Hill's Pundits Blog on January 19, 2012.

Mr. Netanyahu stands for giving away Judea and Samaria - the biblical heartland of the Jewish People (a/k/a the 'West Bank') - to PLO/PA Arab terrorists who have direct ties to the Iranians and whose ancestors worked hand-in-hand with Adolf Hitler. The state he wishes to create will leave Israel with what famed Israeli diplomat Abba Eban called "Auschwitz Borders", as Israel will be reduced to being 9 miles wide and militarily indefensible. (For documentation of the PLO/PA's links as specified above, please visit www.HIRhome.com )

Moshe Feiglin stands for Israel annexing and settling all lands liberated during the war of 1967, for ending the taking of all foreign aid, and for Israeli leaders making their decisions by taking into account that Israel should be run according to Jewish values as opposed to by secular, globalist or humanist values.

Why must I, a cold-country New Englander and a solitary mountain dweller with a broken foot, be the only American to write about the upcoming election in Israel for leadership in the Likud, as critical to Israel’s destiny and to American interests in Israel as the fateful primary in South Carolina?

The Israeli paper Arutz Sheva reports that Moshe Feiglin, who is challenging Benjamin Netanyahu for leadership of Likud in the party's primaries two weeks from now, cited a favorable poll Tuesday morning as evidence that his chances of seriously embarrassing Netanyahu are high, and that a victory by Netanyahu is not a complete certainty: “In a poll conducted by polling company Ma’agar Mochot, about 26 percent of Likud members not affiliated with Feiglin's faction agreed that ‘it is important to vote for Moshe Feiglin in the upcoming primaries, even though it is clear that Binyamin Netanyahu will win, just so that the right wing inside Likud will gain strength.’ "

As Feiglin has written not long ago, this year for the first time there are more Jews living inside Israel than outside: "The exile is over."

European Jews have been returning to the source in Jerusalem since 1492. It has been a journey homeward, like a parallel event; a shadow journey of European Jewry joining in with the gentile world on the way here to New York City. But the last 500 yards of the journey, up the steps to Temple Mount, where Jews are arrested today and sometimes beaten by police for praying, is proving to be one of the most treacherous links of the journey.

The changes we face today in the United States are generational: Bush, Clinton generations moving out of the scene and carrying with them their generation gods, demons and furniture. Israel faces a similar generational change which portends Netanyahu and the American-dominated Israelis leaving the scene now or in the near future. That is why this race is critical.

These upcoming races move toward an auspicious future where Israel and the United States, alone or together in a different way than they are now, both enter light and air. Europe faces a different trajectory and different destiny; a journey that recedes from Yalta inauspiciously as capital flees to Asia. Bret Stephens, columnist of the Wall Street Journal, calls Europe’s state a “slow suicide.” But Israel and Europe have different destinies.

Ten years hence Americans will have new friends in Israel and Israel will have new American friends. There is no telling with Europe; moral descent of the world geist since Yalta can be seen not only in the collapsing economy but descending as well from the clarity and density of Hannah Arendt writing to the one-world voices today of Lady Gaga, Bono and Bob Geldof of the Boomtown Rats. Where can they possibly go from here?

As Stephens suggests in a recent column, the sinking of the cruise ship suggests Europe’s trajectory. Should be noted that the first harbinger of a plague in Europe in the 14th century came when a trade ship entered the port at Constantinople and everyone on board was found to be dead.

But that is not our fate and it will not be Israel’s. The generations will shift and rise in the upcoming election in Israel and in the races here in the coming year.

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/international-affairs/205103-moshe-feiglin-v-netanyahu-last-exit-to-jerusalem

They're Not Laughing Anymore - An Interview with Moshe Feiglin

January 23, 2012...

In advance of the election for Likud Chairman on Tuesday, January 31 between Moshe Feiglin and Benjamin Netanyahu, we bring you this in-depth interview which first appeared in the January 20th addition of Olam Katan, a religious Zionist publication. What follows is an original translation by World of Judaica.

Oftentimes it seemed that the hardest thing to listen to for the last 13 years has been his complete and utter seriousness while demanding “Faith-based leadership for Israel.” In the end, maybe this makes even us, the religious Zionists, nervous • Moshe Feiglin is running alone against Benjamin Netanyahu for leadership of the Likud. The results of these primaries, even if they don’t end in a victory for him, will still be enough to bring this man’s vision one step closer to reality • Moshe Feiglin answers all the questions you ever wanted to ask – to what extent he believes in his goal. How younger Knesset Members have overtaken him. Why is it that it’s hardest for religious people to come to terms with Jewish Leadership. What mistakes does he admit and what does he remain stubborn about • The Big Race

A long time ago they were sure that he would eventually give up, that the process had exhausted itself and that he himself already understood this. After the 2006 elections when the Likud won only 12 seats, the pundits mocked him saying that according to the “influence from within the centers of power” logic of Manhigut Yehudit, Feiglin now had to leave Likud and go to Kadima. After he failed to attain a Knesset seat in 2009, they came down hard on him. The religious columnists specifically lambasted him for his arrogance in running for the Likud leadership time and again, on the non-politically-correct “we have come to replace you” approach against the present Likud leadership. They claimed that Olmert became prime minister only because of him.

And despite all this, as the sand continues to blow, Moshe Feiglin (50) is back, running yet again, this time as the only candidate, this time against a sitting prime minister. In political terms this would be considered suicide, but that’s nothing for Feiglin. This is already his fourth time. The first time, 9 years ago, then again running against a sitting prime minister, he got 3.5% of the vote. Two years later he got 12.5%. In 2007, Likud had primaries once again, where he was granted nearly a quarter of the Likud vote. In Jerusalem, the biggest branch of the ruling party, he got nearly 40% of the vote. He could have even gotten a larger portion, but Netanyahu and his men made a herculean effort to bring their supporters to the polls in order to prevent Feiglin from winning the capital city. Not to mention that in other cities as well that are certainly not settlements, Feiglin achieved impressive results. In Gadera, for example, he got 38% of the vote. In Beit Shemesh, 31%. Yavne, 28%, and even in Haifa he reached 26% support.

They claim that only because of him and Manhigut Yehudit, Sharon decided to leave the Likud and establish Kadima. That Manhigut Yehudit was the only thing preventing the inventor of the concept of Disengagement from taking over Menahem Begin’s historic movement. For these primaries, by the way, he comes armed with surprisingly supportive statements from a Leftist icon, Avrum Burg. Burg, on the “Head to Head” television program on the Knesset channel, said last month that “The only man that presents a serious alternative, and puts forth an organized and relevant political philosophy that is worth contending with and presents a real challenge for us, is Moshe Feiglin.” The conversation we had was a bit harried, since Feiglin was invited to a political event in the Israeli Arab village of Bara. Many Likud voters he probably did not find there, but then again the man is trying to lead the whole country.

Two weeks before primaries where his raising his support level yet again is a real possibility, as the step he told us all to take 13 years ago – joining the Likud party – is making more and more waves in the religious Zionist sector, he is still convinced that a faith-based candidacy for leadership of the country is the only viable path capable of stopping the oncoming flood.

Q. Many have followed you into the Likud, and almost all of them have already overtaken you. Hotobeli, Edelstein, and Elkin are all religious Zionists that got close to the leadership thanks in no small part to Manhigut Yehudit voters. They found their way into the coalition table and they are very well liked, while you are excluded.

A. If I would have worked in the normal accepted manner that seeks to get immediate political dividends, no one would have overtaken me, but I insist on remembering the reason I joined the Likud in the first place. Not to be a Knesset Member or even a Minister, but to point the whole country toward one true, large and substantive goal. Light at the end of the tunnel, rather than a rearguard war that many good people in the religious Zionist community are fighting. For the sake of the truth, when I joined politics 13 years ago, there were already many knitted kippot in the crowd, with religious Knesset members and religiously observant ministers. In that sense, the situation has not changed all that much.

My eyes are turned towards the final goal, and because of this there are weights on my legs that may seem to weigh me down in a personal sense from attaining political posts. But in reality, these aren’t weights, but wings I am not willing to cut. I could have said that I would no longer run for the party leadership, that I already did what I had to do, but that would have made the whole revolution culminate in something of a new National Religious Party, this time within the Likud. While true that we did succeed in getting the faith-based public into the Likud, which is something very important that I do not belittle for a second, I will not allow a situation in which we are in the same sectorial politics, but this time within the ruling party. I’mnot interested in yet another knitted kippah in the Knesset, even if underneaththat kippah is the name of Moshe Feiglin. The goal is to lay out a faith-based alternative to lead Israel. This is a goal that cannot be accomplished without a conscious decision to run for the country’s leadership, so that the light will not be extinguished, so that there will still be light at the end of the tunnel.

It’s funny. People that fought against me from every podium when I joined the Likud are now in the Likud and continuing to fight me from within. Effi Etam (former leader of the National Religious Party) and Benny Elon (former member of the National Union) already admitted that I was right, but I’m sad to say that even after they’ve said this, many of us still do not have the courage to come and take the truth to its logical endpoint like I’m doing. I didn’t come to the Likud to save the settlements, even though it’s true that from within the Likud there is a stronger power base to accomplish this than there is in the sectorial parties.

They tell me, “You’re trying to fill shoes that are too big for you,” and I answer, “So come with me and then I’ll have bigger shoes!” The coming elections will be decided by 15,000 votes. The gap between me and Netanyahu last time was about 17,000 votes. If the people that tell me I’m trying to fill shoes that are too big for me would have joined Likud, I would have had no problem winning the party’s leadership by now. More than that though, there would have been no problem changing the entire direction of the Return to Zion from Zionism that keeps G-d out of the picture, to Zionism with the vision of “The Mountain of the Lord is the highest of all Mountains.” The settlement pioneers that ran to Judea and Samaria in the spirit of Rav Kook have been inundated with hardships and trudging through day-to-day affairs, and are incapable of putting forward such a vision.

But sometimes the arrogance of running against a sitting Prime Minister without even the success of first being elected a Knesset member makes for a very strange impression. Wouldn’t it be better to be satisfied with less declarations, superlatives and unwinnable candidacies and to focus in the meantime on less ambitious goals? We all want there to be Jewish leadership, but the way it’s being done seems too belligerent, a bit pompous.

Let’s not forget that thanks to great arrogance we have made great achievements like the wave of religious Zionists joining the Likud. Had I not dared to run for leadership of the party, such a change in consciousness would never have occurred. The language that changes consciousness is not spoken with lips, but with legs. We codified our vision in the “Lehat’hila” journal long before we joined the Likud, but until the point where we began to walk the walk of politics and put our hat in the leadership ring, it didn’t have any real effect on the nation’s consciousness. Many a good man before us tried to convince the right wing to join the Likud, and the fact is they only succeeded in signup up a few people. The fact is, they were not able to convince the public to follow them, and the reason is that the public follows a vision, and not simple tactical moves. Manhigut Yehudit put forward that vision, and from that moment people began to join the Likud through other avenues besides us as well.

Religious People with Little Faith

But nevertheless, do results not matter? After 13 years, you got to 24% of the party vote, and you have yet to become a Knesset member. At this rate it will take another 40 years to become the party leader. And even if theoretically you do beat Netanyahu one day, he’ll leave the party the same day and everyone will follow him. Everyone understands that the true Likud is no longer here.

When my family came to Israel 120 years ago, everyone was still in Belarus and shook their heads at that one rich Jew that decided to take his successful family to a barren wasteland. It was the craziest and most illogical thing to do. But at the end of the day, since it was the right thing to do, the realistic thing to do, that is to say it was G-d’s Will, because of that, we – his descendants – live here, and we all know what happened to those who stayed behind. We believe that the Third Return to Zion will not be undone, that the Holy One Blessed Be He isn’t joking around with us only to return us back to exile. And since the State of Israel will continue to exist, it cannot be anything but a State that fulfills the will of G-d. That is to say, and the end of the day, this country must have faith-based leadership. The only question is, what part will we take in this story.

Actually, I’m doing exactly what my grandfather’s grandfather’s grandfather did, meaning what I believe the Will of G-d to be. Anyone who refuses to join us is, in practice, delaying the development of Jewish leadership for the State of Israel, he’s the one that is unrealistic, refusing to develop, he’s the one that I’m sad to say will pay the price. G-d wills that this country have Jewish leadership. There is no other possibility.

Who knows what G-d’s will is? The Holy One Blessed Be He also destroyed Gush Katif and brought us the Holocaust.

In truth, I don’t know how long it will take before our victory becomes actualized. Just like the Wright brothers who thought up the idea that a body heavier than air could fly, tried a hundred times to build it and they all crashed. But in the end it flew. And the very second it began to fly, all of the 100 failures became part of the ultimate success. Understand what kind of success it was when in the last primaries nearly a quarter of the Likud membership – not the NRP or the National Union – a quarter of the membership of the biggest political party in Israel voted for me. I surpassed all the senior ministers, Uzi Landau, Yisrael Katz…I surpassed Shaul Mofaz, which is why he left to Kadima.

For whatever reason, the Likudniks don’t ask themselves these types of questions you’re asking me. The ones who ask me, and weak of faith they are in this case, are specifically the religious ones, and I must say, it frustrates me to a great deal. There’s a process going on here where specifically the ones who are supposed to believe that “the redemption of Israel happens slowly but surely” find it difficult to understand for some reason. We’re in the middle of a necessarily inevitable victory, a process that can’t NOT win according to our worldview. If you’re a leftist and you think the country is going to be destroyed because of what we’re doing and that we’re promoting national disintegration and destruction, then fine. But if you understand that we are in the process of redemption, then I simply don’t understand how it’s possible NOT to understand the implications of my candidacy. Manhigut Yehudit is continually gaining strength, and even the Prime Minister is showing through his behavior how much he is stressed out by my progress.

Your book “Where There are No Men” is a book on the revolutionary period of your Zo Artzeinu Movement during the Oslo Accords. Maybe it was better back then, as a protest movement outside the political realm?

For me personally it was a lot more fun back then. It was fun being a child with no responsibility. There’s nothing easier than blocking a highway, sitting in jail and reaping the fruits of praise. My position in Zo Artzeinu was a springboard for me that I could have used for a soft landing into politics all for myself, but I understood that that wouldn’t accomplish a thing. We don’t lack knitted kippot in politics. We lack men with vision who are actually trying to achieve that vision, showing the public that its leaders are taking them in the wrong direction and showcase an alternative. It’s one or the other: Either we don’t have an alternative to the current reality, and then the question arises as to why we’re complaining about Barak, Sharon and the rest, or we have an alternative – and then it has to come together with contending for the leadership of the country.

I’ve learned this from the Israeli Left. The Leftists were never a majority in Israel, so how did it happen that their ideology set the Israeli reality? Very simple. They were not satisfied with putting up a bunch of settlements, meaning Kibbutzim and their own communities. The immediately translated their ideology into public policy and ran for leadership of the country. They had a leadership consciousness. By us, however, nothing of the sort has ever over crossed the boundary of private or local community-based belief to the point of national leadership. The Right does not lack protest movements. This is not what I was looking for. I was looking for a solution. A faith-based alternative to the whole process of collapse that we find ourselves in.

If the 3% of radical leftists were able to take control of the Zionist enterprise in the 20’s and 30’s because they had a vision, and then succeeded in directing the entire process of the Return to Zion to one that has no G-d, that leaves G-d aside, why aren’t we capable of initiating the reverse? The answer is that we don’t believe in ourselves enough. We don’t believe that our Torah is relevant, and worst of all – we don’t believe in the Nation of Israel and its uniqueness.

And I’m telling you that the Nation of Israel is waiting and anticipating this kind of message with baited breath. You see it in the music that is becoming more and more faith-based, in the culture that is turning into this, in the yearning for a return to family values…you have no idea how many times this comes up in the polls again and again. You see that the Nation of Israel wants to be Jewish, so why are we afraid of giving it to them, giving them leadership that can provide it? Why do we continually place ourselves in the role of barking at the passing convoy? Why are we afraid to think big?

They’re afraid? No, We’re Afraid.

I hear people say that there’s nothing to be worried about. That we just have to stand our ground in Judea and Samaria and we’ll fight tactical wars where we need to and we’ll vote for the least bad candidate and the situation will somehow work itself out in our favor. We saw in the Disengagement where such thinking leads. In an overall sense, we’re in a process of redemption, but in the immediate sense, the State of Israel is being led by forces that do not share our beliefs. Therefore, it follows necessarily that if there won’t be Jewish leadership, the Disengagement will have a bitter sequel. I’m not saying this in order to scare anybody, but from a very simple dialectical analysis. If you don’t present an alternative, there is a limit to how many fingers you can put in the dike in order to stop the raging waters.

What’s your opinion on Rabbinic leadership and the general leadership of the religious Zionist sector?

I respect them very much. They’re doing work one can only admire. It pains me a little that I’m seen as one who doesn’t know how to value the efforts of Torah-based groups, or love of Israel that organizations like Tzohar effectively demonstrate. It’s simply untrue. I know how to value and even admire these people.

On the other hand, I must say that I only say what I think is true. Of course with love, an embrace, but the truth must be spoken. I am against blurring identity in order to preserve unity. In Manhigut Yehudit I see declared secularists, even atheists, and on the other hand I see Ultra Orthodox. On either side, saying the truth doesn’t scare them. I learned that when you speak the truth with conviction and humility, it doesn’t scare people away. Those who really listen can value it.

What do you think about Yair Lapid joining politics?

He’s a ratings candidate. Shelli Yechimovich’s candidacy I saw in a positive light, since she expresses a coherent philosophy, even if it’s dangerous in my opinion, and the impression I get is that she actually believes what she says. This is a type of politics that is absent in Israel, and I do not see this in Lapid. I certainly don’t see it in Noam Shalit, a man that did not contribute a thing to Israeli society but exacted a terrible price from it, and he’s coming into politics off the back of the fact that he was able to take a lot. Lapid and Shalit symbolize bad politics in my opinion. I’m more comfortable talking with an ideological enemy with a consistent philosophy.

Netanyahu knows that the map with the correct destination the country has to go in and will in the end arrive at, is in my hands and yours. Journalists always ask me why he’s so afraid of me, and the answer is that this is exactly what he’s afraid of. He knows very well and understands the potential of Manhigut Yehudit, seemingly even better than all of my voters. The fact is that the public is divided between those that love me and those that deeply hate me, but nobody’s laughing at me. Deep down, the public knows that there’s something very, very real going on here.

The Likud Primary: a Reality Check and a Candidate’s Failure

By Tuvia Brodie

Likud members who are eligible to vote in the upcoming Likud primary will step into the voting booth in less than ten days. These voters will decide who will be next head-of-Likud, Benjamin Netanyahu (the present Likud leader) or Moshe Feiglin, the single challenger to Mr. Netanyahu. Both men are known to Likud members. Both have identifiable philosophies. Both understand power—Mr Netanyahu as prime Minister, Mr. Feiglin as head of Manhigut Yehudit, the largest faction in Israel’s most powerful political party .

Today, we offer Likud voters a candidate’s ‘reality checklist’ for their January 31 vote. It is a list of ten questions, to help identify which candidate best represents Likud beliefs; the concepts embedded in these questions appear as both explicit--and implicit—ideals within the Party Platform. Since many in Israel believe that the new Likud head could also become Israel’s Prime Minister in the next national elections, we present this checklist as a tool to help you decide whom you want as Israel’s next Prime Minister.

We call this, “Ten Questions for Israel’s Future”. A simple scoring methodology is suggested below.

1. Do you want a Prime Minister who supports an Israeli High Court that is both aggressively Left and activist against the Likud Platform?

2. Do you want a Prime Minister who does not assert Israel’s eternal right to the Land of Israel when he faces those who would delegitimize the world’s only Jewish State?

3. Do you want a Prime Minister who does not appoint a Defense Minister who supports the Likud Platform?

4. Do you want a Prime Minister who works against the Party Platform by authorizing the demolition of Jewish homes on ancestral Jewish land?

5. Do you want a Prime Minister who watches IDF battle readiness diminish because he says nothing when secularists in the IDF openly subvert government policy to discriminate against religious personnel in the military?

6. Do you want a Prime Minister who allows Israel’s internal security to be reduced because he does not stand up to Leftists who use foreign funding to promote domestic anti-Israel policies?

7. Do you want a Prime Minister who will say, ‘I think this land is yours, not ours’?

8. Do you want a Prime Minister who, on a daily basis, appears to embrace positions that reject Likud beliefs?

9. Do you want a prime Minister who agrees to a building freeze—and pre-1967 borders--as a pre-condition for talks with Israel’s enemies—when the Likud Platform rejects such decisions?

10. Do you want a Prime Minister who will neglects his Jewish identity when he stands on the international stage?

These ten questions are simple. They are practical. They are not complicated. They focus on the real world. They also clarify what a voter should expect from a Likud Prime Minister. They clarify ‘Likud’. If recent polls are correct, many in Likud are in near-revolt over Netanyahu’s anti-Likud behaviour. He seems not to understand what Likud stands for. Reports circulate that if Mr. Netanyahu receives better than 80 per cent of the primary vote, he will take that as a sign that Likud voters give him permission to pursue any course he pleases, no matter what the Likud Platform says. Likud voters, on the other hand, are not so certain that they want to endorse a head-of-Likud who will reject Likud in order to choose ‘Left’. They do not believe that Netanyahu should have such carte blanche.

So how do you score the reality check? If you are Likud and you answer ‘No’ to most of these questions, your vote cannot go to Mr. Netanyahu. You vote goes instead to Moshe Feiglin. It’s that simple. Of the two candidates, only Feiglin passes the reality check. Netanyahu fails.

Netanyahu fans will not like that. But even ardent Netanyahu supporters within Likud understand politics: a candidate who fails to support the home team should not own the team; when you fail, you should not be rewarded.

Perhaps this is why, despite Netanyahu’s fame, he is favoured to win while at the same time he loses ground rapidly to Feiglin. What will the final tally be on January 31? We don’t know.

It appears that Likud members have a painful decision to make. Many like Netanyahu. But he betrays them. Others like Feiglin. But he represents change: he will actually be loyal to Likud ideals.

Here is the question for the primary: how will Likud members vote? Will they vote their political pro-Israel conscience and choose a true Likunik-- or will they vote to create another Left-leaning Party which will betray everything Likud believes in?

We will find out soon enough.

The Likud & The National Agenda - The Great Debate

(Editor's note: If you can't be there, watch it live.....)

Moshe Feiglin Co-Founder & President Contact: Rob Muchnick, US Director (516) 779-7420 (cell phone) rmuchnick@gmail.com Shmuel Sackett Co-Founder & International Director

The Likud & The National Agenda - The Great Debate Sunday Night in Bet Shemesh, Israel (Live Webcast)

January 19, 2012... This Sunday night, January 22, 2012, at 8:15 P.M. in Bet Shemesh, Shmuel Sackett, Manhigut Yehudit's International Director will be facing off in a debate of national importance to determine the proper path forward for those in Israel's "National Camp", and by extension, to discuss their vision for the future of the State of Israel. ('National Camp' being defined as the group that wishes for Israel to annex and settle instead of ceding to her enemies the lands liberated by Israel during the War of 1967.) With the primary election for Chairman of the Likud - between Moshe Feiglin and Benjamin Netanyahu - set for January 31, the tension surrounding this debate is rising as the poll numbers show Mr. Feiglin - recently labeled 'the most important man in Israeli political discourse' by former Knesset speaker Avraham Burg (Labor) - gaining on the incumbent Prime Minister Netanyahu. Mr. Sackett, who will be representing Mr. Feiglin (of the National Camp), will be facing off against Daniel Tauber, the Executive Director of Likud Anglos, and Emmanuel Navon, who will be a candidate for the Likud's next Knesset slate, in the sole English-only event of the campaign. The debate will be moderated by Gil Hoffman, chief political analyst of the Jerusalem Post. The three men will be discussing and debating, among other issues, the following: - What is the best path to move Israel's National Camp forward? - What is the significance of the January 31 primary election between Mr. Feiglin and Mr. Netanyahu? - Considering that Mr. Netanyahu destroys Jewish towns, freezes Jewish construction, and states repeatedly that he wishes to create an Arab state in the Jewish biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria, how should the National Camp relate to him? - Where does the Likud stand on the Land of Israel, and how should the National Camp relate to the Likud? All are invited to watch a live webcast of the two-hour event on the Moshe Feiglin Campaign website starting at 8:15 P.M. (1:15 P.M. New York time). The webcast can be seen at the following website: www.MFLikud.com/webcast/live1.html The Moshe Feiglin Campaign website is at www.MFLikud.com The event will be held in Bet Shemesh at the Bet Knesset Nietzsche Menashe, located at Rehov Reuven 18, Givat Sharett.