Is Yitzhak Bozhi Herzog even suitable to be Prime Minister?
On the one hand, his incumbent opponent is conducting himself in a way that makes it seem like even a prime minister chosen by the lottery's computer would be better.
On the other hand, is Bozhi made of the stuff we imagine a prime minister should be?
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The fear that Netanyahu will be re-elected surrounds Herzog today with a wall of Etrog. Most media outlets apparently do not want to ruin the chance of overthrowing Netanyahu, and therefore, we have not seen a single serious profile on the candidate for prime minister.
Herzog was a successful minister in both the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Welfare. He is a fine politician, a friend to everyone, knows how to create coalitions of power, connected to journalists, the richest tycoons, and the heads of social organizations. It is difficult to find anyone who has confronted him.
In his speech to the Saban Forum, he juggled between the state of the reformers in the State of Israel and policy toward Iran. He is creative in negotiations, and just give him a reasonable opportunity to form a government and he will concoct some cocktail that Litzman, Deri, Lapid, Yvette and Galon will somehow be able to live with.
Still, here are the questions that turn your stomach.
When was the last time Herzog took a controversial stance? Something his political base didn't like?
He was in the cabinet of the Second Lebanon War and didn't leave any mark. He sat for years in the governments of Sharon, Olmert and Netanyahu and never even considered committing suicide over any issue. Why commit suicide, just to genuinely challenge the prime minister on some principled issue.
More disturbing: How capable is he of withstanding pressure? Does he have that ability, or does he have to please everyone all the time (perhaps the only time he's made such a decision recently was when he nominated Simon Trachtenberg as a candidate for finance minister, even though it angered Shelly Yachimovich and Erel Margalit)?
Herzog is a stressed person by nature, not to say hysterical.
Anyone who works around him is condemned to this roller coaster of minor hysteria, sometimes over trivial things. It's his nature. Sometimes it's very human, like that time he came down from his victory speech over Shelly Yachimovich and told his wife that he almost fainted on stage ten times.
Sometimes, it's scary to imagine this man leading fateful debates. His position on disqualifying Hanin Zoabi changed about three times, he failed to fire some of the people running his shameful campaign because they shouted a bit, and his position on coming to a televised debate, in a situation where Netanyahu is not coming, started from 'yes', moved to 'no' and then got stuck in the strange situation of 'we are not answering.'.
Oh, yes, and he also gave in to Tzipi Livni's outrageous demand for rotation at the head of the government.
It's not just in recent times.
In 2007, Ehud Barak wanted Herzog to support him for Labor leadership. Barak abused him, implicated him in the NGO affair, and ruined the Labor Party along the way. Herzog didn't want to, but he gave in to the pressure campaign (his wife certainly didn't like it).
Not long ago, he headed the campaign to elect Fuad Ben Eliezer as president. Herzog knew exactly who Fuad was. Absolutely, including times when he suspected Fuad of being involved in criminal acts.
You can't take away from Herzog the enormous motivational engine that operates in him. There are actually two boogies. He's sitting and texting and answering a second phone and having a little side conversation, and so on, every day, all day, for decades.
He's so nice that people don't understand how much he's willing to put in to get 'there.' He may get 'there,' but what will he do 'there?'
I prefer him any day over Netanyahu (I even prefer Bogey Ya'alon and Gideon Sa'ar, if we are destined for the right to rule), but anyone who dreams that Herzog will evict settlers, sign a permanent settlement, or establish a constitution for Israel - he better wake up.
• From Raviv Drucker's blog: http://drucker10.net
