As always, MK Rubi Rivlin was received with great warmth by the United Torah Judaism faction.
How did one of his people summarize the meeting that the presidential candidate held today with the ultra-Orthodox MKs? He felt at home. After all, about a year and a half ago he was also received at the home of the great Lithuanian public figure, the Grand Rabbi of Israel, Shteinman - an honor that few members of the Israeli House of Representatives have been granted.
The stories were pulled out one by one, his family background, the extensive Rivlin family (the Porush family is one of its branches, by the way), his preservation of tradition. And there was also the story that he always tells: Once the Reform movement invited him to visit the United States. They invited him, but it probably won't happen again. Yes, they greatly regretted the step. Rivlin simply went up to speak at an event they organized - and spoke against them.
The Haredi MKs, for their part, did everything to give him a good feeling. So it's true that people don't go to the polls with a good feeling, especially when voting is done behind the curtain, but that's worth something too. In between, one of them muttered: "Bibi is trying to bring in a religious figure with a kippah in the form of Yaakov Ne'eman, but that's not what will buy us...""
Why is Bibi angry?
During the meeting, apart from the MKs, only two women were allowed into the faction room: MK Menachem Eliezer Mozes-Taibi, the dedicated and long-time assistant to MK Menachem Eliezer, and Rivlin's office manager, Rivka Ravitz. What Rivka Ravitz said, expressed a desire in the hearts of the Haredi MKs to vote for Rivlin, if only for her. Most of the actions were not made public, as silence is good for them, but the MKs of United Torah Judaism, and in particular Degel Hatorah, carry an impressive collection of cases in which she helped them as if she were one of the faction. With the approval of her boss, of course.
The rest of the assistants asked to wait outside. A proven recipe for preventing leaks, distributing photos and even videos.
In between, the friends tried to understand (go ahead and explain to them that Rivlin doesn't really understand either) what is causing Netanyahu to act against him with all his might. "Ask him, I don't know," Rubi replied. To be honest, that's the truth. So it's true that in the background there is a statement in the plenum against him - "My wife doesn't make appointments" - but apparently Drubi was referring to another MK from the Likud, one whose wife could send Sara crashing through stirring and meddling.
'Yesh Atid has already announced that it will not support the initiative to postpone the elections, and yet Rivlin's office is not exactly calm. Every novice politician knows that buying a party is no problem. Right now, Yesh Atid is walking around with a full stomach due to the failure to appoint their man, MK Ofer Shelah, to the position of chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee, and unfortunately for Netanyahu, he even refused the position of deputy foreign minister, but in politics you can always find a suitable dumpling to calm Yair Lapid.
Ruby trusts you.
So where, really, are the ultra-Orthodox parties headed in the presidential elections? The current situation is that there is no such thing as 'factional discipline,' not even in the ultra-Orthodox parties. Behind the curtain, each of them has their own considerations.
Just for example: Shas MKs who are angry with Chairman Aryeh Deri can cast a dissenting vote. Deri himself, by the way, has not yet made a decision, and it seems that his people are spreading good feelings everywhere, without cover. In between, there are journalists who were (intentionally) leaked that Shas will support Fuad Ben Eliezer, even though at the moment this is not really on the horizon. What's more, Silvan Shalom has not yet said the last word - will he run or not. Even his wife Judy has not yet tweeted the appropriate post.
And in Torah Judaism? Even if Gafni told his friends in the Torah flag, "Please vote for the person I want to criticize," each of them would do what was in their hearts. Unless the Grand Rabbi Steinman gives them a clear and sharp instruction (it is currently unclear whether he will intervene). There is no need to exaggerate the factional discipline in Agudat Israel. How did MK Yaakov Litzman define what was happening on a previous occasion? "It was a lot of work and a lot of work.".
What did Rivlin say at the end of the meeting, just after they made it clear to him, as is customary, that "with us, only the rabbis make the decisions"? - "I trust you to know how to present the facts clearly to the rabbis, and help them make the wise decision...""
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