tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20257999.post5393451150829613972..comments2024-03-29T06:05:20.562+03:00Comments on Life in Israel: star-studded listRafi G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00699851287106903971noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20257999.post-34281474266915107402008-11-24T09:53:00.000+02:002008-11-24T09:53:00.000+02:00I actually would like to see some politician eithe...I actually would like to see some politician either pass a law or just by his own initiative implement a policy saying there will be no more than 9 ministers in government.<BR/><BR/>We do not need 25 ministers. It is a big waste of money and makes bloated government. I would probably vote for such a candidate no matter which party he came from.Rafi G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/00699851287106903971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20257999.post-62274250941654415532008-11-24T09:51:00.000+02:002008-11-24T09:51:00.000+02:00I agree with that, that is why I said the problem ...I agree with that, that is why I said the problem is solved if Likud gets tons of seats like 60 (I exagerrated the number a bit), but I dont see it happening. It would take a real miracle for them to get so many seats that they do not need more than one other partner. I think the 30-35 is range is realistic, and then they will need at least 2 partners of medium/large size, if not moreRafi G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/00699851287106903971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20257999.post-25935996003490598832008-11-24T09:49:00.000+02:002008-11-24T09:49:00.000+02:00Punkt farkert, Rafi.The stronger the Likud is, the...Punkt farkert, Rafi.<BR/><BR/>The stronger the Likud is, the smaller we can expect the government to be. If the Likud got 50 seats, they would probably need only one other party to join the coalition. While they might choose to include more for the sake of strength, the bargaining power of all the smaller parties is significantly diluted, such that they cannot make demands disproportionate to their respective sizes.<BR/><BR/>For a practical demonstration of this prnciple, take a look at how a weak ruling party (Kadima) fared in the last Knesset. 29 seats is the smallest size ever for the largest party in the Knesset. And they could not hold together the same coalition for very long. This was what made watching Olmert so entertaining, because he really was a master at dancing around his coalition partners, swapping out this one for that one, etc. A lesser politician would not even have managed to form a coalition in the first place!<BR/><BR/>If anyone inside the Likud has their nose out of joint because Bibi didn't give them the portfolio they wanted, they can resign from Knesset, and some lesser being will take their place. But if your coalition partners from other parties start getting huffy, you either have to pander to them or find some other partner with lesser demands...Shaul Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13657787388625188732noreply@blogger.com