President Rivlin and kingmaker Liberman meeting on coalition

Liberman accuses Netanyahu of "begging Egypt to help us surrender."

By GIL HOFFMAN
Yisrael Beteynu leader Avigdor Liberman meets with President Reuven Rivlin, November 13, 2019 (photo credit: Mark Neiman/GPO)
Yisrael Beteynu leader Avigdor Liberman meets with President Reuven Rivlin, November 13, 2019
(photo credit: Mark Neiman/GPO)
Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman sought clarification from President Reuven Rivlin on Wednesday afternoon regarding his proposal for ending the coalition-building crisis, at a meeting at the President's Residence.
According to the compromise, which Likud supports openly and Blue and White has purposely not openly endorsed yet, Netanyahu would be prime minister first and then take an extended break while fighting corruption charges. According to the plan, Gantz would take Netanyahu’s place as prime minister when Netanyahu is incapacitated, after initially serving as vice prime minister.
Liberman's associates said before the meeting that he intended to ask Rivlin how to handle the complicated question of what constitutes being incapacitated. Blue and White has hesitated to endorse the compromise, due in part to that question remaining unresolved.
Rivlin's answer will be delivered by Liberman to Blue and White leader Benny Gantz when they meet on Thursday morning at Ramat Gan's Kfar Hamaccabiah Hotel. Gantz has a mandate to form a government that ends next Wednesday night at 11:59pm.
Liberman blasted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Facebook on Wednesday for his handling of the Gaza crisis. The Yisrael Beytenu leader said he is the only one who has a solution to the rocket fire.
"Instead of finding a real solution, Netanyahu and his Likud colleagues are slinging mud all day," Liberman wrote. "They have no answers or solution, and they are not ready to conduct professional deliberations on the security situation. Even worse, we have found ourselves begging Egypt to help us surrender and end the incident as it was before, which will just lead to yet another round."