Livni skewers Netanyahu on satirical show, prompting harsh rebuke from Likud

Former justice minister delivered witty one-liners and jokes at the expense of Netanyahu on "State of the Nation."

By ARIEL ZILBER
Former justice minister Tzipi Livni attends a session of parliament (photo credit: REUTERS)
Former justice minister Tzipi Livni attends a session of parliament
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Former justice minister Tzipi Livni’s appearance on one of the country’s most popular satirical programs earned her harsh rebukes from her former Likud colleagues on Sunday.
Livni delivered witty one-liners and jokes at the expense of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Channel 2’s State of the Nation, a program that often skewers Israel’s politicos and public figures.
In the wake of her alliance with Labor Party chief Isaac Herzog, Livni quipped, “It’s better to have two potential prime ministers rather than a prime minister who suffers from impotence.”
“Like in any solid relationship between a man and a woman, me and Buji [Herzog’s nickname] have decided to take out the trash together,” she said, alluding to Netanyahu.
Netanyahu’s allies in the Likud were hardly amused.
“Is Livni on drugs?” Transportation Minister Israel Katz wrote on his Facebook page on Sunday.
“Yesterday on television, we saw a bizarre character hurl unprecedented insults at the prime minister. What kind of language is this? How low has she stooped?” “Since Israel cut ties with [PA President Mahmoud Abbas] Abu Mazen, she has simply become unbalanced,” Katz wrote. “She’s addicted to talks with the Palestinians, and she’s incapable of sobering up.”
Likud MK Miri Regev also took to Facebook in denouncing Livni, writing: “Here’s a joke for you. Tzipi Livni, the contractor in charge of removing debris, is having trouble finding a suitable place for the trash that she left behind in the previous terms in parliament.”
“I say this in the name of satire and in response to the not-so-funny things that she said on television,” Regev wrote.