Good morning, Defense Minister Bnei Gantz.
On this very day, November 17, you were to enter the Prime Minister's Office for the first time as Prime Minister of Israel.
To fulfill the pinnacle of every politician's ambition, and more to do so in record time: only at the end of December 2018 did you announce your intention to enter politics led by a new party;
Today, a little less than three years later, you could have moved into the Prime Minister's official residence.
But a series of mistakes, strange decisions and misconduct prevented you from doing so.
Not only has the Prime Minister's Office distanced itself from you, but the formation of the new government, of which you are a member and in which you almost inevitably support you, has led to a serious erosion of your status.
Luck was completely by your side, but probably unlike the IDF, where you managed to climb to the top, in politics you also have to know how to catch it. And in the big test, what to do, you failed.
Defense Minister Ganz at the Israel Democracy Conference: "There will be no tolerance for terrorism and disaster, either side" // Photo: Haaretz Conference
The prevailing opinion in the political system, in the media and in the elite is that the sole culprit for the non-existence of the rotation is Netanyahu.
If Gantz is accused of anything by them, it is mainly because he generally agreed to go hand in hand with Netanyahu in the first place, and there will be those who will add that his guilt drains into the fact that he was "too stately."
Bennett, for example, is not accused of acting contrary to his promises to his constituents, although both Bennett and Ganz presented the exact same argument: a stable government and the prevention of further elections.
There is nothing to get Netanyahu out clean and innocent.
Bottom line, his insistence on passing an annual budget, which would have allowed him another stop in the election without losing power, was a violation of the coalition agreement he signed.
On the other hand, placing the blame solely on him would be a partial presentation of things.
The reality is more complex.
Unlike the previous unity governments established in the country's history, which, despite the rivalry, showed solidarity from the moment they agreed on a joint meeting, and all submitted to the prime minister and recognized his authority, this was not the case in the unity government that Ganz formed with Netanyahu.
Ganz did not accept Netanyahu's authority, continued to attack him sharply while sitting under him, and especially his ministers were allowed to attack him.
Gantz was wrong when he continued the hate campaign against Netanyahu while serving as a minister in his government, and made a grave mistake in appointing the extremists among his opponents to key positions.
The question of what would have happened if Gantz had aligned himself, acted stately, understood the magnitude of the hour and the need for collegiality under one government, whether even then Netanyahu would have found a different excuse and dismantled, would remain open.
Ganz and Netanyahu, Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Prime Minister Bennett, Deputy Prime Minister Lapid and Defense Minister Ganz, Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
He, of course, believes so.
That Netanyahu would have done the same exercise for him anyway.
But not one hundred percent sure he's right.
Had he broadcast that he was a full partner, it is not certain that even if Netanyahu had wanted to leave, he would have succeeded.
The ultra-Orthodox parties flowed with Netanyahu because they saw with their own eyes the squeaks.
If everything had gone smoothly, Netanyahu might have had difficulty recruiting them to lead further elections.
On the other hand, it may not be.
