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While Prime Minister Olmert announced that he would not be running in the Kadima Party primaries and that he will resign in September, he is by no means out of the picture yet.
Barak of IRIS cites these political procedural protocals noted by Jerusalem Post’s Gil Hoffman;
Kadima’s election committee decided on Tuesday to set an August 24 deadline to join the race, which it scheduled for September 17.
The winner in the Kadima primary will have until October 26 to submit his new government for approval by President Shimon Peres.
In case the elected leader fails, the president customarily grants another 90 days to form a government; after the 90 days are through, in case no coalition is formed, a general election is scheduled, thus potentially allowing Olmert to remain in power until March 2009.
After the primary Olmert will remain in office as prime minister of a transitional government, until his successor in Kadima manages to forge a new coalition or until general elections are held.
As of now, it is not at all certain that any new Kadima leader would be capable of putting together a coalition majority, let alone a coalition majority capable of governing such as to reverse the grievous harm done to the nation by Sharon/Olmert regimes.
It is interesting to note how typical it is of the last 20 years for cheap, sleezy politicians to blame the governed, to call the masses habitual “grumblers” who complain about almost everything. With the abysmal level of governance of an Olmert, Peretz, Barak, Livni, Mofaz, Ramon, etc. and at least 117 slimey MKs out of 120, who amongst the nearly 6,000,000 Jews, the governed — those NOT amongst the protexia-class, wouldn’t grumble?
Typical of this pervasive sleeze in Israeli governance is apparent Kadima front-runner, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, that Ms. Politically Clean, the former Mossad house-sitter who has been pow-wowing with Bibi Netanyahu making good on her stated priority for a unity government including the Likud.
Take note of Livni’s sudden right-wing rhetoric cited here and here regarding “concern that the prime minister would easily give up too much Israeli land…” Undoubtedly, this is the first time, in roughly 4 years since her meteoric political rise beginning under the Sharon expulsion regime, that such rhetoric has been employed. She is anything but clean and pure and is unqualified and unfit to lead Israel.
And we already know the foibles of Shaul ‘one-foot-out-the-door’ Mofaz and his courting of the Shas Party with promises of Mega-NIS.
And then there is Olmert’s current home-boy Haim “the Frenchman” Ramon, convicted of molestation — a crime deemed by many to involve moral turpitude, now holding position of Vice Premier. This author looks for Olmert, who wants no parts of Livni or Mofaz, to annoint Ramon as his heir-apparent sometime between now and mid-Sepptember’s primary day.
Sorry friends, although possibly wrong, unfortunately, we won’t be seeing the last of Olmert and his ilk anytime soon. MB
Clarification: Olmert to Remain PM if Kadima Primaries Winner Can’t Form New Coalition, by Dr. Aaron Lerner (IMRA)
Background: Basic Law and Resignation of Prime Minister, by Dr. Aaron Lerner (IMRA)