Sep. 28, 2005 PM aide: If Likud doesn’t back Sharon, he’ll leave
By Tovah Lazaroff
If the Likud party does not unite behind Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the option for him to leave the party is still on the table, said a political aide, Lior Chorev, on the morning following a key victory for the prime minister within the party.
"He [Sharon] won last night. Either the party has to stand behind him or he has to choose a different path," said Chorev.
"Sometimes the party needs you more than you need the party," he added.
With the Likud central committee victory behind him, Sharon is now bracing for the battles ahead: in the Knesset, which convenes on October 30 for its winter session, and in the party, ahead of its leadership primary next April.
The premier is certainly not racing to leave the party, Chorev told reporters at Mishkenot Sha’ananim in Jerusalem on Tuesday, adding that there was no reason now to form a new party.
"The fact that we won gives us time — six months. That is a lot of time in politics, particularly Israeli politics," he said.
Political forces shift quickly, said Chorev, who noted that three weeks ago Sharon was behind his rival, MK Binyamin Netanyahu, in the polls by as much as 20 percent.
But on Monday night, by a small margin of 104 of the 2,789 votes cast in the central committee, Sharon secured the April primary date over the November one sought by Netanyahu.
"It was a great victory,‘ said Chorev, speaking in English. ’Our team has been together for four and a half years now. We love to win. There is nothing merrier than to win against Netanyahu."
Chorev said he believed Sharon intended to stay in the Likud, but that such a decision was dependent on whether party members, particularly those in the Knesset, would allow him to govern.
"It depends on how the Likud will act," he said. One of the early tests is expected in the next few weeks when Sharon asks the Knesset to appoint Ehud Olmert to the post of finance minister. Olmert is currently acting finance minister.
Next, said Chorev, Sharon would have to see how the Likud acted with the budget and other policy votes in the Knesset.
Sharon hopes to prevail in these battles for the good of the party and the country but should he find that his ability to govern is blocked, he will revert to the option of forming a new party. It’s a scenario he and his political team explored had he lost the key vote Monday.
"Had Sharon lost, the possibility that we had was to form a new central party and the results as far as the polls were promising," he said.
Chorev made reference to a Yediot Aharonot poll that showed 36 mandates for a new party formed by Sharon compared to 14 that would go to a Netanyahu-led Likud.
Fear of media headlines kept them from taking more concrete action on plans for a new party at the time, he said. But the option remains, Chorev said. "He [Sharon] will be 78 years old. He doesn’t owe his party much,‘ said Chorev, explaining that Sharon has more of an allegiance to his own political beliefs than those of the party. ’He will do what he thinks is best. If he has to fight his party, he will try and choose a different ally [path]," he said.
"Sharon is looking toward public opinion and not toward the central committee,‘ he said. ’He will do what he believes is best for Israel."
Although Chorev did not name names, he said the prime minister is expected to cast a forgiving eye on the three ministers who opposed him with respect to the primary date: Education Minister Limor Livnat, Agriculture Minister Yisrael Katz and Health Minister Dan Naveh.
"There will not be any shifting of ministers,‘ said Chorev. ’The ministers will stay in their office, there won’t be any changes."
When reflecting back on Monday, Chorev said, he began to believe they had won when he saw how high the voter turnout was: 91.4 percent.
"People said we did everything to lose and we didn’t,‘ said Chorev. ’We won, and now it’s up to them."
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