Likud MK Benny Begin had harsh words Tuesday for members of the Israeli Right who support the recent appointment of Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman as defense minister in place of Moshe Ya'alon under an agreement that saw Yisrael Beytenu added to the coalition. "A person who was completely committed to opposing the establishment of a PLO state in Judea and Samaria isn't acceptable to them, while a person who wasn't committed to that but who has promised the death sentence for terrorists is totally kosher," Begin said in an interview on Army Radio, referring to Ya'alon and Lieberman, respectively. "It's led me to think that there is a moderate Right, an extreme Right, and a foolish Right," he said. Begin, who opposed the idea of Lieberman replacing Ya'alon as defense minister from the start, also said: "I'm very sorry that in Israel, the way to get elected means preaching against the two-state solution as a betrayal. However, if it turns out that words are just words and the [new] defense minister spearheads a moderate policy, I'd be happy to see such a policy carried out." "It's has been said of me that I have zero influence on a good day, but I've learned that even zero has its ranks, and from within that zero, I try to be useful. The fact that Ya'alon was replaced by Lieberman hasn't made it easier for me to contribute to the work of the government," Begin said. In response, Jerusalem Affairs Minister Zeev Elkin said, "I think that Benny's view, that the point of the move was to remove Ya'alon from his position, is a complete misreading of the situation. There was a difficult, fragile coalition situation." Elkin was referring to the fact that after failed negotiations with the Zionist Union party to join the coalition and form a unity government, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu turned to Yisrael Beytenu to expand the razor-thin majority of his 61-member coalition and offered Lieberman the defense portfolio. "Even if we had gone with the Labor Party [which is part of the Zionist Union], the portfolio would not have remained in the Likud's hands. It would have gone to the Zionist Union, into the hands of Tzipi Livni. So Tzipi Livni as defense minister would be better than Lieberman-" Elkin asked.
