Avi Dichter, who quit the opposition party Kadima on Monday and joined the Cabinet as the homefront defense minister, is lacking one gene that is very important in politicians: He has no patience for chatter. He could never feel at home in the opposition. A son to a father who worked his whole life for the Histadrut labor federation's construction company, the Polish looking (his nickname in the Sayeret Matkal elite commando unit was "the Pole") Dichter seemed like he was constantly carrying a hoe and a shovel. That's how he was raised. Without a task to complete he is like a fish out of water. In 2000, then-Prime Minister Ehud Barak appointed Dichter to head the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet). Another prime minister, Ariel Sharon, liked Dichter very much. But he is a stubborn man, and does not make things easy for his colleagues. When the Second Intifada (Palestinian uprising) broke out, nearly the entire Israeli government and defense establishment opposed erecting the separation fence all but the so-called "gang of four" which included three politicians who were no longer in the Cabinet: Ehud Barak (who had since been replaced at the helm by Sharon), Dan Meridor and Haim Ramon. The fourth ace was ISA chief Dichter. MK Dalia Itzik once recounted that Dichter refused to leave Sharon alone. At nearly every meeting he would insist on the dire need for a separation fence. He disagreed with the top military brass, which was of the opinion that there were enough natural and topographical obstacles between the nooks and crannies to stop terrorists from infiltrating Israel. It was only a long time later that others jumped on board and saw the need for the barrier. Now, Dichter has chosen to abandon his party and to follow his heart somewhere where he can be of use. He did abdicate his Knesset seat, giving it back to Kadima (otherwise he would not be able to run on the Likud list in the next election), but even he knows that abandoning Kadima was not entirely the right thing to do. He was one of the first Kadima members, he served as a minister on its platform, and he wholeheartedly supported former party leader Tzipi Livni, and then current party leader Shaul Mofaz (until a recent falling out), and now it is too late. Dichter lacks the natural instincts of a politician, and therefore doesn't fully understand why Mofaz defeated him when he vied for the leadership of Kadima. When he joins the Likud, he will be confronted by other wolves and sharks, and it is not clear whether he will survive there. A lot depends on his success as homefront defense minister and his ability to prepare the Israeli homefront for a potential attack by Iran or its satellites Hezbollah and Hamas. But when a senior MK, free of scandal and corruption, resigns from a party, it is not only his personal business. Tzachi Hanegbi (who quit Kadima last month) preceded Dichter, and Haim Ramon preceded them both. Kadima, which literally means "forward" has now officially become "backward." So backward, in fact, that even Kadima's opponents in the Likud are no longer roving for plunder. Kadima's disintegration is no longer of any interest to them. That is why it seems to me that Kadima MKs are merely trying to preserve their political present, and a handful are working to ensure their political future. It would make it easier for everyone if they convene one more time and make a very important decision: to preserve the current framework of the faction to protect the party's voice in the Knesset and the budgets that they care about. But only the framework in practice, the party has ceased to exist. "Every man to your tents, O Israel" (2 Chronicles 10:16). Anyone who wants to go elsewhere or simply lets his feet take him where they may will not be regarded as having violated political etiquette. On the contrary: It is completely legitimate for everyone to act as he sees fit without feeling derided and insulted all the way to the next election. This way the entire shepherd-less herd called Kadima can say to itself: We are all Avi Dichter. That would be a worthy conclusion.
