U.S. politics is now in flux. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has just announced she is running for president. The Republicans are already in battle mode. Four Republican heavyweights have already launched de facto presidential bids, although only two of them had officially declared their candidacies as of Sunday. The electioneering has taken place against the backdrop of the ongoing feud between President Barack Obama and the Republican-controlled Senate over the fate of the nuclear agreement with Iran. Meanwhile, France has threatened to introduce a new U.N. Security Council draft resolution that would endorse the establishment of a Palestinian state. The British will go to the polls in about three weeks and Labor leader Ed Miliband has already indicated that he would support Palestinian statehood. Obama, it appears, will not use his veto power to thwart a pro-Palestinian resolution in the U.N. The drama on the world stage is not just political. Yemen is ablaze and Europeans are wary of possible terror attacks. But over here in Israel, it's politics as usual. Politicians here seem to be content with their go-slow approach to the coalition talks. For some reason, they are convinced they have all the time in the world. They want to establish a strong, stable, unshakable and proper government, and they are in no rush. They are poised to exhaust the legal period allotted for the talks -- 42 days. Israel will survive such an ordeal, although it should try to avert it. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Kulanu leader Moshe Kahlon are expected to continue their talks, which tend to go well into the night. The ultra-Orthodox parties may have to wait, Shas leader Aryeh Deri may hunker down and Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman may not know whether he is in or out, although he has been somewhat less vocal when it comes to securing the defense portfolio and has all but stopped making this demand. In fact, judging from his silence on Sunday, Lieberman is not overly concerned about the fate of the foreign affairs portfolio, either. What's behind this posture? Perhaps Lieberman has been colluding with Habayit Hayehudi leader Naftali Bennett. They might try to test Netanyahu by watering down their demands to the bare minimum. They figured that if this does not accelerate the talks and produce a deal, it means Netanyahu prefers the Zionist Union, not them. I am convinced that Netanyahu does indeed prefer a national unity government with the Zionist Union. It explains why he has recently touted the need to close ranks in Israeli society. It appears that people got the message. So why is it taking so long? Why expend all 42 days? Everyday that goes by without a newly formed coalition exacts a price. Everyone would be well-served by announcing that all pre-election pledges are no longer in effect. Netanyahu promised that he would create a right-wing government. He could prove that this was his intention all along by delivering on the pledge immediately. Otherwise, if he has had a change of heart, he should launch official talks with Zionist Union leader Isaac Herzog and stop putting out feelers behind the scenes. The Zionist Union needs to walk back some pledges, too. Its leaders vowed that they would not sit in a Likud-led government, but they never really meant it. For some, a unity government cannot be formed too soon. I am of the belief that a unity government is the preferred outcome of the coalition talks. Regardless of what the goal is, the process must be streamlined. The new government should have been formed already. It could have been up and running on Sunday. It could get to work any day now, if all sides come to their senses. Any day that goes by with no new government is just a waste of time.
