Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon could not imagine that he would no longer be in the Knesset after the upcoming election in January. People who spoke with him said that he was confident and calm in recent days. It is clear now that he was also complacent. Avigdor Lieberman ousted Ayalon from Yisrael Beytenu on Tuesday night, without explanation and without reason. Lieberman simply kicked him out into the street. If this had been done after Ayalon humiliated the Turkish ambassador to Israel in January 2010, so be it. But much water has flowed through the Bosphorus since then, so why did this happen all of a sudden now? There is no doubt that something happened between Lieberman and Ayalon. For now, they are keeping their mouths shut. The truth will emerge, sooner or later. Seemingly, there is no problem refreshing the face of a political party. It is even desirable. Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov and MK Anastassia Michaeli were ripe candidates to be dropped from the list and Lieberman's new asset Yair Shamir has been brought on board. But what caused Lieberman to oust Ayalon entirely and push MK Moshe Matalon to an unrealistic spot at the bottom of the list- In my opinion, this was meant to remind Yisrael Beytenu members that, despite the merger with Likud, Lieberman is their boss, the one who gives them orders which must be obeyed without question or pause. Lieberman's method was also deterring. He did not attack those who were ousted. He simply put his pistol on the table and told them what he expected them to do. They understood and left quietly. Just like Lieberman loves. Why were they not warned beforehand? In Yisrael Beytenu, those who are not favored by the leader are punished with excommunication. Cut them off at the last possible moment, before the submission of the party lists. For more than a month, the media dwelled on the blemishes in the Likud and Labor primaries. These were defects in the system, which would affect any party that uses a primary to select its candidates. But corruption in primaries looks white as snow when compared to the selection of a candidates list by a private landlord. Single leaders determine political fates not only in Yisrael Beytenu, but also in Shas, Yesh Atid, Hatnuah and Kadima. Other than those who need a spot in the Knesset to make a living, I do not understand why politicians agree to a system in which they have to dance before a leader's window to get a good place inside. This seems to violate Israel's Basic Law of Human Dignity and Liberty. Politicians who are part of parties in which the lists are set by individual leaders have no dignity or liberty. Rather, they live in Byzantine courts.
