"I sold him a house that wasn't mine to begin with," Haim Hefer wrote in his song "Your honor, the judge." Although 50 years have passed, this verse can aptly describe Religious Services Minister Naftali Bennett and his party. He and Habayit Hayehudi's top leadership sold the public the impression that their party was a home for refreshing, bold, brave and innovative ideas. But it was never such a home. Immediately after entering the government, its unenlightened rabbis wrested control over the party, and Bennett's grip is gradually unraveling. Bennett's decision not to fight for Rabbi David Stav's election as chief rabbi was the first sign that Bennett was getting weaker. He was dragged along by Rabbi Haim Druckman and took his cues from the radical rabbis who for some reason refuse to back one of their own for the position of chief rabbi. They have withheld support from Stav despite him being, like them, a national religious rabbi. Only a few months ago Bennett and his supporters -- both within and beyond the national religious sector -- were jubilant. Their successful campaign cast the latest iteration of the National Religious Party in a new, more positive, light. So what went wrong? Did they not aspire to follow in the footsteps of the late Zevulon Hammer, who in the 1970s reshaped the party with his youthful vigor and later rose to become its leader? Did they not want to outdo him? Not only did they abandon Stav, they have done the same to themselves. They initially supported Elazar Stern (Hatnuah) and Shay Piron (Yesh Atid) in their efforts to have women comprise 20 percent of the body that elects chief rabbis. Why did they backtrack then? Their excuse was that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would like to determine which women sit on that panel. Although it is unclear why he would like to have such authority, such a fear is warranted. This is another power struggle in the legitimate political back and forth. But if this was truly the reason for their opposition, a reasonable compromise would have been found. The truth is that Habayit Hayehudi has used its disagreement with Netanyahu to duck the issue of appointing women as electors. Conservative rabbis, who want to exclude women from the public sphere, are taking the helm. And this, before the very eyes of MK Ayelet Shaked, MK Shuli Mualem and MK Orit Struck. Justice Minister Tzipi Livni rightfully went on a tirade over this sad development. Not only was she outraged by the exclusion of women from the body that elects the chief rabbis, she felt that Habayit Hayehudi had walked back on its express pledge to support Stern's bill. It is rather strange that Bennett's "brother," Finance Minister Yair Lapid, has remained mum on all this. Lapid's faction members have done the same. They have all watched from the sidelines, choosing not to protest the fact that Habayit Hayehudi is kowtowing to its rabbis. What are they waiting for- Livni retaliated by vetoing Bennett's well-drafted reform of the marriage licensing procedures. He wants to let every couple choose the rabbinical council that would issue their birth certificate. This is an important piece of legislation because some couples face harassment by haredi rabbis. But by imposing a veto on such a welcomed initiative simply because Bennett reacted with undue panic over a similar issue, Livni has taken the public hostage. The public's quality of life will suffer as the politicians slug it out. The veto is unkosher.
