Yair Lapid’s first Rosh Hashanah as Israeli Prime Minister came after several months in office, and in less than two months the citizens of Israel will demand to decide what his fate will be next Rosh Hashanah as well. In a special holiday interview he gave to Yehuda Schlesinger in Israel today and published this morning (Sunday), Lapid talks about the recent changes in his life.
About the chairman of Otzma Yehudit, Itamar Ben Gabir, he says: “I don’t know him, I have never exchanged a word with him in my life and I will not sit with him in the coalition, he shames us. “I don’t believe he has changed, I think this is a dangerous phenomenon. Those who up until two years ago hung a picture of Baruch Goldstein in the living room do not change. The change was too quick and too compatible with his political convenience.”
I don’t see the children much
One of the problems that particularly bothers the public in Israel concerns the cost of living, which has recently skyrocketed to alarming numbers. To this the Prime Minister says, “In the last year the cost of living has risen exponentially all over the world as it has not risen for years. Because of post-Corona and Ukraine, and it happened right on my shift. Israel was more negatively affected than other countries, because we reached this period with a high cost of living after 12 Years of doing nothing here. If we got a country in the state of one of the most expensive in the world, whoever was the prime minister should be held accountable. We are in a struggle. Each time it’s a different goal, fuel, bread. It’s an individual struggle. There is no single answer to how to solve the cost of living and who Anyone who claims to have it is a liar. It’s a fight in Lima, but it won’t happen in one day. I’ve been prime minister for two months. It’s hard to blame the cost of living on me.”
He says about the personal changes in his life upon assuming the highest political position in Israel: “I see my children less, my mother I see less and I get scolded for it more. I see my friends less. But this is not a complaint. I do things I believe in. There are Things I did keep like the training, the food, the regular Tuesday with Yaeli, once a week I eat one meal – whatever I want.”
There is no problem for the members of the cooperative to recommend us
In an interview he gave to Yuval Karni in Yedioth Ahronoth, the prime minister actually referred to possible support from the joint list, which had already broken up last week. Lapid testified that he was certainly surprised by the matter, but does not yet know whether it is a loss for him. “The Arab citizens of Israel have not been treated correctly for many, many years. It is very important that they understand that if they go out to vote, it will affect their lives at the most basic levels.” He also added, “I have no problem with them recommending us, I have no problem cooperating with you for the benefit of the Arab public in the Knesset, we have done it all these years – all Israeli governments have done it all these years, we have done it even less than Netanyahu did That. And not that it’s a standard character.”
Last month, during a meeting of the Yesh Atid faction, Lapid replied in response to a question about leaning on the joint to form the next government: “It will be very difficult to convince that we will not be able to form a government because we formed a government and I am speaking to you as the prime minister. We formed a government in what seem like bad conditions In much of what we will have after the upcoming elections. Regarding the ‘how’ and ‘who will be’ and ‘which parts’ – I save the following questions and say in advance: if anyone has the true results, I would be happy to explain to them how to form a government. If you don’t have the We will find out the true results after the elections. As for the partner, she won’t be in the government because she doesn’t want to.”
And in terms of leaning?
“Talk to us again after the elections.”