Kahana: We'll form govt with Likud defectors, no chareidim

Matan Kahana on Srugim's central election broadcast (Srugim studio)

MK Matan Kahana of Yisrael Beiteinu appeared on Srugim's central election broadcast and laid out his party's post-election plan in detail. Host Netanel Izak opened by describing Kahana's intensive field operation, noting that investigative reports had tracked him "on the roads" constantly.

Kahana, who called himself "the party's champion of house meetings," described the mood among traditional right-wing voters: "A lot of the house meetings we're doing are in Likud strongholds, areas where people voted for the current coalition in the past, and we're seeing that it's very hard for them with what happened here, very hard for them to vote for Netanyahu and Likud and they're looking for something else. We're coming to convince them that we're a good option."

Izak confronted him with the polling data: "We saw a trend where Yisrael Beytenu under Eisenkot was rising... and specifically in the last three weeks, which is crunch time, we're seeing that Yisrael Beytenu has relatively dropped in the average polls."

Kahana rejected the claim of a drop and explained the party's election strategy: "We just looked at the poll average for the last month and the average is 20... We started explaining to the public why they need to vote for us so we'll be the largest party, bigger than Netanyahu... so there won't be dilemmas, so it won't be 21–20, so it'll be 30 for us, 19 for Likud, and then it's clear that Netanyahu lost, Netanyahu goes home and there's big legitimacy here for a different government."

Future coalition: not with Arabs, not with chareidi politics

When Izak asked how they would form a government if the bloc depends on Arab parties, Kahana drew a clear line:

"We said very clearly that we won't sit in a coalition with parties that don't know how to define Hamas as a terror organization that needs to be destroyed. We don't know of any Arab party that has declared that Hamas is a terror organization that needs to be destroyed, and therefore from our perspective they won't be part of a coalition."

When asked about possible cooperation with Shas or United Torah Judaism, Kahana set a new threshold condition: "We talked before about the condition of destroying Hamas, now we also have a condition of service for all. And I don't know of any chareidi party right now at least that says service for all, and therefore I also don't see political cooperation with chareidi politics. I think it's right now that a truly broad Zionist government should be established here under Gadi Eisenkot... that will do very well also for our chareidi brothers, will finally be able to integrate them into Israel's economy and Israel's security... with economic carrots and sticks."

Likud defectors and dismantling the system: "There are Likud MKs Gadi talks to more than Netanyahu talks to them"

Asked whether there are coalition MKs who would agree to cross the lines, Kahana delivered a surprising statement: "We're in contact with Likud members. I think there are Likud MKs that Gadi talks to more than Netanyahu talks to them."

Kahana shared correspondence with a prominent right-wing activist who declared he would demonstrate outside the homes of Netanyahu and Smotrich with a call to join a unity government if Eisenkot leads, and clarified the day-after plan:

"When we have a majority of Zionist Jews we'll replace Netanyahu, we'll move Netanyahu aside... What will happen after that is two options: either we'll succeed on the basis of the existing Knesset to expand the government because we'll simply come to people and tell them: 'Guys, Netanyahu has finished his historic role'... or we'll go to elections when we're the transition government... a government you can trust to do things for the good of the State of Israel, a government that with Hashem's help won't continue to incentivize shirking and desertion by our chareidi brothers."

Regarding personal legislation initiatives against Netanyahu, Kahana noted that such a law would not be personal and would not apply retroactively to Netanyahu, in accordance with statements by Eisenkot and Bennett.

The attack on Netanyahu: "Complete systemic madness"

Kahana completely ruled out the possibility of joining a government headed by Netanyahu, while leveling harsh criticism at events in the Prime Minister's Office:

"We think Netanyahu must end his political role in Israeli politics because he's the main person responsible for the October 7th massacre and disaster. We think his judgment is already very problematic. We see that he continues to employ in his office a person who received money from Qatar during the war to conduct influence operations on Israelis to praise and glorify Qatar that financed Hamas... The man knows what's happening in his office, now he knows and still continues to employ him... it's simply complete systemic madness. A person like that is not fit to be in leadership positions."

Bennett's loyalty and the revelation about Rav Druckman zt"l

Srugim editor Aryeh Yueli confronted Kahana with the political past and the promise that wasn't kept regarding Yair Lapid: "On the eve of the 2021 elections you were in the studio... and you promised that Yair Lapid wouldn't be prime minister and in the end you didn't keep that promise... Can we trust Bennett that he'll stay with you? If Netanyahu, who's an expert in tricks and maneuvers, suddenly tells Bennett: 'Come take Defense and Foreign Affairs'?"

Kahana emphasized Bennett's commitment to the bloc, and revealed a historical detail from the period of contacts with Ra'am:

"From my close friendship with Bennett I trust him... I also trust him that he'll do the right thing within our bloc... and will recommend that the head of the largest party be the next prime minister... After Likud acted to legitimize Mansour Abbas, I personally was sent on behalf of Likud to Rav Druckman zt"l to convince him to allow Netanyahu to establish a government with Mansour Abbas. I personally, not rumors... Did it ultimately in the final result do good for the State of Israel? Apparently not, but we're facing forward."

The Yair Golan issue: "Alliance of those who serve versus 'we'll die and not enlist'"

Izak presented Kahana with the prominent concern among the religious-Zionist public about partnership with Yair Golan: "The large part of the religious-Zionist sector connects to your idea... and then they hear Yair Golan, your senior partner for government: 'We'll remove religion from the public sphere'... this is ultimately your senior partner."

Kahana responded with a sharp distinction between disagreements with Golan and the military and moral partnership: "We disagree with Yair Golan on very many issues... but whoever will be prime minister will be Gadi Eisenkot, not Yair Golan. Whoever will set the government's agenda will be Gadi Eisenkot... Put here on the scales: on one side you have 'we'll die and not enlist' and on the other side you have an alliance of those who serve. On one side you have those where thousands of chareidi families live in fear that a military policeman will come to arrest their deserter son, and on the other side there are thousands of families living in fear of the worst news of all. The partnership I want is partnership with those who with me get up for the assault, with me in the armored personnel carrier, in the turret and in the cockpit... and the thought that in the cabinet that sends our children to war sit people who are 'we'll die and not enlist'... is a thought in my eyes that's not moral."

Studio analysis: minority government or political maneuver?

After Kahana left the studio, Srugim journalists analyzed his remarks. Site commentator Yossi Ben Atar pointed to the complexity around Golan and the question of feasibility of a government without 61 votes: "First of all what he says about Yair Golan, you see he has a problem with them... They're not managing to silence him, he's damaging them... and the second thing: he really brought here a script of what will happen after the elections, we'll go to a 60-member government and supposedly a kind of leaning on Arabs... to pass laws that are against Netanyahu. Ahmad Tibi will be happy... but without 61 you don't have a budget, that's actually the deadline."

Site editor Aryeh Yoeli sharpened the mathematical and strategic difficulty in Eisenkot and Kahana's move: "What does Matan Kahana say? Eisenkot will form a government without Arabs, without chareidim... and he disqualifies Likud because of Netanyahu... so who are you left with? That is, Eisenkot doesn't have a government. So he says: 'I'll do a minority government trick... you do a vote, replace the committees and then you arrange a minority government on a vote and then you dissolve and arrive like that at elections when you're prime minister and controlling the agenda'... Beyond that, the largest party campaign is being done at the expense of the bloc and not from the right, and we see Liberman going down in the polls."

Finally, "Srugim Week" host Yehudit Lazarovitz raised the deep sectoral question the interview evokes: "When he sat I asked myself: are we still speaking the same shared language in our sector? Have we become a scattered or divided people and yet we have a shared language?... and that's why Yair Golan stresses them out so much, because he's threatening Israel and the settlement enterprise."