Netanyahu, Gantz Agree to Disagree Another Day

Israel’s chaotic political system on Sunday did all it could to preserve its shoddy reputation, as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz reached yet another last-minute agreement to postpone the budget deadline and delay elections. According to the law currently in place, if no budget is passed by December 23, parliament is dissolved and the country will head to the polls for the fourth time in two years. Yet the two frenemies decided to pass a bill extending the deadline by one week, to enable them to push through with negotiations regarding the continued cooperation of their unity government. According to the bill, the 2020 budget is to be passed by December 31, and the 2021 budget is to be passed by January 5. If either deadline is not met, then new elections will be held in March. While Netanyahu has avoided passing a budget for the past year, Gantz is looking to ensure the 2021 budget is passed into law, since that would prevent Netanyahu from dissolving parliament at a later, more convenient date, and heading to elections before passing the reins of government to Gantz as he promised in the coalition agreement.