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Clashes over 2009 budget threaten to topple government
By Mazal Mualem
Tags: ehud olmert, budget 

Clashes over the 2009 budget could bring down the government if Prime Minister Ehud Olmert carries out a threat to fire Defense Minister Ehud Barak over Labor objections to the treasury's proposal.

"The budget must be passed regardless of political battles," a source close to Olmert said Monday. "Barak objects to the budget for political reasons and if the prime minister has no choice he will consider firing him. It depends on Barak's behavior."

The crisis erupted after Labor's Knesset faction decided Monday to oppose the budget at the next cabinet session on Sunday. Shas and the Pensioners Party also intend to object to the budget, which means there won't be a majority to pass the budget.
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Labor faction whip MK Eitan Cabel said, "The debate on setting up an alternative government or going to elections will be about the budget of 2009."

Channel 1 reporter Ayala Hasson reported Monday that Olmert was thinking of firing Barak because of the political clashes he was causing in the cabinet sessions. Barak was dealing with politics rather than defense, Olmert said.

Olmert's aides denied that Olmert had plans to fire Barak. But sources close to Olmert admitted that Barak's dismissal was being considered due to the difficulties he and Labor were causing.

Senior Labor figures dismissed the reported threat. "That's a sure recipe to shorten Olmert's term as prime minister and Kadima's time as a ruling party," a Labor MK said.

"It's nonsense because firing Barak would mean Labor's quitting the coalition," he said.

Labor's faction met Monday to discuss the budget following the intended cutbacks in defense and the Olmert-Barak clash. Olmert accused Barak of preventing a debate on the defense establishment's multi-year plan.

The Labor faction Monday decided to oppose Finance Minister Roni Bar-On's 2009 budget proposal and adopt the recommendations of the chairman of the Knesset Finance Committee, Avishay Braverman (Labor), to increase next year's spending framework over the 2008 budget by 2.5% instead of the treasury's proposed 1.7%.

Increasing spending will allow the party to stand by its position that defense spending should not come at the expense of social-welfare budgets.

Barak said at the meeting of the party's MKs: "It is a shame that the cabinet's discussion, which was supposed to touch at the heart of the matter of security in the budgetary context, due to the political needs of Kadima turned into a sort of discussion of the [Second Lebanon] War and its results. And we will not speak of stings of other kinds," he added, referring to the spat the day before between Olmert and Barak in the cabinet meeting.

Barak added: "It is not right to make the budgetary dilemma into one between defense and welfare. Two years after the war and facing the threats surrounding us, Israel can not allow itself cuts in defense."

Agriculture Minister Shalom Simhon said the budget debate should be postponed until after the Kadima primaries to keep extraneous considerations out of the discussion.

Relations between Olmert and Barak are poor indeed. Olmert is furious at Barak's attacks, including his calling Kadima a "refugee camp." That is why Olmert decided to stray from his decision not to be dragged into a political fight - and attacked Barak during the cabinet session.

An Olmert confidante said: "The prime minister cannot be quiet. It bordered on chutzpa, to cast aspersions on an entire party ... We all remember what a prime minister he was."

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