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Let him wait outside By Yoel Marcus Tags: Fraud Investigation, Bribe  Not all of Israel's politicians have been 18-karat gold. We have had a defense minister who was an alcoholic and another who looted archaeological treasures that rightfully belonged to the state. We have had a banker slated to become finance minister who, it was discovered, led a double life with a lover and a second piggy bank overseas. We have had cabinet ministers and other prominent officials who embezzled funds and have been tried, convicted and sentenced to prison. We have had a president who secretly received money from a friend and who - because of his lofty position, age and poor health - cut a deal that let him swap a resignation letter for a decision not to put him on trial. And what about opposition leader and former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu? Hedonism among politicians has many aspects. For instance, aficionados of Cuban cigars will naturally expect a few boxes of choice cigars when receiving a visitor who happens to belong to the rich and famous. We have had a prime minister - today our president - who received an expensive watch from a rich contractor; only after the gift became public knowledge was he forced to return it. The connection between money and power is the source of many evils, including wheeling and dealing that masquerades as donations to candidates in party primaries. We have had senior civil servants who, after leaving their posts, became millionaires overnight; it seems logical to assume they made plans for their future while still working for the government. They apparently learned the trick of making friends with the right people. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has, over the years, earned the reputation of being far more than a lover of the good life, although there is nothing intrinsically wrong with the pursuit of creature comforts - unless, of course, it is accompanied by unethical acts. As mayor of Jerusalem, a position regarded with immense respect by America's Jews, he was upgraded to a suite in every hotel he stayed in; in fact, he did not even have to ask. Olmert cultivated rich friends who let him fly in their private jets so he could attend a baseball game on the east coast if he happened to be on the west coast, or vice versa. Advertisement Rich American Jews loved former prime minister Ariel Sharon and donated funds for his Likud Party leadership race. Even without envelopes, money is money. But the arrogance and insensitivity displayed by Olmert - who, for 15 years, received envelopes filled with cash from Morris Talansky (according to the latter's own testimony) and saw nothing wrong with this - cast serious doubts not only on his personal integrity, but also on the extent of his wisdom and intelligence, two qualities he loves to brag about. Many of those who heard Talansky's testimony not only felt nausea; they were alarmed to discover that Israel's fate was in the hands of someone who lacks proper judgment, who merely pretends to be a leader both wise and intelligent - two qualities that vanished into thin air this week. These are among the darkest days in Israeli public life - because all of Israel's citizens must surely feel that both national security and their own personal fate are in the hands of a wheeler-dealer, rather than a leader whose decisions and actions reflect wisdom and proper judgment. Or, to be more precise, Israelis must surely feel that their fate, and their country's fate, are in the hands of a Houdini much more skilled at getting out of embarrassing situations than at staying out of decisions that could jeopardize our country's very survival. Both the rashness with which Olmert, for instance, marched Israel into the Second Lebanon War and the skill he demonstrated in escaping the Winograd Report's fallout should have served as wake-up calls that the nation is being led by someone who is and always has been a wheeler-dealer. Attorney General Menachem Mazuz has declared that the police investigation into allegations that Olmert systematically received illicit funds for years might take several months. That declaration played right into Olmert's hands. The brilliant deal the prime minister has come up with this time was conveyed in a nutshell by his statement that "the moment an indictment is drawn up, I will resign." He is relying on the fact that the investigation will take several years - and meanwhile, so he reckons, he can continue to serve as prime minister. Little wonder that, in the eyes of many Israelis, the peace negotiations with Syria are just public relations razzmatazz and the talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a lot of baloney; the Israeli public has simply lost all faith in Olmert. The very thought that Israel might invade Gaza when its prime minister, suspected of receiving illicit funds, might be up to his ears in a police investigation requiring the bulk of his time is a thoroughly blood-chilling prospect. It makes no sense to waste precious time debating whether he will focus on saving his own skin instead of spending his time running the country. Talansky's testimony was deadly. If before his deposition, there were still people who actually believed that Olmert was innocent until proven guilty, today, 75 percent of all Israelis no longer believe he is innocent. The clever exercise entitled "I will resign when an indictment is drawn up" has been exposed as a cheap trick designed to enable Olmert to hold onto his job as prime minister. Today, it is crystal clear that most of Israel's citizens think he must go. Defense Minister and Labor Party leader Ehud Barak could not have chosen better timing for declaring that, in view of the grave challenges facing Israel, Olmert must remove himself from the prime minister's office - but that the present coalition can continue if Kadima chooses a replacement for Olmert. At the present time, it is of utmost importance that Kadima choose a suitable candidate, without dragging its feet and without generating infighting. If Kadima does so, it will enable the current coalition to get back on its feet in an elegant manner. It would be far more proper, and far healthier for the country, for Olmert to await the indictment on the other side of the cabinet door. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Bad immigrant Hezbollah spy said he acted as a 'Lebanese patriot and a Muslim.' When (he's) in Rome Israel to launch PR campaign against Ahmadinejad visit to UN summit in Rome.

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