A Coalition Is At Hand

The lengthy process of replacing Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert appears to be nearing its end. Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of Likud, has concluded a coalition agreement with Avigdor Lieberman's party, Yisrael Beiteinu. He is expected to reach similar agreements with a handful of smaller parties very soon, which will produce a majority coalition in the Israel's 120-member parliament, the Knesset. That would return Netanyahu to the office of prime minister, a position he held from 1996 to 1999.

Netanyahu's efforts to bring the centrist Kadima Party into the coalition seem to have been abandoned. Kadima's leader Tzipi Livni has rejected that possibility, due to differences of opinion on peace negotiations with the Palestinians.

I've painted myself into a corner, by rejecting the notion of wings on the political spectrum, either right or left. How do I now describe the ideology of the parties who are potential coalition partners with Likud?

The answer -- and this is the great thing about blogging, where I'm writer, editor and publisher -- is that I can give myself special dispensation (not that I claim to be pope, too) to call those parties "right wing".