Word: shamir
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...deal with the new government when it appears." Enjoying the prerogatives of the elder statesman, former President Gerald Ford expressed the hope that Begin's successor would bring about "a bit more flexibility than has been exhibited by the Israeli government in the past." But even if Shamir's diplomatic experience makes him easier to deal with than the irascible Begin, U.S. officials do not expect him to be more flexible than his predecessors on the main area of dispute with the U.S.: the continued occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the home of some...
Almost immediately, the race was on for Begin's job as leader of the Herut Party, the largest faction within the Likud bloc. As eight Herut Cabinet members gathered to discuss the succession, Shamir was the clear front runner. But Levy, a Morocco-born trade union leader, shattered hopes of an early agreement. "There will be more than one candidate," he told his colleagues. Levy had rejected an offer from Shamir to become his Foreign Minister. Levy pressed the group to put the succession to the party's central committee, where, Levy thought, he enjoyed more support...
...effort to check Levy's challenge, Shamir warned his fellow Herut Cabinet members of the dangers that might result from a contentious floor fight at a party meeting. "Time is working against us," he argued. "Labor is standing in ambush in the corner." Former Defense Minister Ariel Sharon, who was forced to resign last February after the independent commission found that he had "made a grave mistake when he ignored the danger of acts of revenge and bloodshed" in the Beirut refugee camps, hinted that if the central committee took up the matter there might be many candidates, "including...
Faced with a standoff, the Herut caucus finally asked Meridor to have a confidential chat with Begin. Since the Prime Minister was thought to favor the more experienced Shamir over his young and relatively dovish rival, any word from Begin would have broken the deadlock. But the Prime Minister told Meridor that "in the matter of choosing a successor, I do not want to interfere." Sharon then declared his support for Shamir. One reason: he may have been offered an important post in a Shamir government, possibly as chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Settlement Programs...
During the crucial countdown to the central committee balloting, Shamir and Levy supporters actively solicited votes by telephone. When the two candidates finally appeared at the Tel Aviv theater Thursday evening, they warmly embraced each other and held up clasped hands, like two middleweights preparing to do battle. Levy insisted that he was less interested in victory than in a "good contest." But Shamir candidly admitted that he was not certain "everybody who says he will vote for me is telling the truth." The rousing welcome that the delegates gave Sharon as he triumphantly entered the auditorium suggested that...