Right-Wing Commentator Warns Netanyahu Against Reserving Kahlon Spot on Likud List

Yaakov Bardugo, a political commentator close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, strongly criticized the possibility of former minister Moshe Kahlon being given a reserved spot on the Likud party list for upcoming elections. Bardugo responded to a report by Yossi Verter from Haaretz, which claimed that Netanyahu offered Kahlon a guaranteed position on the Likud list. Bardugo stated, "If this is true, Likud is heading for political suicide." He elaborated on his criticism of Kahlon, accusing him of being responsible for the establishment of the public broadcasting corporation, supporting the IDF's controversial Gideon Tal reform plan, and opposing judicial reforms alongside Aharon Barak. Bardugo described Kahlon as "the deep state of the deep state" and warned that including him would represent a failure of the efforts fought for over the past four years. The debate highlights tensions within the right-wing camp about candidate selections ahead of the elections.