Thursday, January 17, 2013

'Hi, This is Binyamin Netanyahu, Not a Prank'

In a room filled by his campaign staff and reporters, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called undecided voters on Thursday, in a last-ditch attempt to bring more votes to Likud-Beitenu.

"This is Binyamin Netanyahu. No, it's not a prank. I hope that you will vote for me next week," the prime minister said on the phone, seating at the head of the table aside Education Minister Gideon Sa'ar and Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan and Likud Beitenu MK's. "Bring your friends and family to vote," Bibi plead.
"As we near the finish line, we're targeting those who haven't decided who to vote for. We'll talk to them through the press, on the ground and now, personally, on the phone," Education Minister Gideon Sa'ar explained as the telephone operation began in his party's campaign headquarters in Tel Aviv.

"Hello, this is Ruby Rivlin. I hear you are undecided," the Knesset Speaker told the person on the other side who was inclined to support the Bayit Yehudi. Rivlin explained to him that a large Likud-Beitenu is necessary to stand behind Netanyahu and his policies.

MK Miri Regev greeted a voter casually, saying "ahalan," while MK Ofir Akunis asked for back-up in the form of the prime minister. "Want to talk to Prime Minister Netanyahu?" Akunis asked a voter, handing Netanyahu the phone as he entered the room.

"I am calling for them to vote for Likud-Beitenu and not waste their votes on sectoral parties," he told the press as they squeezed in the conference room.. "I'm saying what we will do if they give us power. We'll reform housing and continue opening the market like we did for cell phones." 

"Most of the undecided voters I spoke to said they want me to be prime minister, so I told them: Then vote for my party. You can't strengthen me while weakening my party," he added.