Israel's foreign minister and deputy prime minister in the Ehud Olmert government, Tzipi Livni, has reportedly said that her Kadima Party needed "to prepare itself for every scenario, including elections." Referring to bribery allegations against Olmert and this week's testimony given by the US businessman Morris Talansky, Livni said the reality had changed and Kadima needed to decide what to do next.
"The issue is not only legal, and the test of what is criminal and what not is not only the prime minister's personal business. It is related to values and norms and their influence on the public's trust. The claim that these are norms that everyone who enters politics needs to adopt infuriates me. It is not true and unacceptable to me. I object to the attempt to impose improper norms on politics", she was quoted as saying. Livni, a possible contender for Olmert's succession, made the remarks only a day after defense minister and Labor Party leader Ehud Barak had called for Olmert to step aside.
