In the wake of Israel's national elections there has been a great deal of political activity regarding the formation of a new government, Yesterday, Tzipi Livni held a high profile meeting with Avigdor Liebermnan to show that her one long shot of forming a government (by coaxing Lieberman to join a Kadima coalition) is alive. Actually, it is virtually alive but it will not come to fruition. Lieberman knows that Netanyahu will be Prime Minister and his objective is to negotiate his best entry into a Likud headed government. For a look at Lieberman check out Joel Mowbray's analysis piece on Fox Forum.

Meanwhile all sorts of rumors about coalition negotiations are being circulated by the press. There is talk that Netanyahu will invite Kadima and Labor into a broad based coalition. This has caused a religious party to say it will not sit in a government with Livni. There is also talk that the price for Lieberman entering a government is a commitment to diminish religious influence over such matters as conversions and marriage. Can you guess the response to these demands? Well, probably not. Shas, a religious party, has indicated it will sit in a government with Lieberman if that is how a Likud government plays out.

All of this internal horse-trading is taking place in an environment of constant reminders that on Tuesday the Right trounced the Left in the elections.A post election survey documents that more than twice as many Israeli identify themselves as conservatives as opposed to those who identify themselves as liberals.

As rumors and charges fill the airwaves and the internet, Netanyahu is hard at work trying to bring sanity to this confusing process. He wants to complete the process as quickly as possible so he can get on with the important business of securing the country by stopping Iran's nuclear program.His goals are to bring about a broad based government in which Likud controls the ministries of education and finance. To be successful in this endeavor he will need Herculean political skills and his partners will have to pare their demands and get on with taking on the huge challenges facing the State of Israel and the Jewish people.