In fact the louder, clearer, and more defiant the rhetoric, the greater the political benefits accrued. The Arab MKs' oratory only mirrors the mood of their public. In fact they often do more and eagerly fan the flames. The different Arab factions now vie with each other for the distinction of Most Anti-Israeli. The inclination in the Arab sector is to break away from the Zionists as unequivocally and tauntingly as can be.
Arab politicians are thereby emboldened.
Their militancy is yet another incontrovertible outcome of the split ballot. The Arab vote in prime ministerial elections has become pivotal and they know it. Concomitant is what Arab politicians perceive as weakness on the Jewish side. They hadn't lost sight of demands on the Left last year that the Arab lists be coopted into the coalition and that an Arab minister be named. The appointment of the first Arab member to the Knesset's sensitive Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee was also taken in some Arab quarters as a sign of weakness.