A cabinet is emerging

As compiled from here, here, and here, a cabinet is now emerging.

As "Rasputin" Lieberman's party is out, Kadima ends up getting quite a bit more than originally thought.

• Ehud Olmert: Prime Minister
  
• Shimon Peres: Deputy PM and Minister in charge of Negev and Galilee development
  
• Tzipi Livni: vice-PM and Foreign Affairs (clearly up to the job)
  
• Shaul Mofaz: vice-PM and Transportation Minister
  
• Avraham Hirschson: Finance Minister
  
• Avi Dichter: Internal Security (former Shin Bet chief, obvious choice)
  
• Roni Bar-On: Interior Minister (what?!?)
  
• Chaim Ramon: Justice Minister
  
• Ze'ev Boim: Immigrant Absorption
  
• Gideon Ezra: Environment (no comprendo)
  
• Meir Shitreet: Housing and Construction (+control of Israel Lands Authority)
  
• Yaacov Edri: Minister w/o Portfolio
  

Some of these choices are no-brainers in terms of competence. Tzipi Livni is clearly on a roll at the Foreign Ministry; Avi Dichter earned his spurs as chief of the Shin Bet during Intifada II. But some appointments do not make any sense to me. Former Shin Bet official Gideon Ezra for Environment?! Not to mention a political hack par excellence like Roni Bar-On (the central figure in the "Bar-On for Hebron" influence peddling scandal, who was attorney-general for something like 12 hours under Netanyahu before being forced to resign).

And speaking of political hacks, the idea of Dalia Itzik as Speaker of the Knesset makes me lose my last three meals.

WHat about Labour?

• Amir Peretz: Defense Minister
  
• Yuli Tamir: Education Minister
  
• Shalom Simchon: Agriculture Minister
  
• Binyamin "Fuad" Ben-Eliezer: National Infrastructure Minister
  
• Isaac "Bougie" Herzog: Tourism
  
• Ophir Pines-Paz: Sports and Jerusalem Affairs
  
• Eitan Cabel: Public Broadcast Ministry (what?!)
  

I don't trust Yuli Tamir (she smells a bit too much of "left"ist humanities academe for my taste), but at least she has qualifications to be Education Minister. Shalom Simchon has held the Agriculture portfolio in at least one government I can remember off-hand. But Amir Peretz as Defense Minister?!? G-d help us.
And what sort of a monster is the ministry for Sports and Jerusalem Affairs? Already today, I heard jokes being told about "Minister for Beitar Jerusalem" (one of Israel's two most popular soccer teams).

Or why a new completely redundant ministry of "public broadcasting" is being created for a small-time political hack. (However, see below.)

The Pensioners' Party will get the Labor and Social Affairs portfolio, plus a newly created Ministry for Senior Citizens Affairs.

Finally, Shas (appropriately, the name sounds the same as the Belgian Dutch and French slang word for a toilet flush) will get

• Trade and Industry (minus control of the Israel Lands Authority)
  
• Communications Ministry (minus control of the Israel Broadcast Authority, see above, and thank G-d)
  
• A minister without portfolio "in charge of religious services" (i.e., the late and unlamented Ministry of Religious Affairs being recreated through the back door)
  
• One minister without portfolio
  

I have no idea which cretin gets to warm which chair and couldn't care less.

One portfolio is missing from the above lists: Science and Technology, which makes me wonder whether this will be a consolation prize for erstwhile Ben-Gurion University chancellor Prof. Avishai Braverman. No such prizes will be available for Ami Ayalon and Matan Vilna'i, other Labor losers against seventh-rate political hacks.

UPDATE: click "see more" for the final cabinet. So Braverman didn't even get Science and Technology --- in the end Ophir Pines got that, and Culture and Sports (which used to be the same ministry, go figure) are attached to the Education Ministry.

This is the official list from the MFA mailing list. After the PM and his deputies, order follows the Hebrew alphabet.

Ehud Olmert [Kadima] - Prime Minister and Minister of Welfare 

Shimon Peres [Kadima] - Vice Prime Minister and Minister for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee, responsible for regional economic development 

Tzipi Livni [Kadima] - Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs 

Amir Peretz [Labour] - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense 

Eli Yishai [Shas] - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor 

Shaul Mofaz [Kadima] - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transportation and Road Safety 

Yaakov Edri [Kadima] - Minister (Liaison between the Government and the Knesset) 

Ariel Atias [Shas] - Minister of Communications 

Rafi Eitan [Pensioners] - Minister Responsible for Pensioners

Zeev Boim [Kadima] - Minister of Immigrant Absorption 

Binyamin Ben-Eliezer [Labour] - Minister of National Infrastructures 

Yaakov Ben-Yizri [Pensioners] - Minister of Health 

Roni Bar-On [Kadima] - Minister of the Interior 

Avi Dichter [Kadima] - Minister of Public Security 

Avraham Hirschson [Kadima] - Minister of Finance 

Yitzhak Herzog [Labour] - Minister of Tourism 

Eitan Cabel [Labour] - Minister (responsible for the Israel Broadcasting Authority) 

Yitzhak Cohen [Shas] - Minister (responsible for the religious councils)

Meshulam Nahari [Shas] - Minister 

Gideon Ezra [Kadima] - Minister of the Environment 

Ofir Pines-Paz [Labour] - Minister of Science and Technology 

Chaim Ramon [Kadima] - Minister of Justice 

Meir Sheetrit [Kadima] - Minister of Construction & Housing (responsible for the Israel Lands Authority) 

Shalom Simchon [Labour] - Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development 

Yuli Tamir [Labour] - Minister of Education, Culture and Sport