HEADLINES FROM THE HEBREW PRESS Jerusalem, 9 August 2011

HA’ARETZ:1. OBAMA TRIES TO CALM AVALANCHE: WE WERE AND REMAIN A COUNTRY OF PERFECT RATING

2. Experts published document of principles.

NETANYAHU: I UNDERSTAND THAT A CHANGE IN MY PERSPECTIVE IS WHAT IS NEEDED HERE

1. Wall Street’s worst day since 2008.

OBAMA DID NOT STOP THE AVALANCHE

President tried to calm, but Wall Street
dived.  Tel Aviv: Light rises.

1. (…).

OBAMA DOES NOT SUCCEED TO CALM

(…).  Tel Aviv: Tension after day of
rises.

1. LESS CUSTOMS AND VAT, INCREASE TAX BURDEN ON
WEALTHY

(…).

2. WALL STREET: NO-CONFIDENCE IN OBAMA

President tried to calm.  Result: Sharp
declines.  In Israel – stocks rise.  Today, no trade in Tel Aviv exchange
because of Tisha B’Av.

3. AMAZING SECOND TEMPLE FINDING

In ancient drainage channel near Western Wall:
Rare menorah inscription found, as well as Legionnaire’s sword.

1. NERVOUSNESS

2. IS TEL AVIV STARTING TO MAKE IT HARD ON THE
PROTESTERS?  IT EVACUATED STUDENT CARAVAN ON ROTHCHILD STREET

1. TRAJTENBERG COMMITTEE FOR SOCIO-ECONOMIC
CHANGE TO HOLD FIRST SESSION TODAY

1. 2000 KILLED IN SYRIA, TURKISH FOREIGN
MINISTER TO ARRIVE IN DAMASCUS TODAY TO PRESSURE ASSAD

Yediot Ahronot opines that the
appointment of Prof. Manuel Trajtenberg to head the Team for Socio-Economic
Change is, „the continuation of the path of former Bank of Israel Governor, [the
late] Prof. Michael Bruno.  Prof. Trajtenberg headed the National Economic
Council at the Prime Minister’s Office, a professional body established in 2006
by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.  He took his position most seriously: He not only
created the council from scratch, but, within a relatively short period of time,
made it a factor of great influence on the Government’s decisions.”  The author
notes that, „Israel is a developed country with the highest rate of poverty in
the West, not a country with the most depressed middle class in the West.
Therefore, Prof. Trajtenberg views the fight against poverty – by means of
increasing the employment of two large communities, the ultra-orthodox and the
Arab – as standing at the top of the social agenda.”

Ma’ariv professes that, „The
situation in the US and in Europe is very dangerous: It can drag the entire
world into a recession, and that is very dangerous for Israel as well.  It will
cause a plunge in exports, a slowdown and unemployment.”

Yisrael Hayom contend that,
„Following his signing of the dept ceiling agreement, in which he backed down
from his stance regarding the raising of taxes, Obama became a lame duck devoid
of any strong influential economic leverages.”