May of 1977 was a turning point in the political history of the state of Israel. For the first time, after 29 years of rule by leftist parties, the right-wing Likud headed by Menachem Begin came into power. Its platform included promises of nothing less than an economic revolution including cutting back the deficit, simplifying the tax system, mitigating governmental involvement in the economy, and reducing public spending among others. And indeed, several months after the political takeover, Simcha Ehrlich, the new Treasury Minister, announced "The Liberalization Reform.”
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