No doubt stories like this one from a senior Sharon aide suggesting that Sharon would partition Jerusalem don’t help further Kadima’s cause:
Gayer made the statements speaking with Newsweek about the extent of the withdrawals Sharon is willing to make in Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem. The relevant passage in the Newsweek article states as follows:
"In theory, Gayer says, Sharon would accept a Palestinian state in Gaza and 90 percent of the West Bank, and a compromise on Jerusalem, in exchange for peace. But the Israeli leader does not believe Palestinians will be able to deliver peace or make other compromises—like forgoing the right of refugees to return to their old homes in Israel—in his lifetime (Sharon is 78). In the meantime, Sharon wants to "lay the contours of an agreement with the Palestinians," according to Gayer, by creating a Palestinian state in half the West Bank and implementing confidence-building measures."
Sharon appeared on state-run television almost immediately, denying the accuracy of the claims. "The remarks attributed to Kalman Gayer absolutely contradict my positions and my views," Sharon said. "If those remarks were indeed made, they were made by Kalman Gayer alone and they are complete nonsense. United Jerusalem will remain Israel’s capital forever."
Sharon’s problem lies in that his denials have very little creditability. Sharon ran his last election campaign running against the Labour Party’s platform of disengagement from Gaza only to turn around and adopt it as policy six months or so after winning another term as Prime Minister of Israel.
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