I don't blame Eliyahu for recanting, since his nice rabbinical job and state income and generous Bituach Leumi pension were threatened, and he could face dismisal and litigation for "racism".
But he sets a bad wimpish Bibbyish example to the next generation buy making tough Torah pronouncements, and then unimpressively folding under the slightest 'convincing', especially from a Druckman. Bibby also used to talk like a lion; but he fell like a lamb, to the areilim like Clinton and Obama.
Two guys who wouldn't recant: Meir Kahane and Chaim ben Pesach.
What would you think if R.Kahane in 1988, whose entire political manifesto was pure Tenach & Mishneh Torah, and whose main plank was expulsion of troublesome Ishamelites, would have folded on that one point, in order to allow Kach to run in the election. You would think: Kahane's a good guy, but with suspect marshmallow core-beliefs. In his February 1989 talk on the banning, Kahane said it was a mark of pride by him and a privilege to have been banned, rather than compromise Kach's, as it was then, a populist party with organised thriving chapters in every Israeli town, core beliefs.
Mindsets may have changed since 22 years ago, but R.Kahane will go down in history as a Biblical warrior who compromised on nothing.
Still, we will give Eliyahu credit for giving things a stir, albeit short-lived.