Likud said to be in 'election panic'?

At least one report indicates that the Likud is in a panic over the possibility that it will end up with only 20 seats in the next Knesset (once the Yisrael Beiteinu seats are discounted) (Hat Tip: Aryeh Z).

Of course, the real question is why the Likud merged with Yisrael Beiteinu in the first place. My own view is that Netanyahu did it for the same reason he tried to take Shaul Mofaz and