Wednesday marks the first day of the Senate session, which will commence at 11:00 AM. Half an hour earlier, Marshal Stanisław Karczewski will meet with journalists. Senators will address the expansion of the Rodzina 500+ program to include the first child. It is almost certain that the upper house will adopt the bill without amendments, so that President Duda can then sign it. The Senate will also work on a bill to reduce the copper tax by 15%.

Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki will meet with Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili at 2:05 PM. At 11:00 AM, Wiosna and Robert Biedroń will hold their press conference on PiS's actions in the healthcare system. At noon, President Andrzej Duda will present diplomas to the winners of the "Accessibility Leader" competition.

At 9:30 AM, the Świeckie Państwo (Secular State) initiative and SLD leader Włodzimierz Czarzasty have announced a press conference on regulations concerning the offense of religious feelings. In Piaseczno, at 7:30 PM, there will be a meeting between KE candidates - Danuta Hübner, Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski, and Paweł Pudłowski - with residents.

"I believe that Biedroń's project has a chance to appeal to those voters who will never vote for PiS or for anti-PiS. That is, to younger voters, frustrated ones, etc. In this sense, any merger of Biedroń with someone else undermines the argument that he is new, fresh, that to some extent he is anti-establishment. I think that since he started this experiment, when the project was conceived and is being implemented, he should continue further."

- Please remember that confronting PiS today is extremely difficult, because PiS has a very consolidated electorate, and PiS wins, it prevails in terms of organization, money, and structure. It is the richest, strongest party in Poland. Only the PZPR had such an advantage in recent history - stated Aleksander Kwaśniewski in a conversation with Konrad Piasecki on TVN24's "Rozmowa Piaseckiego".

- Expectations towards Tusk from the European Coalition were certainly higher. He probably disappointed because they wanted him to unequivocally support, even join, this campaign. He behaved, rightly so, with some distance as President of the European Council - stated Aleksander Kwaśniewski in an interview with Konrad Piasecki on TVN24's "Rozmowa Piaseckiego".

- Whenever a notification of a potential commission of a crime is filed, the police and services must perform their duties. However, it is the prosecutor's office and the court, in turn, that rule on whether guilt exists, to what extent, or not - stated Joanna Kopcińska in an interview with Piotr Witwicki on Polsat News's "Graffiti." She added:

"Whenever religious feelings were offended, the police reacted in the same way. Here, the religious feelings of Catholics, who are a vast majority in Poland, have been offended. A notification of a potential commission of a crime was filed, and police actions were taken. This applies equally to all denominations. In 2015, when pork was found in a mosque, it was during the PO government's term. The police undertook similar actions, and then it wasn't so loud, nor was there an outcry. Here, the Polish Church is under attack, which we defend and will continue to defend."

“Since yesterday, we have been hearing about alleged police entry at 6 AM to Ms. Podleśna's. She herself said it was after 6 AM. After 6 AM could mean a minute past 6 AM, or it could be 7 AM. The police knocked on Ms. Podleśna's door at 7 AM, they did not break in at 6 AM, as it is being presented” - said Minister Joachim Brudziński on Polish Radio 24.

"I am reiterating my question to all outraged politicians, artists, journalists. Why did you applaud the Polish police when they reacted to the behavior in Pruchnik? (...) Back then, the police were praised. They were praised when they protected a legal LGBT march. When the police reacted appropriately when the religious feelings of Catholics or Christians were offended, then it's 'oh dear,' the world is ending, democracy. Do Catholics and Christians have different rights than citizens of other faiths?" - said Minister Joachim Brudziński on Polskie Radio 24.

„Donald Tusk is – as Mr. Marek Belka used to say – pivotal, revolving. Depending on what suits him, he adopts that narrative. We all remember what citizen freedom looked like under Donald Tusk during the PO government. We all remember how miners were shot in Silesia, how ordinary fans heading to a football match were detained as part of Operation Fork. We all remember how various demonstrations were pacified” – said Minister Joachim Brudziński on Polish Radio 24.

- A very good discussion [with Frans Timmermans]. I believe it was one of the most serious, because I don't believe a debate between all committee leaders will happen. I think it won't. Therefore, if it doesn't happen, who on the left side, for instance, could discuss more seriously than Timmermans, Kwaśniewski, and Cimoszewicz? - stated Włodzimierz Czarzasty in an interview with Marek Pyza on TVP1's "Political Quarter Hour".

- The European Union is at a turning point. The next 5 years will decide the future of the EU, and thus Poland's. I must tell you that, respecting the young and the old, it is usually the case that young boys run fast, and older people know where to go - stated Włodzimierz Czarzasty in an interview with Marek Pyza on TVP1's "Political Fifteen Minutes".

„Jarosław Kaczyński said that now these people [who advocate for the separation of church and state] are to be beaten, they are to face aggression, and we are encountering it. This is happening for a reason, because the church in Poland has sided very clearly, the church hierarchs are very openly supporting PiS. Catholic publicists, including priests, are very openly supporting PiS. Pulpits will soon become places of very sharp political campaigning, so the church, which has received the most from PiS, has not received such privileges from anyone before, will fight on the side of PiS, and Jarosław Kaczyński knows this” - said Agata Diduszko-Zyglewska, a councilwoman from Civic Coalition in Warsaw, at a press conference.

„I am speaking to Mr. Kaczyński and Mr. Brudziński: you gentlemen should deal with someone who is capable of shooting down your lies in the media with the truth, with me. Leave these people whom you are attacking, whom you consider weaker. Who is bothered by the rainbow? The rainbow bothers people who have filth in their heads, nonsense in their heads. Religion will fare well on its own. No left-wing party will fight against religion, but every left-wing party will fight against the clergy and the episcopate using state organs to fight for their rights and laws. We have had enough of this” - added Włodzimierz Czarzasty, the leader of SLD.

„We want the withdrawal of religion from schools, transparent financing of the church, an end to privileges for priests, and the deletion of Article 196 from the Penal Code concerning the offense of religious feelings. We want normalcy” - argued Paulina Piechna-Więckiewicz from Spring. 

- There are no politically motivated operations. I can say right away that there is no such formula, and it should not be used linguistically at all. First and foremost, I am against what happened. I received the information about the desecration of the greatest icon of Polish Catholics, not only Poles, with indignation. It was an event that affected all those for whom the image of Our Lady of Częstochowa is so dear, and everyone is equal before the law, and here the police actions are absolutely justified. I do not want to comment on the form, because I don't even know what was used, but everyone is equal before the law, and similarly, in situations where the religious feelings of Muslims or Jews were violated, police interventions were justified, necessary, and needed. We have a penal code that, in Article 196, takes care of protecting religious feelings, and that is good. The voices appearing about abolishing this article are completely unfounded – stated Stanisław Karczewski at a briefing in the Senate.

- I would like to appeal to teachers and ZNP to engage in debate, discussion. May 10th, which is in two days, is another session of the roundtable. I encourage and appeal and ask for conversation, debate. We will surely find a good solution for teachers – stated Stanisław Karczewski at a briefing in the Senate.

- I initiated electoral proceedings against the European Coalition. The matter concerned the European Coalition placing billboards in the Polish capital and surrounding Warsaw districts featuring my likeness, digitally altered, with the inscription that Ryszard Czarnecki is fleeing to Brussels. This was part of a broader campaign where the European Coalition aimed to prove that current and former PiS ministers are fleeing to Brussels. I initiated proceedings under electoral law. Yesterday, the court considered the case. The verdict is unequivocal. The European Coalition must apologize to me. These billboards are to be removed. Furthermore, information is to be displayed in their place, on the same billboards, with the following content [that the European Coalition apologizes to Czarnecki] - stated Ryszard Czarnecki at a briefing at PiS headquarters.

“If the prosecution issues a search warrant, and Minister Brudziński bypasses this warrant and orders police officers to detain a Polish citizen, we say that an abuse of power has indeed occurred. This matter requires serious clarification, which is why we are requesting an extraordinary session of the Committee on Internal Affairs and Administration so that the minister can explain how this abuse of power happened. We will base further legal steps on this information,” added Cezary Tomczyk.

- Today, a newspaper published information on its front page that candidate Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz fled the scene of an accident. I appeal to the candidate Cimoszewicz to react immediately to this information, so that the candidate addresses it, in order to clarify this matter and leave no room for doubt. This is my good advice, I say this out of concern - stated Ryszard Czarnecki at a briefing at the PiS headquarters.

The Commissioner for Human Rights is requesting information from the District Prosecutor in Płock, Norbert Pęcherzewski, regarding the status of the case and clarification on whether he authorized the search of Elżbieta Podleśna's apartment. Meanwhile, the Commissioner is asking Inspector Paweł Dobrodziej, the Commander of the Warsaw Metropolitan Police, for details:

on the legal grounds and premises for the arrest and search;

on the circumstances of the arrest and search (clarifying whether prior actions were taken to ensure the detainee's appearance and whether Ms. E. Podleśna's prior conduct justified the suspicion that she would not appear upon summons or would otherwise unlawfully obstruct the proceedings);

whether any direct coercive measures were used during the arrest and transport of the detainee to the Municipal Police Headquarters in Płock, and if so, what they were, and potentially – what the factual and legal basis for using these measures was;

whether the detainee filed a complaint against the arrest or a complaint against the officers regarding the manner of execution of the arrest.

Should it turn out that the search of Elżbieta Podleśna's apartment was not based on an order from Prosecutor Pęcherzewski, Adam Bodnar is asking Inspector Dobrodziej who issued such an order.

Jan Olszewski, a prominent figure associated with the Polish right, has stated that for him, the greatest profanation of the Mother of God is Radio Maryja. He questioned whether the station still represents religion, or has it already crossed into politics or business.

This statement, made via Twitter, suggests a critical view of the Catholic radio station, which is often seen as a conservative and politically influential media outlet in Poland. Olszewski's remarks imply that Radio Maryja may be deviating from its spiritual mission and engaging in activities that he considers inappropriate for a religious institution.

The exact context of his statement, and what specific actions or content of Radio Maryja prompted this strong reaction, are not detailed in the provided link. However, the phrasing suggests a concern about the station's perceived blurring of lines between faith, political engagement, and commercial interests.

"The fight for an additional PLN 100 billion in the new financial perspective for 2021-27. We know that the proposal on the table today, resulting from the incompetent negotiations of the PiS government, is PLN 100 billion less than the money we managed to negotiate and secure in the budget of the previous perspective. This additional money, which we will secure by the end of this year, we will want to allocate in large part to improving standards in healthcare. For this, we need debate, discussion, and information," said PO (Civic Platform) leader Grzegorz Schetyna at a press conference. "It is necessary to build a map, a diagnosis, and confirmation of what we have been saying in recent days, namely the most important points that require total support from public, European finances. We are talking about the most significant threat, the fight against cancer."

"Cuts in the EU budget for Poland, caused by the incompetent policy of PiS, have concrete implications for many areas of life," added the Mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski. "As the Mayor of Warsaw, I see every day how much this money is needed."

The upcoming Sejm session – the only one this month – will take place from May 15-17, i.e., from next Wednesday to next Friday.

https://twitter.com/MarekKuchcinski/status/1126117967253725184

"I wouldn't call it a war, but there is a serious dispute that has a real dimension and an electoral-verbal dimension. The real dimension is that we are not implementing what is written in the constitution, the principle of a secular state and the freedom of religious autonomy. The Church in Poland today is too strongly, too closely tied to the ruling party" - said former President Aleksander Kwaśniewski in an interview with Bogdan Rymanowski on "Wydarzenia i opinie" on Polsat News.

"I wouldn't endorse [Jażdżewski's words]. I believe they are too radical. In such a debate, one radicalism is answered by another radicalism. If we lead to a debate where there are only radicals or extremists, it's difficult to find an agreement" - he added.

"Donald Tusk is a great hope for the circles that have been governing so far. Tusk can seriously consider the position of President of Poland." - said former President Aleksander Kwaśniewski in a conversation with Bogdan Rymanowski in "Wydarzenia i opinie" on Polsat News. - "I think the best scenario for him is a good result for the European Coalition, a good result for some coalition in the parliamentary elections in the autumn, and then entering the presidential elections in 2020."

- I see this [what is happening in the case of the poster of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa with a rainbow halo] as a departure from the rule of law. A country where the decisions of its most important officials send the police, make arrests, and enter private homes at 6 AM is a country that violates the standards of parliamentary democracy. It could have been done differently, as the prosecutor said. If I read the tweets of the Minister of the Interior and Administration, a PiS candidate and probably PiS secretary-general, and I read his tweets, he is issuing verdicts. He announces in tweets that charges will be brought against this person. So I ask myself, where am I? When I see Turkey's Erdoğan overturning local elections because he disliked the result in Istanbul, because his candidate lost, I think that these realities, Polish and Turkish, are truly beginning to converge - stated Grzegorz Schetyna in an interview with Piotr Marciniak on TVN24's "Fakty po faktach".

- It's not a politician's role to comment on a journalist's words. A journalist can do more, they can comment on reality, evaluate politicians. We are used to that in free media. I respect freedom of expression, full of expression, but I was at the university to listen to Donald Tusk - stated Grzegorz Schetyna in a conversation with Piotr Marciniak on TVN24's "Fakty po faktach" when asked about Leszek Jażdżewski's speech at the University of Warsaw on Friday.