-- PRESIDENT DUDA ON MASTALEREK'S IDEA: VERY INTERESTING, MASTALEREK SAYS HE WANTS IT MORE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2018/03/20/

-- COURTS ARE FOR PEOPLE, NOT FOR TENEMENT CLEANERS - KORNEL MORAWIECKI IN AN INTERVIEW WITH ŁUKASZ PAWŁOWSKI AND FILIP RUDNIK IN KULTURA LIBERALNA: “The Prime Minister has potential. However, I do not see a clear vision. Although I see that the Prime Minister and PiS are moving towards greater solidarity – both economically and interpersonally. Those strata that were poor and left to themselves received support in the form of 500+, earlier retirement, a higher hourly wage. And the money for this was found because there was such work and political will from Mateusz, who was then the Minister of Finance. To take this money from thieves. This is a good direction. He also understands that a significant improvement in the economy is not possible with an inefficient judiciary. And these courts are indeed stuck. A change of climate is needed here. That courts are a service, that they are for people. They are not for making money, serving politicians, and tenement cleaners. As long as this third branch of government is sick, the entire state organism is poorly governed. And if it is poorly governed, people fare poorly. And Mateusz understands this well.”

-- KORNEL MORAWIECKI ON JEWS COLLABORATING WITH THE GERMANS: “Gentlemen, do you know who drove the Jews to the Warsaw Ghetto? Do you think the Germans herded them into the ghetto? No. The Jews went themselves because they were told it would be an enclave, that they wouldn't have to deal with those disgusting Poles. And that they were later starved to death and transported to Treblinka… That’s how it was! There was such an organization – Żagiew – created by the Germans from Jews, a multi-thousand-member organization, where Jews informed on Jews and Poles. If they informed, they were rewarded. And then they were all murdered. Who drove the Jews to the Umschlagplatz? Did the Germans drive them? No! The Jewish police drove them to the Umschlagplatz!”

-- KORNEL MORAWIECKI DISLIKES FOREIGN POLICY THAT “POSITIONS POLAND AGAINST RUSSIA: “Yes, I agree, this is the right direction. But, for example, I don't like foreign policy. Not only PiS's, but also PO's. Foreign policy that positions Poland against Russia. The Polish nation is positioned against the Russian nation. The Russian nation is positioned against the Polish nation. What sense does this make? The greatest threat to Poland, the world, to our civilization, is nuclear war. Hostility between Russia and Poland does not serve peace. We need a responsible rapprochement between our governments, between our great nations. https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2018/03/20/kornel-morawiecki-wywiad/

-- WOJCIECH MYŚLECKI PREDICTS “FIERCE CLASH BETWEEN A GROUP OF REFORMERS AND THE PIS APPARATUS” - as he tells Łukasz Pawłowski in KL: “He is a political leader for the second post-war demographic bulge generation. I predict that this year there will be a fierce clash between a group of reformers and the PiS apparatus, and either PiS will begin to reform itself, or the group of reformers will be blocked and will leave or be pushed out of PiS structures.”

-- MORAWIECKI SHOULD BEHEAD REFORM OPPONENTS - SAYS MYŚLECKI: “He should behead the opponents of reform. Please note that Mateusz only entered politics at a time when no one can suspect him of doing it for money. To take some of the spoils, big or small. He is outside the apparatus, he doesn't have his own clique, he has a completely different mentality than the apparatus.”

-- IT IS UNKNOWN WHETHER REFORMS WILL BE CARRIED OUT BY A REFORMING PIS, A DESTROYED PIS, OR SOMEONE ELSE - MYŚLECKI CONTINUES IN KL: “Mateusz Morawiecki's success will not depend on whether some clique allows him to carry out reforms or not, but on whether he correctly defines the pro-reform electorate and finds the right communication with this electorate. Because reforms will be carried out in Poland, sooner or later. Only it is not known whether they will be carried out by a reforming PiS, a destroyed PiS, or someone else.”

-- IF MATEUSZ FAILS TO REFORM PIS, WE WILL HAVE A CIRCUS - SAYS MYŚLECKI: “Please consider the Italian political scene. There were powerful parties with very strong traditions. And where are those parties? The circus comedian Beppe Grillo, 'Five Star Movement,' the Northern League, 'bunga bunga' – a traveling circus – are what matters. If Mateusz Morawiecki fails to reform PiS, we will have a circus.”

-- MORAWIECKI HAS THE PREDISPOSITIONS TO BECOME A FOUR-STAR GENERAL IN POLITICS - SAYS MYŚLECKI: “Mateusz Morawiecki is the last hope for a civilized way of solving Poland's problems. He has all the predispositions to become a four-star general in politics, but he is not yet one. The question is whether he will mature fast enough, whether the situation will change faster than he can mature. But I don't see another candidate like him. Just compare him with these various MPs.” https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2018/03/20/myslecki-pawlowski-rozmowa/

-- DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER BARTOSZ CICHOCKI IN DGP SPEAKS ABOUT THE REACTION TO RUSSIA'S POLICY: ‘Since Russia did not hesitate to attack in Great Britain, we cannot rule out that it will attack in Poland or that our citizens will be victims of another attack. The next conclusion must concern the solidarity reaction of the alliances to which London belongs. This will confirm the credibility of security guarantees concerning us as well.”

-- CICHOCKI ON MANIPULATING THE MEMORANDUM REVEALED BY ONET: “I hope the outcome will be that journalists begin to approach attempts to manipulate them by irresponsible officials more critically. I hope the next stage will be an investigation that will determine whether state or service secrets were disclosed, who is responsible for it, and that consequences will be drawn against such a person. This is not just about revealing the memorandum, but about manipulating its content. As a result, false statements appeared that Poland faces diplomatic sanctions.” http://forsal.pl/artykuly/1112100,cichocki-skoro-rosja-zaatakowala-wielka-brytanie-to-moze-takze-polske.html

-- BERLIN COULD TEMPER ITS SOFT POWER AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT CAMP IN POLAND - MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI: “Of course, Berlin could temper its 'soft power' somewhat, too often used against the current government camp in Poland, but perhaps it will do so someday. And it could notice that the Russian-German Nord Stream 2 painfully strains European trust. Who knows, perhaps we will live to see that too.”

-- GERMANS HAVE REALIZED THE CURRENT TEAM IS HERE TO STAY - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “Despite everything, Poland confirms its position as an important partner. Let us recall that recently Prime Minister Morawiecki had an important visit to Berlin. There is also a growing awareness that, compared to, for example, Italy, Poland is a stable and pro-European country. The German establishment has also realized that the decision of Poles in 2015 has been confirmed many times, and the current ruling team is here to stay.”

-- OPPOSITION POLITICIANS SHOULD RETREAT TO THEIR BURROWS - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “This state of Polish-German relations refutes all the opposition's theses. A subjective Poland, clearly asserting its own interests, but also decisively fighting for the good shape of the Union, gains, not loses. There are fewer pretenses, more genuine partnership. Merkel's visit to Poland is an invitation to co-create EU reforms. Opposition politicians, during Chancellor Angela Merkel's visit to Warsaw, should hide in their burrows. How was it said? Let them herd chickens, not make politics.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/386660-politycy-opozycji-na-czas-wizyty-kanclerz-angeli-merkel-w-warszawie-powinni-sie-schowac-do-swoich-norek

-- MERKEL IS TESTING WARSAW - Michał Kot in GW: “Chancellor Merkel arrived in Poland on Monday after beginning her last term as German Chancellor. Berlin wants to know if Warsaw will cooperate with it in Europe.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75398,23162555,angela-merkel-w-warszawie-sprawdza-jakiej-europy-chce-polski.html

-- ADAM SZOSTKIEWICZ BELIEVES REPORTS OF THE PIS GOVERNMENT'S RETURN TO EUROPEAN SALONS ARE EXAGGERATED: “Serious consideration must mean a serious dialogue with Germany and the EU on all issues. Not only in defending the British against Russia and on Nord Stream and the migration crisis, but also on Article 7, i.e., repairing the damage caused to the rule of law in Poland since 2015. And also reactivating Polish-German-French cooperation within the framework of the so-called Weimar Triangle. The Polish government's actions in these matters will be a real test of PiS's European readiness. The rest is political PR for the current authorities, intended to show the return of PiS-led Warsaw to the European political mainstream. Reports of the PiS government's return to European salons are greatly exaggerated.” https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/swiat/1742328,1,niemka-w-warszawie-czyli-polska-gotowosc-europejska.read

-- KATARZYNA KOLENDA-ZALESKA ON THE BENEFITS OF READING FROM A SCRIPT - she writes in GW: “I do not suspect that Andrzej Duda actually thinks what he said, and that he actually considers the European Union an occupier. The problem, however, is that everyone heard these words. Why? The reason seems trivial. The President does not control his language and allows a free stream of consciousness to lead him into unknown waters. (...) If the President had seen the text on paper beforehand, perhaps he would have clutched his head and realized that he couldn't say that. Because comparing the European Union to partitions is not even a metaphor. The President of Poland spoke the language of the eurosceptics' dictionary. Perhaps it is far from comparing the EU flag to a rag, but the boundary has dangerously narrowed.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,23162535,o-prezydencie-dudy-i-pozytkach-przemawiania-z-kartki.html

-- WILL THE GOVERNMENT GIVE DEVELOPERS A GIFT? - headline in Fakt.

-- DEVELOPER PLUS BILL TO BE CORRECTED - headline in GW.

-- MANY WOMEN RECEIVE CHILD BENEFITS, SO THEY QUIT THEIR JOBS - DGP.

-- 100 THOUSAND WOMEN HAVE QUIT THEIR JOBS - EFFECT OF 500 PLUS - front page of GW: “The 500+ benefit has caused less educated women from small towns, where opportunities for good jobs are lower, to become professionally passive. This is the last moment to introduce activation measures for mothers so that they do not withdraw from the labor market - according to the latest research by the Institute for Structural Research.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,155287,23159765,efekt-500-plus-juz-ponad-100-tys-kobiet-wycofalo-sie-z.html

-- ACCORDING TO AN RZ POLL, POLES HAVE REACTED WELL TO THE SUNDAY TRADING BAN: “After the first Sunday, over half (52%) of respondents spoke positively about this change in the law – as many as 33% very positively. 41% of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with the shops being closed (20% very negatively). 7% of those surveyed have no opinion. – The tone of this discussion was set by the lobbying power of large retail chains. For Poles, the issue of the Sunday trading ban is not a priority at all – this is how political scientist prof. Rafał Chwedoruk comments on the poll results.” http://www.rp.pl/Spoleczenstwo/303199911-Sondaz-Wiekszosc-Polakow-zadowolona-z-niedzieli-bez-handlu.html&template=restricted

-- KRZYSZTOF KARNKOWSKI IN GPC ON THE IMPUNITY OF THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR ABUSES: “The popularity of PiS at the beginning of this party's existence stemmed from the promise to bring order to Polish reality, primarily in these two points, included in the party's name. I have repeatedly pointed out here that its implementation is also a key element for maintaining social support today. On the other hand, a lack of determination, the prolonged impunity of those accused of abuses, can lead to impatience, and even doubt, among the electorate.”

-- SLD IS GROWING BECAUSE PLATFORMA HAS LOST ITS DRAWING POWER - KARNKOWSKI CONTINUES: “Even the defense of the privileges of the former elites, this pathological 'conservatism' of the Third Republic, is no longer keeping voters with PO and Nowoczesna, which it is gradually cannibalizing. These parties have proven to be completely ineffective in this matter, and as a result, some of the losing circles seem to be returning to their former patrons. Hence the poll growth of SLD and the important declaration of Monika Jaruzelska, announcing her entry into politics through this very grouping. Just a year or two ago, the natural choice for the dictator's daughter, as well as for many people coming from communist elites (Hibner, Cimoszewicz, Rosati), was Platforma Obywatelska, which, as we have just learned, readily allows a criminal to rest in MON facilities. However, Platforma has lost its drawing power; in cooperation with Nowoczesna, it is difficult to talk about gaining new circles.” http://gpcodziennie.pl/84699-niesprawiedliwarzeczpospolita.html

-- THE MINISTRY OF NATIONAL DEFENSE IS MUTING MACIEREWICZ - Marek Kozubal in RZ: “Mariusz Błaszczak's Ministry of National Defense is trying to downplay matters related to the military. This is, of course, a reaction to the chaos that Antoni Macierewicz introduced for over a year. But also preparation of the ground for the upcoming local (this year) and parliamentary (next year) elections. If the goal of PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński was to remove military-related topics from the media, then so far it has succeeded, but this is not always good news.” http://www.rp.pl/Analizy/303199919-MON-gumkuje-Macierewicza.html

-- GPC ON THE ORDO IURIS PROJECT TO INFLUENCE THE CONTENT OF SOCIAL MEDIA PORTALS: “Mass blocking of accounts and removal of content of a religious or patriotic nature – we observe such actions by social media portals, especially when national holidays and anniversaries of important historical events approach. Facebook is the unenviable leader here. Lawyers from the Ordo Iuris Institute propose introducing regulations that will guarantee Polish users true freedom of speech online.” http://gpcodziennie.pl/84721-wolnoscslowawsieci.html

-- DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER GLIŃSKI GOES SHOPPING ON SATURDAY: http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/polityka/wicepremier-glinski-robi-zakupy-w-weekend_1045323.html