-- GRZEGORZ SCHETYNA'S BIRTHDAY.

-- PM ON POLAND'S ROLE AT THE JERUSALEM SUMMIT AND REFUSAL OF RACIST REMARKS - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2019/02/18/

-- EUROPEAN COALITION DRAWS WITH PIS - IPSOS POLL FOR OKO.PRESS: "The European Coalition (33.2%) has caught up with PiS (33.7%) and, together with Wiosna, could oust them from power. OPOKO.PRESS POLL. A weaker PiS is in a draw with the European Coalition (PO+.N+PSL+SLD) – with 19 Euro-mandates and 33-34% of the votes each. Such support would give the Coalition 180 seats in the Sejm and, together with Wiosna (12% of votes, 52 seats), would allow them to remove PiS from power. If Wiosna weren't present, the Coalition would have 40%, but only 223 seats. Watch out, Kukiz and Korwin are growing!"

-- PIS'S WORST RESULTS SINCE 27:1 - PIOTR PACEWICZ FURTHER IN OKO.PRESS: "A result of 34% is PiS's worst showing in IPSOS polls for OKO.press since the 2015 elections. With one exception – 32% after the embarrassment of electing Tusk as President of the European Council in March 2017. During the three-day survey, another installment of the Srebrna affair – 'Kaczyński's envelope' – occurred. https://oko.press/koalicja-europejska-332-proc-dogonila-pis-337-i-razem-z-wiosna-12-moglaby-go-odsunac-od-wladzy/

-- PIS LEADS UNCHALLENGED - RZECZPOSPOLITA POLL, BUT IT'S IBRIS: "If the European Parliament elections were held today, the ruling party and its allies could count on 36% support. Civic Coalition (PO and Nowoczesna) has 28%, and Robert Biedroń's Wiosna has 12%. SLD can count on 6%, while PSL and Kukiz'15 would get 5% each." https://www.rp.pl/Polityka/190219464-Sondaz-PiS-z-przewaga-przed-wyborami-do-PE.html

-- ADAM BIELAN BELIEVES A KO LOSS IN PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS WOULD RESTORE THE RIGHT-LEFT DIVISION - as he stated in Rzeczpospolita: "If Robert Biedroń achieves a good result in the relatively easy European elections for him, riding on the wave of that triumph he will immediately enter the parliamentary campaign and maintain interest in his formation, he will have political momentum and bring it into the Sejm. And if the Civic Coalition, which I deeply believe, does not take power, then in the course of the next campaign, this time presidential, he might gain the status of opposition leader. And then the political scene will return to the classic right-left division." https://www.rp.pl/Prawo-i-Sprawiedliwosc/190219461-Bielan-Wyborcy-nie-chca-krwawej-wendety.html

-- PIS BETS ON A "SEASONAL" POLAND - Marek Beylin in Gazeta Wyborcza: "And – most importantly – it risks the status of a 'seasonal state' with an ephemeral existence. Because in nationalist projects, NATO will remain, but without guarantees of defense for the eastern flank. And if Trump or a similar successor were to govern in the US, that country too would not fight for Poland or the Baltic states."

-- PIS BRINGS MORTAL DANGER UPON US BY SUPPORTING THE MARCH OF EXTREME FORCES - Beylin further: "The point is that by supporting the march of extreme forces in Europe, PiS is bringing mortal danger upon Poland. The current liberal-democratic Union can marginalize PiS's Poland or discipline it with sanctions, but it will always leave the door open for us. Germany, France, and other EU countries want a democratic and strong Poland to exist in this community. Whereas the nationalist parties of the West couldn't care less about Poland's existence. A strong Poland is more trouble than benefit to them." http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24466748,stawiac-na-wspolprace-z-antyunijna-prawica-w-innych-krajach.html

-- LET'S DEFEND BODNAR - MAREK BEYLIN in wyborcza.pl: "Therefore, when Adam Bodnar is being dragged to court today by a party-government institution for conscientiously performing his duties, he deserves strong support. By shouting: 'Free Ombudsman!', we are defending not only him, but one of the pillars of a democratic state." http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24463573,murem-za-bodnarem.html#S.-K.P-B.1-L.5.glowka

-- WIOSNA ON THE LEFT. PO ON THE RIGHT. PIS ON THE GRASS - JACEK ŻAKOWSKI in Gazeta Wyborcza: "Biedroń offered PiS's social voters a bridge to the democratic camp. 1% of the electorate used it. Perhaps another percent will use it. Its accessibility is limited by lifestyle demands and anti-clericalism. If PO credibly shifts to the right, it might lose more to Wiosna, but it has a chance to build another bridge and gain at PiS's expense. This would strengthen the democratic camp. For the progressive wing of PO, a shift to the right would be a big problem. But its electorate has already migrated to Wiosna. However, it would be an important gift for the coalition partners. SLD could differentiate itself within the coalition and thus survive, and PSL would more easily explain to its members that they are going with PO. There is little time, but perhaps still enough time to turn the challenge of Wiosna into success in the autumn and build democracy in Poland together." http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24466769,wiosna-na-lewo-po-na-prawo-pis-na-trawe.html

-- GAZETA WYBORCZA ON ITS FRONT PAGE PUBLISHES A COPY OF A PAYMENT RECEIPT FOR 50 THOUSAND PLN: "We are publishing a copy of a payment receipt for PLN 50,000, which Gerald Birgfellner was to hand over at PiS headquarters as payment for the signature of a priest from the board of the Lech Kaczyński Institute Foundation. The original is one of the pieces of evidence in the prosecutor's investigation." http://wyborcza.pl/7,75398,24466574,tasmy-kaczynskiego-oto-kopia-dowodu-wyplaty-50-tys-zl.html

-- DIVIDED OVER PREMIER OLSZEWSKI'S COFFIN - Fakt points out that the only politician present at the ceremonies was Jerzy Buzek.

-- IT'S A SHAME THE OPPOSITION BOYCOTTED THE FAREWELL OF JAN OLSZEWSKI - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI in Rzeczpospolita: "A leftist by birth and conviction, he became an icon of the right; in his youth a Freemason, he became a close associate of the episcopate; a realist in the PRL, to whom in the Third Republic the mask of a radical was attached. He was a great figure, from whom every political camp could find something for themselves. It is therefore a shame that today's opposition ignored his funeral. It is a shame that in an election year, even mourning ceremonies must become part of the campaign." https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/302179946-Szuldrzynski-Pokaz-powagi-panstwa.html

-- SOMEONE OF OUTSTANDING CALIBER - Łukasz Bertram in Kultura Liberalna: "With Olszewski's death, Poland has lost someone of outstanding caliber. Sincere expressions of homage have come from all sides of the political spectrum – absolutely deservedly. Now the question arises about memory and what to do so that it is not completely colonized by only one option."

-- OLSZEWSKI'S LIFE COMPLICATES THE THESIS THAT THE WORLD AND HISTORY ARE SIMPLE - Bertram further: "Jan Olszewski, and perhaps above all the short episode of his premiership, is one of the banners of the camp that currently holds power in Poland. However, contrary to appearances, this biography is poorly suited as a textbook under the 'good change' slogan. It is, however, evidence of the constancy of a certain ethos of social service and resistance against authoritarian oppression, but equally strongly: of ambiguity, which must complicate the lives of all those who assume that the world and history are simple." https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2019/02/16/olszewski-bertram-pomnik/

-- THE POLISH-POLISH WAR HARMS POLAND, AND IT IS DECIDEDLY NOT PIS'S FAULT - JERZY HASZCZYŃSKI in Rzeczpospolita: "Recently, I listened in a leading anti-government think tank to a lecture by one of the most important opposition diplomats. He criticized PiS with great flair (his right). But at the same time, he showed ignorance about the attitude of ethnic groups in Great Britain towards Brexit (which one of the debate participants immediately pointed out to him) and about the Treaty of Aachen being signed shortly thereafter by the leaders of Germany and France (this, in turn, was shown by the content of the document and comments from German and French specialists). And he said this because it fit his anti-PiS theses. The conclusion is sad: the Polish-Polish war harms Poland. And it is decidedly not PiS's fault." https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/190219531-Haszczynski-Wiecej-niz-dwiescie-znakow-o-konferencji-bliskowschodniej.html

-- TOMASZ SAWCZUK ON THE FACT THAT IT'S GOOD THAT GWIAZDOWSKI WILL TAKE VOTES FROM EXTREME SLATES - he writes in Kultura Liberalna: "Polska Fair Play is a return of liberalism that we know and do not need. But if it takes some votes from radicals, nothing bad will happen. Gwiazdowski is also capable of taking some votes from the Kukiz movement and the coalition of nationalists and Korwin-Mikke. What's more, if the voter turnout increases even slightly because of him, more votes will have to be obtained to cross the election threshold. Since these initiatives are balanced on the verge of the threshold, they may not have enough votes – especially since Wiosna is already taking voters away from Kukiz." https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2019/02/18/robert-gwiazdowski-partia-polska-fair-play-program/

-- JOANNA SENYSZYN UNDERWENT A SERIOUS OPERATION: http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114884,24466755,joanna-senyszyn-przeszla-powazna-operacje-konieczna-byla-transfuzja.html#a=66&c=157&t=3&g=a&s=BoxNewsLink

-- BIRTHDAYS: Grzegorz Schetyna, Maciej Kawecki.