-- 4 YEARS AGO, Andrzej Duda and Bronisław Komorowski, running for re-election, advanced to the second round of the presidential elections.

-- PAD INVITED TO THE WHITE HOUSE, BIELAN ON THE RULING OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL TRIBUNAL ON THE ANTI-ABORTION LAW BEING MORE DURABLE THAN AN AMENDMENT - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2019/05/10/

-- NEW EPP SPOT: EC HAS NO PROGRAM: https://300polityka.pl/news/2019/05/10/koalicja-europejska-nie-chce-pokazac-programu-ale-my-go-poznalismy-nowy-spot-pis/

-- IN THE SPOT, PRIME MINISTER EWA KOPACZ SAYS SHE WILL USE HER EXPERIENCE IN BRUSSELS - PREMIERE ON 300POLITYKA: https://300polityka.pl/news/2019/05/10/pek-w-spocie-chce-wykorzystac-swoje-doswiadczenie-premiera-marszalka-sejmu-i-ministra-zdrowia-by-reprezentowac-polske-bronic-jej-interesow/

-- THE RIGOROUS AMERICAN AGENCY FDA DEEMED IQOS AS BENEFICIAL FOR PUBLIC HEALTH - RZ: “The FDA, known for its rigorous approach to tobacco products, made this decision after two years of research. The justification states that the approval of IQOS is ‘appropriate for the protection of public health’ because smokeless products ‘produce fewer specific toxins in lower doses than traditional cigarettes.’ The agency emphasizes that the likelihood of non-smokers starting to use tobacco heating devices is significantly lower than that of smoking cigarettes. (...) Americans have concluded that allowing the marketing of a device that delivers nicotine to the body, bypassing the health-damaging combustion process, will be beneficial from a public health perspective. By replacing traditional cigarettes with a tobacco heater, a smoker reduces the intake of nearly 4,000 chemical compounds into their body, 40 of which are carcinogens.” https://www.rp.pl/Medycyna-i-zdrowie/305099894-IQOS-USA-dopuszczaja-mniejsze-zlo.html

-- TUSK BELIEVES BREXIT IS NOT INEVITABLE - as he states in an interview with GW editors-in-chief: “Hannah Arendt said that in politics and history, things become irreversible only when people deem them so. They are not irreversible by themselves. After the British referendum in 2016, I thought that if we considered the matter closed, it would be the end. Today, in my opinion, we have a 20-30% chance that Brexit will not happen. That's a lot. Month by month, it's becoming increasingly clear that Britain's exit from the EU will look completely different than intended by those who promoted Brexit. I see no reason to capitulate, even if we repeat that a referendum expresses the will of the people, and the will of the people must be respected. Yes, it must be respected. But the 2016 referendum was not the first on Britain's membership in the EU. The first took place in 1975, when the British, two years after joining the then EEC, decided whether to remain in it. At that time, 67% were in favor. If the 2016 referendum could change the decision made in the 1975 referendum, why can't another one be held? Nothing is irreversible as long as people believe it can be undone.”

-- NOT CONFRONTING THE USA PROVOKES MY OPPOSITION - TUSK CONTINUES: “Given the rise of China's power and Russia's aggressive stance, we must primarily maintain political unity, which does not require an institutional revolution. Quite the contrary. However, the thesis I often hear, that Europe must strengthen its identity, develop community instruments in foreign or defense policy because we must confront the USA – provokes my categorical opposition.”

-- I AM ALLERGICALLY OPPOSED TO QUESTIONING EU-USA COOPERATION - TUSK FURTHER IN GW: “I am allergically opposed to questioning this cooperation, regardless of whether those who question it are from Washington or Berlin. We cannot undermine a geopolitical strategy that has made life on Earth more bearable for everyone, just because we argued about car tariffs. That would be the idiocy of the century.”

-- I DO NOT AGREE WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF EXCLUDING POLAND FROM SCHENGEN - TUSK FURTHER: “I greatly appreciate the voices demanding respect for the rules we have imposed on ourselves within the Union. But let's start with France and Germany themselves. Major countries have had various violations of EU law in the past. I do not agree with the thesis that Poland could be excluded from the Schengen area because it does not accept refugees from the EU quota.”

-- AS A POLE, I HAVE NO COMPLEXES IN BRUSSELS - TUSK FURTHER IN GW: “I am critical of the PiS government. But as a Pole, I have no complexes in Brussels. It's not that Poland and Hungary are the 'sick people' of Europe, and everyone else is brimming with health. Every country has bigger or smaller problems. I advise everyone to first address the problems in their own home.”

-- POLAND'S PROBLEM IS THAT IT IS RULED BY SOMEONE UNREACHABLE - TUSK FURTHER: “A significant part of the Union is critical of the state of the rule of law in Poland, but this in no way means that our partners do not take Poland into account. Poland is losing not only due to PiS policies, which many do not accept, but because the government is passive in many areas. Orbán is criticized much more, but Hungary remains a player in Brussels, and partners reckon with Orbán. Poland's problem is that it is ruled by someone who is unreachable. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki comes to Brussels and does not hide that the power is not in his hands. Yet it is at meetings of European leaders that decisions are forged. Those who do not hold power have little to say there.” http://wyborcza.pl/magazyn/7,124059,24766875,donald-tusk-polska-nie-jest-chorym-czlowiekiem-europy.html

-- FAKT ON KOSINIAK RUNNING AGAINST DUDA: “So why shouldn't the PSL leader fight for the office with the current head of state? At the time of his nomination, he would be only slightly younger than Duda was in November 2014. Moreover – as the set of characteristics we list below demonstrates – they have much more in common. Additionally, Kosiniak-Kamysz has long been one of Tusk's political favorites. Within Civic Platform itself, one can hear that 'if not Tusk, then Władek.' Alternatively, the Mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski (47), because the party might find it difficult to support someone from outside PO.” https://www.fakt.pl/wydarzenia/polityka/kosiniakkamysz-kontra-duda-taki-nas-czeka-pojedynek/hb6903n

-- WOJCIECH CZUCHNOWSKI ON RUMORS OF THE TAPE: “The so-called Kuchciński sex tape, which is supposed to incriminate the Marshal of the Sejm, currently exists only in the stories of a former CBA agent. The only issue is that Wojciech Janik's claims cannot be dismissed with a shrug. Such serious accusations against a politician are being made by a man who was until recently a high-ranking officer of an elite service. (...) PiS defends Kuchciński, assuring that stories about the Marshal's sexual exploits are the claims of a madman with no evidence. In doing so, they shamefully omit who hired this 'madman' and what powers they gave him. But the more the authorities deny it, the more they become hostages to these denials. As of now, there is no tape. However, if it does surface, the consequences for PiS will be devastating.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75398,24768545,pis-zakladnikiem-sekstasmy-kuchcinskiego-jesli-wyplynie.html

-- THE CHURCH IS LOSING SUPPORT - KRZYSZTOF PACEWICZ DESCRIBES A KANTAR POLL FOR GW: “53% of Poles are against public funding of religion. 45% want the funding to be maintained. This support rapidly declines with the increasing education level of respondents: from 59% of respondents with primary education to 35% with higher education. Funding for religion from the budget is mainly supported by rural residents, the unemployed, and those with no income or incomes below 1,500 PLN net per month. As much as 73% of Law and Justice voters support funding religious education from the budget, while 24% are against it. Among opposition party electorates, it's the opposite: 78% of Civic European Coalition voters, 84% of Left Together supporters, and as many as 90% of Biedroń's Spring voters support discontinuing funding for religion classes in schools.” http://www.wysokieobcasy.pl/wysokie-obcasy/7,163229,24769811,sondaz-nie-chcemy-placic-za-lekcje-religii.html

-- MONIKA OLEJNIK ON WHO IS PROFANING HERE: “The Prior of Jasna Góra says that the image of the Madonna cannot be used for worldview struggles. I haven't heard any outrage from the Prior when football hooligans set off flares under Jasna Góra.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24769228,kto-tu-naprawde-profanuje-symbole-wiary.html

-- GW'S LEAD STORY ON THE SEKIELSKI BROTHERS' FILM ABOUT PEDOPHILIA IN THE CHURCH: “Tomasz and Marek Sekielski reveal previously unknown cases of pedophilia in the Church: concerning the former chaplain of Lech Wałęsa and the custodian of the sanctuary in Licheń. The premiere of 'Only Don't Tell Anyone' is on Saturday on YouTube. None of the bishops agreed to speak with Sekielski.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75398,24768452,sekielscy-ujawniaja-nowe-przypadki-pedofilii-w-kosciele-widzielismy.html

-- THE VIEWER WILL BE CONVINCED THAT THE HIERARCHS' STATEMENTS ARE EMPTY PHRASES - TOMASZ KRZYŻAK IN RZ ON THE SEKIELSKI FILM: “After a two-hour screening, the viewer will not only be deeply moved but, above all, indignant. They will be convinced that the principle of 'zero tolerance' repeated by the bishops (mentioned several times and in various ways in the film – mainly through the statements of hierarchs from radio interviews or press conferences) is merely an empty phrase. They will be reinforced in this conviction because Sekielski does not fully disclose certain matters and steers his narrative in that direction. This film will likely be seized upon by those who believe the Church is doing nothing about pedophilia scandals. For them, this film will become another tool in the fight against the Church.”

-- QUESTIONS ABOUT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF SEVERAL BISHOPS MUST ARISE - KRZYŻAK CONTINUES: “Sekielski's film will not shake the Church in Poland. There will be no spectacular resignations of bishops – although questions about their responsibility in a few cases must arise. If only because the Vatican has just announced new rules for dealing with and punishing bishops who conceal or have concealed instances of molestation. This film provokes thought and the search for answers to the question of how to protect minors from deviants. Not just within the Church.” https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/190509381-Film-Sekielskiego-wstrzasajacy-ale-Kosciolem-nie-wstrzasnie.html

-- TIME FOR A MOVE ACROSS THE DISPUTE, BISHOPS MUST GO AGAINST THE DEVELOPING RELIGIOUS WAR - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “The echoes of the arrest of a person distributing a rainbow Madonna show how harmful the Church's self-proclaimed defenders are. It is time for a move across the dispute. (...) Members of the Episcopate should also consider whether some statements by clergy and bishops are not joining a political war. The action with the rainbow Madonna was a reaction to the decoration of the Holy Sepulchre, which listed LGBT alongside various crimes. The Catechism condemns homosexual acts but commands respect for homosexuals themselves. Perhaps it is time to recall this teaching? Bishops must move against the developing religious war. Because with the very strong trends of secularization in Polish society, the Church can only lose in this war.” https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/190519999-Szuldrzynski-Kosciol-nie-powinien-sie-dac-wciagnac-w-religijna-wojne.html

-- A NEW POLITICAL CLIMATE IN THE EP WILL GUARANTEE OUR COMMISSIONER AN IMPORTANT AREA OF COMPETENCE - ZDZISŁAW KRASNODĘBSKI IN CONVERSATION WITH JACEK NIZINKIEWICZ IN RZ: “We must find a majority for our candidate. As practice shows, the first consultations will likely be behind the scenes. Then, the hearing in the EP is important. I am convinced that the Polish candidate will be good enough to be accepted without difficulty, and the new political climate in the EP will guarantee our candidate an important area of competence.”

-- TUSK IS WAITING FOR THE EUROPEAN COALITION'S DEFEAT - KRASNODĘBSKI FURTHER: “It is evident that Donald Tusk is waiting for the disintegration of the Civic European Coalition and a potential change of leadership in PO following an electoral defeat. Tusk would like to build his formation on the ruins and ashes of Schetyna's PO. He still dreams of becoming the messiah of Poland's increasingly left-leaning liberals.”

-- PIS IS BECOMING AN OBJECT OF DESIRE - KRASNODĘBSKI FURTHER: “We are remaining in the ECR. The ECR is continuously accepting new members, including from the EPP. If the crisis in the EPP deepens, then Orbán's party will likely be able to find a place for us. The Socialists recently announced that they will no longer cooperate as closely with the EPP in the next parliament as they do now. Therefore, the 'grand coalition of the Berlin style,' which has dominated the European Parliament, will break down. Both groups will have to seek allies. Thus, not only the distribution of power among individual factions will change, but new alliances will have to be built. The next EP term may be extremely interesting politically. Increasingly public proposals are being made to us by the European right. Marine Le Pen directly addressed PiS in Prague to build a common bloc. PiS is becoming an object of desire – coming from both sides, from the center and from the right.” https://www.rp.pl/Wywiady-i-rozmowy/190509370-Zdzislaw-Krasnodebski-PiS-staje-sie-obiektem-pozadania.html

-- WHY DONALD TUSK - JAROSŁAW KURSKI IN GW: “But in a world of inverted signs, nationalist bloat, and blunt tribal propaganda, it is precisely what is most ordinary, human, and normal about Tusk that is most dangerous to this government. Because PiS fears the return of normalcy like fire. A relaxed and smiling leader is a true terror for politics conducted with mouths contorted in hatred.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24769584,donald-tusk-nasz-czlowiek-roku.html

-- TUESDAY: TUSK DEFENDS ACADEMIC FREEDOM FROM PiS. WEDNESDAY: COMMISSION DENIES ZYBERTOWICZ PROFESSORSHIP, AND THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY DOES NOT HIDE THAT IT IS FOR POLITICAL REASONS - THE THIRD REPUBLIC IN A NUTSHELL - JACEK KARNOWSKI: “Donald Tusk is right: freedom of speech is currently threatened in Polish universities. Unfortunately, he points to entirely false sources of this threat. Everyone who cares about the freedom of university life should today appeal primarily to the scholars themselves to remain true to their doctoral oath and not to embark on the path of ideological intoxication, known from the 1950s. And most importantly: Bronisław Wildstein's analysis, delivered during the last gala of the 'Sieci' weekly, proves its relevance almost daily. We are still 'living in a topsy-turvy world, inverted, where meanings and values are turned upside down.'” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/445952-miedzy-tuskiem-a-zybertowiczem-czyli-iii-rp-w-pigulce

-- MARCIN FIJOŁEK ON THE NEED FOR A EUROPEAN NARRATIVE FOR EFFECTIVE FIGHT AGAINST VAT CAROUSELS: “In the European campaign – which, unfortunately, is not surprising – we are largely focused on Polish issues, such as expanding social programs, or ideological ones, united in three-day squabbles. If Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki wants to have a greater impact on reality (including the EU's) and has ambitions that go beyond daily administration, he should find a way for a Polish narrative about fighting this problem. Without sugarcoating and excessive gloss, but in a broader context than just the basic level of 'We took from the thieves, we gave 500+' – this story deserves more. Even, and perhaps especially, in such a bland public debate as we have seen in recent days.” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/445848-cala-ue-walczy-z-wyludzeniami-vat-czas-na-polska-opowiesc

-- AGNIESZKA WIŚNIEWSKA IN KRYTYKA ON THE NETFLIX FILM: “The film 'Knock Down the House' is a likeable documentary about people doing the right thing. It's great when someone you root for wins – although unfortunately, not all the film's protagonists won. However, I don't feel like I learned from this film why this particular candidate succeeded and another didn't. And that's what interests me most in films about politics.” https://krytykapolityczna.pl/felietony/agnieszka-wisniewska/byc-jak-alexandria-ocasio-cortez/

-- BIRTHDAYS: Alicja Chybicka, Barbara Nowacka, Tomasz Szatkowski, Tomasz Chaciński, Stanisław Żerko, Michał Marszałek