-- 27 YEARS AGO, Hanna Suchocka became the first Polish woman appointed Prime Minister. -- FORMER PRIME MINISTER ON THE BACKSTAGE OF HER ELECTION AS PRIME MINISTER - WHO RULES US WITH HANNA SUCHOCKA ON VIRTUAL POLSKA: https://video.wp.pl/i,kto-nami-rzadzi,cid,2303843,program.html?ticaid=11d2eb&_ticrsn=3 -- THE POLITICAL 90S IN A NUTSHELL IN INTERIA PHOTOS FROM SUCHOCKA'S PREMIERSHIP: https://nowahistoria.interia.pl/historia-na-fotografii/hanna-suchocka-pierwsza-w-polsce-kobieta-premier-zdjecie,iId,1524889,iAId,121830 -- 13 YEARS AGO, Jarosław Kaczyński became Prime Minister. -- ANDRZEJ KUBLIK ON HOW GERMANY AND FRANCE OUTMANEUVERED EMILEWICZ: “Minister of Entrepreneurship Jadwiga Emilewicz supported Berlin and Paris, who want to change EU law to allow their companies to monopolize the European market. This could turn out like Zabłocki got fleeced. (...) Minister Emilewicz readily promotes the Battery Alliance initiative, an idea for a European consortium of electric car battery manufacturers. Preempting EU actions, governments of Germany and France were preparing such a consortium. Minister Emilewicz discussed Poland's participation in this consortium. But then, without her, ministers Altmaier and Le Maire announced the formation of such a German-French consortium. (...) This shows what supporting Berlin and Paris's plans can lead to if we don't establish in advance what we will get in return.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,155290,24976971,chlopaki-wezcie-z-soba-minister-jadwiga-emilewicz-dolacza.html -- GOWIN ON KOSINIAK BEING RIGHT, PARUCH WONDERING IF THE JUDICIARY WILL GO THE SAME WAY - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2019/07/10/ -- KOSINIAK DOESN'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE SIDELINED - WŁODZIMIERZ CZARZASTY IN CONVERSATION WITH DGP: “I hear stories that PSL banners are being removed from churches. Do you gentlemen think that if they go to the elections alone, the Church will tell them to bring those banners back? The Church doesn't do this for free. And who is financing it right now? Either there is a broad perspective, or there isn't. I am the only politician in Poland leading a party that was in the Sejm and, through its own stupidity, was outside it for the last four years. And along with the SLD board, I will bring that party back to the Sejm. We know what it's like to be on the political sidelines for four years. Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz doesn't know that yet.” -- VOTERS WANTED TO VOTE FOR SLD - CZARZASTY CONTINUES: “I'm not saying this with arrogance. I'm not saying we tricked others, I'm just talking about the result. Our colleagues from Civic Platform underestimated the SLD. Małgorzata Szmajdzińska received 64,000 votes, running from third place, surpassing the Marshal of the Opole Voivodeship. This means voters wanted to choose an SLD candidate. The same happened in other places. It turned out that Czarzasty's stories are not crypt stories. SLD is a living party. A party of older people, but there will be more and more of them in Poland. I know my party and I know that if I don't get into the Sejm, PiS will rule.” -- WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT FROM THE SLD? - CZARZASTY CONTINUES: “Let's take it one by one. If PSL has problems with LGBT, then I understand they will remove Trzaskowski from Civic Platform. After all, he signed the LGBT charter. He is the president of Warsaw, who, as I understand it, passed by Civic Platform by accident, according to PSL. Another issue: partnership unions. Paweł Rabiej, who spoke extensively about this, is the Deputy Mayor of Warsaw. Partnerships are in the Nowoczesna program. I understand you can't go with the left, but what will PSL do with Nowoczesna? Let's talk about abortion. Barbara Nowacka is on the sidelines of Civic Platform. Let's ask her: Barbara, what do you think about the permissibility of abortion up to 12 weeks? That's very important – she will answer. So, will PSL say, all the above-mentioned, away? And there's Mr. Jażdżewski. And who is he? A social democrat? The head of a liberal think tank. We all remember what he said, and who sat next to him? Donald Tusk, an insignificant figure in Europe. Him too, away? Who sat next to Jażdżewski and Tusk? Władeczek Kosiniak and his Secretary General Zgorzelski. They could have stood up and left, but the power of love for Tusk won? You can play with this and blame the SLD, but people see it. So, what the hell do you want from the SLD?” https://wiadomosci.dziennik.pl/opinie/artykuly/602200,czarzasty-schetyna-koalicja-sld-po-lewica-lgbt-sojusz-wybory-decyzja.html -- FOR KACZYŃSKI, THE FIGHT FOR TIMMERMANS WAS A WAR FOR EVERYTHING - PIOTR ZAREMBA IN DGP: “For Kaczyński, the war to prevent Dutch socialist Frans Timmermans from becoming President of the European Commission was a war for everything. This can be seen as magical thinking, because any Commission dominated by Christian Democrats, socialists, and liberals will not love the Polish right. And a German woman as a dream candidate requires pirouettes from PiS propaganda. But for both the leader and his voters, the Dutch politician became the personification of what is most hostile. Kaczyński sought a symbolic demonstration that the Polish government cannot be attacked with impunity. On the other hand, he confided in his closest circle his fears that with Timmermans at the head of the EU bureaucracy, some of his camp would seek constant satisfaction from skirmishes with the Union. Now it will be easier to relax a bit.” -- IN ZAREMBA'S OPINION, MORAWIECKI SECURED HIMSELF A PREMIERSHIP FOR THE NEXT TERM WITH ONE SUMMIT: “Honestly, what he did in Brussels is like – I like athletics – jumping nine meters in the long jump with a backpack full of stones on his back. He did something that seemed impossible and turned out to be possible,” Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki heard from Jarosław Kaczyński at the United Right's program convention in Katowice. With one summit in Brussels, Morawiecki has likely secured himself a premiership for the next term.” https://www.gazetaprawna.pl/artykuly/1420894,zaremba-morawiecki-szczyt-w-brukseli-konwencja-pis.html -- ANNA SŁOJEWSKA IN RZ ON POLAND'S PROBLEM IN THE EU: “What's more, Poland has lost credibility not only with Western partners, who are very sensitive to the issue of the rule of law. It is also clearly evident that it is no longer a natural leader of Central and Eastern Europe. In the matter of filling positions, it only acted within the framework of the Visegrad Group, which, in addition to Morawiecki, includes Hungary's Viktor Orbán, accused of violating the rule of law, and the Czech Andrej Babis, accused of corruption. And also the Slovak Peter Pellegrini, who doesn't feel quite comfortable in this company, but sticks with it for lack of an alternative. Other leaders in the region are not flocking to the Poles, but the Polish government is also not reaching out to them. Our authority is sufficient to scare the Baltic states into abstaining on Article 7. But it is not enough for natural leadership in the region, which would give us a mandate to defend the interests of the new Europe.” https://www.rp.pl/Rzecz-o-polityce/307099909-Slojewska-Polska-wykreowala-Timmermansa.html -- WILL KOSINIAK BE GRILLED? - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “The ball is still in play, and it is still possible for PSL to reach an agreement with Civic Platform, which is why the ultimate method was used: rumors began to spread that Kosiniak-Kamysz had secretly agreed with Jarosław Kaczyński on joint governance. This intrigue has a clear goal: if the leader of the peasant party wants to maintain his credibility, he must prove that he is not conspiring with the leader of the United Right at all. And he can prove this in only one way – by joining the anti-PiS coalition. The methods of grilling are varied, but the goal is one – to force PSL to abandon plans to build an independent Christian Democratic formation and throw itself into the arms of Grzegorz Schetyna and his left-wing allies. The most interesting question of the silly season is therefore: will the PSL leader be grilled and break?” https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/190719999-Grillowanie-ludowcow-na-wolnym-ogniu.html -- THE DECISION OF CIVIC PLATFORM WILL BE FUNDAMENTALLY IMPORTANT FOR THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE ON THE ENTIRE OPPOSITION SIDE - JAKUB MAJMUREK IN WP: “Civic Platform seems to be facing a choice: build a Christian Democratic, conservative bloc together with the peasant party, or a broad coalition with the left. Of course, politics is an unpredictable element, and ultimately the arrangement on the opposition side may turn out completely differently. Regardless of which solution the Platform ultimately chooses – if it chooses any at all – the decision of this party will be fundamentally important for the political landscape on the entire opposition side. And not just for the upcoming elections.” -- KOSINIAK AND SCHETYNA WILL UNITE THE LEFT - MAJMUREK CONTINUES: “However, if Civic Platform and PSL embrace the "conservative anchor," the construction of a second, left-wing bloc will become a necessity. The left, which initially could not unite on its own, and then lacked the strength to fight independently, may ultimately be united by Kosiniak-Kamysz and Schetyna.” -- GIVEN THE CHOICE BETWEEN TWO RIGHT-WING BLOCS, THE VOTER WILL CHOOSE PIS - MAJMUREK CONTINUES: “The scenario of two blocs also carries significant risks. A Civic Platform-PSL coalition hinders the fight for more progressive voters, condemning it to a very difficult struggle with PiS for the conservative electorate under current conditions. Faced with the choice between two right-wing blocs, they will most likely choose the more distinct one, centered around Jarosław Kaczyński.” -- EVERYTHING KEEPS THE PLATFORM ON THE CENTER-RIGHT - MAJMUREK'S CONCLUSION: “The current Civic Platform will never become the foundation of a broad, progressive bloc resembling the American Democrats. The roots, the biographies of the leaders, the political traditions, the reflexes of the party's activists keep this party on the center-right. While it is possible to imagine attaching the SLD to it, a party capable of maintaining great restraint on cultural and social issues, it would be much harder for the Platform to keep Spring and the electorate for whom Biedroń's most strongly raised issues are important.” https://opinie.wp.pl/majmurek-wielki-wybor-to-od-decyzji-po-zalezy-polityczny-krajobraz-polski-opinia-6400857751627905a -- EWA SIEDLECKA ON THE FACT THAT A VERDICT WITH A DUBBER IS INVALID: “The Constitutional Tribunal's ruling is invalid, as a dubber of a judge, i.e., an unauthorized person, sat on the judging panel. The Court of Appeal can therefore dismiss the Prosecutor General's motion to reopen proceedings, considering that there are no legal grounds because there is no Constitutional Tribunal ruling. Or it can pose a legal question to the Supreme Court regarding the validity of the Constitutional Tribunal's ruling, or a preliminary ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union. Then we can count on a formal resolution of the dispute, ongoing for four years, about whether the three dubbers introduced by PiS to the Constitutional Tribunal are judges.” -- SIEDLECKA ON THE POSSIBILITY OF ASKING A PRELIMINARY QUESTION TO THE CJEU REGARDING THE PRINTER: “But the printer's case could also – through a Polish court – change EU law. The Court of Appeal in Łódź can indeed ask the CJEU another preliminary question: whether the lack of any provision in Polish law protecting against discrimination in services based on sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as age, disability, social origin, or any other characteristic besides sex, nationality, or race – is compatible with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and specifically with Article 21.” https://siedlecka.blog.polityka.pl/2019/07/09/sprawa-drukarza-zmieni-prawo-unii/ -- TO REPRIMAND FOR VOTING FOR PIS, TO RECONCILE CELEBRITY-STYLE - MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI ON THE OPPOSITION'S "FIELD" VISITS: “Not only the example from Węgrów, but also other scenes from the visits of Ms. Nowacka's and Mr. Arłukowicz's detachments, show an invasion of the territory rather than a meeting in the field. Someone clearly had the idea that if you show up in the provinces, scold a bit for voting for PiS, and entertain a bit celebrity-style, everything will turn around. It won't turn around because that wasn't the key to the PiS method at all. First came the understanding of Poland's and Poles' needs, forged at successive solid program conventions, then building a program, and only then a clear message carried into the field – albeit with a genuine intention to listen to reactions.” -- PLATFORM SENDS THE PROVINCES PEOPLE WHO ARE CONFIDENT AND BELIEVE IN THEIR OWN SUPERIORITY - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “Civic Platform does the opposite: it amateurishly sends confident activists, convinced of their own superiority, who moreover have little to say to people. This turns into a grotesque hunt for locals, to catch them and convince them that they are wrong. A campaign delusion of a madman. Therefore, if the opposition really wanted to follow the PiS path, it should immediately withdraw the Arłukowicz/Nowacka detachment and get to reorganizing its own camp.” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/454313-opozycja-powinna-wycofac-z-terenu-nowacka-i-arlukowicza -- PAWEŁ WROŃSKI ON THE PIS CONVENTION - JUST TO GOVERN - he writes in GW: “After four years in government, it can be stated that PiS has successfully implemented almost all the programs that allowed the party to gain and retain power. What's more, it is the first group in the history of the Third Polish Republic that is so afraid of victory and revenge from the opposition that, by increasing social transfers, it risks financial disaster for the state in the event of a crisis. This was the nature of "Kaczyński's Five," announced before the European Parliament elections as a campaign bait intended to bring success in the parliamentary elections as well. These promises were so generous that they even frightened the then Minister of Finance, Teresa Czerwińska.” -- PIS HAS NOT SOLVED ANY PROBLEMS - WROŃSKI CONTINUES: “Apart from increasing fiscalism, politicization of the state, and attacking all enclaves of self-governance, PiS has failed to solve any of Poland's significant problems. The state modernization program has either not been implemented or did not exist at all. In any case, it was a chaotic improvisation calculated solely for propaganda effect.” -- IF NOT IN THESE ELECTIONS, THEN IN THE NEXT ONES - WROŃSKI'S CONCLUSION: “PiS has not yet presented any offer to improve, better organize the state, improve public services, and increase citizens' chances of accessing education, culture, and sports. If not in these elections, then in the next ones, the group that presents Poles with an attractive offer on how to wisely spend money from social transfers in the country will win.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24978746,program-pis-mozna-strescic-w-zdaniu-obiecac-wszystko-byle.html -- 3rd anniversary of Michał Kornatowski's death. -- BIRTHDAYS: Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Michał Wilgocki, Władysław Dajczak, Ludwik Kotecki, Killion Munyama, Lucjan Karasiewicz, Magda Gessler celebrate their 40th birthdays.