-- JAROSŁAW KACZYŃSKI TO PRESENT 41 LIST LEADERS - WEEKEND STRIKE AIMED AT DISRUPTING THE OPPOSITION'S PLANS: https://300polityka.pl/news/2019/07/12/news-300polityki-jaroslaw-kaczynski-zaprezentuje-w-sobote-41-liderow-list-sejmowych-sztabowiec-pis-zwarta-druzyna-kontra-znaki-zapytania-po-stronie-opozycji/ -- SCHETYNA SHIFTS STANCE ON RETIREMENT AGE, BRUDZIŃSKI IMMEDIATELY COUNTERS - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2019/07/12/ -- TRUMP TO VISIT POLAND FOR 2 DAYS - WP: https://wiadomosci.wp.pl/nieoficjalnie-donald-trump-potwierdzil-swoj-przyjazd-do-polski-6401473526655105a -- BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE CIVIC PLATFORM'S MEETING WITH THE MEDIA -- “Grzegorz Schetyna did not hide his irritation with the politicians of the Polish People's Party - at one point, the head of Civic Platform even blurted out: 'A four-percent party will not dictate terms to a thirty-percent party!' Schetyna was agitated, referring to the Peasants' hard stance on not admitting the Democratic Left Alliance and Spring to the coalition.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/454613-tylko-u-nas-kulisy-zamknietego-spotkania-schetyny-z-mediami -- DZIENNIK WSCHODNI INVESTIGATES CAMPAIGN FINANCING: "The record holder turned out to be someone who did not run in the local elections. Andrzej Pruszkowski, a former PiS regional assembly councilor, could not seek re-election (due to the ban on combining work in lucrative state-owned companies with local government activity). And Pruszkowski was then the vice-president of PGE Dystrybucja, where in 2017 alone he earned PLN 631,000, an average of PLN 53,000 per month. He no longer works there but has been the director of the Regional Labor Office, subordinate to the Marshal, since May. Last year, Pruszkowski contributed PLN 31,000 to the PiS election fund and PLN 1,200 in membership fees." -- DZIENNIK WSCHODNI ON THE PSL CAMPAIGN SPONSORED BY REGIONAL ASSEMBLY EMPLOYEES:"The list also includes donors who work or have worked in managerial positions in the Marshal's Office and its subordinate institutions. Significant amounts were donated by, among others: Michał Jedliński, recently the director of the Provincial Hospital in Chełm (PLN 9,200), the head of the hospital on Kraśnicka Avenue in Lublin, Gabriel Maj, and the Provincial Treasurer Elżbieta Mocior (PLN 8,500 each), former director of the RPO Management Department in the office, Andrzej Kloc (PLN 6,500), or former directors of the Museum of the Lublin Countryside (Mirosław Korbut) and the Lublin Agency for Enterprise Support (Marceli Niezgoda) - PLN 6,000 each. Anna Augustyniak, then the provincial secretary, donated PLN 10,000 to the PSL account as a donation." https://www.dziennikwschodni.pl/lublin/polityczni-darczyncy-kto-i-ile-w-roku-wyborczym-przelal-na-konto-partii-politycznych,n,1000246490.html -- DUDA - HERO OF MEMES DEFEATS POLITICAL MASTERMIND - PIOTR ZAREMBA IN PTT: "In election polls, he defeats every opponent, including Donald Tusk. He, the hero of numerous memes portraying him as a helpless oaf, defeats the political mastermind. It's evident that Poles don't expect much more from the president than for him to be well-mannered, eloquent, a gallant figure, someone like an ideal son-in-law candidate." -- THE PRESIDENT COULD BE MORE INVENTIVE - ZAREMBA CONTINUES: "I think the president could be more inventive, because not every statement on an issue would have to herald total war with former colleagues. He was supposed to monitor the education reform. Nothing came of it. Similarly, he refrained from intervening in conflicts in the academic world, with Jarosław Gowin's highly controversial reform. In the army, after getting rid of Antoni Macierewicz, he is content with minor interventions in personnel policy. Even in the field of historical policy, he limits himself to nice words, but does not multiply initiatives. When will he propose an interesting bill?" -- THE PRESIDENT NEEDS BROADER SUPPORT THAN THE LAW AND JUSTICE PARTY'S - ZAREMBA CONTINUES: "He might set the election date in such a way as to give smaller parties like Kukiz's Movement time to collect signatures. He, in turn, will need broader support than Law and Justice's next year. But these parties are in disarray, while he has, not so much won, but painstakingly amassed a stable position in the hearts of Poles." https://polskatimes.pl/prezydent-andrzej-duda-zapomniany-i-rekordowo-popularny/ar/c1-14270557 -- LAW AND JUSTICE IS LAUNCHING A SERVICE SHOWCASING UNFORTUNATE STATEMENTS BY OPPOSITION POLITICIANS, AND ON SUNDAY, A SERIES OF FAMILY PICNICS BEGINS: "A week after the programmatic convention in Katowice, Law and Justice intends to counter the weekend forum of Civic Platform and its allies. A special portal parodying the opposition's promises has been prepared. As WP learns, government politicians, led by their chairman, will also embark on a series of 'holiday family picnics.' The first one is on Sunday in Goźdz." https://opinie.wp.pl/nowy-portal-i-seria-spotkan-piknikowych-tak-pis-odpowie-na-konwencje-platformy-6401685387077249a -- CIVIC PLATFORM MUST QUICKLY FIND AN IDEA THAT GIVES IT STRENGTH AND IDENTITY - ZUZANNA DĄBROWSKA IN RZ: "And will Civic Platform be able to find a way for voters to see Poland through its eyes? Or will it, as befits technocrats, present a multitude of excellent solutions to various, larger or smaller problems, which no one will hear about and which it will quickly forget itself? Schetyna's party must quickly find an idea that gives it strength and identity. If it doesn't find one, it will lose the next election, regardless of any coalitions formed." https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/190719847-Zuzanna-Dabrowska-Idea-poszukiwana.html -- WE HAVE BEEN LABELED A PARTY THAT HAS LOST ITS ENERGY - MAŁGORZATA KIDAWA-BŁOŃSKA IN OKO.PRESS: "Several factors contributed to this. Certainly, people had complaints about us for losing the elections in 2015. We faced a lot of criticism then, our mistakes were pointed out. We were thoroughly chastised. PiS propaganda also added to it. We were branded as a party that had lost its energy. But I recall that once people said Donald Tusk was not very hardworking. The same journalists who today call him a statesman and an outstanding European politician, wrote critically about him back then. And he worked hard, and he demanded the same from us, his collaborators. Civic Platform is on a new path, it has undergone internal changes, Grzegorz Schetyna is a strong leader, and we are a hardworking, mobilized, and combative team. So this label doesn't fit us, and we are proving it." -- LAW AND JUSTICE DELIBERATELY FOCUSED ON WORLDVIEW ISSUES - KIDAWA CONTINUES: "Worldview issues played a significant role in the European Parliament campaign. They were deliberately raised by PiS, 'churned' in public media, which fueled negative emotions, ultimately leading to deeper societal divisions. At our meetings and conventions, we talked about European affairs, the necessity of restoring Poland's position in Europe, and EU funds for our country. PiS, on the other hand, presented proposals for the parliamentary elections, and additionally found a new enemy, scared Poles, and divided them. They imposed questions about same-sex couples adopting children, a topic not only completely unrelated to the European elections but also not a subject of debate in Poland. Today, we see the consequences of PiS's lack of a plan for our role in Europe. We are isolated in the EU. Unfortunately, Poles will suffer from this." -- STATE AID SHOULD BE LINKED TO WILLINGNESS TO WORK - KIDAWA CONTINUES: "No one is planning to abolish the 500+ program, which is well-received by Poles. However, undoubtedly – and voters tell us this – state aid should be more equitable and linked, for example, to the willingness to work. You work, you strive to improve your standard of living - the state should help you. For many people, 500+ is of great importance, but it has encouraged some to leave the labor market. During the campaign, I spoke with a woman in Podkarpacie who happily stated that she no longer has to work because she has 4 children and therefore receives money. 'But if you went to work, you would have twice as much money,' I said. She thought about it and replied: 'But I didn't think of it that way.' The money from 500+ replaced this woman's income from work. And yet, it should be a supplement and assistance in raising children. Therefore, we will strive to encourage greater professional activity." https://oko.press/kidawa-blonska-przypieto-nam-latke-partii-ktora-utracila-energie-rozmowa/ -- AGATA SZCZĘŚNIAK ON THE PARALYZED OPPOSITION: "The longer the negotiations last - and they have been ongoing for a month - the more disorganized, squabbling, and petty the opposition appears. And the easier it is for PiS to present itself as a bastion of stability and calm. To win against Law and Justice, a good idea for Poland is needed, as well as a vehicle to carry that idea – or ideas. Today, opposition parties are focusing on the latter. Meanwhile, the answer to the question of what to do may lie in returning to programs and values. The snag is that then the program must be translated into the votes of specific people, and values must be given faces." https://oko.press/telenowela-koalicyjna-do-wyborow-trzy-miesiace-a-liderzy-partyjni-boja-sie-decyzji/ -- POLAND WANTS AN IMPORTANT PORTFOLIO - ONET: "The fact that we did not get any high-level position is an excellent argument for granting us an important portfolio," said a high-ranking Polish diplomat. He explained that the "positions" Warsaw would like to obtain are, "in my opinion, the following portfolios: competition, agriculture, energy, budget, trade. These are the best positions, this is where the power lies." He added that Poland will have "ambitions" to also obtain a vice-president mandate in the Commission." https://wiadomosci.onet.pl/politico/unia-europejska-polska-chce-waznego-stanowiska-po-poprzednich-porazkach/ysbtssc -- BIRTHDAYS: Piotr Liroy-Marzec, Aleksandra Pawlicka, Michał Gostkiewicz, Łukasz Głombicki.