-- AT NOON TODAY, MARSHAL WITEK WILL ANNOUNCE ELECTIONS, BUDA ON KIDAW-BŁOŃSKA'S CAMPAIGN TEAM PRESENTATION BEFORE SATURDAY'S NATIONAL COUNCIL - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2020/02/05/ -- KACZYŃSKI TO CHAMPION ANIMALS - WIKTOR FERFECKI ON THE PIS LEADER'S POSSIBLE PARTICIPATION IN A CONGRESS ORGANIZED BY KATARZYNA PIEKARSKA: “What will Kaczyński’s role be? – It’s too early to say – the MP cuts off. – For now, we can only talk about initial interest in the concept of the congress. There is no declaration from the leader yet – says Radosław Fogiel, deputy spokesperson for PiS. – However, we cannot hide that the protection and welfare of animals are close to his heart – he emphasizes. Kaczyński’s pro-animal views have been known for decades. As early as the 1990s, he spoke out sharply against hunters. He also intervened several times on animal protection issues after PiS came to power in 2015. For example, in 2017, he persuaded the then Minister of Environment, Prof. Jan Szyszko, to change a decision that introduced a moratorium on elk culling”. https://www.rp.pl/Prawo-i-Sprawiedliwosc/302049892-Prezes-Kaczynski-upomni-sie-o-zwierzeta.html -- MACRON WANTS TO DRAW PIS FROM THE PERIPHERY TO THE VERY CENTER OF EUROPE - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “But precisely because of his own failures, Macron needs to have an important partner in Warsaw today, one who would help balance Germany's influence in the EU, especially after Brexit. After the failure of internal reforms and the poor reception of his plans to rebuild the European order, the French president desperately needs some success. Both for internal and external consumption. Attracting PiS from the EU's periphery to its very center would be such a success”. -- FLEXIBILITY, NOT BRANDISHING A FLAIL OR REPEATING SPELLS ABOUT BAD EUROPE - SZUŁDRZYŃSKI CONTINUES: “If the Polish government seizes the opportunity and conducts a skillful game with Paris, Berlin, and Washington, it has a chance to gain a lot, leveraging our position in Europe. But this will require a certain grace, perception, and flexibility, not brandishing a flail or repeating spells about a bad Europe that has it in for Poles”. https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/302049913-Michal-Szuldrzynski-Po-co-Macronowi--Polska.html -- TOMASZ BIELECKI ON THE BACKGROUND OF ORBAN'S SITUATION IN THE EPP: “The EPP established a ‘group of elders’ whose report was to help decide whether to expel Fidesz or restore it to full rights within the EPP. But the ‘elders’ – according to leaks – did not reach an agreement (Belgian Herman Van Rompuy was reportedly in favor of expulsion, Austrian Wolfgang Schüssel for restoration, and German Hans-Gert Pöttering was in the middle), the report was not published, and the EPP Political Assembly did not make any decision regarding Fidesz on Tuesday evening”. -- DURING BUDGET NEGOTIATIONS, ORBAN PREFERS TO BE WITH THE EPP - BIELECKI CONTINUES: “The Hungarian has a choice: to be a small fish in the EPP ocean or a big fish in a small pond of conservatives. At least for now, it seems that during negotiations over the EU budget and money for the Green Deal, he prefers to remain in the ocean together with the German Christian Democrats – explains a prominent EPP member”. https://wyborcza.pl/7,75399,25663570,dlaczego-tusk-nie-usunal-orbana-z-europejskiej-partii-ludowej.html -- PAP REPORTS THAT PAWEŁ OLSZEWSKI IS TO BECOME TREASURER OF PO ON SATURDAY, AND MARCIN KIERWIŃSKI SECRETARY-GENERAL: https://wiadomosci.dziennik.pl/polityka/artykuly/6434120,dwa-scenariusze-rada-po-zmiany-zarzad.html -- BEN STANLEY WRITES ABOUT A 97% PROBABILITY OF DUDY'S RE-ELECTION: “In a duel between the two strongest candidates currently, Duda would be the favorite to win by about 6 percentage points, securing 53% against 47% for his rival. An analysis of all available polls gives Duda as much as a 97% chance of victory, with only 3% for Kidawa-Błońska. However, these numbers could change after the publication of new polls, especially as both are very close to the 50% threshold. Much will depend on three factors about which we still know little. It is worth remembering that 5-15% of voters are still unsure who they will vote for. The above analysis is based on the assumption that their preferences will be distributed proportionally among all candidates, but this may be a flawed thesis”. -- WITH HOŁOWNIA, THE RESULT IS UNPREDICTABLE - STANLEY CONTINUES: “Finally, the latest Kantar poll for Onet suggests that Duda's lead in the second round is not stable: while he currently has a 7-point advantage over Kidawa-Błońska, in a showdown with Hołownia, the difference would be only 1 percentage point. In such a scenario, strong support for Kidawa from Hołownia could even decide the fate of the election. However, if Hołownia were to reach the final round, the outcome would be completely unpredictable”. https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/kraj/1941186,1,stanley-dlapolityki-duda-faworytem-ale-nie-moze-byc-pewny-zwyciestwa.read -- THE PRESIDENT'S DECISION ON JERUSALEM CAUSED A POSITIVE BREAKTHROUGH - JACEK KARNOWSKI: “Today, one thing can be stated unequivocally: President Andrzej Duda's decision to withdraw from attending the event in Jerusalem was correct. Not only because it spared us a probable humiliation. Most importantly, because it effectively undermined the purpose of the entire event organized by Mosze Kantor. Poland's stance – that it was essentially a despicable trade in history and truth – was widely accepted. By boycotting the event at Yad Vashem, President Duda created something that Poland desperately needs in the realm of historical policy: a positive breakthrough. We must not only defend ourselves with traditional and innovative means; we must also seek leverage, a kind of shock, that will interrupt and reverse unfavorable processes. This time, it succeeded”. -- WHAT WOULD KIDAWA DO IN AN ANALOGOUS SITUATION? - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “This would not have been possible if we had authorities that are unable to withstand pressure, sometimes truly immense pressure. Resilience, the ability to withstand fire, readiness to take reasonable risks – these are essential qualities for success in such a difficult field. The Third Polish Republic lacked this ability, and that is also why it could not stop the process that led to the attempt to put a nation of victims in the dock. And if anyone doubts, let them imagine what, for example, Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska would do in an analogous situation”. https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/485513-rezygnacja-z-wyjazdu-do-yad-vashem-juz-sie-polsce-oplacila -- NAKED POLITICAL POWER - PROF. EWA ŁĘTOWSKA IN AN INTERVIEW WITH FAKT: “I am simply at a loss for words. The legal situation that has arisen cannot be understood using the conceptual apparatus I know. Let's remember: in a democratic state, law is meant to curb naked political power. When naked political power refuses to respect the law and uses it to exert pressure, the law is powerless, and democracy dies. This is deeply humiliating for a lawyer, a citizen, and a human being”. https://www.fakt.pl/wydarzenia/polityka/prof-letowska-o-podpisaniu-ustawy-dyscyplinujacej-sedziow/2zs3smd -- EWA SIEDLECKA ON THE LAW THAT WILL FACILITATE THE APPOINTMENT OF THE NEXT SUPREME COURT PRESIDENT: “Thanks to the law just signed, the president will appoint the person who will head the Supreme Court after Małgorzata Gersdorf's term ends. And the Minister of Justice will gain complete control over the judicial self-government, prosecutors, and disciplinary courts, thereby accelerating the process of ‘cleaning the judicial environment’”. https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/kraj/1941230,1,sady-przejete-niezlomny-duda-podpisal-ustawe.read?src=mt -- TOMASZ KOZŁOWSKI, HEAD OF FAKT'S POLITICAL DESK, CRITICIZES THE PRESIDENT'S DECISION: “Unfortunately, he turned a deaf ear to the voices of that part of society that warned that the new regulations would introduce political control over the courts. And that is why I am disappointed with the president's stance, whose role is, after all, to seek compromises and mitigate internal conflicts. We have lost face on the international stage, and in Europe, Poland will no longer be perceived as a state of law. We will cease to be treated seriously”. -- THE DISPUTE OVER THE FAMILY IS NOT ONLY LIBERALS VERSUS CONSERVATIVES BUT ALSO THE LEFT - RAFAŁ WOŚ IN TP: “However, before it was repealed, one of the more interesting debates of this parliamentary term took place. It turned out that not only conservatives and liberals have their concept of family, but also the left. Or at least, it would very much like to have one”. https://www.tygodnikpowszechny.pl/lewica-puka-do-domu-161927 -- BIRTHDAYS: Teresa Piotrowska, Sławomir Potapowicz, Piotr Krzystek, Konrad Zaradny.