-- MASTALEREK: TUSK IS IN THE PRIME OF HIS POLITICAL CAREER. HE IS HANDLING POLITICAL MATTERS IN A VERY ADVANTAGEOUS WAY FOR HIMSELF, YESTERDAY HE ENDED HOŁOWNIA'S DREAMS OF THE PRESIDENCY - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2023/11/14/ -- ANDRZEJ DUDA'S SPEECH IN THE SEJM - THE PRESIDENT LIKE AN OPPOSITION LEADER - ZUZANNA DĄBROWSKA IN RZ: “The head of state's speech at the inaugural session of the Sejm in the new, 10th term, contained many noble and patriotic messages. But wherever Andrzej Duda touched upon specific issues – it sounded like the speech of an opposition leader. This is a clearly defined perspective of the cohabitation that is just beginning. Even more difficult because it is not yet formally introduced, as the candidate for prime minister indicated by the president is a representative of a party that does not have a majority. Despite this, the president's speech today was structured like a map of the boundaries that Andrzej Duda is setting for the new power structure, not for Law and Justice.” https://www.rp.pl/komentarze/art39394901-zuzanna-dabrowska-wystapienie-andrzeja-dudy-w-sejmie-prezydent-jak-lider-opozycji -- ONE OF THE NEW GOVERNMENT'S FIRST DECISIONS SHOULD BE TO HALT INHUMANE PRACTICES AT THE POLISH-BELARUSSIAN BORDER - MAREK BEYLIN IN GW: “People are still dying at the Polish-Belarusian border, and the Border Guard is intensifying violence against refugees and activists. One of the new government's first decisions should be to halt inhumane practices at this border, including stopping illegal pushbacks. And the 'decriminalization of aid to refugees.' A simple regulation is enough for this. -- THE POLISH STATE, AGAINST THE LAW, TORMENTS AND LEADS INNOCENT PEOPLE TO THEIR DEATHS - MAREK BEYLIN IN GW: “First and foremost, the Polish state, against the law, torments and leads innocent people to their deaths. Worse, after the elections, the services at the border intensified violence: one migrant was shot in the back, and shots were also fired with blank ammunition at an activist in the forest.” -- THE OPPOSITION, TRAPPED BY ITS OWN WORDS, WILL CHOOSE INACTIVITY. WILL IT? - BEYLIN CONTINUES: “It looks as if the Border Guard decided to test the new authority, counting on its lack of courage and determination to act on this matter. I suspect that the Border Guard decided that the soft – compared to PiS – xenophobia of the opposition parties, their anti-immigrant stances, which surfaced during the election campaign, give this service and its practices a free pass into the new Poland. That the opposition, trapped by its own words, will opt for inaction. Will it?” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,30401349,polsko-bialoruska-granica-bezprawia-nowy-rzad-musi-pilnie-sie.html -- THE NEW SEJM MAJORITY WANTS TO START BY SETTLING MATTERS IN THE CONSTITUTIONAL TRIBUNAL. PIS, BY DOING THE SAME EIGHT YEARS AGO, WAS IN A BETTER POSITION, AND YET IT CAUSED A SYSTEMIC NIGHTMARE - TOMASZ PIETRYGA IN RZ: “However, taking shortcuts can be equally disastrous. Sorting out the law through resolutions and justifying it by a state of necessity is a dangerous precedent. What will happen if PiS wins the elections in four years? They will likely use the path cleared for them. It will be difficult for them to be accused of acting unlawfully. Tusk faces a dilemma, but he can draw lessons from history, which is now coming full circle.” https://www.rp.pl/opinie-prawne/art39397961-tomasz-pietryga-trudno-isc-na-skroty-do-panstwa-prawa -- THE JUDGEMENTS OF THE ECtHR AND THE CJEU REGARDING THE COURTS MUST BE EXECUTED. NEO-KRS AND DUPLICATE JUSTICES OF THE CT CAN BE DISMISSED BY A SEJM RESOLUTION. NEO-JUSTICES SHOULD ONCE AGAIN STAND FOR COMPETITIONS BEFORE THE NEW KRS. IT IS ALSO NECESSARY TO REGULATE THE PUNISHMENT OF WOMEN FOR ABORTION – PROF. EWA ŁĘTOWSKA TELLS MARIUSZ JAŁOSZEWSKI IN OKO.PRESS: “The ECtHR judgment from 2021 concerning Xero Flor states that the Constitutional Tribunal with substitute judges is flawed. Because a substitute is not a judge meeting the criteria to be a judge, and a judgment issued with their participation is not binding. In 2015, the Sejm elected 3 substitute judges by resolution for places in the CT that were already occupied. The CT also ruled that this election was not correct, and this judgment has not been executed to this day. So, the matter is simple in principle. Every state organ is obliged to take ECtHR and CJEU judgments seriously and to execute them. In my opinion, the Sejm, citing the assessment of the ECtHR judgment, can adopt a resolution dismissing persons from the CT who are unable to perform the duties of a judge.” -- WE ARE NOT BEHAVING THE SAME WAY AS PIS, BUT WE ARE EXECUTING ALREADY EXISTING JUDGMENTS OF COURTS AND TRIBUNALS. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT THE SEJM SHOWS THE INTENTION TO EXECUTE ALL THESE JUDGMENTS - ŁĘTOWSKA FURTHER TELLS JAŁOSZEWSKI IN OKO.PRESS: “We are not behaving the same way as PiS, but we are executing already existing judgments of courts and tribunals. It is important that the Sejm shows the intention to execute all these judgments. The first thing should be to make such a declaration in the form of a resolution, and then to take steps to implement them. The Sejm can also express itself in the same way regarding changes in the KRS and SN, also by referring to the execution of judgments of the Court of Justice. This is the path to follow. The execution of these judgments provides scope for action through parliamentary resolutions and at the same time legitimizes dispersed judicial control. And yet, their execution is an obligation of all state organs and is enshrined in the Constitution. Such an order of affairs will legitimize changes. Changes can also occur through personnel decisions – where they can be carried out, for example, in the prosecution service or the administration of justice.” https://oko.press/prof-letowska-neo-krs-zlikwidowac-uchwala-sejmu-neo-sedziowie-do-nowych-konkursow-ulzyc-kobietom -- AND WHAT WILL YOU SAY IF DISILLUSIONED BY THE COALITION AGREEMENT, POLISH WOMEN STAY HOME IN 4 YEARS? - KATARZYNA WĘŻYK IN GW: “The new ruling coalition, elected with record turnout – including votes from even more record mobilized youngest voters – has a mandate to carry out real, broad changes; a mandate that it will lose as power wears down. This is the time to show that their election promises are not empty. Polish women and the youngest voters have repeatedly shown – in mass protests, in numerous and effective voter turnout campaigns, in opinion polls – that the legalization of abortion is an important issue for them. When will their demands finally be taken into account? Because if in four years they stay home, discouraged that their vote does not matter, it might be a little too late.” https://wyborcza.pl/magazyn/7,124059,30396874,jak-wygladalaby-umowa-koalicyjna-gdyby-wyrok-tk-dotyczyl-nie.html -- THE SIXTH COALITION PARTNER - THE CHURCH - MAGDALENA ŚRODA IN GW: “In one respect, however, the chairman is right: there is something hidden in the coalition agreement of the five opposition parties, namely – the sixth coalition partner. Kaczyński is convinced that it is our eternal enemy, 'Germany' (though not Russia), but no! The hidden coalition partner is the Church. This institution plays the role of a strong but cunning party on the Polish political scene, which involves politicians from other parties in promoting its ideology and interests. It has always been the PSL, more recently Polska 2050, and at least half of the members of PO.” -- PROBABLY TUSK'S CHARM WORKED, AND THE OLD PROMISE OF 'DEMOCRACY FIRST, WOMEN LATER' OR 'WOMEN WILL MANAGE ANYWAY' - ŚRODA CONTINUES IN GW: “Even the charismatic Donald Tusk could not win rights for women, because the strength of the sixth coalition partner in the persons of Catholics like Hołownia and Kosiniak-Kamysz was too great. However, why the women from the supposedly democratic opposition could not win elementary rights for their sisters, to whom so much was promised before the elections – is unknown. Probably Tusk's charm worked, and the old promise of 'democracy first, women later' or 'women will manage anyway'.” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,30401278,szosty-koalicjant-kosciol.html -- AFTER A PERIOD OF FESTIVITY IN THE BROAD PROGRESSIVE-CONSERVATIVE FORMATION, EGOCENTRIC TENDENCIES WILL BEGIN TO REVIVE, WHICH AT SOME POINT MAY PUT DONALD TUSK IN A DIFFICULT SITUATION - PRZEMYSŁAW SZUBARTOWICZ IN INTERIA: “It has always been clear that three different lists will not be based on programmatic unity, which would be possible to some extent if the opposition had united before the elections. So, while in the first months the new government will deal with what unites them and with settlements – although even in this matter there is no shortage of high-minded individuals fighting for a new "thick line" – difficult cooperation will be the biggest challenge and the greatest threat to the new government in the future.” https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/felietony/news-nowe-sciezki-stare-spiewki,nId,7145964 -- IN PRACTICE, HIS BIGGEST CHALLENGE MAY NOT BE THE DIFFERENCES WITHIN THE COALITION, BUT IMPORTANT SUBSTANTIVE DECISIONS – SUCH AS INVESTMENTS IN STRENGTHENING THE ARMY OR CPK - TOMASZ SAWCZUK IN KULTURA LIBERALNA: “Therefore, the political order as a whole matters – not just an individual solution, but above all how a given decision fits into the sum of all political decisions. Sometimes we lose this broader picture from view. It seems, however, that this is a political truth that was not widely understood in the past, but as a consequence of PiS's rule and with the development of Polish democracy, it is becoming better accepted. And this is a good sign for the possibility of agreement within the new government. (...) Therefore, in practice, his biggest challenge may not be the differences within the coalition, but important substantive decisions – such as investments in strengthening the army or CPK – in which the difficulty of assessment does not stem from differing positions between parties, but from the necessity of balancing the best solutions under conditions of objective uncertainty. And in this matter, it may be that a multiplicity of perspectives, well managed, will actually contribute to better results.” https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2023/11/13/sawczuk-umowa-koalicyjna-to-krok-w-dobrym-kierunku/ -- PIS WAS A STRESS TEST FOR THE POLISH CONSTITUTION. IT DID NOT PASS IT - WITOLD GADOMSKI IN GW: “The creators of our constitution did not conduct a stress test; they did not practice what politicians with ill intentions could do with its provisions. They assumed that people of reasonable integrity would head various state institutions (...). The basic law adopted by the parliament in 1997 and approved in a referendum requires repair, clarification of some provisions, and closing loopholes that can be exploited by clever and cynical politicians. However, this would require obtaining a constitutional majority, which will likely be difficult to achieve. Besides, if one has ill intentions, any provision can be challenged and interpreted contrary to the intentions of the constitution's creators. Detailed provisions will not replace integrity.” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,30392036,pis-byl-stress-testem-dla-polskiej-konstytucji-nie-przeszla.html -- MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WERE FOOLED BY NONSENSE ABOUT SOME "REGIME" DURING PIIS'S RULE, BUT THE REAL TYRANNY IS COMING NOW - MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI: “Millions of people were fooled by nonsense about some 'regime' during the rule of Law and Justice. But then there was complete freedom, pluralism, everyone with a TV remote and on the internet had the opportunity to choose furiously anti-government (they were 80 percent), pro-government, and those trying to find their own way, better or worse. This has never happened before. Soon it will not be like this. Real tyranny is coming, real authoritarianism. The time for a tough fight for human rights, rights to freedom, property, and independence is coming.” -- THEY ARE COMING FOR OUR AND YOUR FREEDOM. SCHOLZ, VON DER LEYEN, AND TUSK WILL BE WATCHING WHAT YOU WRITE, LIKE, WHAT YOU THINK AND DO - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “Thoughtcrime is once again becoming a cause for persecution. One is not allowed to say what consequences mass, uncontrolled migration has for invaded societies. One is not allowed to point to the destructive effects of LGBT ideology and transgenderism on youth and nations. It is forbidden to speak about German control over the European Union and that country's striving to build a new empire, to politically and economically suppress our region. They are coming for our and your freedom. Scholz, Von der Leyen, and Tusk will be watching what you write, like, what you think and do.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/670406-prawdziwy-zamordyzm-nadchodzi-teraz -- THE HEAD OF BGK IS NOT AFRAID OF THE POST-ELECTION AUDIT BECAUSE THE BANK WAS CONSTANTLY CONTROLLED - BEATA DASZYŃSKA-MUZYCZKA IN AN INTERVIEW WITH BARTEK GODUSŁAWSKI IN BUSINESS INSIDER: “Politicians actually want to hold themselves accountable. BGK is based on two pillars. One is banking activity, i.e., the implementation of projects and investments important for the Polish economy. We operate based on banking law, decisions are made by the management board, and it is an activity at the bank's risk. The second pillar is being an operator of government programs, which are based on laws. Laws are passed by parliament. BGK has twenty funds that serve to implement these programs. Therefore, it is worth considering where this settlement should take place. Every quarter, parliament receives a settlement of the funds for which the bank is the operator. We are audited non-stop, the Financial Supervision Authority, the Supreme Audit Office, and other services are watching us. I am not afraid of an audit, because audits are a natural process of supervision.” -- THE ROLE OF DEVELOPMENT BANKS HAS INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY IN RECENT YEARS, BOTH IN TERMS OF GOVERNMENT- COMMISSIONED ACTIVITY AND ACTIVITY AT ITS OWN RISK. CURRENTLY, THE PROPORTIONS OF THESE TASKS ARE DIVIDED EQUALLY - DASZYŃSKA-MUZYCZKA FURTHER STATES IN AN INTERVIEW WITH GODUSŁAWSKI: “We have simply strongly embraced the role of a Polish development bank. If we compare such institutions in Western Europe, we are performing exactly the same tasks. Take the example of the largest development bank in Europe, namely the German KfW. When the German government decided to increase economic support by EUR 200 billion, it entrusted this task to KfW. The role of development banks has increased significantly in recent years, both in terms of government-commissioned activity and activity at its own risk. Currently, the proportions of these tasks are divided equally. Today, development banks from Western and Central Europe are coming to us and want to draw on BGK's experience in financial solutions. We are the first such institution in the EU to receive accreditation and direct access to funds from the European Commission. No other bank has gone through this procedure as quickly as BGK.” -- JAPAN IS THE WORLD'S THIRD-LARGEST ECONOMY, WITH VERY HIGH CREDIBILITY. ITS PUBLIC DEBT REACHES 264% OF GDP. HOWEVER, VENEZUELA HAS ALMOST THE SAME DEBT. RUSSIA'S DEBT IS 17%, DOES THIS MEAN AN EXCEPTIONAL SITUATION WITH NEGLIGIBLE DEBT? - THE HEAD OF BGK CONTINUES IN BI: “Paradoxically, the level of public debt is not at all an indicator of how strong an economy we live in. Let's take the most indebted country in the world – Japan. It is the third-largest economy in the world, with very high credibility. Its public debt reaches 264% of GDP. However, Venezuela has almost the same debt. Russia's debt is 17%, does this mean an exceptional situation with negligible debt? In which of these countries would we want to live? We should not look only at debt indicators, but primarily at what we spend this money on and where we borrow it from. We have a high rating, and furthermore, a lot of money is allocated to public investments, which stimulate economic growth in times of crisis.” https://businessinsider.com.pl/finanse/prezes-bgk-nie-obawia-sie-powyborczej-kontroli-jestesmy-audytowani-non-stop-wywiad/ngy0c7y -- BIRTHDAYS: Marek Ostrowski, Michał Strąk, Stanisław Karczewski.