-- EJCHART: AS FAR AS I KNOW, RESOLUTIONS REGARDING THE CONSTITUTIONAL TRIBUNAL ARE READY - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2024/02/28/ -- PIS IS FALLING, BUT STILL MOVING. KONFEDERACJA IS LIFTING ITS HEAD. LEWICA IS IN TROUBLE - PIOTR PACEWICZ DESCRIBES THE IPSOS POLL FOR OKO.PRESS: “The pro-democracy (or, if you prefer, anti-PiS) public opinion is eagerly awaiting poll confirmation of the ruling coalition's dominance and, ideally, the annihilation of PiS, especially since Kaczyński's party is indeed desperately floundering after losing power. The Ipsos poll for OKO.press and TOK FM, completed on February 26th, shows it's not happening that quickly. Indeed, Law and Justice, after a weaker than expected electoral result, continues to lose support, but is still not losing, but drawing with KO. The catastrophe for Lewica and the surge for Konfederacja complete a picture that, for the October 15th Coalition as a whole, is slightly worse than its current standing. There are also signs of demobilization among groups whose extraordinary engagement was decisive in removing PiS from power”. -- 133 DAYS AFTER THE ELECTION, PARTY SUPPORT ACCORDING TO THE IPSOS POLL LOOKS LIKE THIS: PiS – 30 percent; KO – 29 percent; Trzecia Droga – 13 percent; Lewica – 6 percent; Konfederacja – 12 percent. Furthermore, Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy garnered 3 percent, Polska Jest Jedna – 2 percent*, ‘another party’ – indicated by 1 percent, and 4 percent chose ‘don’t know, hard to say’. -- A HUGE – HISTORICALLY SPEAKING – LEAD OF OVER 11 PERCENTAGE POINTS FOR THE LIBERAL-LEFT FORCES IN THE 2023 ELECTION OVER THE TWO RIGHT-WING PARTIES HAS DWINDLED TO JUST OVER 6 PERCENTAGE POINTS. TRANSLATED INTO SEATS, THIS INDICATES THAT THE OCTOBER 15TH COALITION WOULD STILL HAVE A MAJORITY IN THE SEJM TODAY, BUT ONLY WITH 232 TO 228 SEATS – WRITES PACEWICZ: “A comparison of poll forecasts with the actual results of October 15, 2023, indicates three major changes: - PiS is losing over 4 percentage points (according to the poll forecast, it has – 31.25 percent / in the election it had 35.38 percent); - KO is losing nothing, because a drop of 0.5 percentage points (30.2 percent /30.7 percent) is significantly less than the margin of error; - Trzecia Droga similarly, as a loss of just under 1 percentage point (13.5 percent /14.4 percent) still falls within the margin of error; - Lewica is losing over 2 percentage points (6.25/8.61), which is as much as one-quarter of its election support; - Konfederacja is gaining over 5 percentage points (12.5 percent/7.16 percent) and is close to doubling its election result!” https://oko.press/pis-traci-ale-zyje-konfederacja-podnosi-glowe-lewica-w-tarapatach-sondaz-ipsos -- SIKORSKI'S WORDS HAD THE POWER OF A SHOCKWAVE, AND EVEN BETTER, THEY DID MORE FOR REPAIRING POLISH FOREIGN POLICY THAN MONTHS OF TOIL – PRZEMYSŁAW SZUBARTOWICZ IN INTERIA: “The head of Polish diplomacy surprised Western listeners with his precision and realism, although that surprise should rather be a cause for shame for world-class politics, as it somewhat admits to having previously erred due to a degree of ignorance. It is good, however, that Sikorski's words had the power of a shockwave, and even better, that they incidentally did more for repairing Polish foreign policy than months of toil. If the minister succeeds in convincing American congressmen that financial aid for Ukraine is essential, it would be an unprecedented event. A success of historical significance. But it won't be easy.” -- THE QUARREL OVER ABORTION IS FUTILE IN THE SENSE THAT IT WILL NOT BE RESOLVED DURING ANDRZEJ DUDA'S TERM. THEREFORE, THE REFERENDUM PROPOSED BY TRZECIA DROGA MAY INDEED BE THE SHORTEST WAY – SZUBARTOWICZ FURTHER IN INTERIA: “The ruling coalition has fallen into a dispute over how to fulfill its electoral promise to liberalize abortion law. This is a futile quarrel in the sense that it will not be resolved during Andrzej Duda's term. Therefore, the referendum proposed by Trzecia Droga may indeed be the shortest way to cut this Gordian knot, a point even suggested by the left-wing commentator Sławomir Sierakowski. It would be difficult to place the worldviews of political formations above the clearly articulated will of Poles.” https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/felietony/news-lekcje-grozy,nId,7354988 -- SIKORSKI'S TOUR DE FORCE IN THE USA. HE CAUSED A SENSATION, HE DIDN'T PLAY AROUND WITH DIPLOMACY – TOMASZ ZALEWSKI ON THE TYGODNIK POLITYKA PORTAL: “The head of Polish diplomacy is a well-known and popular figure in the USA. Before taking charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he worked for several years as an expert at the American Enterprise Institute, a leading conservative think tank in Washington. His assets include numerous contacts, impeccable English, and American family ties (Anne Applebaum). During his visit, he revealed that one of his sons serves in the American army. Hosts of meetings he attended addressed him familiarly as ‘Radek,’ complimented him as a star of European politics, and their Polish guest reciprocated by emphasizing that his connection with America was not just professional.” https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/swiat/2246977,1,tour-de-force-sikorskiego-w-usa-zrobil-furore-w-dyplomacje-sie-nie-bawil.read -- THE GREEN DEAL IS BEING PRESENTED AS A FARMER'S NIGHTMARE, SO THE COLLAPSE OF THE EU REFORM IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY REAL. AND THAT COULD BE A CATASTROPHE – KRZYSZTOF STORY IN TYGODNIK POWSZECHNY: “One might fear that restrictions will reduce the competitiveness of European agriculture. However, their absence means further dictate by large agribusiness and leads us to a catastrophe, not just an ecological one. Over the last 60 years, agricultural productivity worldwide (despite technological advancements) has fallen by 21 percent. According to a report by the European Environment Agency, if we do not limit emissions, yields of non-irrigated crops, such as wheat, corn, and sugar beets, will fall in Southern Europe by as much as half by 2050.” https://www.tygodnikpowszechny.pl/protesty-rolnikow-od-pola-do-boju-186337 -- UNFORTUNATELY, SUCH THINKING HAS LITTLE IN COMMON WITH DEMOCRACY. IT ALSO CONSISTS IN THE FACT THAT, IN A SITUATION WHERE THERE ARE CENTERS OF POWER WITH DIFFERENT POLITICAL VISIONS, AT LEAST AN ATTEMPT AT NEGOTIATION IS MADE – PIOTR ŚMIŁOWICZ IN TYGODNIK POWSZECHNY: “I do not find this to be a sound approach. The Minister of Culture apparently assumes that there is no point in negotiating with political antagonists, but rather that they must be outvoted or bypassed. Unfortunately, such thinking has little in common with democracy. It consists not only in the majority outvoting the minority, but also in the fact that, in a situation where there are centers of power with different political visions, at least an attempt at negotiation is made to find a consensus that is acceptable to both sides. Especially if one of those centers is the president, without whose participation it is impossible to complete the legislative process. And especially when the lack of a legislative resolution causes the destruction of an important public sphere.” -- PUBLIC MEDIA CANNOT REMAIN IN LIQUIDATION FOREVER – ŚMIŁOWICZ FURTHER IN TYGODNIK: “It is similar in the case of public media. They cannot remain in a state of liquidation forever, not to mention that the current National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT), in revenge for Minister Sienkiewicz's actions to date, refuses to fund them. This crisis must be ended as soon as possible, and the best way would be to pass a new media law. Even at the cost of a compromise with Andrzej Duda. And if it proved impossible, it would at least put the new government in a favorable light with the public – as people trying to find a compromise. Therefore, Minister Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz can be appealed to with a quote from the work of his famous ancestor: finish your work on the law, old man…” https://www.tygodnikpowszechny.pl/ministrze-sienkiewicz-koncz-wasc-186367 -- HOW LAW AND JUSTICE IS HEADING TOWARDS THE ABYSS – TOMASZ TERLIKOWSKI IN RZ: “Ultimately, the opposition's victory was due to a broad agreement of various parties – from the center-right to the left – which showed Poles that it is possible to vote against PiS, and not necessarily for Tusk. That was the source of success. If PiS still wants to regain power, it must show – and with its history and its leader, that will not be easy – that voting against the current coalition or Prime Minister Tusk does not necessarily mean voting for Czarnek, Jaki, or Kaczyński. Is it ready for that? Neither intellectually, nor especially politically, definitely not. However, there is no other way back to power. Consolidating the most hardline supporters is not that way.” https://www.rp.pl/opinie-polityczno-spoleczne/art39909991-tomasz-terlikowski-jak-prawo-i-sprawiedliwosc-zmierza-ku-przepasci -- LEWICA WANTS TO BE LIKE SUWERENNA POLSKA IN THE PIS GOVERNMENT – MAREK MIGALSKI IN RZ: “Therefore, it does not appear that Lewica is influencing the government's policy as effectively as SP did in the case of the United Right cabinets. Its politicians lack everything that the despised Ziobro represented. And they probably have a more calculating player as a competitor than the former Minister of Justice did.” https://www.rp.pl/opinie-polityczno-spoleczne/art39909491-marek-migalski-lewica-chce-byc-jak-suwerenna-polska-w-rzadzie-pis -- WITNESSES ARE DOOMING PIS DIPLOMACY – WOJCIECH CZUCHNOWSKI IN GW: “It is not surprising that a gang eventually emerged from the ‘loosening of visa policies’ that decided to profit from migrants. The headquarters of this gang was the building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is impossible that the highest officials of the ministry, including Minister Zbigniew Rau, did not know about Wawrzyk's visa activities. Wawrzyk’s protégé, Edgar Kobos, was twice elected ‘youth representative of Poland to the UN.’ He now faces charges.” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75398,30744541,afera-wizowa-swiadkowie-pograzaja-dyplomacje-pis.html -- KONRAD FIJOŁEK STILL WITHOUT SUPPORT FROM KO, PSL, AND POLSKA 2050 – RAFAŁ BOLANOWSKI IN GW: “It is not excluded that KO will simply give up on the presidential elections in Rzeszów and will not field a candidate, nor will it support Konrad Fijołek. The strategy for the fight for the Rzeszów mayor's office may be decided during a Wednesday meeting of the party's regional board. For now, the mayor of Rzeszów is also running without PSL support. Although Adam Dziedzic, a party MP and former mayor of Gmina Świlcza, has already announced his candidacy, local politicians from this party inform us that it was his individual decision, without the party's support, which has not yet made an official decision regarding Rzeszów. What about Polska 2050? The scenario is identical – no decision, discussions are ongoing.” https://rzeszow.wyborcza.pl/rzeszow/7,34962,30742198,konrad-fijolek-wciaz-bez-poparcia-ko-psl-i-polski-2050-politolog.html -- BIRTHDAYS: Maciej Iłowiecki, Agnieszka Magdziak-Miszewska, Kazimierz Wilk, Krzysztof Strzępka. ​