-- 35 YEARS AGO The Sejm granted a vote of confidence to the government of Tadeusz Mazowiecki, the first non-communist Prime Minister in post-war Polish history. -- CZARZASTY ON THE REVOCATION OF COUNTERSIGNATURE: THIS IS NOT RECKLESSNESS. IN DIFFICULT DECISIONS, I ALWAYS STAND WITH THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIME MINISTER - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2024/09/12/ -- IN SCENARIO I, IBRIS SURVEY FOR ONET, TRZASKOWSKI 33%, MORAWIECKI 26%: “Scenario I: Rafał Trzaskowski (Civic Coalition) wins with 33% support. Mateusz Morawiecki (Law and Justice) follows with 26.4%. Szymon Hołownia (Third Way) is in third place with 8.8% of the votes. However, Sławomir Mentzen (Confederation) is also close to the last podium spot with 8.4% support among respondents. The next places are taken by Magdalena Biejat (The Left) - 4.9%, and Jacek Siewiera (independent) - 4.1%. As many as 14.3% of people indicated the answer: 'I don't know/difficult to say'. -- IN SCENARIO II, BŁASZCZAK HAS A WEAKER RESULT THAN MORAWIECKI - FURTHER IN THE IBRIS SURVEY FOR ONET: “Scenario II: Rafał Trzaskowski again opens the list with 32.9% of the votes. Mariusz Błaszczak, as the PiS candidate, achieves a result only slightly worse than Mateusz Morawiecki – 23.8%. However, the fight for third place would be between three candidates: Szymon Hołownia - 8.6%, Sławomir Mentzen - 8.1%, and Jacek Siewiera - 7.6%. The last result belongs to Magdalena Biejat - 4.9%. Still, as many as 14% of people indicated the answer: 'I don't know/difficult to say'. -- IBRIS SHOWS DEMOBILIZATION OF PIE VOTERS: “IBRiS also asked survey participants which political party they voted for in the last parliamentary elections. This reveals significant differences in voter mobilization. As many as 92% of Civic Coalition voters from October declare their intention to participate in next year's presidential elections. In the case of PiS, this figure is only 53%.” https://www.onet.pl/informacje/onetwiadomosci/sondaz-prezydencki-slaby-wynik-faworyta-kaczynskiego/kys430v,79cfc278 -- THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PiS AND KO IS 0.8 PERCENTAGE POINTS - IBRIS SURVEY FOR POLSAT: “According to the latest IBRiS survey commissioned by Polsat's 'Wydarzenia', if parliamentary elections were held next Sunday, Civic Coalition would win. Prime Minister Donald Tusk's grouping can count on 32.9% support. Law and Justice came in second place, receiving 32.1% of the votes. This means the difference between PiS and KO is only 0.8 percentage points and fluctuates at the margin of statistical error.” https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/kraj/news-przetasowania-na-podium-sondazu-najnowsze-badanie-poparcia-d,nId,7778687 -- THE REFERENCE TO HISTORICAL SETTLEMENTS WITH TOTALITARIANISM IS AN ATTEMPT TO DESCRIBE A NEW POLITICAL DIVISION - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “Donald Tusk introduces the concept of 'fighting democracy,' alluding to historical settlements with totalitarianism. This is an attempt to describe a new political division and prepare voters for disputes over the legality of actions aimed at restoring the rule of law.” -- TUSK COMES OUT AND SAYS: THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING. WELCOME TO FIGHTING DEMOCRACY - SZUŁDRZYŃSKI CONTINUES: “Authorities have divided. Further actions (including those concerning abortion guidelines or the revocation of the countersignature) are criticized by an uncompromising critic of PiS such as Prof. Andrzej Zoll, and many renowned lawyers have questioned the possibility of revoking the countersignature. And Tusk comes out and says: This is just the beginning. Welcome to fighting democracy.” https://www.rp.pl/komentarze/art41110921-michal-szuldrzynski-witajcie-w-demokracji-walczacej-jak-donald-tusk-chce-nowa-narracja-porzadkowac-polityke -- WILL THE OPPONENT, AFTER SOME TIME, USING SIMILAR METHODS, WITH THE JUSTIFICATION OF PRECEDENT, NOT WANT TO RESTORE THE RULE OF LAW IN THEIR OWN WAY? - TOMASZ PIETRYGA IN RZ: “How lasting can the restoration of order through non-standard methods on poorly sealed foundations be? Will the opponent, after some time, using similar methods, with the justification of precedent, not want to restore the rule of law in their own way?” -- PERHAPS IT IS NOT WORTH GIVING IN TO THE TEMPTATION OF TAKING SHORTCUTS - PIETRYGA CONTINUES IN RZ: “Someone once built a democratic state on the principles of strict legalism, which were meant to be an anchor and a compass even in times of the greatest storms. Perhaps it is not worth succumbing to the temptation of taking shortcuts. Perhaps it is worth holding onto that anchor. Otherwise, after some time, it will be difficult to find something to rely on.” https://www.rp.pl/opinie-prawne/art41112361-tomasz-pietryga-nowa-formula-radbrucha-nie-przejdzie-lepiej-sie-trzymac-twardego-legalizmu -- HOŁOWNIA WAS CONVINCED, AND TUSK NO LONGER HAS ANY POLITICIANS IN THE COALITION TURNING UP THEIR NOSES AT THIS SOLUTION - DOMINIKA DŁUGOSZ ON NEWSWEEK PORTAL: “The Prime Minister insisted on a meeting with Minister Bodnar, Senate Marshal Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska, and especially Marshal Szymon Hołownia, because the latter was not convinced of the rightness of such proceedings. (...) Hołownia was convinced, and Tusk no longer has any politicians in the coalition turning up their noses at this solution. And this is very important for him. In this – and likely in the next – campaign, the rule of law and the functioning of the judiciary will be the most important.” -- THE CLEANUP WILL ONLY END IN MID-2027. LITERALLY A FEW WEEKS BEFORE THE PARLIAMENTARY ELECTION CAMPAIGN - DŁUGOSZ CONTINUES IN NEWSWEEK: “This means that the cleanup will only be completed in mid-2027. Literally a few weeks before the parliamentary election campaign. The Prime Minister and the entire 15th of October coalition cannot afford any further delays in this matter, as it is a key task. Not only for the coalition's electorate, but also – and even primarily – for rebuilding the state.” -- SO WE HAVE EVERYTHING WE NEED FOR THE JUDICIARY TO TAKE CENTER STAGE IN THE GOVERNMENT'S ACTIONS - DŁUGOSZ CONTINUES: “So we have everything needed for the judiciary to take center stage in the government's actions: there is public support from voters, there is a real problem to solve, and there is a determined obstacle, which is the current President and – potentially – the future one, if he were from PiS.” https://www.newsweek.pl/polska/polityka/tusk-zdeterminowany-nie-da-sie-po-dobroci-siegniemy-po-inne-metody/rcqfv9b -- WHEN BERLIN CLOSES ITS BORDERS TO IMMIGRANTS, WARSAW WILL HAVE TROUBLE. WE SHOULD THEREFORE GET INVOLVED IN SEEKING FUTURE SOLUTIONS TODAY - PIOTR BURAS IN GW: “Berlin's plans could backfire on Poland and Polish-German relations. Doubts about the legality of turning people away at the border are a recipe for friction and tension. The Polish border with Belarus is not sealed, and thousands of migrants continue to cross it, then reach Germany. The ambition of the CDU and supporters of a hard line is that none of them should get there – all are to be sent back to Poland. The risks for the Schengen area, cross-border exchange, and currently thriving trade relations are obvious.” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,31289330,polityka-migracyjna-zmiana-kursu-w-niemczech-odbije-sie-polsce.html -- BERLIN IS ENDING GERMAN HOSPITALITY. WILL THE STRICTER MIGRATION POLICY AFFECT POLAND AND EUROPE - ŁUKASZ GRAJEWSKI IN TYGODNIK POWSZECHNY: “Furthermore, it is not clear how formally such returns would look like – would German police simply order those detained in, for example, Poland, Austria, the Czech Republic, or Switzerland to return? Such push-backs would be consistent with the Geneva Convention – as all these countries are safe – but would undoubtedly mean tensions between Berlin and these capitals.” https://www.tygodnikpowszechny.pl/berlin-konczy-z-niemiecka-goscinnoscia-czy-zaostrzenie-polityki-migracyjnej-wplynie-na-polske -- 94TH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY OF PIOTR SKRZYNECKI. -- BIRTHDAYS: Adam Bielan turns 50, Bogusław Liberadzki, Eugeniusz Czykwin, Lidia Geringer de Oedenberg, Wojciech Jagielski, Barbara Dolniak, Anna Dryjańska.