Today's State of Play

STATE OF PLAY: Gądek: The Palace Escaped the SAFE Trap, Szczęśniak: He Might Not Lose Much by Playing the Sovereignist-Anti-Establishment Card, Dudek: A Dual State

Łukasz Mężyk

-- CARDINAL KAROL WOJTYŁA DID NOT COVER UP PEDOPHILIA. "RZECZPOSPOLITA" EXAMINED CLOSED ARCHIVES - TOMASZ KRZYŻAK AND PIOTR LITKA: "Neither state nor church archives contain evidence that Cardinal Karol Wojtyła, as Metropolitan of Krakow (1962–1978), covered up pedophilia. Journalists from 'Rzeczpospolita' were the first to conduct research in the reopened archives of the Krakow Curia after its reopening, and they familiarized themselves with the documents of priests accused of pedophilia with whom the future Pope had dealings."
https://www.rp.pl/kosciol/art43954231-kard-karol-wojtyla-nie-kryl-pedofili-rzeczpospolita-zbadala-zamkniete-dotad-archiwa

-- 300LIVE:
Tusk: History will very quickly judge the President's decision in a dramatically negative way for him. 
Bogucki suggests a possible challenge to the government's resolution in the Constitutional Tribunal: Essentially bypassing the law. 
Mentzen: We are already spending truly astronomical amounts on the military. If the military wants more, they should demonstrate that they are doing something sensible with it.
https://300polityka.pl/pl/live#tusk-historia-bardzo-szybko-oceni-decyzje-prezydenta-w

-- TUSK WAS MOCKING, NERVOUS, AND UNPLEASANT – WE HEAR FROM THE PALACE – KAMILA BARANOWSKA IN INTERIA: "Donald Tusk was reportedly completely uninterested in discussing the presidential project. 'He only wanted a declaration that the president would sign the EU loan. He also attacked Glapiński; he was mocking, nervous, and unpleasant,' we hear from the Palace. 'After this meeting, it was clear that the government would not back down, that there was no question of any agreement or proceeding with the presidential project. Tusk once again tried to show that he could govern without the president,' reveals our source from the Palace."
https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/kraj/news-weto-w-sprawie-programu-safe-kulisy-decyzji-prezydenta,nId,22654252

-- ACCORDING TO RES FUTURA, THE DIVISION OF SENTIMENT ONLINE IS SIMILAR: 48% AGAINST THE VETO, 45% FOR THE VETO.

-- THE PALACE ACTIVATED ALL RESOURCES TO AVOID CRASHING OVER SAFE. LOOKING AT THE POLLS, NAWROCKI SUCCEEDED – JACEK GĄDEK ON ONET: "However, the Palace and PiS built an entire campaign around 'Polish SAFE 0 percent' – this would not have been possible if Glapiński had not fueled this narrative. The effects are visible in the polls. This is one of the latest polls (CBOS): 62% of the electorate identifying as right-wing is against the European SAFE. Among PiS voters – 76% are 'no', and among Konfederacja – 79% are 'no'. As of today, Karol Nawrocki has managed to escape the trap that SAFE was for him. Currently, the right-wing electorate is ready to support him."
https://www.onet.pl/informacje/newsweek/gadek-prezydent-uruchomil-wszystko-co-mogl-aby-nie-rozbic-sie-o-safe/p7c8byr,452ad802

-- IT MAY ALSO TURN OUT THAT NAWROCKI WILL NOT LOSE AS MUCH ON THE VETO OF SAFE AS IT MAY SEEM TODAY, PRECISELY BECAUSE HE AGAIN PLAYED THE SOVEREIGNIST-ANTY-ESTABLISHMENT CARD – AGATA SZCZĘŚNIAK ON OKO.PRESS: "Of course, Poland is not America, and Nawrocki is not Trump. It may turn out that the security issue is not so easily handled with a crowbar labeled 'German-Brussels elites'. But it may also turn out that on the SAFE veto, Nawrocki will not lose as much as it may seem today, precisely because he again played the sovereignist-anti-establishment card."
https://oko.press/weto-do-safe-czyli-nawrocki-nie-chce-byc-pipi-prawica

-- IN THE AREA OF CONVINCING POLES THAT HE CAN DO MORE THAN HE ACTUALLY CAN, KAROL NAWROCKI HAS ALREADY ACHIEVED SUCCESS REGARDING SAFE – ARTUR BARTKIEWICZ IN RZ: "In the area of convincing Poles that he can do more than he actually can, Karol Nawrocki has already achieved success regarding SAFE, which is also a success for PiS. It's not about the quite probable veto of the act, but about convincing public opinion that the president is capable of blocking the SAFE program. That it depends on the decision in the Presidential Palace whether PLN 180 billion goes to Poland or not (the government helped him a bit in this, as at one point it presented the entire problem in rhetorical terms). Thus, the president could raise high the banner of sovereignty, euro-loans, and Germanophobia, becoming the defender of the right-wing of society against – quoting the PiS leader – the German boot."
https://www.rp.pl/komentarze/art43953101-artur-bartkiewicz-karol-nawrocki-i-pis-juz-osiagneli-sukces-ws-safe-wmowili-nam-o-czym-rozmawiamy

-- BY VETOING SAFE, NAWROCKI MADE A BIG MISTAKE, HE LOST TO JAROSŁAW KACZYŃSKI AND GAVE DONALD TUSK A STRONG CARD TO PLAY – PRZEMYSŁAW SZUBARTOWICZ IN INTERIA: "The ruling party, which supports SAFE, has a stronger hand today. Nawrocki handed it to Tusk. The majority of Poles (53% in an Opinia24 poll) expected the president – after the amendments made in the Senate – to sign the act. However, the situation might reverse. To win such a game, it is not enough to talk about national betrayal. And it is not enough to defend the European Union. One must also know how to do it effectively."
https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/felietony/news-to-gorzej-niz-weto-to-blad,nId,22654283

-- KAROL NAWROCKI CHOSE WHAT MATTERS MORE TO HIM – THE COUNTRY'S SECURITY OR SUBMISSION TO JAROSŁAW KACZYŃSKI – MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: "We are no longer condemned to speculation about what Karol Nawrocki will do, whether he will choose Poland's security or submission to Jarosław Kaczyński. Now we know. He chose loyalty to the PiS leader with all the baggage of his idiosyncrasies, anti-German phobias, and his complete misunderstanding of what European policy is."
https://www.rp.pl/komentarze/art43956771-michal-szuldrzynski-ustawa-o-safe-testem-dla-karola-nawrockiego-prezydent-wybral

-- WE ARE WITNESSING THE CREATION OF A DUAL STATE. AND IT MAY END FATALLY FOR ALL OF US – PROF. ANTONI DUDEK IN INTERIA: "However, since the time for rewarding cooperation by voters has long passed, and multi-million electorates expect the opposing side to be crushed, the process of building a dual state will continue. The jokes will end next year if – which we have managed to avoid so far – a dispute over the results of the parliamentary elections begins."
https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/kraj/news-po-wecie-prezydenta-zarty-skoncza-sie-w-przyszlym-roku,nId,22654256

-- THANKS TO THE OPERATION WITH CANDIDATE CZARNEK, WE ARE GETTING USED TO THE IDEA THAT THE NEXT PRIME MINISTER WILL BE FROM PIS. AND THAT'S THE POINT – PEOPLE SHOULD THINK LIKE THAT AND THEN VOTE LIKE THAT – KATARZYNA SKRZYDŁOWSKA-KALUKIN IN KULTURA LIBERALNA: "So when we repeat after Kaczyński and his party subordinates that Czarnek is PiS's candidate for prime minister, we are playing PiS's game. The fiction created during the party convention, intended to keep PiS in the spotlight, is to be treated as fact. Thanks to this, we are getting used to the idea that the next prime minister will be from PiS. And that's the point – people should think like that and then vote like that."

-- TO MAINTAIN THE HELL FOR WOMEN AND LGBT PEOPLE IN POLAND, IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO HAND OVER THE GOVERNMENT TO THE RIGHT. FOR STARTERS, IT IS ENOUGH THAT KOSINIAK-KAMYSZ IS IN THE LIBERAL-DEMOCRATIC RULING COALITION – SKRZYDŁOWSKA-KALUKIN CONTINUES IN KULTURA LIBERALNA: "To maintain the hell for women and LGBT people in Poland, it is not necessary to hand over the government to the right. For starters, it is enough that Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz is in the liberal-democratic ruling coalition, who will effectively prevent any reforms leading to equality or safety of choice regarding pregnancy. And in subsequent steps, a prime minister from the Civic Coalition will suffice, who, like PiS, will move to the right, believing that this will weaken Konfederacja."
https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2026/03/12/czy-czarnek-bedzie-premierem-trzy-mity-i-jedno-zagrozenie/

-- IN THE RANKING OF THE BEST CITIES TO LIVE IN POLAND, ONLY KIELCE ARE WORSE THAN THE CAPITAL OF MAŁOPOLSKA, HOWEVER, KRAKOW'S SITUATION IS PARTICULAR BECAUSE THE SPECTER OF A RECALL REFERENDUM LOOMS OVER ITS AUTHORITIES – MONIKA WALUŚ ON ONET: "In the previous edition of the ranking of the best cities to live in Poland, Krakow was at the bottom. In the latest edition, it's no better, as only Kielce are worse than the capital of Małopolska. However, Krakow's situation is particular because the specter of a recall referendum looms over its authorities. And the sentiment of Krakow's residents can have a fundamental impact on its final outcome. When BI journalists tallied the indicators for all 16 voivodeship cities, it turned out that Krakow performed poorly. It scored 59 points and only thanks to Kielce, which accumulated as many as 64, did it avoid a repeat of the previous edition of the ranking, when it took last place."
https://www.onet.pl/informacje/onetwiadomosci/krakow-miastem-dla-krezusow-dlaczego-grod-kraka-wypada-blado-w-rankingu-dobrych/7lq40cj,79cfc278

-- BIRTHDAYS: Bartłomiej Wróblewski, Artur Soboń, Łukasz Pawłowski (from the city hall), Piotr Borawski.
 


Łukasz Mężyk