A minute of Carles Puigdemont's intervention in Strasbourg before Pedro Sánchez has enabled the former president as a political interlocutor, and normalized Junts' negotiating commitment. The post-convergents have launched a double strategic assault on ERC, with fronts in Madrid and Barcelona, which is yielding more returns than expected due to the unforced errors of the Republicans in the management of areas as sensitive as education or restrictions due to drought.
In Congress, Míriam Nogueras' criticism of the judges, endorsed by Jordi Turull – “if they didn't want broth, have two cups” – allows the Junts management to argue that there is no strategic shift and the confrontation with the State continues. not with the Government. If the confrontation with the judges is intelligent, it will be seen with the amnesty law approved and the courts applying it. Turull spent three years in prison and was even investigated for transferring assets to his wife before October 1, a case that ended up being archived, so Nogueras's intervention may seem "quite moderate."
Junts has sat at the political table, but its resignations are circumstantial and practical, not dialectical. “This is Junts,” they remember, and few dare to conclude a turn towards pragmatism. Puigdemont can praise Minister Albares for his efforts to advance the officialization of Catalan and the next day warn Sánchez that “mistrust is born from non-compliance” and “the consequences are never pleasant.” Nogueras has the mandate to maintain tension in the gallery while he sits down to negotiate in Switzerland with a mediator. Gabriel Rufián is no longer the only pro-independence hammer on the platform and the camera is no longer looking for the face of the ERC spokesperson but for the looks of the post-convergent party.
Calling judges “indecent” and maintaining that they should be “fired and tried” not only angers all judicial associations, the General Council of the Judiciary, the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, its lawyers... Sánchez himself has assumed the concept of lawfare, although it is only found in the Gürtel case, and ministers like Óscar Puente certify it in the Neurona case, which persecuted Podemos for three years. I don't believe nas Meigas, mais habelas hainas. But it is one thing to challenge the political right and another to break state power. In Junts there are those who miss some “diplomacy” in the new stage in Madrid. The battle against the judiciary is, to begin with, a lost battle that forces Super Minister Félix Bolaños to come out in defense of judicial independence, proclaim the good health of the Rule of Law in Spain and privately appease the judges pointed out by Nogueras.
In parallel, Junts is trying to push ERC against the ropes on the way to the Catalan elections. Hence the agreed but undated announcement of the meeting between Sánchez and Puigdemont when ERC prepares a meeting of presidents at the Palau de la Generalitat and the attrition strategy of the Government of Pere Aragonès. The results of the PISA report and the political management of the suspense, the misunderstandings about the measures to combat the drought and a sluggish budget negotiation give Junts room to present its alternative model. Measures in education, against multiple recidivism, and an economic model with tax cuts and investment compliance are in the post-convergent portfolio. The first formal meeting between the Government and Junts to address the 2024 budgets took place this week but an agreement that would give some encouragement to the Republicans would be surprising.
Albert Batet assumes that the Catalan legislature has, “at most, one year left” and insists each plenary session on the “agony” of the Republican Government. It is, they maintain, about confirming “the failure” of ERC and keeping the volume of the alternative high enough to suffocate Aragonès' attempts to reinforce his presidential profile. The appointment with Sánchez will grant you a precious photo, but Junts knows it is the protagonist and is on the lookout for unpublished images and better results.
