The situation is very atypical. The Spanish political agenda has remained. In public and in private, nothing else is talked about. Millions of citizens attend In the progressive world an evident pessimism is installed, while in the conservative world it is experienced as the final milestone of the change of cycle. And yet, neither the main protagonist, the former president himself, in public silence by decision of his lawyer, nor the Government itself, the main affected party, barely give explanations about the details that are setting the agenda, especially the last and most bizarre one, that of Zapatero, which has given rise to dozens of memes, mockery, jokes and comments. While Zapatero’s entourage points out that these jewels are the result of inheritances and gifts on trips abroad, and estimates their value between 30,000 and 50,000 euros, the official response of the Government is “we are not going to comment on details of a judicial investigation.”
The situation is very delicate for the Executive: it cannot act as Zapatero’s spokesperson, because it does not know precisely his steps and, although it is not under the orders of the president, everything that affects the former president’s case directly harms the Government, the PSOE and the left in general. The Executive does not rule over Zapatero, not even Pedro Sánchez, but what the former president does is key to whether or not the Government can get out of the hole it is in, perhaps the deepest political hole of the entire legislature, and there have been several very deep ones.
That’s why when it became known, just as the press conference of the Council of Ministers was ending, that – in the middle of the European summit in Brussels in which Sánchez will participate – an obvious concern immediately set in among many ministers, who were confident that on the 2nd they could begin to change things a little.
Two more weeks of media via crucis, which cancels the Executive’s agenda and puts all the focus on the judicial investigation, prolongs the wear and tear and gives more ammunition to the opposition and increases the nervousness of the partners, who in the case of and in the case of Sumar already openly demands that Zapatero give public explanations as soon as possible.
From La Moncloa they transmit that it is a decision by Zapatero’s lawyer to better prepare the defense and nothing can be done about that. Clearly Sánchez has not tried to force the former president to speak or shorten the times. The Government has officially decided to maintain support for Zapatero, especially his right to the presumption of innocence, but the ministers seem uncomfortable having to talk about a matter about which they only know what appears in the media.
Reactions are increasingly cautious within the general line of support. The Minister of Justice, Félix Bolaños, conveyed that official line of prudence in the Senate, although without enthusiastic support for the former president, whom he did not mention by name. “The investigation has only just begun, wait for justice to do its job, do not condemn a person who has not yet testified,” he said in response to the PP attacks.
The Executive spokesperson, Elma Saiz, also very prudently maintained support. “This Government trusts that the presumption of innocence of President Zapatero can be respected,” he said, to also defend the “unquestionable legacy” of the former president: “On the basis of that country that Zapatero left, we continue to build as a Government a more modern, more inclusive Spain,” he concluded. At his side, Óscar López, who was a close collaborator of the former president, stated: “I continue to fully trust Zapatero’s innocence.”
In public everyone shows that respect and almost no one from the PSOE has uttered any direct criticism of Zapatero. , when reading the order on Zapatero, and demands that Sánchez submit to a vote of confidence or call elections, something that the president completely rules out.
In fact, Bolaños insisted in the Senate that there is one year and two months left in the legislature and that they are going to exhaust it. But privately there is clear concern in the Government about this decision to delay the declaration for two weeks. The Executive trusts that after going before the judge, and given that it seems ruled out that he decree a prison sentence against him, Zapatero will be able to hold the press conference that he had planned and a tour of various media with interviews to counter with his version the impact of the car and the police reports that point to him as the leader of a criminal organization of influence peddling. But that moment is already being delayed and some are beginning to doubt that it will arrive because the lawyer could once again recommend silence. Even so, other ministers also point out that the important thing is that you make that statement very well, and if that requires more time, it is better than assuming the risk of a fiasco.
Beyond the PSOE, where concern is widespread—García-Page went so far as to say that this “is the moment of greatest risk for the PSOE in all of democracy”—although the confidence that Sánchez showed in Zapatero’s innocence in Congress on Wednesday is maintained, the seriousness of the situation is also seen in the partners. The Minister of Culture and spokesperson for Sumar, Ernest Urtasun, was very direct: “Zapatero owes Spanish society an explanation and the sooner he gives it the better.” Urtasun insisted that the accusations “are serious” and therefore the former president has to speak to the citizens now. They have also been very bothered by the delay in the declaration, which implies postponing explanations. The PNV also maintained the pressure, and its spokesperson insists that the legislature is exhausted and there must be elections in 2026, but the Government rules this out and challenges anyone who wants to change the Executive to join a motion of censure with the PP and Vox. “Whoever says that this is over can agree on a motion of censure with Vox,” concluded Patxi López, the socialist spokesperson. The tension grows, the crisis lengthens, but the political situation seems stagnant and Sánchez, who is in Rome to see the pope and will give a press conference this Wednesday, does not seem to have any intention of changing his plans to exhaust the legislature.
