The way that Pedro Sánchez has decided to cast his line at Esquerra Republicana (ERC) to pave the way for Salvador Illa to reach the presidency of the Generalitat and to recognize the Republicans' role as privileged interlocutor in Spanish and Catalan politics signifies two things: that he will not give in to the demands of Together for Catalonia (Junts) that he facilitate Socialist votes for Carles Puigdemont and that he does not consider credible the warnings by Junts that he is condemning the Spanish legislature and putting his continuity as prime minister at risk. What's more, Sánchez rules out any possibility that Junts and the People's Party (PP) could employ a pincer action and that's why he has decided to play an active role in the investiture of the Catalan Socialist (PSC) leader.
This is good news for Esquerra, which thus receives reinforcement for the value of its votes in Madrid, in the Barcelona City Council and in the Catalan Parliament after three electoral debacles. But it is also a poisoned chalice, since the Republicans will need the economic concert they are demanding to really be what everyone understands by that term: for Catalonia to leave the common autonomous financing regime to which all the Spanish communities are part, except the Basque Country and Navarra, and to be equipped with a unique and private financing system that provides it with ample taxation and financial power. In other words, that amid all the wheeling and dealing that always goes on in Madrid, they don't end up being sold a dud.
They say that on the first trip made by the then-secretary general of Esquerra Republicana, Heribert Barrera, after the 1977 elections, he arrived at Madrid-Barajas and asked a taxi driver to take him to Zarzuela for his audience with king Juan Carlos. Today, almost 50 years later, that makes people laugh, but it also reflects the relationship between Catalan politics and the institutional framework of the Spanish capital, which I can confirm has not changed that much either. From this Tuesday, the Republicans will be dancing a dance that is not so simple: with the PSC and Junts simultaneously. On the same day, the speaker of Parliament, Josep Rull, will start his round of contacts with the Catalan parliamentary parties to verify that he cannot nominate any candidate for the presidency. That the winner of the elections, Salvador Illa, still has no desire to seek the investiture and the runner-up, Carles Puigdemont, does not yet have the votes for it either. The countdown for the electoral re-run will start on June 25th.
From this Tuesday, the Republicans will be dancing a dance that is not so simple: with the PSC and Junts simultaneously
ERC is beginning to suffer from what is known as the short blanket dilemma. You can cover your feet or cover your head, but not both, so if you choose to cover your feet, you leave your head uncovered and vice versa. For this reason, the visible leader of the Republicans in the negotiations, Marta Rovira, seeks more time. Letting the clock run down while watching to see if the party's internal temperature is falling - with an eye on whether the discontent of party members is also dropping - will end up tipping towards a widespread 'no'. While the waters are cooling at ERC, Pedro Sánchez will have to explain what he means by unique financing for Catalonia. His promises make hairs stand on end. But we will have to see. Because unique situations, we've certainly had those before - and the plundering we've suffered has been significant.