The philosopher William James, older brother of the writer Henry James, who surpassed him in notoriety, has one of these phrases that could not be formulated better: “To make any important change, you must first jump into the void.” It is evident that Pedro Sánchez did not want in-depth changes in the new Government, because he must consider that the team has worked for him. Jumping into the void when he had managed to stay in the Moncloa, despite the fact that the PP had everything in its face, did not seem like a good idea.
On the other hand, Spain is doing acceptably well, as the economy and employment are growing, so it is better to put shadows here and shadows there and limit ourselves to making up the Executive. Even the stock market has risen four points since the investiture debate began: just yesterday it exceeded 9,800 points, something that had not been achieved since before the pandemic.
What is the most significant thing about the new Cabinet? Three things: that Irene Montero (Vamos) leaves the Government and the PSOE recovers the Ministry of Equality, that Fernando Grande-Marlaska (Interior) and Margarita Robles (Defense) remain in their positions when the independence movement had them in the pillory for the case Pegasus and, finally, that Félix Bolaños – Sánchez’s right-hand man – becomes a super minister, which adds to the Ministry of the Presidency and Relations with the Cortes, Justice. Bolaños directly affects the three powers of the State: the executive, the legislative and the judicial.
A surprising fact is the little weight of the PSC in the Government, which has only one ministry (it had two and the presidency of Congress) and is now left alone with Industry, which passes to former mayor Jordi Hereu. Surely, Sánchez did not want it to seem like a legislature tailored to Catalonia, but Salvador Illa’s influence on the president is no less and the latter’s confidence is maximum.
The Government is continuous and very political. The PP opposition wants to renew its leadership to win decisively. Yesterday it was not Feijóo that was heard but Borja Sémper giving him the reply, saying that the real vice president is Carles Puigdemont. The first to distribute firewood was Ayuso, who has her own life and agenda.
