First session of the Pedro Sánchez investiture and one conclusion after more than 12 hours of debate in the Spanish Congress: it takes a tremendous act of faith in the candidate for prime minister to believe that his volatile words will have a practical translation equal to the moment's exceptional political circumstances. On this point, I believe that today we will all be in agreement, starting with those who, in coherence with the political path sketched out from Lledoners prison, are staking the most on the play, Esquerra Republicana. The words of their spokesperson in Madrid, Gabriel Rufián, saying specifically that if there's no dialogue table, there's no legislature ooze, largely, the Hamlet-like doubt of those who don't hold all the cards.
Pedro Sánchez was greedy with the thirteen decisive votes which will allow him to be invested. He changed his clothing from the ferocious wolf against the independence movement he was until just four days ago and turned into a kind of sheep wanting his words to get him out of the quagmire as quickly as possible. The dialogue between governments in these conditions won't be easy and could end up being a new frustration, but it doesn't seem the most intelligent thing to do to not explore whether it will lead to something. A start needs to be made on demanding the candidate on Tuesday, in the second vote, to be, at least, much more specific on this question, since the sole objective of the dialogue table for independence supporters has to be to agree upon a referendum. Obviously, we're very far from that, but the agreement won't come with merely nice words.
Whilst that was happening in Madrid and the coup-plotting front was entertaining itself speculating how Pedro Sánchez's investiture could be disrupted (Ana Oramas from the Canary Islands changing her vote to no has narrowed the numbers for the investiture in the second round to 167 votes in favour and 165 against with 18 abstentions) and was rummaging around looking for a new defector to tie the vote, in Barcelona the plenary session of support for president Quim Torra was being held after his banning from office by the Central Electoral Commission.
The first move by the Catalan chamber follows the line of the firm defence of the country's institutions and the total rejection of the Commission's decision. The unity of independence supporters is a good sign, as is the fact that, on this occasion, En Comú and PSC have also criticised the Commission's resolution. It's a very large parliamentary majority rejecting the body which also has to be read in the context of the investiture underway 600 kilometres away.
It is, as such, a circumstantial majority and it remains to be seen what level of cohesion is maintained when the Commission communicates its decision to the Provincial Electoral Commission of Barcelona and that passes it on to the Parliament of Catalonia. Because the removal as a delegate of president Torra with more or less hostility will end up there. In the Catalan chamber in plenary session.