Spanish political parties reject the new cuts asking Europe

USPA NEWS - The electoral campaign for the legislative elections of December 20 in Spain held on next Monday a debate on the public televisión (TVE) between the Prime Minister and candidate of the conservative Popular Party (PP), Mariano Rajoy, and the secretary general of the Socialist Party, Pedro Sánchez.

Sanchez is the only candidate with which the Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, has agreed to discuss campaigning. Last Monday to debate with the candidates of the four main Spanish political parties, organized by the Spanish media group Atresmedia, the PP sent to the Deputy Prime Minister, Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, to discuss with Pedro Sanchez and heads the centrist list Citizens, Albert Rivera, and the populist Podemos, Pablo Iglesias. Out for generational reasons, since the age of Saenz de Santamaria is closer to that of their opponents in the debate, or fear of Rajoy to face a barrage of criticism for cuts and corruption, as he´s accused for his rivals, the fact is that the Deputy Prime Minister was the winner of the debate.

And the leader of Podemos, Pablo Iglesias, the clear loser. Saenz de Santamaria was speaking longer and could communicate all messages intended. On the contrary, Pablo Iglesias was not presented as a candidate for the Prime Minister but as a militant of the extreme left. The least talkative was the socialist Pedro Sanchez, who was heavily criticized in some phases of the debate by Albert Rivera and Pablo Iglesias. And that because the debate reflected the existence of two blocks: the old policy, represented by the PP and the PSOE, and the new policy of emerging Citizens and Podemos.

Nevertheless, the four candidates show some coincidences as its rejection of the new cuts proposed by the European Commission. "This Government is meeting the public deficit. We've always done," said the Deputy Prime Minister. For his part, Pedro Sanchez said that if the PSOE won the elections, "we will renegotiate with the EU deficit targets." Sanchez said that "I am much more consistent than Tsipras" and Albert Rivera stressed that "Spain is not Greece or is Varoufakis" so that "will meet" its deficit commitments.

There was also consensus on the desire to follow Catalonia in Spain, although the leader of Citizens, Albert Rivera, said that "we need to reform the Spanish model. Not all claims are separatist in Catalonia, there are many that are just. But the solution is not to break Spain." The representative of the PP, Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, the Catalan warned that "any Government may be asked to give what does not and this Government can´t negotiate the unity of Spain, can´t and does not have sovereignty" national.

Populist Podemos proposed holding a referendum in Catalonia to decide their membership or not Spain. However, the referendum would require amending the Constitution, which now contemplates. In favor of the constitutional reform the socialist leader, Pedro Sanchez, and the leader of Citizens rallied and able. "We will make an ambitious constitutional reform," Sanchez said, while Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, said that "for a reform of the Constitution need consensus, and now I'm finding that there is no."

Because, besides the above two issues and unity against terrorism, in which they also agreed and in relation to which all refused to send ground troops to Syria to fight DAESH, the rest of the debate reflected the differences between the four parties that are likely to rule after December 20. Socialists, Citizens and Podemos reproached the PP cuts implemented by the Government and corruption. Centrist and populist criticized the PSOE says in campaign one thing and does another when it comes to Government, and Podemos attacked Citizens for its support in the regions and municipalities both socialists and conservatives. A robin reflecting the fragmentation in the Spanish society.