The Shadow of Aznar

The Shadow of Aznar
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By h.b. - Mar 11, 2008 - 6:53 PM

Mariano Rajoy (left) and José María Aznar - Archive photo EFE

José María Aznar is the reason why Mariano Rajoy has decided not to resign as leader of the Partido Popular

EDITORIAL COMMENT

There is one reason why the leader of the Partido Popular in Spain, Mariano Rajoy, has decided not to resign, and that is the previous leader of the party, José María Aznar.

We don’t know if Aznar actually wants Rajoy to stay on after his second election defeat at the hands of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, but we do know that José María Aznar himself was defeated twice before finally beating Felipe González at the ballot box on the third attempt.

It’s an example that Rajoy has well in mind, and because Rajoy was chosen as party leader by Aznar, picked personally, and because politicians in general hate to admit they have made a mistake, we are unlikely to hear any open criticism of his decision to stay from the previous Prime Minister.

After Mariano Rajoy had rung José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero on Sunday night to congratulate him on his victory, he told his Partido Popular supporters that he had wished the Socialist leader good luck, ‘for the good of Spain’.

Well Mariano, Spain deserves a strong government, and that means a strong opposition. A strong opposition does not mean what we have seen from you and your current team over the past four years of argument and protest.

If you really believe in the good of Spain, Sr. Rajoy, you will leave the post for those with greater talent than yourself, or at the very least you should replace those divisive members on the right wing of your party, such as Sr. Ácebes and Sr. Zaplana, whom we are told you kept as hidden as you could during the election campaign, out of your new team.

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