I am holding off any kind of roundup piece for a bit. Still getting info in from all over the place and venturing out to enjoy when I can. But for now, telegraphically. 1) this is a victory for the Left 2) Alexis is not emphasising the Left nature of the victory 3) Whether 149 or 151 makes a difference. But the politics are set. There will be talks with potential coalition partners tomorrow and Monday. 4) Reminder: a) the lead party has three days to form a government, if it is not an outright majority. That is three days to present to the outgoing president a clear plan of how it would win a confidence vote in parliament. b) a minority government is constitutionally possible. It is politically possible, given the composition of the parliament. Whether Syriza will go there is doubtful. c) the is no possible government without Syriza. It is politically impossible even if arithmetically valid. d) as Potami concedes, anyone who forced new elections would be punished by the voters. People want an end to the uncertainty. d) so I believe we will have a Syriza(-led) government. 5) The Eurozone group of ministers meets tomorrow. The squeeze is on. 6) The mood of the Left across Europe is rising. There is real celebration. 7) Now is the time to take the initiative. For the Left - strike out and take the initiative where we can. And sharpen the arguments against the Right and austerity. Ill post something more coherent when I can.
Posted on: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 22:26:43 +0000