The discriminational priority

The slow but sure capitulation of the PP to Vox has found an anchor point in the principle of national priority, the banner of ongoing negotiations and an alibi for neo-authoritarian shortcomings. The right wing has always operated on the simplistic logic of good guys and bad guys, of "us" and

In Spain, the issue is even more sensitive. No matter how much the right wing wants to deny it, the State contains two more nations: Catalonia and the Basque Country, a major factor of tension with Spanish nationalism, because patria no hay más que una y a ti te encontré en la calle". Given that the logic of "us" and "them" is inherent to all national consciousness, it is not obvious for a Catalan to be Spanish nor for a Spaniard to accept that Catalans are Catalans; in fact, many experience it as a provocation. Massive immigration in recent times has opened up new conflicts. Increasingly, there are more citizens of Spain with a foreign national consciousness. And yet, in a democratic society, it is not patriotic consciousness but the law and individual rights recognized to people that shape citizenship and position it as a subject holder of rights and duties.

With migratory pressure – as if those who come from abroad to earn a living were coming to take something from us – the national question is undergoing a phase of radicalization throughout Europe. The far-right is gaining ground and even achieving real governing options, as in France or Italy. The right wing experiences this pressure with discomfort: right now, neofascisms are cornering liberal-conservative right-wingers to adopt some of their tenets. We see this in Spain, where Vox and the PP have broken barriers, and Feijóo is buying into part of Abascal's narrative. And from this emerges "national priority," a neofascist slogan that seeks to demonize what comes from abroad and which inconveniences peripheral nationalisms. At the same time, it violates the democratic principle of equality before the law. It is rights – not unconditional adherence – that set the limits in a democracy. And national priority, as Vox and the PP understand it, opens a dangerous path: discriminatory priority as a route to post-democratic authoritarianism.