Feijóo's three defeats in Valencia

BarcelonaThe (non-)resolution of the political crisis triggered by the disastrous handling of the DANA storm by the PP government in Valencia has resulted in a triple defeat for the leader of the national opposition, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, from which it is far from certain he will recover. The first defeat is at the hands of Pedro Sánchez, as he has failed in his attempt to shift responsibility onto the Spanish government. The instruction from the judge in Catarroja has been key in this regard, as she has emphasized from the outset that the law is clear and that Civil Protection responsibilities lie exclusively with the Generalitat (as has also been demonstrated in subsequent weather alerts: the Emergency Department decides when and how to issue an alert).

The second defeat, and perhaps the most painful, has been against the Valencian PP itself. Feijóo has been unable to make heads roll when necessary and impose a leader of his own ilk (if anyone even knows what that ilk is). Mazón is a leader of the Casado faction, ideologically close to Ayuso, and it's no secret that Feijóo would prefer someone with a more moderate profile, like the mayor of Valencia, María José Catalá. But instead of taking advantage of Mazón's downfall (not caused by him, by the way, but by the victims who booed him) to start afresh, he now finds himself facing a rebellion from Mazón's regional team to pass the torch to Vicent Mompó in a move reminiscent of Lampedus. And what does Feijóo do? Well, nothing, as always, trusting that time will heal all wounds when in reality the crises fester and explode in his face.

In the hands of Vox

And finally, Feijóo has lost the third battle against Vox, which now holds the political destiny of the Valencian Community in its hands. It turns out that calling elections is the president's personal prerogative, but since Mazón signed his resignation, the one who will actually decide is Santiago Abascal, who now has several weeks to bleed the Valencian PP dry in negotiations and, if he deems it appropriate, pull the trigger like Caesar and force elections. Even the timing of the elections is no longer in Feijóo's hands; he hasn't dared to force an election himself because he's terrified of losing such an important stronghold as Valencia.

But Risk enthusiasts know that to win the game, sometimes it's better to lose some ground, and Feijóo would be infinitely better off today if he had forced elections a year ago and the left were governing in Valencia. We already know, beyond a doubt, that Feijóo is averse to making decisions (and would never be a good Risk player).