The agony of Sánchez and Puigdemont

MadridMiriam Nogueras told Pedro Sánchez on Wednesday in Congress that it's better to "let it go" if the Spanish prime minister hasn't "understood the Brussels agreement." This isn't the first time the leader of Junts in Madrid has warned the Spanish prime minister that the political conflict hasn't been resolved, and Sánchez has clarified his statement: "We know that the amnesty law isn't the end of anything; it's the beginning of a path and will allow for a solution to the long-standing political conflict."

Junts' anger is understandable given Félix Bolaños's remarks last week, when he stated that the Constitutional Court's (CC) endorsement of the amnesty "culminates" a series of measures by the Spanish government that have brought "absolute normality" to Catalonia. Carles Puigdemont sees the amnesty as incomplete, the transfer of immigration powers hasn't even been approved in Congress, and Catalan isn't an official language in Europe. That is to say, the investiture agreements have not borne fruit.

However, Nogueras did not break with Sánchez during Wednesday's debate. The pro-independence spokesperson said "we are not from that blog," the one about the investiture, but in practice she neither supports a motion of censure with the right nor demands a vote of confidence, and meanwhile, people close to the party have been joining the boards of directors of public companies. Like the rest of the parties that supported Sánchez, Junts has shown that it does not want the legislature to end so that it can capitalize on its seven deputies, because in no case would it enter into the PP-Vox equation and because it believes that a total amnesty will come sooner with a PSOE government than a PP one, although Feijóo does not foresee it on Wednesday and did not deny it.

And when Puigdemont is amnestied, what then? On the right, there are those who believe that Sánchez is interested in the former president's return to Catalonia as late as possible, because it keeps him tied to the Constitutional Court. According to this theory, the president of the Constitutional Court, Cándido Conde-Pumpido, is acting in line with the Moncloa government and is in no hurry to resolve the appeals for protection from the leaders of the Process, although they should be urgent given that their rights to political participation or, in the case of Puigdemont, freedom are at stake. However, the former president has not been able to appear before the Constitutional Court until now due to the delays imposed by the Supreme Court.

No proposal is in sight to resolve the political conflict, but for the moment, Junts is not letting it go.

In the Congress hallway at nine o'clock on Wednesday mornings, just before the plenary session begins, there's usually a lot of commotion and noise. It was the same on the day of Sánchez's appearance, but there was a moment when, suddenly, silence fell: Yolanda Díaz, who had lost her father hours earlier, entered, desolate, accompanied by ministers and Sumar officials.

There are still two weeks of intense political activity left in Madrid, but some leaders are already thinking about the summer break. Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who hopes Pedro Sánchez will fall any day now, saw how his supporters gave the Spanish prime minister a breath of fresh air. The PP leader will also get some fresh air, and the first weekend of August will begin his vacation at the Albariño Festival in Cambados.