The Rufián-Montero tandem wants to tame the PSOE

BarcelonaGabriel Rufián and Irene Montero present themselves this coming November 29th as a bulwark against the right and the far-right, but also to ensure the PSOE does not look towards the right. Both wanted to convey this message in the first joint interview they have given during this pre-campaign after signing an alliance for the upcoming general elections. It took place on La Revuelta, on TVE. There, the interview began with gifts with a message. One of those Montero gave to the host, David Broncano, was a pair of kneepads for Santiago Abascal or Alberto Núñez Feijóo, because they are "kneeling" before Netanyahu and Trump. She added a leash for the dog that the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, brought to the program last week. "So it doesn't wander off to the right," Montero said. And this last point was the message repeated most often during the interview.

"We are the useful vote for the left. And not metaphorically, but really," Montero stated. In fact, Rufián also supported this thesis when he justified why he was ultimately unable to fulfill what he had advocated in recent months: uniting all the left-wing forces of the State. "It was attempted," reiterated Rufián. "We all tried, to say otherwise is a lie," added Montero, who then recalled that Podemos offered to hold open primaries. Mind you, the purple party candidate also admitted the differences they have had with Sumar throughout the legislative term. "I want things to go well for the PSOE, but I do not work for the PSOE. The PSOE must be pressured and held to account," concluded Rufián.

The two candidates showed harmony on most issues, such as housing or when defending a self-determination referendum. "I would vote yes to a self-determination referendum," reiterated Rufián. Montero also defended the right to decide, but noted that she would bet on Catalonia remaining in the State. On the other hand, they disagreed on the issue of migration: Rufián advocated for the integration of all newcomers and also border control, while Montero asked not to "criminalize" migrant people.

However, they once again showed harmony when Rufián came out in defense against the far-right attacks that Montero has received in recent years, when she was Minister of Equality. "Everyone was silent, even some of the left that was on the rise at that time," lamented Rufián in reference to Sumar. In fact, the republican leader also once again defended ERC's 'no' to the labor reform, which destroyed his relationship with Yolanda Díaz.

This Tuesday's interview is the first one that Rufián and Montero have done together after closing an alliance ahead of November 29. Both will row in the same direction during the electoral campaign after closing a "collaboration" pact that involves Podem not running in Catalonia and, in return, ERC incorporating candidates from the purple party into its lists. Montero and Rufián already began the pre-campaign this Saturday with a joint event in Nou Barris, in Barcelona. This Saturday they will share the stage again, but this time in Madrid.

Both present themselves as the only option to stop the rise of the right and the far-right that the polls predict. However, their alliance has generated division in the space to the left of the PSOE. Podem decided to say that it would not be part of the Broad Front coalition, which includes the United Left, Sumar, the Comuns, and Més Madrid. In his first pre-campaign event, Rufián decided to attack Ada Colau's candidacy, when he stated: "Whatever your name is, we are the front."