When Aznar also openly criticized the judges

MadridPedro Sánchez's term in office has been characterized by repeated clashes between his administration and the judiciary. Obstacles to the implementation of the amnesty law and the investigations surrounding it are just some of the reasons that have led to this escalation of tension between the executive and judicial branches. The confrontation has reached the point where the Spanish Prime Minister openly criticized some judges in this Monday's interview on Spanish National Television (TVE). "There are judges engaging in politics and politicians trying to deliver justice.", the Socialist leader emphasized. However, this isn't the first time judges have received a reprimand from the Moncloa Palace. José María Aznar also made headlines during his time at the helm of the Spanish government for openly criticizing them.

Looking at the newspaper archives, also at the start of the political year, but from almost thirty years ago, we find a warning from the former Spanish Prime Minister (PP) against media-friendly judges. "Judges should not give rise to hype or scandals, much less conflicts between them. The gateway to fame doesn't come through the courts," Aznar stated in September 1997. At that time, in the midst of the fight against ETA, drug trafficking in Galicia or major causes of corruption such as the case of corruption occupied significant space in the media. Some did not enjoy the sympathy of Aznar's government, as is the case of the controversial judge Baltasar Garzón.

Aside from the aforementioned statements, the Aznar government also openly questioned some judicial decisions. This is the case of the clash between the Popular Party (PP) executive and members of the Supreme Court's criminal division over the dismissal of a complaint against the then-spokesperson of Batasuna, Arnaldo Otegi, in 2002, arguing that shouting "Long live ETA" could not be considered a terrorist offense. The Aznar government refuted this in public statements, prompting a unanimous statement from the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) demanding that political leaders be held accountable for judicial decisions.

Another clash with the same Supreme Court division arose because Aznar pardoned a judge, Javier Gómez de Liaño, who had been sentenced to fifteen years of disqualification for malfeasance. The Supreme Court refused to apply one of the effects the PP executive had hoped for from this pardon, namely his immediate reinstatement to the judiciary. The Popular Party government threatened to file a jurisdictional dispute against the high court.

The PP's criticism of the judges continued after Aznar was no longer president, especially those investigating cases that could harm them. The clearest example is the Gürtel case, with the confrontation the party waged against the first investigating judge in the case, Baltasar Garzón. In 2009, the PP attempted from the outset to have the judge of the National Court challenged due to his "manifest enmity" with the conservative party, which deprived him of his "necessary and required impartiality." The PP alleged that in 1993 he had run on the PSOE's electoral lists and also mentioned that at that time, in early 2009, it became known that Garzón had gone hunting with the then Minister of Justice, Mariano Fernández Bermejo, who was forced to resign due to these events.

The opening of the judicial year

To make it clear that Sánchez's situation is exceptional, because the Attorney General of the State appointed by the socialist is under investigation, the current leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, will not exceptionally attend the opening of this year's judicial yearWhen Aznar was prime minister, he had attended on occasion—he didn't in 1997 when he criticized star judges. Felipe González had also attended, although this isn't standard protocol. Sánchez, for his part, hasn't attended in any of his years as prime minister.