Poland turns away from democracy, Donald Trump is to blame

Polish democracy won a partial partial victory Monday, when President Andreze Duda vetoed two conflicting laws that would give the ruling party Law and Justice, direct control over Poland's courts. The victory is immediate because Duda indicated that he would soon present his version of the legislation.

It is no secret that Justice Law party and its leader, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, eyes on the independence of the judiciary, one of the obstacles to taking control of the Polish state. Less welcome but no less clear is the role the US has played in encouraging it to take such a step.

Kaczynski and his party have been trying to capture power since winning parliamentary elections in 2015, but this year have been particularly cheeky. During a European Union meeting in March, they tried to prevent the election of Donald Tusk, former prime minister of Poland and Kaczynski's opponent, for a second term as head of the Council of Europe.

They lost 27 votes by 1, a humiliation that contributed to a free drop in polls, which has resulted in their reaching higher and higher. From here come the laws of justice, which have been wrapped in rhetoric for the need for judicial reform.

Donald Trump enters this mess, including among contradictions and seeking praise. The White House announced that on the way to the G20 meeting in Hamburg, Germany, he was to visit Poland, a country long named the most pro-American in Europe.

The White House also determined the details: Mr. Trump would be expected by enthusiastic crowds, giving the world the impression of a strong American leader worshiped by foreign masses and their leaders. Voluntarily, since the gathering of the Three Seas Initiative would be held in Warsaw, Trump could meet with leaders of 11 other countries in the region in a short time.

Kaczynsky was also visited. Fighting in Europe, his government needed to show that Poland enjoyed the respect of one of the world's most powerful politicians.

And so Trump came to Warsaw, confirmed NATO's commitment to collective protection, and promised contracts for the sale of Patriot missiles and natural gas to Poland. Kaczynski's party brought buses with the enthusiastic crowd, and both sides came to the conclusion, and rightly so that the visit was successful.

Law and Justice position (LED) in the polls improved; the latest, held before the vote for justice reform, showed 38% support for the party, and only 19% for the Civil Platform, the largest opposition party.

Mr. Trump happened with justice legislation, which was pending vote in Sejm, the lower Polish parliament chamber. But shortly before his arrival, his bills suddenly withdrew.

However, as soon as polls and praise in the press began to rise, the party again issued the bills, adding a third to the election of Supreme Court members from Seymi. Since the Supreme Court confirms the outcome of parliamentary and presidential elections, the bill would give LED control not only over courts but also on electoral results (this was one of the bills Duda vetoed).

In short, in exchange for some applause, Mr. Trump gave Kaczynski the support to carry out a stamp. And what have the United States done since then? The State Department issued a dry statement designed not to offend the Polish authorities (“We urge the parties to make sure that any reform in justice does not violate Poland's Constitution”.

It is not thought that Trump agrees with Kaczynski's capture of power. But, not using the vitase to pressure the LED leader to respect democracy, Trump gave the implied approval of the new reform to return the bill to the law. And while Duda showed political independence by vetoing two drafts, in other cases he has always been a loyal ally of Kaczynski. We remain to see whether the new drafts will truly be against Kaczynski's or just increase President Duda's own influence over the judiciary, at the expense of Law and Justice.

Final responsibility falls on the Poles and is what they have to answer, as they have done admirablely in recent weeks, with mass protests, which, most likely, were the ones that brought the Duda veto. But until just a short time ago, they would not have been alone. That was exactly what happened when the American presidents would have used their country's prestige to pressure freedom and democracy. Now, beyond the enthusiasm of orchestrated crowds, all the Polish people hear from the White House is silence.