The Liberal Electoral Strategy

I wrote recently that the scandal of the files had been created and supported by Teodor Melescanu as part of the NLP electoral strategy.

I wrote recently that the scandal of the files had been created and supported by Teodor Melescanu as part of the NLP electoral strategy. As a continuation of the Norica Nicolai scandal, the scandal of the files forced Traian Basescu to show his support for the democrat liberals in the electoral battle of 2008. Therefore, the liberals wanted to emphasize two things:

1) In 2008, Traian Basescu won’t be Romania’s President anymore. He will be the leader of a party that will take part in the electoral confrontation.

2) The DLP, led by Traian Basescu will be the main competitor for NLP during the campaign.

The two weeks of electoral scandals have emphasized other aspects of the NLP strategy as well. On Sunday, the 20^th of January 2008, the NLP Press Release regarding the files was read by Adrian Iorgulescu. However, he is the Minister of Culture. He has nothing to do with this. Why did he have to read the NLP reaction to Traian Basescu’s accusing speech at the return in the country? There are two reasons for that:

1) To emphasize the fact that this is a conflict between Traian Basescu and NLP.

2) To get as many NLP leaders in the fight against Traian Basescu.

There are two reasons that reveal other strategic notes of the NLP electoral strategy for this year. From 2005, when he started the conflict with Calin Popescu Tariceanu, Traian Basescu tried to find constitutional explanations for his attacks against the Government. By adapting the fundamental law to his needs, Traian Basescu stated it was his duty to wade into the Government on the people’s behalf. By exploring the two scandals, the liberals tried to bring the fight against Traian Basescu from the President-Government territory to the DLP leader-NLP territory. This is why so many leaders of NLP have been involved in this fight. It looks like Traian Basescu figured this strategy out and wanted to mention in his statement at Otopeni that there would be people saying he would start attacking a party, NLP. No one heard about Tudor Chiuariu until the moment in which Traian Basescu started attacking him. The confrontation with Traian Basescu brought him the acknowledgement he needed. A similar situation took place in the case of Teodor Melescanu. Everyone believed that his more than usual diplomatic behavior would make him the ideal candidate from Traian Basescu’s point of view. The Files’ Scandal presented him in the media as a real fighter. One can see that the liberals want to generalize the Chiuariu case by involving several NLP leaders in this fight, by trying to attract Traian Basescu against them.

On the 8^th of January 2008, the President announced he refused to name Norica Nicolai. We would have expected the PM to go to the Constitutional Court in the following second. He did that after more than two weeks from the Presidential refusal. People tried to give explanations for the delay and most of them came from the need of certain journalists to serve Traian Basescu. For example, some said the PM didn’t go to the Constitutional Court because he hoped the President would change his mind. Actually, Calin Popescu Tariceanu delayed to go to the Court on purpose. If we think that the Norica Nicolai Scandal was about to be finished when the Files Scandal appeared, we can suppose that this was actually part of an electoral strategy.

The fact that the two scandals aren’t over yet is because there is a certain electoral goal behind: the fight against Traian Basescu. Therefore, the liberals have tried to emphasize that:

1) Traian Basescu is a permanent source of scandals.

2) Traian Basescu breaks the laws and the Constitution in the case of his agreement for the investigation of the former and current dignitaries.

3) Traian Basescu is a vulgar character who doesn’t stay away from verbal violence incompatible with a presidential behavior.

This is how the liberal electoral strategy looks like after the first month of electoral campaign. Its efficiency will be seen only after the announcement regarding the final results of the local and parliamentary elections.

Translated by Sorin Bălan