Outsiders sometimes romp home

HE’S got the whole world in his hands, Albert Rivera that is.  He has an outside chance of getting more votes than Rajoy, Sanchez or Iglesias and outsiders sometimes romp home, even in the Grand National. But even if he and the Citizens party come second, third or fourth he will be the one wielding much of the power after next Sunday night’s count-up.

Star turn

PABLO IGLESIAS, Secretary General of the Podemos party, wants a law obliging Spain’s president to take part in television debates.

He also wants him, or possibly one day her, to make an obligatory number of public appearances each year.

He would, wouldn’t he? Iglesias first became known to the voting public as a television pundit. He might cite the need for presidential accountability but he knows that he is a pretty convincing speaker.

Had Mariano Rajoy agreed to a four-way debate Iglesias would still have had the chance of impressing his critics, while Rajoy would only have confirmed the reservations of his.

Walk the walk

THE PSOE presidential candidate Pedro Sanchez can walk the walk.  Surprisingly, he can’t talk the talk and frequently gives the impression that he would rather be saying something else. 

What he comes out with will not inflame voters and persuade them to rush out and vote for him on Sunday. Perhaps the party should have chosen Eduardo Madina, whom Sanchez saw off in the leadership tussle, after all.

Supping with the devil

ARTUR MAS, would-be regional president of Cataluña, needs the votes of radical separatists Popular Unity Candidacy (CUP) party to fulfil this ambition. 

CUP, which has made almost frivolous demands, will decide on December 27 if it will back Mas.

That should give him time to eat and digest the cannelloni that Catalans traditionally eat on December 26, a thrifty way of using up Christmas leftovers. 

He might as well enjoy them because whether CUP backs or rejects him, either way Mas will be force-fed humble pie the following day.