The 'great political debate' descends into mutual insults
Wednesday, December 16, 2015 @ 5:46 PM
DESPITE all good intentions, the long-awaited 'cordial debate' between Spain's president Mariano Rajoy (PP) and his direct rival Pedro Sánchez (PSOE) turned into a slanging match and widened the gulf between the two main 'establishment' parties even further just five days before the general elections.
TV viewers were already sceptical when they learnt the details of the discussion, in four main themed 'blocks' and with 50% of talk time scheduled for each party to ensure fairness and an equal say for both parties – as yet, the PP and PSOE have rarely managed to hold a conversation without raised voices and especially relating to thorny issues such as unemployment and corruption.
Sánchez told Rajoy that a president 'needs to be a decent person' and that Rajoy 'was not one'.
Rajoy told Sánchez his remark was 'mean and contemptible' when Sánchez accused him of 'not being honest'.
“I don't regret a word,” Sánchez said afterwards. “I only said what millions of Spaniards are already thinking.”
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com