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FUGITIVE CATALAN LEADER Carles Puigdemont has fled Spain again, after briefly addressing supporters in Barcelona Friday. It is understood that he has made his way back to Belgium.
Puigdemont, who fled abroad after a failed independence bid in 2017, defied a Spanish arrest warrant on Thursday, to deliver a speech to thousands outside the Catalonian regional parliament in Barcelona.
He was expected to enter the parliament building to cast his ballot in a leadership vote for the region, but disappeared into the crowd instead.
The election saw Socialist Party of Catalonia candidate Salvador Illa chosen as the region’s new leader.
The Secretary General of Puigdemont’s JxCAT party, Josep Turull, said that he was “on his way back to Waterloo”.
Hi lawyer, Gonzalo Boye, said that he had fled abroad, and would issue a statement either today or tomorrow.
Catalonian police have not ruled out that he is still in Barcelone and have launched a manhunt for him. Two officer were arrested on suspicion of assisting his escape, but were released after a few hours. The force has insisted that there is no collusion.
Puigdemont led the regional government of Catalonia in 2017, when it pushed ahead with an independence referendum despite a court ban, followed by a short-lived declaration of independence.
He fled Spain shortly after the independence bid to avoid prosecution and has since lived in Belgium and more recently France.
While Spain’s parliament in May passed an amnesty law for those involved in the botched secession bid, the Supreme Court ruled on July 1 that the measure would not fully apply to Puigdemont.
Puigdemont’s dramatic return came just days after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s Socialists struck a deal with moderate Catalan separatist party ERC — which competes with Puigdemont’s more hardline JxCAT — to make the Socialist candidate, Salvador Illa, the next head of the Catalan regional government.
The Socialists won the most seats in a regional election in May but failed to get a majority and the support of the ERC is crucial.
If a new Catalan regional government is not formed by 26 August, fresh elections will be held in October.
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What a strange tradition these presidential pardons are
@Brian Dunne: yeah, its basically saying I’m above the law.
@Brian Dunne: I beg your pardon?
@Ro-your-nan: I never promised you a Rose garden.
@Brian Dunne: in part true but I would have no issue with a pardon for snowden.
@Mjhint: pardoning thugs like himself.
Can’t believe Joe Exotic missed out on a pardon.
@David Carroll: He had the limo waiting outside. Lol. Epic fail.
@David Carroll: All Carol Baskins fault if you ask me
@David Carroll: cheque probably didn’t clear in time
@David Carroll: It’s not over yet….. If he’s a plan to upstage Biden he could be holding out.
But I can’t see what pardoning him would get Trump to be honest so he’s probably out of luck.
Bannon charged with duping Trump followers. To be fair that’s hardly a crime – the typical Trump follower is just screaming out “Dupe me, I’m so gullible” every time they post a comment.
@Martello Mulligan: they are sheep you can milk
@Martello Mulligan: Playing to the gallery, this is so old move on
@Blue Avians: But it’s not “so old.” And I do understand how the duped want to forget. It might help them “move on” if they acknowledge what they’ve perpetrated.
@Martello Mulligan: There was more than Bannon involved in that scheme but from what I can gather only he got a pardon….. Then again, he probably has way more dirt on Trump than the other ones.
@Blue Avians: Its a fact. And recent. Look at those who say they were duped about funds to fight the election fraud that never happened.
@Blue Avians: touched a little nerve did he? Feeling a bit sheepish are we? Baa.
Title should read: Trump pardons man who defrauded Trump voters.
Just goes to show how little he actually thinks of his followers. They were a means to an end.
Why would he pardon a guy that defrauded his constitutes of over a one million dollars for his own gain, wouldn’t trump distance himself completely from it and keep it that way,Bannon and his 2 accomplices basically used trumps name and his campaign to make themselves rich, doesn’t pardoning him make trump loom even worse from all sides .
@THE BIRD: I’ve heard that Trump may believe Bannon may be needed as a Trump strategist in the future. Don’t worry about Trump supporters being disillusioned. Over 60% of Republicans polled still believe the election was ‘stolen’. A former CEO of a company that advertised on Fox News was recorded last year saying Fox viewers are very gullible.
@THE BIRD: Bannon is a <ile human being but he's not s#upid.
He definitely has dirt on Donnie.
Pardon the swamp
@Fr. Fintan Stack: He also rescinded the Executive Order that required executive branch appointees to sign a pledge that they would never work as registered foreign lobbyists, and it banned them from lobbying the federal agencies where they worked for five years after leaving the government.
Guess now they need jobs…..
How many times has it happened here in Ireland people above the law. Catholic church, Garda, Political people. We just as bad
@Sean: We’re worse! A pardon means that at least the system tried to hold the person being pardoned accountable for their bad deeds. We don’t do the accountability bit, never mind the pardon.
Please pardon Julian Assange.
Disgusted with Trump for giving John Delaney a pardon!
He will need to pardon himself.
@Alanjturing: He couldn’t pardon himself as it would insinuate he had did something wrong. But its going to be interesting, a lot of people waiting for his presidency to finish.
@Alanjturing: I’d be surprised if he never pardoned his kids, to be honest.
But it was reported recently that because pardoning himself would open him up to civil suits he felt if he can’t get a pardon, nobody does.
Heresay, but you’d wonder.
I still think Rudy will get one.
While drumpf may have given the disgusting creature bannon a pardon, just remember that is ONLY for federal offenses. He is still going to be charged, bannon that is (well in honesty drumpf too) with state offenses in the great state of New York. Nothing either of them can do about it.
8 hours left. Champagne in the fridges. Brie out maturing. Legal grass rolled.
BLISS
Donnie pardoned some rappers Maybe we give donnie his own rapper name.
2PEACH sounds about right
@Gene Johnston: or N-P3ACH perhaps?
@owentighe: yep)
@Gene Johnston:2Mpeach’d
I have no doubt Bannon will incriminate himself again very shortly… people like him cannot resist it
Pardoned for wearing t-shirts with collars under his shirts?
A lot of Brown Envelopes
@Mary Mc Carthy: A lot of br0wn nosers too
If you were to analyse the list in detail you will see. That these people will all have to back Trump going forward. They are either of use in there professional career or influencers of people or have money. I havent seen the list yet but I bet there is no one on the list who can only offer support and has no other means. Good riddens to him thank God they took the nuc codes off the mad man
Now lets read 100 comments from people who have no clue what they are talking about aside from what they read in something called “The Journal” which is barely more than a little girls diary.
@Chaunce Hayden: 1% of those being yours.
Trump to public; We are the party of law and order!!
Trump to mates; Don’t worry lads if your caught ill pardon you.
No pardon for Bertie?
Does Higgins have power of pardon?
have your say