Final Word from Wednesday, October 6, 2021

The second term of a PM or president who can't run again or doesn't plan to do so is often different from the first term. He or she doesn't have to weigh every decision or comment in terms of its election appeal. Miloš Zeman has used his second term as president to reinforce his relationships with those he likes and to settle scores with those he doesn't. His behavior has been dictated to a certain degree by his enemies, who have also taken a harder stance during his second term in an effort to affect the outcome of the next parliamentary and presidential elections. Andrej Babiš has been relatively soft on his enemies during his first term, apparently thinking that cracking down on them would pose a risk to his own reelection. He has especially paid the price this week, when all his enemies ganged up against him to try to use the Pandora Papers to oust him. If it doesn't work and Babiš is able to form a new government, his enemies might finally see how much vengefulness he has in him. [ Czech Republic third ANO coalition ]