Spain's governing PP is again trusting in its strategy of preventing Carles Puigdemont's investiture as Catalan president using the steam roller of the courts. Sources from the party leadership remind the Parliament's speaker, Roger Torrent, that "he has two children, he knows what awaits him" if he allows Puigdemont's investiture after the candidate asked him, by letter, for protection to attend the debate. PP spokesperson, Pablo Casado, has spoken publicly of the precedent of lawsuits against Torrent's predecessor, Carme Forcadell, and said that "Puigdemont shouldn't speak with Torrent, but with the Supreme Court".

"Either he cancels the debate or he'll be warned again", said the spokesperson during the press conference after the PP's leadership committee meeting this Monday, led by party leader Mariano Rajoy. "Let Forcadell tell him why she got scared", said Casado, urging the speaker to propose another candidate who doesn't take them along "the illegal path". This could be the leader of ERC, Oriol Junqueras, but the PP do not seem very happy either with the idea of it being a deputy currently in prison, wanting to move beyond the independence process.

The PP supports Rajoy's strategy of submitting a precautionary appeal to prevent Puigdemont's investiture, insinuating that, otherwise, the debate would have been attempted without the candidate physically present in the chamber. The party sees that possibility now closed off with the Constitutional Court's verdict and say that if Puigdemont doesn't give up it's because he would then be ostracised. "This verdict is the end of Puigdemont's escape. He will be a prisoner or a fugitive, not president of Catalonia. This is his only lifeline because otherwise he would be a pariah, since when he steps on Spanish territory he will be detained," said Casado.

Given this situation, the PP suggest Ciutadans' leader, Inés Arrimadas, should try for investiture, "if the independence supporters continue blocking" a government from being formed in Catalonia. That would at least be "an attempt" to assert the opposition parties' simple majority in "votes", if not in seats. Party sources say that the idea of a new election wouldn't be bad for them, as it would give them a chance to regain the seat they are lacking to be able to form their own separate group in the Catalan Parliament. Cs refused to give them one, which stoked the unease between the two from their fight over rightwing votes.