Final Word from Wednesday, November 23, 2005
There's a realistic possibility that Václav Klaus will be faced after the elections with whether to appoint a ČSSD minority government backed by the Communists. He could refuse and try to force a ČSSD-ODS coalition, or even new elections, or he could capitulate to the "will of the people" and negotiate his own reelection as part of the deal. Klaus refused on TV Prima to "speculate" about what he would do if the Communists came knocking. Ladislav Jakl, one of his top aides, told the Czech Council on Foreign Relations that he thinks Klaus would rather step aside than do what it takes to win the reelection support of a ČSSD-KSČM bloc. Jakl painted such a ČSSD minority cabinet as something so horrible that he thinks Klaus would not want to be associated with it. Jakl added, though, that this is his own perception. He didn't rule out that, in the end, Klaus will do what it takes to get reelected. [Czech Republic Communist Party]