Dhe House of Representatives in Warsaw was debating the government declaration of the new Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Tuesday when MP Grzegorz Braun from the extreme right-wing “Confederation” party disrupted a Hanukkah celebration in the lobby of the parliament. He took a fire extinguisher and put out the candles that had just been lit on a Hanukkah candlestick. The room was fogged up by the powder from the fire extinguisher. The klezmer musicians fell silent while a young Jewish woman tried to prevent Braun from taking part.
The politician, who is controversial even within his party and is considered a troublemaker in parliament, said seconds later in the plenary hall that the Jewish festival of Hanukkah was actually “satanic.” Szymon Hołownia, the new parliamentary speaker, then excluded Braun from the meeting.
The shock of the incident was evident on the faces of many politicians. Donald Tusk spoke of a “shame that must never be repeated.” Hołownia said: “There is zero tolerance for anti-Semitic actions in parliament.” A little later, two rabbis present thanked Hołownia for his quick and decisive reaction. One tried to argue with Braun. All of this was broadcast on several television channels.
Late in the evening, the House of Representatives confirmed Tusk's new, pro-European government with 248 votes to 201. The right-wing PiS, which was supposed to finally switch to the opposition on this day after eight years in power, had sensed in advance the chance to delay the procedure. She asked for the meeting to be adjourned until the next day. They have “many serious questions” for Tusk, but do not want to raise them in an atmosphere of scandal. A corresponding request from PiS was rejected by members of the new government coalition.
Several PiS MPs then claimed that the new government was using Braun to restrict the rights of the opposition. PiS politicians also used the incident as a pretext for attacks against Parliament President Holownia, whom they blamed for Braun's behavior. When the meeting resumed around 7 p.m., there were still about 90 questions for Tusk on the list.
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