Ex-PM Andrej Babiš and his former adviser Jana Nagyová were cleared for a second time yesterday in the Stork’s Nest case, subject to appeal. If there’s a political message, it’s that the criminalization of Babiš has run its course and probably can’t win another election. The parties of the ruling coalition were able to put Stork’s Nest and Babiš’s other problems (conflicts of interest, media ownership) to very good political use but then ended up doing some of the same things that they accused him of, esp. in terms of the oligarchization of democracy and business. The concentration of power has only accelerated under Petr Fiala’s government. Unless the coalition finds the will in its final two years to return more political and economic power to the people, Babiš will coast to easy victories in the upcoming elections. He’ll return to power as the voice of the downtrodden, and then he’ll turn this concentration of power to his own advantage. The coalition can only defeat Babiš if it stops legitimizing his behavior.

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