Sánchez’s new narrative relies on three political fetishes

Columnist Teodoro León Gross argues in ABC that the PSOE has built a new narrative around three fetishes: dignity, defense of the public sector, and the idea that not everyone is equal. According to his analysis, this narrative serves as a distraction trinc the exit of Óscar Puente.

The departure of **Óscar Puente** from the Ministry of Transport, which the columnist describes as a three-week electoral holiday, has forced the PSOE to restructure its story. **Teodoro León Gross** writes an analysis in **ABC** claiming the party has resorted to three fetishes to fill the gap: dignity, defense of the public sector, and the assertion that not everyone is equal. The article’s thesis is that this narrative distracts rather than explains.

## Dignity as currency

Gross distinguishes between two types of dignity. Ontological dignity, inherent to every person by virtue of being human, and sarracena dignity, acquired through actions. The columnist argues that the PSOE invokes the latter to deny it to Puente. He adds a specific detail: up to **115 victims**, according to his account, the minister’s management was going well.

The article mentions the victims of **Adamuz**, giving them a voice against the contempt shown by Puente, according to the author. It also notes that the only time he appeared emotional was when speaking about the PSOE and his mother’s activism, never regarding the victims. This is a harsh accusation, presented in the text as opinion, not judgment.

## The public sector that hasn’t been privatized

The second fetish is the defense of the public sector. Gross calls it a farce: denouncing the privatization of something that hasn’t been privatized. He acknowledges it’s difficult to take storytelling to that extreme. He accuses the PSOE of championing the public sector after a failure in a public service, on a public network, with public trains.

The columnist’s irony suggests everything would remain the same if they managed it themselves, because it already is public and they are already managing it. He cites **Christian Salmon** to define narrative as a weapon of mass distraction. The underlying idea is that saving the public sector is promised so no one looks at how it has deteriorated.

## Not all are equal, but some fall lower

The third fetish is inequality. Gross concedes that we are not all equal, for better or worse. But he argues few politicians inspire less desire to be like them than Puente, except perhaps **Pedro Sánchez**. He criticizes him for spending more time insulting people on social media than improving a degraded network.

The article compares the situation to that of **Mazón** and rejects that example. It states that Puente imitated that pattern for ten months since Adamuz and only left when forced by a second railway crisis. The columnist concludes that while not everyone is equal, few would sink so low.

## A narrative that rolls the dice

Gross closes with the electoral strategy. He argues the PSOE keeps rolling the dice hoping for a lucky break. He recalls housing failures, that they have surpassed the tragedy, and that they do not antiestéticar corruption. He points out attention is fragile: few remember **Ceuta** or the sewage scandals anymore.

The final example is the **Ibero-American Summit**, where Sánchez denounced those building walls after starting the legislature by building one himself. For the columnist, this defines sanchismo: launching the narrative and hoping truth doesn’t matter. This is an opinion, not a fact, and should be read as such.