<![CDATA[ O que diz o almirante ]]>

In recent days, we have begun to learn a little more about Henrique Gouveia e Melo’s political thinking. We have learned, first of all, that the admiral positions himself politically between socialism and social democracy. This is a deliberately undefined position, attempting to “catch all”, a kind of centre of the centre, which in theory forces those on the sides to move further towards the extremes. For those who remember, this is a similar strategy to that used by the Partido Renovador Democrático, when it was created in 1985, inspired by General Ramalho Eanes, then President of the Republic. The strategy of attracting voters from the PS and PSD lasted a short while, and the party disappeared as quickly as it appeared, despite the prestige of General Eanes. Why? Among other reasons, because he wanted to occupy an artificial place that, in fact, did not exist. It is this abstract place, which no one really understands where it is, that the admiral wants to occupy. Voters value a minimum of clarity.