ALDE's Tariceanu says no decision yet about running for president, but giving it a serious thought

Senate President and national leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE), minor at rule, Calin Popescu-Tariceanu said on Monday he was giving a "serious" thought to running on the 2019 presidential election, adding that he has not make any decision yet. 

"I can tell you that I have not made the decision, that this possibility is certainly not alien to my thoughts, I am giving the idea a serious consideration, but it is a very hard, very serious decision that I will make later. Normally, such a decision should not be made by me exclusively; I think anyone who wants to run for this important office will have to do so probably next year. At least as far as I'm concerned, I do not give advice to others, everybody does what they want, the way they see it fit, and I think it is much earlier now," Tariceanu told Antena 3 private broadcaster on Monday asked if he can say that he has personally made the decision to run on the 2019 presidential election. 

The ALDE leader explained how he sees the presidential office. 

"The easy approach, the attractive approach of the presidential office is the Basescu model, the player president who has supporters and opponents, and always does something to please the base and has a whole range of actions. What is the problem with following such a presidential role? It is a terrible trap. Why? Of course, you consolidate a certain electorate, but in the eyes of your opponents you do not have a semblance of credibility, and when crisis strikes, as is the time right now, when Romania, in fact, should be looking forward seriously and with responsibility to next year, to the six months of holding the presidency [of the Council of the European Union], when you see that there is a gap in society. And you have to come up and make the credible thing that you are equidistant, and in this equidistant relationship you do not favour either those in power or the opposition and put forth a political solution to them. You, as president, come up with a political solution, or at least try to see whether or not a political solution can be found to ensure consensus through consultations," Tariceanu said. 

According to him, "political crises will always strike." 

"The president should have this opportunity to intervene and de-stress the situation, so here is the subtlety of this role of the presidential office in the Romanian constitutional system, which, unfortunately, the presidents did not quite understand. Perhaps Emil Constantinescu did so more obviously than Iliescu in his first term (...) There might have been moments when they would have liked to be more involved. And the temptation is great, but you must be able to restrain yourself in order to have full credibility at critical moments, in times of crisis. Otherwise, the main actors surely must be the parties and Parliament, and the president should be more withdrawn. That is how I think this office should be seen, which does not mean having a president who is absent from the public life, cannot find a role, does not know what to do, what buttons to press, but it's not the president's role to be a political actor in the sense that we have seen in the last, let's say, 14 years, the presidential office being played out," Tariceanu concluded.