site.btaMedia Review: July 15

DONALD TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

The attempt on the life of former United States president Donald Trump and its political implications are a leading topic in the Bulgarian media. Trump was shot in the ear at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday evening.

MediaPool.bg highlights Trump's words "I'm supposed to be dead", which he said in an interview for the New York Post after the incident. It was a "very surreal experience" for him.

Trud says that Trump was a fraction of a second from death. The daily quotes Israeli defence expert Aaron Cohen as telling Fox News that it was divine intervention. A video recording shows that a second before the gunshots Trump abruptly turned his head to the right. Trud further quotes Fox News as saying that different levels of security are provided for the current president and ex-presidents. The plan was to change the protocol for Trump considerably this week after his bid for the presidency would be confirmed officially by the Republican Party.

On the morning talk show of bTV, University of National and World Economy Rector Dimitar Dimitrov and political analyst Borislav Tsekov said that the US Secret Service is tasked with providing security for presidential candidates, but even this service cannot ensure 100% security. Dimitrov said the motives of the would-be assassin can be established indirectly after the shooter was killed by the guards. Tsekov noted: "Trump is a strong person who acts with determination, a very tough fighter. He has proven it with his whole life. With his lightning reaction, he showed not just an ability to adjust to an extraordinary situation but also a political instinct." The constitutional law professor argued that Trump has built an iconic image in recent US history.

Speaking on BNT1, the main channel of Bulgarian National Television, international affairs analyst Ognyan Daskarev said that Trump has been the target of incessant attacks and harassment. Attempts have been made to force him into bankruptcy, and he was sentenced on fake charges of financial fraud, Daskarev said. "The huge injustice which Americans felt was being done to Trump, culminated in the assassination attempt, which is why there is a lot of compassion for him." According to the analyst, Joe Biden is the weakest US President since World War II. Trump will almost certainly be President after the assassination attempt, he said.

24 Chasa says in a headline: "Assassin Shoots at Trump, Hits Biden". Journalist Valeri Naidenov says in the comment that the young assassin inadvertently sped up President Joe Biden's early retirement. The author expects news as early as this week. The Republican National Convention taking place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin between Monday and Wednesday is expected to nominate Trump officially for US president. "The blond hero, freshly wounded in the ear," will be giving "a sort of a rock concert like a young Elvis, and the whole world will be watching it". According to Naidenov, "such exaltation is highly contagious and leaves an indelible mark on the collective consciousness". The contrast between the images of Trump and Biden ("a feeble, seriously demented man") will not only guarantee an election victory for Trump but will also lead to corresponding results in the elections to Congress, the state governments and legislatures, and the local authorities, the journalist predicts.

POLITICS

Violence, weapons and war are ever more easily accepted as legitimate instruments for resolving disputes and conflicts, longtime diplomat Lyubomir Kyuchukov says in a Trud interview. According to him, stigmatizing a political opponent, increasingly aggressive political rhetoric in which argumentation is replaced by labelling, and choosing force as the main instrument for settling disputes logically lead to such assassination attempts as the one against Donald Trump. Kyuchukov recalls that a similar attempt was made recently on the life of Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico.

Discussing the outcome of NATO's Washington Summit, including its decision to continue supporting Ukraine, Kyuchukov says: "The problem is that more weapons do not necessarily mean more security. What is totally missing besides the military component of security is the political component, the component of negotiations. The entire international system of arms control and disarmament is practically eroding, or does not even exist anymore, particularly where nuclear weapons are concerned. We are witnessing a process of growing militarization of international relations. We should remember that the world felt safest when it was disarming during the détente, not when arming."

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Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) Honorary Chair Ahmed Dogan may install former Kardzhali mayor Hasan Azis as party leader, SegaBG.com predicts. The website says the idea has spread in the political circles and in the southern town, and was mentioned on Sunday by MRF Deputy Floor Leader Bayram Bayram, who said on Bulgarian National Television that there is much talk about Azis in Kardzhali. Bayram added, however, that Azis was a bad mayor who did nothing for the town over many years of governing. At present, the party has two leaders. Assuming that Azis will replace Delyan Peevski, who has been urged by Dogan to resign, it is unclear whether the other leader, Dzhevdet Chakarov, will step down too, the website says.

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The future of the left wing and the way it should develop in Bulgaria were discussed by MPs, MEPs, representatives of leftist parties and movements, academics and political scientists, Duma says in its main story. They held a discussion on "(R)evolution of the Left: The Way for Bulgaria", organized by the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) with the assistance of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation. National Assembly Deputy Chair Kristian Vigenin said the left wing should offer easy-to-grasp and compelling ideas about Bulgaria's future. Interim BSP leader Atanas Zafirov expressed his conviction that the process of change in the BSP and consolidation of the left wing is irreversible.

ECONOMY

Over 230 settlements with a total population of more than 150,000 are on water rationing, according to data from regional health inspectorates and municipal governments cited on the morning talk show of BNT1. There are three main reasons for that: the drought, the poor condition of the water transmission system and the lack of alternative water supply. One of the areas where water is rationed, not far from Sofia, is the town of Radomir and nearby villages.

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Poles, Czechs, Hungarians, Romanians and Britons are the largest groups of foreign holiday-makers on the Bulgarian coast this summer, as usual, 24 Chasa says in a frontpage story. A new trend has been discernible over the last couple of years: growing numbers of Spaniards, Italians and Turks prefer Bulgarian resorts. Since 2021, tourists from Spain and Italy have been increasing by 10-15% annually. The same applies to visitors from France, and the number of Turkish citizens who choose to spend their holidays on the Bulgarian coast with their families is now almost equal to that of Poles. Climate is the only reason for the interest from countries where Bulgaria is almost never advertised as a summer holiday destination. Water and air temperatures along the Black Sea coast are always 2-3 C lower than on the Mediterranean beaches, heat wave or not, the paper says.

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Although Bulgaria has reported the EU's highest growth in sales of newly built vehicles, the country is at the bottom of the ranking for the share of new, safe and eco vehicles, Association of Car Manufacturers Management Board Chair Alexander Kostadinov says in an interview for 24 Chasa. He says the high growth should be sustained for another five or six years to reverse the negative situation. Bulgaria has the oldest and most outworn motor vehicle fleet in Europe as more than 70% of it is aged over 15 years. Contemporary mobility means much cleaner air, fewer traffic accidents and fatalities, and higher levels of comfort and safety, Kostadinov says. Consumers are becoming increasingly aware that the purchase of a newly built car saves them money over the long term, he notes.