(Ex-) Czech Government in the News Again

Besides Jeff's mom, we're not sure who might bother to follow Czech news. If you have since Jeff & Maylia arrived, headline items include the on-again, off-again of the US-Czech-Poland missile base, dropping of US visa requirements for Czechs, a few scandals (everyone's got 'em) and now, there is no government.

Last night there was a no-confidence vote by one of Parliament's minority parties to oust the majority party. It needed 101 votes (out of 200) to pass. And they got 101. According to Czech constitution, this requires the Prime Minister and his party's government to leave. And Prime Minister Topolanek has responded that he intends to follow the letter of the law.

There's an extra thorny part to this. The European Union presidency is rotated among the 27 member countries in 6-month shifts. Guess who is EU Prez this shift? Yes, the Czech Republic.
Being EU president carries a couple perks, like inviting other world leaders over for lunch (like, Barack Obama, who arrives next week).
Because Czech Republic holds EU presidency, the no-confidence vote not only affects local credibility but causes a bit of embarrassment regionally. The adage "Can't lead others if you can't get your own house in order" comes to mind. Because of these special circumstances, the ousted are allowed to rule, lame duck style, until after the EU presidency shift ends in June.

To be fair, this no-confidence vote isn't entirely special. Over the past 2 years, this vote was the 5th time Topolanek's party has been asked to leave. Only for this fifth try, it worked. Now what?

Some US & Canada coverage:
Wall Street Journal
Macleans