In whose interest if not the people's?
In taking the presidential vow, Václav Klaus swore on his honor to carry out his mandate in the interest of the people, and we posed the question last week of whether he is acting in the interest of the people by striving to bring down his own prime minister, or whether he is demonstrating that he has no honor. Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek gave an answer yesterday. He told Rádio Impuls that Klaus's veto of two implementation laws for pension reform was "extraordinary spitefulness," given than he had not vetoed the reform itself. Spitefulness is generally not considered an honorable trait. Kalousek went a step further and said that Klaus's behavior was "unprincipled," which has a strong moral connotation. With Kalousek, it's like the pot calling the kettle black, but his words are nevertheless the most official verification Czechs have so far that their president is not acting in their interest.
Glossary of difficult words
spitefulness - showing or caused by malice, ill will or evil;trait - a distinguishing quality or characteristic;
connotation - an idea or feeling that a word invokes in a person in addition to its literal or primary meaning; nuance;
like the pot calling the kettle black - an expression meaning that the criticism expressed by someone about someone else could also apply to the person doing the criticizing;
verification - confirmation, proof.