Daniel the Indispensable

Oswaldo Rivas/Reuters

The Nicaraguan congress is moving towards reforming the country's constitution in order to remove the ban on consecutive presidential re-election and to bring the constitution in line with the Supreme Court's controversial 2010 decision.

The move would seem to be a potential setback to democracy in Nicaragua and to the institutionalization of reforms implemented during President Daniel Ortega's most recent two terms in office. There is no obvious heir to Daniel and it does not appear that he envisions anyone else occupying the presidency, Sandinista or not, anytime soon.

President Ortega maintains high approval ratings and the Nicaraguan people seem content with his presidency. The Supreme Court found a ban on re-election to be unconstitutional and now the National Assembly is considering a change to the constitution to reflect what the court determined to be so.

It might not be the wisest decision in the world but I can't seem to get all worked up about it.

On the other hand, the other reforms are indeed troubling.(More thoughts later)