Has samak run out of options?

The major question of the day is: what choice does Samak have, especially now that the Democrats have apparently blocked his "graceful" exit with their no-confidence motion?

Can Samak still dissolve Parliament, since the Constitution prohibits a House dissolution once a censure motion has been submitted?

It depends on the legal interpretation of the phrase "has been submitted". Technically, the Democrats' motion has been received - it has been handed over to Parliament authorities. But has the process of submitting it been actually completed?

Some, the government in particular, argue that as long as the motion is not officially put on the parliamentary agenda, the process of submitting it is not complete. Things get more complicated with the fact that the Democrats' motion is being processed outside the normal parliamentary session.

Article 158 of the Constitution doesn't offer any clue in favour of either side in the debate. It simply states that there cannot be a House dissolution once a censure motion has been "submitted", unless the motion is withdrawn or beaten in a vote.

The government side has insisted behind the scenes that the submission is not complete, pending the registering of the Democrat motion on the House agenda. It has also argued that the current extraordinary session was called for a different purpose.

The current session ends on June 28. According to government legal experts, the Democrats will have to call for another extraordinary session for its no-confidence motion, a move that requires support from a minimum of 207 MPs and senators.

Can the Democrats achieve that?

With a sizeable number of senators now turning against the government, it wouldn't be too hard to find enough support.

Should they push for it?

Though the government has taken steps to pre-empt attacks on potential corruption scandals, the time is ripe for a major parliamentary offensive. The economic hardships will give the Democrats strong ammunition, as will the government's obsession with trying to help ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his former associates. Moreover, the Democrats will have quite a long wait if they fail to censure the Samak government in the next few weeks, as the next normal parliamentary session, starting in August, is constitutionally earmarked for legislative affairs.

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