🪖 This Week in Spain: Defense Budget Drama

🦸 Plus: Comic-Con comes to Andalucía and a PP AI-generated video offends the Dominican Republic.

Second Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz. (Grok)

Madrid | Issue #93

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🌰 This Week in a Nutshell: Now that Europe has come to terms with the Trump world order, it’s time to arm up. However, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will not have it easy here, as progressive and leftist parties are totally against increasing defense spending.

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Make NATO Great Again

PM Sánchez says Spain is ready to boost defense spending. His lefty partners? Not so much

It’s clear that Europe is facing one of its biggest security dilemmas in decades. With Trump threatening to withdraw U.S. military protection, European leaders have rallied around a historic €800 billion defense investment plan, hoping to reduce their dependence on the U.S.

Spain, you gotta pay. NATO is also pushing its members to increase military spending to deter Russia, and this means that Spain, the organization’s lowest spender (dedicating just 1.28% of GDP to defense in 2024) is now feeling the pressure to step up and move toward the 2% target it agreed to back in, oh, 2014.

Crunch time. After weeks of reaffirming long-term plans to get to 2%…by 2029, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is now accepting this may need to be done sooner, but it won’t be easy. The issue? Spain’s extremely divided political reality.

Herding 🐈‍⬛. Not only does Sánchez have to convince center-right PP to support him (PP looks kindly on military spending, hates Sánchez), he also needs to convince his anti-war, leftist partners (who look kindly on him, and hate military spending).

So…meetings. Last week, the PM said he would hold one-on-one meetings with the leaders of all parliamentary groups except for far-right Vox, because Sánchez says their position “is very clear” (i.e. they are siding with Trump).
How long? This announcement was significant as Sánchez and PP boss Alberto Núñez Feijóo haven’t met one-on-one for 15 months because ~~their love explodes into fire if they touch~~ they pretty much hate each other.

Weirdly, it’ll be hardest with friends. Both PSOE and PP agree on the need to increase defense spending so they are expected to (eventually) agree. The hardest part?Convincing the leftist parties.

The Lefties. The leftish Sumar coalition inside Sánchez’s government (remember them?) and the other lefties that support it from the outside (ERC and Podemos) have made it clear they are all against more defense spending because war is bad and stuff and money spent on defense can’t be spent on other things.

Anti-spend logic. Sumar boss-lady Yolanda Díaz said this week that "nothing is fixed by increasing the military budget" and that the goal shouldn’t be spending more but coordinating better because the EU made a mistake by “outsourcing” its defense to the U.S. (someone might mention that the U.S. spends a heck of a lot on defense, and without that help, Europe might need to spend more of its own?)
PSOE pushback. Socialist spokesperson Patxi López pushed back on “populist” arguments of Sumar and others to the left, saying, “It's not about guns or butter. It's about security and social policies." And Sánchez told Díaz there would be no social cuts made to spend on defense. (One thing we will not hear from the government? Any talk about hard choices or belt-tightening).
But it might not matter. Sumar has objected to more military spending over 20 times in cabinet meetings but has always gone along with the increases afterwards. “The complaints of the vice president of Sumar have had no consequences,” El Español writes (not at all poking fun, of course).

Meeting time. Starting this morning, Sánchez is meeting with all major party leaders to discuss Spain’s role in Europe’s rearmament. They include PP leader Núñez Feijóo, followed by representatives from ERC, Junts, Bildu, PNV, Podemos, BNG, Coalición Canaria, and UPN.

Why today’s newsletter is late. After his meeting ended this afternoon, Feijóo held a press conference and said that while he agrees that Europe needs to rearm, he thought “engaging in dialogue” with PSOE would be very difficult.

No plan. He said Sánchez didn’t “present him with a plan” or “ask for help”. He also said that “a 30-minute meeting and a coffee” to discuss this “wasn’t serious”, especially considering that the PP is the most-voted political party in Spain. He also warned Sánchez may try to bypass Parliament to achieve this, which makes the possibility of an agreement “impossible”.

Prime Minister Sánchez is expected to speak this afternoon and we plan to update our website with what he says.

**Update: Prime Minister Sánchez offered a press conference this afternoon. Here are five key takeaways from what he said."**

1. No cuts. Defense spending won’t impact social policies. “We will not cut a single euro cent from social policy to meet our commitment to Europe in security and defense.”

2. Not just a regional conflict – He emphasized that the war in Ukraine is about more than just a regional dispute; it affects the multilateral order and international rules: “Peace in Ukraine and prosperity in Europe are two sides of the same coin.”

3. Support for Ukraine’s security – Spain and Europe must continue supporting Ukraine to ensure it reaches negotiations from a position of strength and to provide security guarantees that prevent future Russian aggression.

4. Parliamentary debate on defense spending. Despite what Núñez Feijóo said this morning, Sánchez responded to criticism and stated that any decision requiring parliamentary approval will go through Parliament.

5. New security threats beyond Ukraine – He highlighted that Spain does not face a conventional military threat but rather hybrid threats like cyberattacks and that Europe must strengthen its security and defense capabilities.

No Trump bump. Speaking of Vox (sorta), according to an El Mundo poll, the party seems to have been hurt by their explicit support for (and endorsement by) Donald Trump and has dropped 0.2% to 12.9% of the vote. Sad face.

More news below. 👇👇

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💬 Five things to discuss at dinner parties this week

1. ☹️ The murder of a social worker in Badajoz

Spain was shaken Sunday night by the brutal murder of 35-year-old social worker Belén Cortés—allegedly at the hands of the very teenagers she was assigned to help. She was beaten and strangled with a belt inside a state-run apartment for at-risk minors in Badajoz (Extremadura).

The call. A boy who lived in the house called his social worker, who then alerted police. Officers arrived to find Belén dead.
On the run. The two boys who are thought to have killed Belén, 14 and 15 years old, had already fled in Belén’s grey Renault Megane, driven by a 17-year-old girl who was another resident of the same house but not implicated in the murder.
Crash and capture. The three crashed the car on the A5 highway, then hitchhiked to Mérida. The girl was arrested at 3 a.m.; the two boys four hours later.

None of this explains how this came to pass. But there were plenty of signs that the two main suspects were trouble—and the system failed repeatedly.

Long rap sheet. The 14-year-old (D.G.P.) attacked his father four times and broke his nose. The 15-year-old (J.J.G.) was a habitual car thief who apparently once committed 37 crimes in a single weekend.

In & out of supervised care. Both boys had long histories of living in and escaping juvenile facilities. The older one had threatened a teacher in Villafranca de los Barros (for giving his a zero on an exam) and fought a fellow handball player in Mérida.
Troubled families. The 14-year-old’s parents frequently reported his disappearances to police. The older boy’s parents, who were divorced and had been convicted of domestic violence, did not, according to El Mundo.
Carnaval escape. On March 1, the two escaped during a supervised outing, and went to celebrate Carnaval in Mérida, where one had a girlfriend, and were eventually located in Villafranca de los Barros, where they stayed with the 15-year-old’s mother.
No intervention. The two were captured after they robbed a coffee shop in Villafranca; the family of the 14-year-old then reported that the older kid’s mother was supplying them with drugs. But because a judge wasn’t available over the weekend, instead of police supervision, they were sent back to the home where they lived in “semi-liberty”—and where Belén would be killed days later.

Still, why? The police have yet to publish a motive, but it’s clear the two had an opportunity. Extremadura outsources juvenile care apartments to private services, which assign caregivers to oversee the children. Belén, one of five assigned to the house, was there alone (as was usual). She had entered the home not long before she was murdered, for her 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. shift, which she had continued to do despite reporting that she had already been threatened.

Social workers want change. Social workers are now demanding safety measures such as cameras in the residences as well as security guards or a second social worker per shift. “The kids are increasingly aggressive,” said Sheila Gómez, Belén’s colleague and friend. “This could have happened to any of us.”

Suspect family speaks.. The family of the 14-year-old expressed their “deepest condolences" and called for the justice system to "act decisively."

2. 🏖️ ‘Tourist, Go Home!’ but with a conservative twist!

We Bubble editors both separately just visited Mallorca and we can confirm:

The Balearic Islands are absurdly gorgeous
There are a LOT of tourists

Well, it seems like the islands’ government has decided it’s actually too many tourists and they’re trying to do something about it.

The twist? This time it’s not a lefty or regionalist party slamming over-tourism—it’s the center-right PP. And you know when the business-friendly right is bashing tourism (50% of the regional economy), the problem must be huge.

So what’s happening? The government led by regional President Marga Prohens on Friday announced a series of proposed measures designed to raise money from tourists, push them to come off-season and crack down on new and illegal tourist rentals. Specifically:

Sleeping’s gonna cost ya. The Sustainable Tourism Tax (Impuesto de Turismo Sostenible) or Ecotasa, which is basically a lodging tax, would be eliminated in January and February, while it would jump up to 200% in the high season, hitting €6 per person per night.
Bringing a Car? Pay Up. A new tax (between €35 and €150, depending on emissions and stay length) would hit rental cars & visitors' vehicles.
Tourist rental crackdown. The islands would ban new tourist rentals in multifamily buildings, and raise fines on illegal rentals to up to €500,000. That’s, like, a lot.

The backlash? Predictable. The Exceltur tourist lobby called the plans “improvisations” and asked for a “more balanced and fair” analysis (hmm, we’re guessing “over-tourism” would still top the list), while the car rental lobby called the new taxes “discriminatory.” The far-righties of Vox bashed the PP for “joining the left's anti-tourism discourse” while the left said the measures didn’t go far enough. Surprise!

Our guess? Once the local PP gets down to negotiating these proposals, something will probably pass. Why?

Something has to happen. From Barcelona to the Canary Islands, locals are joining angry anti-tourism protests, largely because of Spain’s housing crisis (a.k.a. “No one under 40 can buy a home”). And in Palma (Mallorca), 20,000 came out last July, chanting, "Your luxury, our misery" and "It's not tourismophobia, it's numbers."

But if you can get to the islands. Visit Sóller, and try the antique-y trains from Palma to Sóller and the beach (see video above). But maybe visit off-season. We did.

3. 🇩🇴 PP deletes AI-generated video after it starts a diplomatic conflict with the Dominican Republic

Here’s a ~~six-pack~~ diplomatic crisis we didn’t see coming.

Meant to be funny. The PP last week posted on social media an AI-generated video in which we could see several people involved in judicial scandals affecting the PSOE, such as Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (sporting a very suspicious six-pack), his wife Begoña Gómez and former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos, participating in a fictional show titled La Isla de las Corrupciones or “Corruption Island”.

Hype piggyback. The goal was clearly to capitalize on the hype surrounding the hit reality show Temptation Island Spain (“Montoya, por favor!”), which is filmed in the Dominican Republic.
But, but, but… The PP video featured a map and flag of the Caribbean country, suggesting that Corruption Island was set there.
Maybe on purpose? Last year, the PP made multiple accusations about “mysterious” flights to the DR using the official government jet. Defense Minister Margarita Robles later explained they were mostly stopovers for refueling.
🍿 Watch it. You can watch the now-deleted video here.

Backfire. The move was probably inspired by the “Trump Gaza” post from a few weeks ago and hoped to draw the ire of the socialists. Except it backfired.

DR angry. The video quickly triggered a diplomatic crisis with the DR, whose Foreign Ministry took to X to express its “rejection” to the “unacceptable” use of the country’s image to criticize Spain’s internal political issues.
Of course he did. PM Sánchez condemned the video (see above), saying that he felt “deep shame” for it and personally apologized to the DR for the use of imagery that led to the country’s protest.

Delete button. Less than 24 hours later, the PP took the video down and apologized on X, saying that there was never “any intent to damage the image of the Dominican Republic, a country with a long tradition of friendship and close ties with Spain.”

No, you! The following day, PP’s parliamentary spokesperson, Miguel Tellado, again “sincerely apologized” to the DR—although he added Sánchez “should also apologize” for allowing corruption within his own party.

La tableta gubernamental. In the end, we’re pretty sure the one thing you’ll remember the most about this is Sánchez’s six-pack.

4. 🕵️‍♂️The ‘Great Babia Mystery’—solved!

Retrato robot de Luis María difundido por la Guardia Civil para pedir

An artist’s rendering of the Babia man. From the Guardia Civil.

For a decade, Spanish police puzzled over an unidentified body found at 5 p.m. on Jan. 11, 2015 in the mountains of Asturias on the border of the León region of Babia. And now the mystery is solved! But first…

The story had everything. There was:

A dramatic discovery. Two hikers at the Los Rebecos lookout on the AS-227 highway saw across a green bag… that happened to have a hand sticking out of it.
A race against nature. The naked body inside had been partially eaten by scavengers—and had yanked a leg off—but forensic experts determined he had actually died just two or three days earlier. If it had been longer the vultures would have gotten him. “Twenty meters further to the left and it wouldn't have been found,” a policeman told El Mundo. “In fact, two days later it started snowing, and we were unable to access the site for a month."
Strange clues. The body—a man’s—had a fresh haircut, neatly trimmed beard, and clean fingernails, and been placed right near the lookout. Meaning…whoever dumped him wanted him to be found.
A forensic puzzle. The autopsy revealed that the body was a malnourished, 1.40m-tall, 35-kilo man with severe disabilities, including cerebral palsy, blindness from cataracts, he was likely deaf, he had no upper teeth (and only a few on the bottom), couldn’t walk or speak and only make guttural sounds.

A puzzle. So…a death with no violence, no ID, no missing person reports? Whose body was this?

The Search for ‘The Man from Babia’. A universal fingerprint or DNI check would have solved the case, but at the time that wasn’t scientifically or legally possible. So, for years, investigators searched everywhere.

High and low. They knocked on doors, talked to priests, researched hospitals and even tracked a 50-year-old blanket that was only sold in Burgos and Gijón.

And…nothing. The case went cold. And that was weird. Wouldn’t people have remembered such an odd-looking man? Apparently not. Every new officer on the team was asked to take a fresh look, but the ‘Man from Babia’ remained a mystery. And then, a decade later…just a few weeks ago…a breakthrough.

The phone rings. In January 2025, Gijón police got a routine call. They were asked to find a missing man: Luis María J.C. A 65-year-old with severe disabilities, last seen over a decade ago, who’d been placed in the care of his two brothers since the 1990s. And now social services wanted to grade his current disability level.
The weird thing(s)? He had no recent medical records. His electronic prescriptions were inactive. However, he’d still been collecting disability checks: Social Security had been paying him €3,000/month for years.

Then it all came together. (Sort of.) Police finally tracked down the brothers. They had abandoned apartment after apartment—maybe fleeing?—until they were caught by the police in Euskadi—and returned to Gijón.

Luis María was ‘The Man from Babia’. Their fingerprints matched the mystery corpse from 2015. His siblings, Enrique & Enriqueta, had been cashing his social security benefits—€350,000 over 10 years.
Their defense? They said nothing, beyond offering a cryptic confession in the police station: The body found was “The Man from Babia.”

The Charges. The brothers were charged with fraud, for stealing his pension; and homicide by neglect, for not seeking medical help when he fell ill and died. Turns out the entire mystery was about collecting Social Security payments.

Maybe a new slogan for Spain? Where even true crime stories are about bureaucracy™️

5. 🦸🏻 San Diego’s Comic-Con is in Málaga and everyone is freaking out

Attention nerds and pop culture enthusiasts, this is a big one! For the first time in its 54-year history, the San Diego Comic-Con is going beyond California and coming to Málaga later this year.

Culture vultures. For decades, Comic-Con has been quite possibly the most important pop culture festival in the world, where world premieres and presentations take place, alongside panels and Q&As featuring A-list celebrities and artists. It’s a massive event that covers film, TV, video games, comics and anime. And in six months, it’s all happening in Spain.

The event will take place from September 25-28, at the massive Palacio de Ferias y Congresos in Málaga, a venue that could host more than 60,000 attendees.
Over four days, visitors can expect exclusive previews from major studios like Marvel, DC, Star Wars, Netflix, HBO, and Warner Bros., along with Q&A sessions with actors, directors, and writers.
No ticket news. There’s no word on when tickets will be available or how much they will cost, but we know that this first edition will offer 300 hours of exclusive content, including talks, panels, immersive experiences, and exhibits.
But there’s more! On top of that, future dates in 2026 and 2027 have already been secured.

The announcement was officially made Monday in an event attended by local celebs such as Álex de la Iglesia, Santiago Segura, Eva Ugarte, Natalia Verbeke, a few stormtroopers (you know, the white soldiers from Star Wars) and Darth Maul (aka this guy, also from Star Wars).

This is a game-changer for Andalucía. The region in general—and Málaga specifically—is poised to become Europe’s new pop culture hub while also establishing itself as a major destination for the entertainment industry—just like Los Angeles, London, and Tokyo. Another example? Sevilla hosted the Latin Grammys last year.

See you all there in September! 🥳

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