My charitable interpretation of Theresa May's action is that Boris Johnson has been set up to fail as Foreign Secretary.
He is now in charge of MI6, while Amber Rudd is now in charge of MI5. Give that a moment to sink in.
Imagine Jeremy Corbyn's having delivered May's two big speeches this week, in which she identified many very real problems while forgetting to mention who had been in government for the last six years.
There would have been mayhem.
Less than an hour after she was still the longest serving Home Secretary in many decades, May frankly branded the Police as racist. Just try and imagine the reaction to that if it had come from the lips of Corbyn.
Or to so many of May's other points, which put her economically well to the left of all but 40 Labour MPs.
As to the rest of Labour MPs, their record on civil liberties manages the remarkable feat of being even worse than hers.
And they wish to replace Corbyn with a Leader well to May's right. Is that their idea of holding her to her promises and of seeking to extract more undertakings from her?
Of course, they desire the opposite effect.
A Conservative Prime Minister outflanked from the right by the Labour frontbench would either move ever-rightwards, or be removed by her own side in favour of someone who would.
Angela Eagle is a war hawk to the point of a kind of psychosis. As is Owen Smith, but he also wants to privatise the NHS.
Angela Eagle is a war hawk to the point of a kind of psychosis. As is Owen Smith, but he also wants to privatise the NHS.
If Corbyn were to be removed as Leader of the Labour Party, whether by the Rightist Eagle or by the ultra-Rightist Smith, then that would be the end of any political space for any critique of neoliberal economics and of neoconservative foreign policy.
Be that critique traditionalist or libertarian, conservative or liberal, social democratic or democratic socialist.
Anyone who wishes to defend and expand that space needs to be fighting tooth and nail to ensure that the politician whom Theresa May faced at the Despatch Box and in the country remained Jeremy Corbyn.
If he falls, then we all do.
Wonderful stuff. David Davis appointed to lead the Brexit negotiations.
ReplyDeleteBy far the most experienced and best man in Parliament for the job.
Another one set up to fail. Not really the Cabinet type. Born to be a maverick backbencher, and very good at it. But that will get him nowhere with this, and he has been appointed for that very reason. He could sell "Oh, well, we did try" to the rest of them. And he will.
DeleteDefinitely the Cabinet type having been there and done it all before. Far more experienced than the rest.
ReplyDeleteHe won't "sell" anything, he's far too principled.
We're definitely leaving the EU, mark my words.
When was he ever in the Cabinet? It's not his scene. Alas, one of the great backbenchers will be remembered for this, instead.
DeleteMay has cleverly deprived the backbench Brexiteers of their leader. He should have said no.
Labour will now either be led by someone promising a second EU referendum (my guess is that promise will win it) or it will be led by someone who has zero support from his own MPs and will split.
ReplyDeleteEither way there'll be no Opposition from now on.
We're witnessing the end of Labour and a new beginning
The huge growth in Labour membership can be seen in those terms, yes.
DeleteLeave campaigners Liam Fox in charge of negotiating new trade deals outside the EU, Boris Johnson in charge of foreign policy outside the EU and David Davis in charge of negotiating exit from the EU.
ReplyDeleteAnd Leave campaigner-and Theresa May campaign manager-Chris Grayling confirms it's happening.
Wonderful news today.
https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jul/13/chris-grayling-may-promised-me-she-will-honour-eu-vote#
There's more to come out, so to speak, about Liam Fox. Anyway he cannot really start until after Article 50. On which none of them has insisted as a condition of service, which says it all.
DeleteMay is but a vessel for the in(s)anities of Blair. Her speech was pure nonsense.
ReplyDeleteHelp us, someone, anyone ... Jezza?
At least he seems to be sentient.