Andrew is an idiot even by royal standards; I think I’ve seen it said that the Queen has a soft spot for him but I don’t he’s got much support from anyone else.
Andrew did that interview and gave those reasons thinking it would put him in a positive light; he’s was still thinking that the day after the interview was broadcast.
Who could have guessed that being brought up with such privilege and being sheltered from any kind if consequences could have led to such self belief?
The royal family must be thanking their lucky stars for Boris this week.
Pretty obvious attempt at "dead cat"-ing the news cycle, though.
Maybe? It doesn't really seem like today's news on Andrew has changed much.
Nor Johnson, who is probably higher on the Tory priority list to save distract from. I never said it was a good attempt
MI5 is under the PM and the Home Secretary, and any timing of an announcement is, as I understand it, down to them and not MI5 itself. And apparently this has been known but not public for 3 years now. Yet it just comes out today? I don't buy that it's coincidence at all, this is exactly the current Tory M.O.
We're long past peak Chinese influence, that was back when Cameron and Osborne were still in office and were unabashedly selling, giving and prostituting every part of the British state they could to the Chinese. If there was a time to be concerned it would have been then. Since that point someone or someones behind the scenes decided to pump the brakes and since then the relationship is far more adversarial.
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Werewolf2000adSuckers, I know exactly what went wrong.Registered Userregular
"Number 10 held two boozy parties the night before the Queen mourned Prince Philip alone. Staff drank and at points danced until the early hours of the night of April 16. Hours later, the Queen went to a socially-distanced funeral for Philip."
- Tony Diver is a political reporter for the Telegraph.
That's a fucking contrast.
Tories boozing it up for no significant reason, in breach of policy. Head of State required to mourn socially distanced, because of policy.
The knives are out. Feels like "gone by summer" is staring to look far too generous.
Either way I have zero fucks to give about which occupant of the clown car gets to sit at the wheel. I can't bring myself to believe we'll be any better off with Truss or Sunak or any of the mind-numbingly incompetent and self-interested crop of senior Tories in charge. No matter what happens we're staring down the barrel of three more years of government by reacting to twitter.
I can’t see the Telegraph forcing Johnson out. Maybe this is an attempt to blame the staff at Number 10?
I could be wrong, but the Telegraph has acted like his personal cheerleader for years now.
I figured contrasting the behaviour at Number 10 to that of the Queen is a good way of getting right wingers on board with dumping him, though? Reminding everyone that she has also experienced the difficulties of covid restriction that many of us have, stuff like that.
And then I see the likes of Mogg and Lord "Thanks for the ECHR" Frost saying Covid Restrictions were maybe too harsh and don't work and "bleugh" is about the only response I can muster.
A mate told me that Wilf Johnson's swing was broken in the garden of number 10 and I was transported to a land of British whimsy, where I imagined a story of some 18th century prime minister who installed a swing in the garden, due to having the belief that it improves the circulation of thoughts. This swing would have been maintained for centuries as part of Downing Street tradition.
Before I clicked through to the article and came crashing back to reality where some drunk political twat wrecked a kids swing
Quantum Tiger on
+2
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BethrynUnhappiness is MandatoryRegistered Userregular
I can’t see the Telegraph forcing Johnson out. Maybe this is an attempt to blame the staff at Number 10?
I could be wrong, but the Telegraph has acted like his personal cheerleader for years now.
Telegraph veers between the opinion columns that are total, artless sycophancy, and the articles which generally try to smooth over his wrongdoings, but do occasionally call him out on things that an anti-lockdown anti-mask Telegraph reader might object to, like having a party when they're not allowed to.
And in very convenient news, Boris can't come out to play right now because someone in his family has gone positive for Covid. Not going to say who it was, at least until Sue Grey lets them know.
It might have just been a temperature from standing next to all those files being burnt, as the Information Commisioner's Office has had to issue an official warning after hearing that ahead of the impartial investigation from Sue Grey, downing street staff had been told to delete everything relating to any parties.
I suspect Johnson thought he'd have a breather with the Prince Andrew news yesterday and hard on its heels a Chinese agent who gave a Labour MP several hundred grand is outed by MI5 in a very conveniently timed press release, but nope, some more parties come out and it's right back in the crosshairs.
The number of MPs who've put a letter in to the 1922 committee remains very small (5, I think), and it seems like most of the bootlicking, craven bunch are waiting to see what the report says.
I suspect Johnson thought he'd have a breather with the Prince Andrew news yesterday and hard on its heels a Chinese agent who gave a Labour MP several hundred grand is outed by MI5 in a very conveniently timed press release, but nope, some more parties come out and it's right back in the crosshairs.
The number of MPs who've put a letter in to the 1922 committee remains very small (5, I think), and it seems like most of the bootlicking, craven bunch are waiting to see what the report says.
One possibility I read is a lot of them are waiting for the May elections, to see if it has an impact on voting. Losing a few more seats to the lib dems or Labour might see more letters being sent.
I suspect Johnson thought he'd have a breather with the Prince Andrew news yesterday and hard on its heels a Chinese agent who gave a Labour MP several hundred grand is outed by MI5 in a very conveniently timed press release, but nope, some more parties come out and it's right back in the crosshairs.
The number of MPs who've put a letter in to the 1922 committee remains very small (5, I think), and it seems like most of the bootlicking, craven bunch are waiting to see what the report says.
One possibility I read is a lot of them are waiting for the May elections, to see if it has an impact on voting. Losing a few more seats to the lib dems or Labour might see more letters being sent.
Because nothing says courage like waiting to see if the electorate is forgiving of gross incompetence and moral abdication.
Anyone who doesn't support his removal now, shouldn't get credit for changing their mind after they see the election results. But they will, because that's what politics is now.
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jaziekBad at everythingAnd mad about it.Registered Userregular
I work for the Passport Office, and would fucking kill for a 2% pay rise. We've had 1%, or less than 1%, for about 9 years now, since austerity started, and never ended for us.
It won't be much longer until our lowest paid staff start getting affected by minimum wage increases.
You'd think someone so proud of a public school education could have come up with something a little more tasteful as a name. Operation Thermopylae, for example.
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BethrynUnhappiness is MandatoryRegistered Userregular
You'd think someone so proud of a public school education could have come up with something a little more tasteful as a name. Operation Thermopylae, for example.
It's more that I struggle to believe that even BoJo, knowing number 10 is currently leaking like a sieve made of swiss cheese, decided it was a good idea to run around saying "I'm collecting a list of names for people to throw under the bus to save myself, I'm going to give this process a silly name that outright says what I'm doing".
You'd think someone so proud of a public school education could have come up with something a little more tasteful as a name. Operation Thermopylae, for example.
It's more that I struggle to believe that even BoJo, knowing number 10 is currently leaking like a sieve made of swiss cheese, decided it was a good idea to run around saying "I'm collecting a list of names for people to throw under the bus to save myself, I'm going to give this process a silly name that outright says what I'm doing".
Am I overestimating him?
If you even think you may be overestimating him, you probably are.
Yes, it's astonishing to find that there are so many people apparently willing to backstab the kind of person who, when in trouble, starts openly making lists of other people to take the fall for him.
Yes, it's astonishing to find that there are so many people apparently willing to backstab the kind of person who, when in trouble, starts openly making lists of other people to take the fall for him.
I'm a distant observer, but haven't the Tories defined themselves on ruthless backstabbing as they appear to have no other expertise?
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FencingsaxIt is difficult to get a man to understand, when his salary depends upon his not understandingGNU Terry PratchettRegistered Userregular
Just thinking, if Sue Grey's legendary enquiry concludes that they technically get away with everything, do they actually think that'll end all this?
I feel like the most likely outcome is they get accused of whitewashing on top of everything else they're already covered in.
Yet one figure who worked for Johnson and his predecessor Theresa May said the extent of lockdown breaking was the result of a culture emanating from the top. They told an anecdote about Johnson’s second period in isolation when staff had to confine him to his study to stop him mixing with staff. “I remember we had to create a ‘cat run’ for him to get down from the flat to his office so he wouldn’t come into contact with people.
“The idea was we could talk to him through the open door. But he kept on coming out so we put two chairs across the door like some kind of puppy gate.
“There was a pattern throughout. He just simply did not think about following the rules. They were not for him.”
Posts
He's got the look of a man watching the noose slowly tighten around him
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-59984380
Did not have that on my 2022 bingo
Andrew did that interview and gave those reasons thinking it would put him in a positive light; he’s was still thinking that the day after the interview was broadcast.
Who could have guessed that being brought up with such privilege and being sheltered from any kind if consequences could have led to such self belief?
The royal family must be thanking their lucky stars for Boris this week.
Pretty obvious attempt at "dead cat"-ing the news cycle, though.
Steam | XBL
Nor Johnson, who is probably higher on the Tory priority list to save distract from. I never said it was a good attempt
MI5 is under the PM and the Home Secretary, and any timing of an announcement is, as I understand it, down to them and not MI5 itself. And apparently this has been known but not public for 3 years now. Yet it just comes out today? I don't buy that it's coincidence at all, this is exactly the current Tory M.O.
Steam | XBL
EVERYBODY WANTS TO SIT IN THE BIG CHAIR, MEG!
Given that they're a naturally Tory supporting paper, running this seems to be an indication that they're committing to getting Johnson out
(Telegraph political correspondent)
"Number 10 held two boozy parties the night before the Queen mourned Prince Philip alone. Staff drank and at points danced until the early hours of the night of April 16. Hours later, the Queen went to a socially-distanced funeral for Philip."
- Tony Diver is a political reporter for the Telegraph.
That's a fucking contrast.
Tories boozing it up for no significant reason, in breach of policy. Head of State required to mourn socially distanced, because of policy.
The knives are out. Feels like "gone by summer" is staring to look far too generous.
Either way I have zero fucks to give about which occupant of the clown car gets to sit at the wheel. I can't bring myself to believe we'll be any better off with Truss or Sunak or any of the mind-numbingly incompetent and self-interested crop of senior Tories in charge. No matter what happens we're staring down the barrel of three more years of government by reacting to twitter.
I could be wrong, but the Telegraph has acted like his personal cheerleader for years now.
Choose Your Own Chat 1 Choose Your Own Chat 2 Choose Your Own Chat 3
I figured contrasting the behaviour at Number 10 to that of the Queen is a good way of getting right wingers on board with dumping him, though? Reminding everyone that she has also experienced the difficulties of covid restriction that many of us have, stuff like that.
And then I see the likes of Mogg and Lord "Thanks for the ECHR" Frost saying Covid Restrictions were maybe too harsh and don't work and "bleugh" is about the only response I can muster.
Before I clicked through to the article and came crashing back to reality where some drunk political twat wrecked a kids swing
It might have just been a temperature from standing next to all those files being burnt, as the Information Commisioner's Office has had to issue an official warning after hearing that ahead of the impartial investigation from Sue Grey, downing street staff had been told to delete everything relating to any parties.
The number of MPs who've put a letter in to the 1922 committee remains very small (5, I think), and it seems like most of the bootlicking, craven bunch are waiting to see what the report says.
Choose Your Own Chat 1 Choose Your Own Chat 2 Choose Your Own Chat 3
One possibility I read is a lot of them are waiting for the May elections, to see if it has an impact on voting. Losing a few more seats to the lib dems or Labour might see more letters being sent.
Because nothing says courage like waiting to see if the electorate is forgiving of gross incompetence and moral abdication.
Anyone who doesn't support his removal now, shouldn't get credit for changing their mind after they see the election results. But they will, because that's what politics is now.
I work for the Passport Office, and would fucking kill for a 2% pay rise. We've had 1%, or less than 1%, for about 9 years now, since austerity started, and never ended for us.
It won't be much longer until our lowest paid staff start getting affected by minimum wage increases.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-downing-street-partygate-b1993433.html
He is apparently drawing up a list of civil servants who will "resign" to deflect the criticism in the widely leaked Sue Gray report
It is supposedly called "operation save big dog" and yes, he came up with that himself
It's more that I struggle to believe that even BoJo, knowing number 10 is currently leaking like a sieve made of swiss cheese, decided it was a good idea to run around saying "I'm collecting a list of names for people to throw under the bus to save myself, I'm going to give this process a silly name that outright says what I'm doing".
Am I overestimating him?
If you even think you may be overestimating him, you probably are.
Pippa is a journalist for The Mirror.
The timings on these stories have been perfect. Release one story, wait for the storm to die down then release another.
Each one putting more and more pressure on Johnson.
Whoever is leaking this info really wants him gone.
That hardly narrows the field down does it
I bet there are people on the list that would never have leaked until it became clear that it was that or become a scapegoat for this twat.
It doesn't feel like it's an organic response, if that makes sense? It feels like a planned campaign at how regularly this is going on.
I'm a distant observer, but haven't the Tories defined themselves on ruthless backstabbing as they appear to have no other expertise?
I mean, this is what competent deviousness looks like. We're just used to mendacious whining.
I feel like the most likely outcome is they get accused of whitewashing on top of everything else they're already covered in.