brexit negging when yr mandate is is trash: or further chronicles of a garbage-fire

Major's government did survive a long time.

They clung on to a slowly vanishing overall majority for more than four years, though. May's starting point is worse than Major's 1996 position, never mind 1992. I don't see how they could possibly get through five years without a general election.

Night and day from what it was, Nick.

we can't have a general election until we've finished blowing raspberries and flicking Vs at the European Parliament

The Tories are mostly benefitting right now from the electorate's exhaustion (probably the media's too - rw papers criticism of May seems v reluctant and vague and they still go a hundred times harder on Labour fwiw at this point). 'Yeah but Labour would be worse' is bottomless reasoning but what do their voters have beyond that at this point?

The Tories will win the next election, don't kid yourselves.

the next election will be fought in the Thunderdome

master blaster 4 pm

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/06/world/europe/brexit-eu-negotiations.html

cold

As a late Friday present, this is delicious:

https://www.conservativehome.com/majority_conservatism/2017/09/our-cchq-election-audit-the-rusty-machine-part-two-how-and-why-the-ground-campaign-failed.html

They were on to a hiding, but their arrogance made the hiding even worse - the point where polling spurred them on to pull resources from Labour marginal seats for supposed gains further up and further in is amazing.

Also a suspicion that the best journalism about the shambles of the selection process was happening on www.conservativehome.com

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/sep/10/tony-blair-get-tough-on-immigration-to-stop-brexit

Let's do a load of things that would be illegal if we stayed in the EU in order to stay in the EU.

i wonder why Blair and his acolytes think that xenophobic policies are the key to the centre ground. it's almost as if they're expressing something about their own instincts rather than triangulating.

Ridiculous piece.

Is it the free hall pass you get having once been PM, that all your articles and mumbo jumbo will be published? Will there *ever* come a point when an editor at the Graun will just say: "Sorry Tony mate, we're trying to move on from the damage you've done, we're not interested in your op-ed's anymore, and chiefly, our readers have rended you irrelevant."

(or Sunday Times in this case. Or whoever the fuck)

hoping TBlair is rended to a state of irrelevance very soon

Almost unbelievable how awful Blair is as elder statesman. He could definitely shit out some centrist bromides and be welcomed in the press, instead he just seems to be dedicated to advancing his very esoteric personal view on politics.

"le centre, c'est moi"

Chicken lasagne, anyone? With a side of boiled potatoes?

*boaks*

Just saw that on Guardian - pulls punch on whether they really were boiled though.

Crosby told the senior advisers, who had gathered to discuss the party’s strategy over a meal of chicken lasagne and potatoes: “By the way, mate, it’s not about being the change candidate, it’s about doing what people want.”

Hope he calls her 'Theresa Mate'.

The authors also reveal that May rarely visited party workers, fearing that Conservative HQ was “a pit of germs”. “There were quite a lot of germs flying around,” one Conservative source said.

is this to be taken literally?

maybe it's code for herpes?

A Germophobe eh? That'll be worth a Con bounce in Hartlepool for sure.

Tony Blair wanted British football league

irrelevant, trivial, but it really speaks to the man's character imo

that character being "clueless, controlling idiot" obv

Mr Blair said he believed merging the Scottish and English leagues would strengthen the bonds between the two nations after devolution.

But he said a British national football team would have been a "step too far".

let's bring the nations together by having a joint league! but then keep the nations apart by not having a uk national squad!

nothing brings communities together like club football, the man knows his stuff

can we not somehow persuade ISIS that he's their number 1 enemy or something?

cool britannia is a helluva drug

I would like a comprehensive list of the pro/con analyses that have been done regarding the UK national football squad

*remove bookmark from thread*

pro: Northern Ireland got some handy resources these days
con: Arlene Foster insists on playing sweeper herself (wearing #27)
pro: John Terry cries to death

(FAO David Squires)

I think a cold wet Tuesday night in Alloa beats a cold wet Tuesday night in Stoke hands down.

Home nations vs Away nations

I think a key element of any analysis should be "this has fuck all to do with the government"

Brexit bill power grab is cool but let's laugh at Venezuela instead

Fighting talk! Osborne won't rest til May "is chopped up in bags in my freezer", he's reportedly told allies. https://t.co/h3kdrrKCly

— Lucy Fisher (@LOS_Fisher) September 13, 2017

syntax in this tweet is (deliberately?) such a pitch-perfect clickhole imitation

the opening sentence of the linked piece on the other hand is weirdly reminiscent of the John Lanchester's Capital thread:

At a little after 6.30, nearly every weekday morning, George Osborne — 46 years old, tall, rich, boyish, tieless — takes the bus from Notting Hill in west London, where he lives, to Kensington High Street, where he works, orders his breakfast to take away from Leon, arrives at the marbled and airy headquarters of the London Evening Standard, takes the lift to the second floor, enters his corner office, and sets about destroying his political enemies.

lol

I don't think Osborne has actually turned the LES into a must-read, esquire.co.uk.

yep, couldn't gaf about intraparty Tory vendettas being conducted in some shitty downmarket rag. Might be "must-read" for Gideon's mummy and various other bullingdon club chums.

"My political enemies, let me show you them" squeakles former multiple GQ Politician of the Year and Leon quaffing Grenfell culpable metro leet fake job whore Gidderz.

orders his breakfast to take away from Leon

Leon presumably being the malnourished 5-year-old son of an unemployed single mum?

LOL Leon founded by posh af West London cheffy types including Henry Dimbleby.

not particularly nice either tho i'm a 1 banana for breakfast guy.

don't know if I fancy brown sauce on a breakfast

brown sauce on a banana, ruined my own lame joke thru tired eyes and brain

So May is planning to try and end run around the whole Brexit process by convincing all the other EEA members to sign up to a have-cake-eat-it “New EEA” on Britain’s terms? It’s the most batshit attempt yet.

I’m starting to realise there are elements that *genuinely believe* they need us more than we need them and that we can dictate. This is lunacy.

Oops

1. Our intel is that May is going to announce in her speech that she's to give formal notice to leave the EEA.

— The Leave Alliance (@LeaveHQ) September 12, 2017

4. She's not going to walk away, but it will be a take it or leave it offer. Either take it or we walk.

*smart smiling guy pointing to head meme*

please let us stay in or we will force you to let us leave