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

Need an actual explanation from PP but seems like it's just being swept away. And as it's described as extraordinary that she met Netanyahu secretly - does that apply to him too or not? Naturally Johnson trotted out an inane glowing tribute to her as if she really had "decided to resign" and was somehow unfairly a victim of the system.

Tom Watson has written to May demanding answers on what the hell was going on there, and what May knew/sanctioned

incredible that the media line is to just accept this family holiday that happened to have 15 political engagements.

xxp he's a known grifter under current criminal investigation. no one in israel is going to care about this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Netanyahu#Criminal_investigations

Somebody on Newsnight (maybe Ian Dale, I wasn't paying attention) said that Theresa May had at least allowed Priti Patel to resign with some dignity... yeah, that was going on today, dignity.

Dignity:

https://www.standard.co.uk/s3fs-public/styles/hero_tablet/public/thumbnails/image/2017/11/08/14/prit1a.jpg

Convinced her Whatsapp status was only newsworthy because of the 'Always working *winky face emoticon*', which is either insane levels of brass neck or just crushing irony.

felt more like an opportunity for hacks to broadcast that they have the secretary of state for international development in their whatsapp circle to me

For that to happen you only really need to have their phone number and 'political hack has minister's number' is not really bragging territory.

i didn't say it was a good or effective brag

for good and ill, the "first!!" impulse is insanely strong in journalists, by professional deformation and self-selection -- and in story downtime (the drama of a key figure unreachable on a long flight) will bend towards fatuously minor nothings of info, esp among journos with no self-awareness or self-respect

(i hesitate to say THIS IS ALL OF THEM, but consider the exemplars of the field…)

Just on a more basic technical level, being FIRST! is hugely important in terms of search results. On a day when tens of thousands of people were all googling 'Priti Patel' at once then getting even the most minor irrelevant shit up before everyone else = clicks.

Obviously this doesn't lead to good journalism but when the whole commercial ecosystem is this fucked the insatiable content machine needs constant feeding, and it's why people will liveblog the opening of an envelope these days.

Liveblogging the opening of an envelope>>>The British Open

it's just called The Open :P

Close Sesame!

Every paper went with a pic of PP smiling in her car after leaving No. 10 which was odd for a number of reasons.

Newsnight (which I rarely watch) briefly spoke to Pollard but only about how this debacle compares to past Tory debacles. NOTHING about Pollard's own claim that the PM did actually know of Patel's meetings. This too seemed odd.

The general tone in media coverage has been ODD and of almost admiration for PP's supposed leadership ambitions and everyone is certain she will be 'back', hinting at the hunger for that next phase in her trajectory already. Obv she will be back as nothing actually matters - just a question of whether she returns to the Cabinet before the next election of after, all very much dependent on when that takes place. There just seemed to be complete disinterest in the question of why the secrecy in the first place or punishing PP meaningfully.

i feel like a lot of Beeb journos have been running the "this is some shit that only politics wonks care about" line since the story broke, and on one level there may be an element of truth to that but on every other level including the legal one imagine if she'd gone on holiday to say Iran or China

Must be some in the brexit camp that are actually delighted that this whole debacle has exposed the shadiness of our foreign aid dealings and the questionable parties that our money's being channelled to

like the taxpayers alliance must whacking themselves into a lather over this

Shadiness of foreign aid as practiced by a cynical Brexiter who doesn’t believe in aid more like. Nagl for the Brexit kru

There are definitely some Tory MPs crowing about "positive discrimination" right now while conveniently overlooking the fact that the thing that's played most in her favour is that she's a vocal and prominent Brexiter. So many obviously over-promoted ministers on the Leave side right now.

May was at a banquet celebrating 25 years of Dacre at the Mail last night. Imagining some seriously maudlin fuhrerbunker despair and cyanide pills on the menu, without invoking those lame Downfall memes that do the rounds.

TS: Cyanide vs Chicken lasagna and boiled potatoes

some of the downfall memes are great tbh

hitler finding out he hasn't got tickets to see richie hawtin, for example.

I liked the ILX-themed one.

I don't doubt the claim that Priti Patel has leadership ambitions but, Jesus, wtf?

did someone actually do an ilx downfall video? i hope that's not a joke.

so many possibilities.

that's what I'm worried about!

Brussels is reportedly preparing for two eventualities - a change in leadership in the UK or elections which could lead to Labour coming to power.

I bet they'll be disappointed when she is still there next year.

There is an ilx themed one, but don't ask me how to found it

*find

Penny Mordaunt in. No doubt to placate those that wanted her to replace Fallon last week.

she did a cracking job as disability minister, especially good at not answering difficult questions and ignoring people.

ILX downfall video was NV mourning the Dom permaban iirc

penny mordaunt? has she taken time off from being the villain in a classic disney movie?

She might well be, you would probably have a better chance of getting a response from a Disney villain tbh.

As in a written response when your local MP writes to her about the ridiculously dishonest sham PIP assessment that has been done on a constituent.

tbh i look back on Domfall as flawed in many ways now, wish i'd had a bigger budget

Mordaunt was big on the Leave Lie about Turkey joining the EU any year now and Britain's supposed inability to veto that if Remaining.

Penny Mordaunt was a couple of years above me at university and 2 of my friends knew her as they were in the same department. One of them messaged me today to voice his displeasure at the appointment. I remember the name from back then but I'm pretty sure I never met her. I seem to recall them not liking her very much, which would make a lot of sense.

Hitler Downfall memes totally useless if you speak German, or at least that's the case for me.

Nah. I speak German but that's easy to ignore if you just reads the subtitles. Played format though? Def.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/nov/09/johnson-under-fresh-pressure-over-nazanin-zaghari-ratcliffe-error-iranian-tv

Johnson's "misspeaking" on Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is being reported as an "inadvertent confession" of spying in the Iranian media.

Ladies and gentlemen, political journalism in the UK in 2017: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/11/09/amid-government-wreckage-michael-gove-quietly-starting-look/

christine ockrent speaking from paris on newsnight:

"florence was positive but florence was just a speech. if politics were made only of speeches, the french would be kings of the world"

Gove by dint of heroically saving the Bees from extinction and not been caught molesting anyone yet, is suddenly a contender again? Wow this party is really fucked! Apparently Broon upset Humphrys by not condemning Corbyn + McDonnell on Today. I don't listen to it anymore and mornings are at least 90% improved already.

Amid the government wreckage, is Michael Gove quietly starting to look like leadership material again?

no

"again"?!