Boris Johnson

[Christopher Kreuzer]

I know politics is rarely discussed here these days (mainly I think since Trump and Brexit), but there are those here whose opinions I value.

Can anyone explain the mentality by which Boris Johnson clings on to power long after others would have resigned?

Maybe my post will get overtaken by events.

[Matt Mackenzie]

Simple explanation - he is a narcissistic sociopath.

And lots in his party (and their media supporters) have known what he was and is for a long time, but still did their Faustian deal with him.

I hope it causes them much pain for a long time to come.

[Andrew Zigmond]

Probably because power is one of the hardest things to relinquish. Add to that a deluded belief that he can play the "man of the people" vs "out of touch game playing politicians" card that worked so well for him in 2019, albeit in very specific circumstances.

[Matt Mackenzie]

Yes but power is difficult to give up for almost everybody. Many manage a timely and dignified exit nonetheless.

The reasons it is going above and beyond that this time is very largely due to the sort of person our PM is.

[Joey Stewart]

That extreme blinkered world view of themselves being entirely in the right and no other opinion need be factored in seems to be a common trait among anyone who has spent a lifetime seeking absolute power in any field - I'm sure in Boris eyes he sees no reason to possibly resign voluntarily and that he can merely find new sycophants to fill their roles.

How this will ultimately turn out is anyone's guess, is there even a procedure in process for the conservative party to forcibly remove him from office? if not then I'd expect him to stick it out to the bitter end.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Apparently the elections for a new 1922 Committee (to change the rules for a new Tory Party confidence vote) have been brought forward, but that is still rather slow if the Sun's reporting is accurate with its headline for Thursday being "you'll have to dip your hands in blood to get rid of me" (sounds like a Caesar complex). At least in the USA they have a method to remove leaders if they may have gone at least temporarily over the edge mentally. I should probably stop there before I say something I regret.

[David Sedgwick]

I have just tweeted at https://twitter.com/DavidSedgwickIA/sta ... 8299912192.

Here is a slightly expanded version. The original was caught by Twitter's 280 character limit.

"I remain a member of the Conservative party, although I ceased some months ago to pay anything more than the basic subscription.

At the times of previous crises, for the present Prime Minister and his predecessors, my email inbox has always been full, whether with attacks on Labour, calls for support for what the PM is doing, or attempts to boost morale.

Not this time. The emptiness of my inbox has been startling.

When the Conservative Party machine breaks down, you know that the end must be close."

I don't plan to comment further until after the end.

[JustinHorton]

I don't usually do Not Chess, and I won't go beyond this posting where this particular thread is concerned, but it just needs to be made very clear indeed that everybody who knows what Boris Johnson is like in 2022 also knew what he was in 2019, and knew what he was like in 2017, and knew what he was like in 2008, and so on and so on back into the last century. They just turned a blind eye because it suited them to do so and there is not the slightest reason to listen to anybody who claims otherwise. His corruption is the corruption of the people who pretended for years not to see it and his dishonesty is theirs also. End of story.

[Neil Graham]

I have decided to play the "Boris Johnson system" next season - never resign.

[Paul Habershon]

Two things which don't seem to be mentioned.
1) Johnson's much vaunted mandate of an 80-seat majority was largely due to the unelectability of Jeremy Corbyn.
2) Why can't the Deputy Prime Minister take over immediately, pending a Conservative leadership election? Or has Dominic Raab resigned? I appreciate that Johnson has resigned only the party leadership, but I haven't heard anyone suggest the Deputy Prime Minister as a solution to the vacuum if Johnson resigns the Premiership.

[Brendan O'Gorman]

==Text Omitted ===
Why can't the Deputy Prime Minister take over immediately, pending a Conservative leadership election? Or has Dominic Raab resigned?

I think it's suggested that hanging on a bit longer will allow BoJo to exceed Theresa May's period as PM.

[Mick Norris]

Two things which don't seem to be mentioned.
1) Johnson's much vaunted mandate of an 80-seat majority was largely due to the unelectability of Jeremy Corbyn.
2) Why can't the Deputy Prime Minister take over immediately, pending a Conservative leadership election? Or has Dominic Raab resigned? I appreciate that Johnson has resigned only the party leadership, but I haven't heard anyone suggest the Deputy Prime Minister as a solution to the vacuum if Johnson resigns the Premiership.

BBC

Former Prime Minister Sir John Major has written to the chairman of the Conservative's backbench 1922 committee warning it is "unwise" for Boris Johnson to remain in office while his successor is chosen.

If Johnson stays at No 10 Major says he will still have the power to "make decisions which will affect the lives of those within all four nations" of the UK and further afield.

While some argue that Johnson's cabinet will "restrain" him, Major adds, that the PM's previous cabinet "did not - or could not - do so".

Major suggests an interim PM, like Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, or a streamlined election process would be "in the national interest".

"For the overall wellbeing of the country, Mr Johnson should not remain in Downing Street... for any longer than necessary to effect the smooth transition of government," Major writes.

Deputy PM Dominic Raab will not run to be the next leader of the Conservative Party, the BBC understands.

[Matt Mackenzie]

Thing is, Johnson has now managed to put together a vaguely functioning government again. So its hard to see how he can be made to stand down before the Tories elect his successor - they might be better off trying to speed said process up if that is practically possible.

[John Upham]

The original was caught by Twitter's 140 character limit.

Your tweet must have been made prior to November 8th 2017 David.

"On November 8th 2017, Twitter doubled the character limit from 140 characters to 280 characters"

[Andrew Zigmond]

Two things which don't seem to be mentioned.
1) Johnson's much vaunted mandate of an 80-seat majority was largely due to the unelectability of Jeremy Corbyn.
2) Why can't the Deputy Prime Minister take over immediately, pending a Conservative leadership election? Or has Dominic Raab resigned? I appreciate that Johnson has resigned only the party leadership, but I haven't heard anyone suggest the Deputy Prime Minister as a solution to the vacuum if Johnson resigns the Premiership.

1, I don't think that is entirely correct as just two years previously Corbyn had defied expectation by becoming the only Labour leader since 1997 to manage a net gain of seats in a general election. What drove Boris' 80 seat majority was being able to portray himself as a man of the people who would take on politicians playing games with parliamentary procedure and obstructing Brexit. There was a failure from MPs of both sides to "read the room" and Corbyn seemed incapable of having an opinion on Brexit either way. That said, there is no guarantee Labour would have done better with an ostensibly more credible leader - they may even have done worse.

2, The convention is that the outgoing PM stays in office until a successor is elected and no constitutional precedent for a deputy taking over as Prime Minister.