[Crabcakes]

I suspect she’ll be the first out - either because of another faux pas, or because she thinks she’s “owed” now so will try and pursue policies that Hunt won’t bankroll or Sunak can’t allow. And then when she’s told no, she’ll throw another hissy fit as she seemingly did with Truss.

[Bones McCoy]

Thinking more about the fiscally conservative, socially conservative approach.

For the conservative party insider

It keeps most wings of the party together (except the members who dislike brown faces).
It allows a bit of distraction: Stoke the culture war if the economics look bad.
It keeps all the potential rightwing rebel leaders 'inside the tent pissing out'.

Drawbacks are that you've made encouraging signals to everybody, and they'll mostly be disappointed.

For the voting public

I don't believe most people can live a good life under a fiscally conservative budget (austerity limps into its 13th and 14th years).
I don't believe most voters embrace the culture wars - evidenced by Johnson's falling approval ratings.
Even the culture war enthusiasts are likely to draw the line at funding it when it moves form free entertainment to million quid flights with one or two deportees.

[Bones McCoy]

[Crabcakes]

Seems Braverman is on par with James Cleverly in the inverse nomnative determinism stakes, given she’s decided to scurry away rather than answer the Labour UQ about her resignation and absurdly rapid reappointment.

[Abernathy]

In immediately bringing back Braverman (and Barclay, and Cleverly, and -lord help us- Gavin fucking Williams), I think that Sunak may well have shot himself in the foot. Lord knows a cynical old Labour hack like me was never going to be very impressed by his lies on the Downing Street doorstep about his premiership being about integrity, competence, and accountability, but that might have given me a simulacrum of hope that the debacle of Johnson and Truss was now well in the rear view mirror, and almost certainly would have impressed the "floating" voter. He was, you might say. on the right track. But with the re-appointment of the toxic Braverman in particular, a woman who duplicitously engineered a resignation from her post as Home Secretary via a serious breach of security and the ministerial code only 6 days ago, he has completely undermined all of his pledges of competency, accountability, and integrity at a stroke. He has demonstrated that he too, in the tradition of the departed Johnson, is a craven liar. Meet the new guy, just the same as the old guy.

And a completely avoidable own goal, to boot. There's no hope for these fucking shysters. Fortunately.

[Crabcakes]

It also sends another message: the Tory party has upwards of 350 MPs. And yet it’s the same group of 10-15 or so, who all keep resigning because they’re scheming for promotion or getting sacked because of ineptitude or lawbreaking, in cabinet.

Just how fucking awful are those other 300+ MPs that Suella Braverman, a week after resigning for a security breach, is the best choice for one of the most important offices of state?

[Abernathy]

]

Just how fucking awful are those other 300+ MPs that Suella Braverman, a week after resigning for a security breach, is the best choice for one of the most important offices of state?

Just three names for you to ponder :
Jonathan Gullis.
Christopher Chope.
Lee Anderson.

[Oboogie]

And a completely avoidable own goal, to boot.

Was it avoidable? Or was it essential to pacify the ERG and secure the leadership?

[Crabcakes]

And a completely avoidable own goal, to boot.

Was it avoidable? Or was it essential to pacify the ERG and secure the leadership?

A strong, intelligent leader would have got Braverman (and maybe a few allies) in for a chat and said “Look, Sue - I want you back in cabinet. You know I support the Rwanda plan. But it’s got to be more than a week off or it’s gifting Labour an open goal. Give it 6 months, we’ll reshuffle again and then you can be back in before a GE.”

But then Sunak is just a junior minister promoted far above his station, and so he took the quick fix route. Now he looks weak, beholden to the loons, and any goodwill support he may have picked up from more moderate types yesterday will already be eroding.

In other times, a PM might get some leeway to fix more questionable appointments. But the Tories are long past that now. That first impression was it, and he absolutely blew it.

[Oboogie]

Exactly.

[davidjay]

And a completely avoidable own goal, to boot.

Was it avoidable? Or was it essential to pacify the ERG and secure the leadership?

Never mind any other reason, it looks that way. Starmer mustn't believe his luck.

[Samanfur]

Just how fucking awful are those other 300+ MPs that Suella Braverman, a week after resigning for a security breach, is the best choice for one of the most important offices of state?

Philip Davies was joking at PMQs about being the only MP who rang Sunak up to say that he didn't want a job.

[Bones McCoy]

Seems Braverman is on par with James Cleverly in the inverse nomnative determinism stakes, given she’s decided to scurry away rather than answer the Labour UQ about her resignation and absurdly rapid reappointment.

She isn't even on par with James Corden.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Jake Berry not going quietly.

[Bones McCoy]

Tofu, by the way is a regionalist slur against the "wrong kind" of asians.

[Samanfur]

Starmer was quoting this at PMQs:

As I've said before, Berry is very much Johnson’s man.

[Abernathy]

.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

It's the Night of the Long Knives for Sue Ellen:

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... -officials

Home Office officials raised concerns over a series of secretive meetings Suella Braverman held with an influential rightwing backbench MP weeks before she was forced to resign over leaking sensitive information to him, the Observer has been told.

In addition, sources have claimed that the home secretary appears to have instructed officials to look at potentially implementing hardline proposals cooked up by a rightwing thinktank that would in effect prohibit “genuine refugees” from settling in the UK, a move that threatens an even more uncompromising approach to asylum seekers.

Senior officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, say even before she was forced to quit there was already significant disquiet over Braverman’s dealings with Sir John Hayes, leader of the “anti-woke” Common Sense Group of rightwing MPs.

[Crabcakes]

Jesus. Reading about the illegal detention centres this morning, and how they were so poor they caused diphtheria outbreaks. Braverman is absolutely doomed, as it’s clearly her fully informed decision. The fact Grant Shapps of all people was already trying to undo her work in the 6 days he was Home Secretary shows how bad it was.

She is absolutely straight-up evil.

[Youngian]

Sunak can find an ERG stooge more capable than Braverman. Or maybe not. Rishi needs to move onto his next fuck up, quickly.