[kreuzberger]

Remember Russian and England fans in Marseille, 2016?

"Nigel Farridge, your boys took one hell of a beating."

[mattomac]

But they would be perfect cannon fodder.

[Bones McCoy]

Johnson brags he'd happily do national service.

Inspired perhaps by Horatius at the Fridge.

The Russian twitter did allege he led and SAS raid on the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant.

[Crabcakes]

He probably thinks national service is the name of a government-subsidised team of butlers who come round and feed you your dinner.

[Oboogie]

He's a fat 59 year old, he knows nobody's ever going to want him.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

'Horatius at the fridge'

Wins the internet.

[davidjay]

He's a fat 59 year old, he knows nobody's ever going to want him.

Especially Carrie.

[Crabcakes]

He's a fat 59 year old, he knows nobody's ever going to want him.

On the contrary. If there is another war I hope to see him called up immediately so he can take on the role of crashmat for the paras to train with.

[Youngian]

He’s full of as much shit as Bozo but nice to see these bellends at loggerheads.

[Bones McCoy]

The conspiracy nuts that Johnson nurtured have turned on him.

And there's the curse of the grift.
Nobody stops at one conspiracy.
As soon as the first grifter stops spinning lies, the next grifter invents a conspiracy about them.

Oh dear, how sad, etc etc.

[Youngian]

Like the thought of Bozo having to grovel to Cameron to get back in the loop and this is what Dave came up with. “You could try out your ‘Corbyn/Ken is Caracas’ joke on Maduro, Boris.” Any evidence he actually met Maduro instead of a mid ranking official at best?

Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson flew to Venezuela last month to meet with the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro, in unofficial talks.
During the meeting, first reported by the Sunday Times, Johnson tried to convince the leader of the oil-rich South American nation to not give military support to its ally Russia. They also discussed normalization of relations between the U.K. and Venezuela.
The British newspaper wrote that the ex-PM was in Venezuela for less than 24 hours, having flown into the country by private jet from a holiday home in the nearby Dominican Republic.
According to a spokesman for Johnson, who is no longer in government or a member of parliament, the trip was conducted “with active support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the knowledge of the foreign secretary.” https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-ex-p ... ne-russia/

[satnav]

I wonder if tight fisted Boris got the Foreign office to cover his travel costs?

[Andy McDandy]

As ever with the cunt, I'd advise applying the "least possible effort" rule.

Under that rule, I would say that, given the lack of a response from either government, all we have to go on is Johnson's team's word that it happened. So, he flew in, stayed a bit, flew out.

And Venezuela? It's a fucking basket case. Even if they could cobble together a military operation, there's no way they could get it out of the Caribbean, let alone across the Atlantic.

[Watchman]

Hang on, I always thought Venezuela was Jez’s personal crusade

[Abernathy]

Interesting reports that the Tories are actively considering using Johnson as a key part of the election campaign, specifically in the "Red Wall" seats in which Johnson managed to con people into voting for him in 2019.

The logic is apparently that Johnson is still some sort of charismatic campaigning wizard, and that the "Good 'Ol Boris" factor is still potent amongst enough gullible simpletons in those parts to persuade them to vote again for the worst government in living memory.

It's clearly born of desperation, but I think they could be making a massive mistake. Here's why :

- Johnson is a proven liar, who lied again and again and again, and who ran away from his job as an MP because he got found out. This is on the record, and Labour will be reminding voters of this as often as possible.

- He has nothing to offer or promise. He patently did not "get Brexit done" or at any rate in any satisfactory way., and his deal was obviously not "oven-ready".

- He partied in 10 Downing Street during the pandemic lockdown, when peoples' loved ones were dead, dying, or denied a decent funeral, including Phil the Greek. Again, Labour will be reminding voters of this at every turn.

In short, Johnson's brand is no longer a winner, but is toxic. Which is all good.

[Crabcakes]

Even setting aside everything Boris has done - and I admit that’s like trying to ignore the fact your leg has just fallen off 5 minutes into an ultramarathon - I can’t understand what the appeal is? Vote Tory because you like Boris, but just remember he’s not an MP and the PM you’d get back hates him so he won’t be involved if you vote for them.

I hope they try though - because Vote Boris get Sunak could be a cracking slogan to counter it.

[Andy McDandy]

All very true, but I suspect they're aiming for him to still appeal to people who aren't usually interested in politics, and see him as a 'character'. As such, his various offences will have been 'priced in'. Also, he is quite effective at bulldozing through interviews - some of the time. He either brushes the difficult question aside, or runs away.

But in those cases, he's still making sure the focus is on him. He's still got probably the highest recognition level of any politician in the country. And if "Boris went and hid in a fridge again" keeps "Starmer makes good point" or "Sunak kicks a beggar" off the front pages or news headlines, then job done.

Personally I think there should be a ban on any politician doing any sort of campaigning for a fixed period after they are ousted from office. Think of it as a "Sit in the corner and think about what you've done" penalty.

[Bones McCoy]

Hang on, I always thought Venezuela was Jez’s personal crusade

Too busy rattling their swords at Guyana anyhow.

[satnav]

Nadine Dorries has poured cold water on the Johnson story claiming that Sunak has not spoken to Johnson for over a year.

Given how much money Johnson is now making giving speeches and writing articles I really can't see that he will be too interested in touring Northern constituencies knowing that the Tories are going to lose anyway. I think it is more likely that he will sit out the election and then a Tory MP will stand down soon after the general election to allow Johnson the chance to make a comeback via a By-election.

[Andy McDandy]

How would that work with his ban from the parliamentary estate?