Funny Starmer

[belton rover]

On questions today:

Next, Mr Speaker, he’ll (Johnson) be telling the house he scored last night’s winner.

That’s the first time he’s intentionally made me laugh!

[scawsby steve]

On questions today:

Next, Mr Speaker, he’ll (Johnson) be telling the house he scored last night’s winner.

That’s the first time he’s intentionally made me laugh!

Yes, Belton, that's a good one. At least the guy's a football fan apparently, unlike Johnson who's more rugby, I believe.

I wonder if Yvette Cooper is a football fan? We might find out in the next few days if what a poster on the Batley thread said is true.

[drfchound]

On questions today:

Next, Mr Speaker, he’ll (Johnson) be telling the house he scored last night’s winner.

That’s the first time he’s intentionally made me laugh!

Yes, Belton, that's a good one. At least the guy's a football fan apparently, unlike Johnson who's more rugby, I believe.

I wonder if Yvette Cooper is a football fan? We might find out in the next few days if what a poster on the Batley thread said is true.

Not so much of a football fan if he thought we won 1-0.

[Donnywolf]

... but surely he would know in a 2-0 or 3-0 win the "winner" would be the first goal so his statement is true

[drfchound]

Possibly so Wolfie but the winner is generally accepted as the final goal by a team in a 1-0, 2-1 or say 3-2 win or a 1-0 win.
I have never heard the first goal in a 3-0 or even a 2-0 win be described as the winner.

[Metalmicky]

Starmer to face challenge...?

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/angela-rayner-supporters-prepare-to-challenge-keir-starmer-for-labour-leadership-87tzw5ss3

[Filo]

Starmer to face challenge...?

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/angela-rayner-supporters-prepare-to-challenge-keir-starmer-for-labour-leadership-87tzw5ss3

That will finish Labour if she is elected leader

[wesisback]

I'd be more likely to back Rayner than over 50% of the likely candidates.
Obviously only if she restored the whip, otherwise it would remain anyone but.

[SydneyRover]

Apparently it's b*llocks according to Rayner

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-keir-starmer-leadership-challenge-b1875925.html

[Filo]

I'd be more likely to back Rayner than over 50% of the likely candidates.
Obviously only if she restored the whip, otherwise it would remain anyone but.

So basically your only requirement is a leader that restores the whip?

[Metalmicky]

Apparently it's b*llocks according to Rayner

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-keir-starmer-leadership-challenge-b1875925.html

TBF, she is hardly likely to come out and hold her hands up to any challenge.  Starmer can hardly be her favourite after he tried to sack her as party chair back in May, only to back track rather quickly promote her to another role..... perhaps there is no smoke without fire...?

[SydneyRover]

it's hard to argue against that MM but it is the times

[IDM]

Rayner with a whip.?

That’s the sort of thing many old school Tory MPs would pay good money for.!!

[SydneyRover]

the Times puts out a story guaranteed to help undermine Starmer on the am of a byelection should tell everyone that the tories don't want him as leader.

''The prospect of a Labour defeat has already prompted a lot of chatter about a possible leadership challenge, and today the Times (paywall) has a story saying Angela Rayner’s supporters are on manoeuvres. It says:

Supporters of Angela Rayner are preparing for her to challenge Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership of Labour if the party loses the by-election in Batley & Spen today.

MPs close to the deputy leader have been canvassing support among parliamentary colleagues and trade unions, The Times has learnt. Allies of Starmer are braced for an unprecedented leadership contest from his deputy.

Senior figures at Unite, Labour’s biggest union backer, are willing to support a challenge but they have not discussed the idea with her directly and she has not told them she wants the job.

Last night Rayner, the party’s deputy leader, put out a tweet denying that she was involved''

Guardian live

[BillyStubbsTears]

"We must replace a Labour leader who doesn't do well enough in elections" say Leftists who refuse to support Labour in elections.

I think this is called a self-fulfilling prophesy.

If the Corbynites really do spark a leadership challenge now, that is the Labour party finished forever. We saw what happened when we had unconstrained Corbynism in early 2019. 18% in the polls. 13% in a national election. And always someone else's fault, never the Dear Leader's fault.

[wesisback]

I'd be more likely to back Rayner than over 50% of the likely candidates.
Obviously only if she restored the whip, otherwise it would remain anyone but.

So basically your only requirement is a leader that restores the whip?

Someone willing to work with the left instead of against it would be the only thing that would make me start to vote for Labour in an election again yes.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Wes
I keep coming back to Biden as an example.

He is rapidly dismantling the Reaganite economic model that has ruled for the past two generations. He's taking advantage of the fact of being in power to ram through genuinely era-changing policies which will radically change the nature of the US economy and society.

Did he highlght this during the Election campaign? Did he scream "I'm going to be much further to the left than any US President you have voted for in living memory?"

Nope. He put himself forward as the safe, centrist pair of hands. And he won the election because the American Left knew who it was a choice between.

And before anyone gets mardy saying that is cheating, that's how politics works. You rarely get elected on a ticket that says "I'm going to be REALLY radical". Because, unlike activists, the electorate is mainly small "c" conservative. Thatcher won in 1979 with the brilliant "Labour Isn't Working" poster. What she didn't win on was openly campaigning that she was going to push unemployment up to 3-4million in an attempt to defeat inflation. Because she wouldn't have had a cat in hell's chance of winning. But that is exactly what she did when she did win. What happens in politics, is that you are then judged retrospectively on what you did and how it turns out. You are rarely judged on what you did compared to what you said you would do.

And THAT is what the Left never gets. They think it is about posturing and radicalising the electorate. When all that actually matters is getting into a place where you can actually make the f**king change.

I wish the Left would just belt up with the public posturing and get on with trying to get a potentially electable leader into No10, instead of insisting that he prioritises them here and now.

[wesisback]

The huge difference with Biden and Starmer was just how close Biden kept Sanders on his way to electoral success. He knew that there was a huge swathe of support for him and to achieve victory he would require those loyal to Sanders to still see Biden as the right many to enact those changes. I remember Bernie speaking out to that effect, congratulating Biden on shedding his moderate outlook.
There is no similarity to Starmer and Biden.

[SydneyRover]

It would appear though that factional warring (maybe) is preventing that from happening, if the top of the labour party is a mirror of the views of many he would be struggling to know whom to trust and short of support, no? Don't you think if the above is anywhere near correct there should be truce and a joining of forces to try and narrow the gap and maybe even win the next election?

[wesisback]

As above I would support any leader who is actually willing to join forces and create a truce.

[SydneyRover]

Raynor has pledged her full support to Starmer

[Metalmicky]

Raynor has pledged her full support to Starmer

That sounds ominous for Keir.....

[SydneyRover]

It's old news MM, following their rift and her new position/responsibilities

[BillyStubbsTears]

Wes
It goes both ways. Sanders strongly and unequivocally backed Biden from the moment Biden won the Democrat nomination.

Where has the similar unquestioning support been from Corbyn? Instead, Corbyn re-opened the whole anti-semistism issue almost from the moment Starmer was elected. What is Labour supposed to do on that issue? Just give Corbyn a pass to keep stirring the pot?