The Johnson Defence

[BillyStubbsTears]

"I asked officials if I had been to parties. They told me the line was that I hadn't been to parties. So when I told Parliament I hadn't been to parties, I did it in good faith."

Even for someone as shamelessly amoral as him, it takes some doing.

[Filo]

"I asked officials if I had been to parties. They told me the line was that I hadn't been to parties. So when I told Parliament I hadn't been to parties, I did it in good faith."

Even for someone as shamelessly amoral as him, it takes some doing.

Basically he’s running the “I’m an idiot line”

[BillyStubbsTears]

His line is quite something coming from a man who was educated at Eton and Oxford and ran the country (sic) for a couple or three years.

He's actually saying:

1) I honestly didn't deliberately lie to Parliament when I said I'd been to no parties, because I asked officials if I'd been to parties and they told me to say I hadn't.

2) When grown ups like Sue Gray and the police looked into this and concluded that of course I'd been to parties, I immediately admitted to Parliament that I'd been to parties.

He may well get off on this as a strictly legal argument. His case is "there is no evidence that I was able to make my own decisions without asking other people to tell me what I'd done."

That may well work in strict legal terms, but Christ Alive, what a way to debase yourself.

[ravenrover]

So the man who wrote the rules, put them into law and told us nearly everynight what the rules were didn't know what the rules were?
And he only talked about parties was because that is what the media called them when it found out?

[BillyStubbsTears]

This from Johnson is priceless.

"the Committee appears to be mounting a case that, despite the absence of any evidence of warnings or advice, it should have been “obvious” to me that the Rules and Guidance were not being followed, because of the gatherings that I attended. It is important to be frank: thisamounts to an allegation that I deliberately lied to Parliament."

The air of injured innocence! How can we POSSIBLY accuse a pathological liar of lying?

[danumdon]

Unbelievable arrogance and an air of superiority from this individual demonstrates everything that is wrong with a large number of members of parliament.

In most industries you have to work your way up the greasy ladder, mainly by being competent and having the skillset that is required for the role to enable you to execute the functions of the role in the required manner.

Why is politics different? the fact this waste of space managed to convince a large majority of a political party that he was the right person for the role really has you wondering if anyone in politics has the common sense they were supposedly born with.

Remember all the above equally can apply to other political parties, they all have form for doing this type of thing.

They really do take the population of this country for granted and feed them absolute barrels of sh*t for the duration of the term then try to con them to continue to vote for these fraudsters.

[i_ateallthepies]

"I asked officials if I had been to parties. They told me the line was that I hadn't been to parties. So when I told Parliament I hadn't been to parties, I did it in good faith."

Even for someone as shamelessly amoral as him, it takes some doing.

Basically he’s running the “I’m an idiot line”

He's spent years cultivating that defence, Filo.

[Mike_F]

The trouble with career politicians is that a lot of them wouldn't cut it in most businesses.

I've said for many years that the salary for an MP should be significantly higher but with more sensible and defensible rules on expenses and a strict ban on secondary employment. The basic salary for an MP is around £84k. My boss is on more than that. How are we ever going to have the most skilful and intelligent people running the country when they could make a much better living as a senior manager in a medium sized private business?

Of course that leaves the door wide open for those who can afford to get into politics to look after their own e.g. Johnson, Sunak et al.

[danumdon]

The trouble with career politicians is that a lot of them wouldn't cut it in most businesses.

I've said for many years that the salary for an MP should be significantly higher but with more sensible and defensible rules on expenses and a strict ban on secondary employment. The basic salary for an MP is around £84k. My boss is on more than that. How are we ever going to have the most skilful and intelligent people running the country when they could make a much better living as a senior manager in a medium sized private business?

Of course that leaves the door wide open for those who can afford to get into politics to look after their own e.g. Johnson, Sunak et al.

Fully agree, we should only be looking for the best people, with demonstrable experience in business and management, how we get these skills from PPE graduates who have never had a job outside of a political sphere i'm not sure, i'd pay them a far greater rate than the current total and i would ensure that the second jobs,expenses, employing your spouse/kids racket is abolished.

[TheFunk]

It sums him up that he had to resubmit his defence again this morning. Apparently the one submitted yesterday was riddled with typos and spelling mistakes and in places was unintelligible.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Actually, it's only just dawning on me how utterly disgusting Johnson's "defence" is.

He's basically throwing his advisers under the bus.

There are leaked WA messages between the advisers which showed they were agonising over how to find a way to claim the parties Johnson went to were not parties.

Johnson's "defence" is that he was totally uninvolved in that discussion, and he didn't ask his advisors to cook up a line that he could use. He's saying they did it all by themselves.

Max Hastings had Johson's number years ago. He said not to be taken in by the amiable clownish exterior, because underneath, Johnson was nastier than you could imagine. This is the nasty side of Johnson in full view.

[Filo]

His arse lickers in the party are really out in force now

[Filo]

Nobody told me I was stealing when I picked it up and walked out the shop, or that stealing wasn’t allowed. Therefore I’ve done nothing wrong. Oh, and the fact that I made the law making stealing illegal is irrelevant.

[Glyn_Wigley]

Unbelievable arrogance and an air of superiority from this individual demonstrates everything that is wrong with a large number of members of parliament.

In most industries you have to work your way up the greasy ladder, mainly by being competent and having the skillset that is required for the role to enable you to execute the functions of the role in the required manner.

Why is politics different? the fact this waste of space managed to convince a large majority of a political party that he was the right person for the role really has you wondering if anyone in politics has the common sense they were supposedly born with.

Remember all the above equally can apply to other political parties, they all have form for doing this type of thing.

They really do take the population of this country for granted and feed them absolute barrels of sh*t for the duration of the term then try to con them to continue to vote for these fraudsters.

He didn't convince them he was the right man for the role, he convinced them he was the right man to win an election. Nothing to do with being the right person to be PM at all.

[BillyStubbsTears]

"Remember all the above equally can apply to other political parties, they all have form for doing this type of thing."

Go on then. Give us an example of a pathological liar who has led any other major party.

[danumdon]

"Remember all the above equally can apply to other political parties, they all have form for doing this type of thing."

Go on then. Give us an example of a pathological liar who has led any other major party.

Tony Blair, he's only championship level to Premier league Johnson, but is still trying to get promoted.

[SydneyRover]

And remember all this drivel is being paid for out of taxes.

[SydneyRover]

Johnson's defence .......... mythomania

[colfromdonny]

The Johnson defence

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2g5Hz17C4is&list=RD2g5Hz17C4is&start_radio=1&rv=2g5Hz17C4is&t=0

[BillyStubbsTears]

"Remember all the above equally can apply to other political parties, they all have form for doing this type of thing."

Go on then. Give us an example of a pathological liar who has led any other major party.

Tony Blair, he's only championship level to Premier league Johnson, but is still trying to get promoted.

Do you want to give any examples of Blair unquestionably lying over matters of Objective Truth?

[danumdon]

Blair spent most of his premiership misleading to the nation, he then did the same during the Chilcot enquiry  to save his own wretched skin.

You will struggle to find the word lie in the official enquiry because they did not have the minerals to say so but everyone who watched it knew the truth.

He also wilfully mislead parliament .

[wilts rover]

A letter in yesterday's Times:

[BillyStubbsTears]

He's done it all his life.

Remember him blustering in the last election campaign that there'd be a border in the Irish Sea over his dead body. A month after he'd signed a deal that required a border in the Irish Sea.

All politicians over promise and fail to deliver, or go back on pledges. Only Johnson lies habitually about matters of Objective Truth.

He's a cancer on our politics. Hopefully this process will excise him.

[Donnywolf]

Elections are not supposed to be Presidential but last time round and most (not all) recently have been

I still hear Corbyn was x, y and z. People are still apoplectic that Johnson (in their eyes) was a proven liar who got Elected by a landslide

That landslide was produced even though Johnson had 57% of the voting Electorate voting against him and 43% of the voting Electorate voting for him and ergo his Party

We need a new Electoral system but all yesterday showed ( but I cant prove this ) is at least 57% still would not vote for him whatever the outcome of this Inquiry whilst a huge % of the 43% from last time WOULD still vote for him

That's it really

[drfchound]

Wolfie, in any Parliamentary election, how often would more than 50% of the electorate vote for the winner?

[big fat yorkshire pudding]

Really this should finish him off shouldn't it?

[SydneyRover]

Ian Balckford should get a pardon if johnson is found officially to be a liar.

''Accusing Boris Johnson of "wilfully misleading parliament" about the parties held at Downing Street during Covid-19 restrictions and refusing Speaker's request to withdraw his comment by responding "It's not my fault if the prime minister can't be trusted to tell the truth".[37''

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suspension_from_the_UK_parliament

[SydneyRover]

Another crackpot idea from the clueless ................

''Separating parents in England and Wales could face fines for refusing to try mediation under new proposals.

The government is set to make sessions mandatory and offer funding support in an effort to divert cases away from under-pressure family courts.

Justice Secretary Dominic Raab said "lengthy and combative courtroom battles" were harmful for children''

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/mar/23/labour-tells-19-leicester-councillors-they-cannot-stand-in-may-election

Way too late for johnson, why don't they put money back in and fix the court system?

[Branton Red]

Elections are not supposed to be Presidential but last time round and most (not all) recently have been

I still hear Corbyn was x, y and z. People are still apoplectic that Johnson (in their eyes) was a proven liar who got Elected by a landslide

That landslide was produced even though Johnson had 57% of the voting Electorate voting against him and 43% of the voting Electorate voting for him and ergo his Party

We need a new Electoral system but all yesterday showed ( but I cant prove this ) is at least 57% still would not vote for him whatever the outcome of this Inquiry whilst a huge % of the 43% from last time WOULD still vote for him

That's it really

Hi Donnywolf

I totally agree with you re General Elections becoming more Presidential in tone in the media. Johnson v Corbyn, how one has a silly haircut and the other takes pictures of manhole covers, rather than on which party has the best policies.

The good news is that neither Starmer or Sunak are flashy politicians in anyway (that's not a criticism far from it) and seem pretty serious/proper politicians. Fingers crossed next time won't be so bad.

100% agree with you on Proportional Representation. How can it be democratic for a party with 43% of the votes having a majority in Parliament?

Disagree that Johnson would still get 43% support as Tory leader. A core would still support him. But at the time of his sacking as PM many Tory voters wanted him gone - that's why he was kicked out by Tory MPs - not directly because of his behaviour.

I note even the Daily Telegraph front page cartoon was taking the mickey out of him today. Says something that.

[SydneyRover]

I see greenhag a crony of johnson has leapt to his defence ............. remember him?

''Earls Court project: complaint against Boris Johnson policing deputy referred to IPCC''

https://www.theguardian.com/society/davehillblog/2013/jan/14/stephen-greenhalgh-complaint-refered-to-ipcc

he was cleared but not sure why the IPCC were involved, anybody?

''There are plans to transform Earl’s Court with new homes, culture and a massive park
The derelict site of the old Exhibition Centre is finally getting a serious glow-up''

''With space in London at such a premium, it’s pretty astonishing that a massive 40-acre patch of Earl’s Court real estate has been left untouched since 2017. That’s the year when the famous Earls Court Exhibition Centre was demolished, with English Heritage granting special dispensation allowing the historic buildings to be knocked down''

https://www.timeout.com/london/news/there-are-plans-to-transform-earls-court-with-new-homes-culture-and-a-massive-park-022223#:~:text=Only%2040%20percent%20of%20the,shops%2C%20caf%C3%A9s%20and%20cultural%20activities.