The Green Party - History Repeating?

In the communications age, a Taoiseach who fails to connect, perhaps was fated to fail. And so, we are left with a scenario, where the continuing political leader of the country, no longer currying the support of his own colleagues, has resigned as the leader of his party. This situation will not play well in the foreign media, where in the shadow cast by the EU/IMF bailout, Ireland has been portrayed as an economic basket case, and one assumes now, in addition to this unfavourable caricature, with a snigger, a political basket case too.


On Wednesday (26th), Eamon Gilmore and the Labour party will put forth a Dáil vote of no confidence in the Taoiseach, a manoeuvre Enda Kenny will ape, if Brian Cowen does not ask President McAleese to dissolve the current Dáil. This raises some intriguing questions of the government partners and what their next moves may be. Labour and Fine Gael have now ratcheted up the pressure on the Greens by announcing that they would facilitate the passing of the finance bill by the end of the week, if the government agrees to move the election date forward from March 11th.


Will the Green Party keep their word in the face of a seemingly untenable political reality and stay the course until the finance bill is passed?


One may postulate that it is in Fianna Fáil's (even the backbencher's) best interest to prop-up Cowen and maximise his dwindling tenure as Taoiseach and of this government, to afford them the best possible chance in the General Election. In many instances FF have yet to elect candidates to put forth in March and a coherent electoral manifesto cannot be in place until after the new leader is elected and in this process they will have to move quickly.


As I write this post, it has just emerged that the Greens are to host a press conference at 3.30 to announce the outcome of discussions they have held in light of Mr. Cowen's resignation as leader of Fianna Fáil.


Watch it live here.


I am reminded of a similar meeting held by the then junior partner in a Fianna Fáil led coalition government prior to the last general election. It was the Progressive Democrats (PDs) that time around and they, lead by Justice Minister and Tánaiste, Michael McDowell, made the calamitous decision to support then Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern. It was the last election the PDs would contest as a political entity.

Seconds Out: Brian Cowen comes out fighting, but as yet, he is alone in the ring.

Perhaps, somewhat anti-climatically, Brian Cowen addressed the nation. And though he sought to bring clarity to Fianna Fáil's leadership uncertainty, we are inevitably left with more questions. That's not to say we didn't learn anything new.


Brian Cowen is ready for a fight. Beyond his behind the scenes duel with Micheál Martin, the Taoiseach, somewhat admirably, is preparing to face the electorate and defend his, and the country's, position. The irony of this performance is that it is precisely the leadership he has failed to show throughout the banking and economic crises of the past two years.


But now, he is doing what he does best; setting himself on an election footing. He has taken the initiative and is showing the backbone his detractors, so far, have failed to show. The announcement of a motion of confidence at Tuesday's parliamentary party meeting suggests he is satisfied he retains the requisite support to endorse his continuing leadership.


Between now and then, both Cowen, Martin and their respective supporters will be nudging, cajoling and jockeying; and Martin in particular, having reportedly taken the temperature of many of his colleagues in the past days, will either have to play his hand or fold. If he chooses the latter option, many Fianna Fáil TDs will see it as an opportunity missed, as a post election change of leadership will lack the sense of revolution, and subsequent impetus, that a heave at Tuesday's meeting would offer.


I can't help but think, that within Fianna Fáil's ranks, there is a sense of delusion, that a push against Cowen will somehow absolve them as a collective, at both cabinet and parliamentary level, in the minds of the electorate. One could argue the Taoiseach inherited many of the problems which he has had to address (the competency of those decisions , is a separate argument and more complicated than this post would allow, but it is one which I will address more comprehensively during the course of the General Election campaign).


Whilst supporters of Fianna Fáil will be dismayed at the prospect of Brian Cowen leading them into an election, it is possible they are greatly over-estimating the redemptive quality Martin would bring in terms of overall seats won, in excess of current polling figures. Though, more important than the worries of partisan Fianna Fáil supporters and TDs, is the effect the Taoiseach's persisting leadership could have on the electorate.


For the country as a whole, psychologically, to close the book on this sorry chapter of the State's story, it may be invaluable for Cowen to survive the move against his leadership. His predecessor, Bertie Ahern, weaseled out the back door of front line politics and it is important (as we have seen in the U.K. and U.S.) to be able to hold to account incumbents who have overstayed their welcome.

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When The Stuff of Fantasy Becomes Reality

Imagine the scene, a young couple, in the throws of first love, perhaps. Their burgeoning feelings, their shared sexual awakening and subsequent exploration. The inevitable disclosure of kinky secret yearnings is often timidly broached: Tell me your fantasy...


More often than not respondents will put forth images of a nurse or maid in uniform, or a chaste Austenian narrative, where our eyes meet across the room. What one would not expect to hear in reply to such overtly sensuous probing is:


Well, my fantasy is to see the return of a king. Two decades after his abdication, hastened by turmoil and anguish - a loss suffered both privately and publicly - to return in our time of need, like Tolkien's Aragorn, to lead his people, to reclaim his birthright. The King is dead! Long live the King!


The king in question, is of course, Kenny Dalglish - King Kenny - and his return to the throne at Anfield is, for many on Merseyside, the realisation of a dream.


This is the long awaited sequel. The final instalment of a great unfinished story, where our protagonist seeks redemption. Riding off into the sunset with the girl in tow - the sentimental Hollywood ending - is surely how we all see ourselves in our dreams. It can therefore be no surprise that Dalglish jumped at the opportunity to write his own ending.


Some see King Kenny's return as further evidence of Liverpool's descent into mediocrity. But this is the cynic's view. This is the view of those who claim to have seen It's A Wonderful Life, but changed channel before the end, and wonder what's so great about it? Too often, optimism is euphemistically referred to as naivety; and cynicism as a sagely and worldly characteristic.


What makes a football club great, is more than what goes on out on the pitch. Though intangible, a club's  narrative, nurtured from one generation to another - from the kid in short-pants lifted over the turnstile, to the terrace,  to the season-ticket holder - becomes inextricably woven into the fabric of identity, and can elevate a club beyond its discernible successes and failures. Anfield is one of those places; a place where romantics are still welcome. Liverpool is not immune to the perils of cynicism and the fundamentalism of modern supporters, but it is a place where, independent of changing footballing ideologies, the philosophy of You'll Never Walk Alone has, by and large, remained constant.


This was a week when the realms of fantasy and reality were seamlessly intertwined and though the story may have begun gloomily, like all tales of fantasy, it's a happy ending we're after.

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