Election day clash over claims of a Sinn Fein deal
Simply by existing , Sinn Fein on election day can rock the political balance in the Republic. The Indo’s sketch report calls the furore over a putative Fine Gael- Sinn Fein deal “ Enda’s banana skin.” Enda Kenny himself splutters denial of any pre-election pact, but what were his people thinking they were doing, speculating about a SF role in any would be coalition with the Greens? It seems a very long shot appeal for last transfers in the Euro poll and wildly premature to talk about general election scenarios. 2012 remains the realistic date, come what may in the economy. The little spat between Kenny and Trevor Sargent relegates to fantasy the thought that the Greens might switch horses in mid term and pull the plug on the coalition.
Brian,
“thinking they were doing, speculating about a SF role in any would be coalition with the Greens?”
Trying to explore, as every party does, how they could get the support to get into government – luckily for them and SF – as events have unfolded – it didnt turn out like that.
Mary Lou seems to be losing the support of the Paddy Power punters and perhaps this relates to the story above – ie it is a boost to FF at the of expense of FG.
Sinn Fein publically call for a coalition of the left, FG publically hint at been open to doing business with Sinn Fein, aren’t these things meant to be done in backrooms over ham sandwiches and a bottle of beer. I can see the benefits of SF’s public desire for a love-in with Labour but this FG stuff is bemusing, as you said Sammy it seems to be boosting FF
Brian, it’s election day on the Irish mainland tomorrow, lest there be any confusion. It’s only election day today on the inhabited islands (and of course, the north).
Sammy you sure about PP Mary Lou is 10/11 I thought that was lower than before, Eoin is 6/4, can’t remember what it was previously
fin,
she was 2/5 about 10 days ago.
SF generally tend to attract most money – I guess that must make FF the ‘real’ favourite – I think FF will get the 3rd seat.
Was about to blog this one myself. It is painful to watch FG walk into these things; compare the masterful handling of a very bad hand by Cameron to this. You wonder: have FG still time to blow it?
On this:
“If I had been prepared to do business with Sinn Féin after the last election I would have been taoiseach for the past two years.”
This strikes me as both odd and a bit dangerous. It almost sounds like he wants to be in opposition and I think he leaves himself open to a few attacks in that direction. And could some enterprising interviewer ask Enda who he thought more dangerous in government the past two years — 77 FF TDs or 4 SF?
“she was 2/5 about 10 days ago”.
Well she was at 3-1 last Friday.
UlickO
wanaa bet?
It’s not exactly great publicity for Sinn Fein though – the main point of debate being that Fine Gael were desperate enough to even approach them indirectly. In all the media coverage it’s taken for granted that such an approach would be reprehensible.
“In all the media coverage it’s taken for granted that such an approach would be reprehensible.”
Posted by An fhirinne gharbh on Jun 04, 2009 @ 07:19 PM
Section 31 is alive and well my friend. Lets all have a go at the murdering shire in SF, because we all know that Dev and Collins weren’t involved in such actions. They simply asked the British to politely leave the 26 Counties and sprinkled magic fairy dust on them. FF have ruined the country and FG are no better! The only thing that separates the two is a 90 odd year old treaty. They are both two sides of the one coin! Hypocrites the lot of them!!!
I f*cking hate the Southern media with an intense passion and I say that as a Nationalist/Republican from the North. They are a shower of cowardly, yellow, middle class Unionist West Brit pricks who are so frightened to the core of offending Unionism/Loyalism in case the Uncle Andy’s & Big Mervyn’s attack the South. So cowardly and scared are they that they have formed an alliance with Unionism/Loyalism to declare war on Northern Nationalism. Just this week MOST of the Southern media has vented it’s venom on Sinn Fein just in case unionism thinks it has lost it’s touch. A well known Southern journalist actually tried to blame Sinn Fein for the death of Kevin McDaid in Coleraine and you couldn’t make this crap up. The Southern media’s relationship with Unionism is the same as that of the Communist Party in Russia with Pravda, i.e. “You tell us any old crap to discredit and offend the Northern Taigs…. and we will”.
As someone succinctly put it, blueshirts and balaclavas just don’t mix.
Lurig,
I agree completely re the ROI media – one of the main bees in my bonnet. It has reached the stage where I have to frequent blogs like this to get the NI nationalist slant. I wouldn’t attribute it to fear of loyalist terrorism though; as to its precise derivation, I just don’t know. Perhaps the last remnants of the postcolonial mindset.
My loathing for the politics of Ruth Dudley Edwards almost defies description- her politics mind you – for all I know RDE the individual may be just fine. But I have come to the conclusion that she just despises Northern nationalists.
But she and others can vent their spleen without fear of contradiction – week after week.
If and when a newspaper appears that gives a fair shake to the nationalist side I will buy it like a shot.
-from an FG voter.
Erasmus
Fair comment but I am intrigued and confused. You say that you are a Fine Gael voter and that is your choice. However this is the most anti-Northern Nationalist/Republican party of them all with it’s loyal British/Unionist views well known and it’s Commonwealth & Loyalist paramilitary sympathisers firmly embedded in the Southern media. Fine Gael doesn’t get it’s Blueshirts nickname for nothing and is widely despised among the Northern Catholic community. After the murder of the Coleraine Catholic Mr. McDaid & the MASSIVE silence amongst the Southern media, indeed the attempts of some of them to blame Sinn Fein for the murder of an innocent Northern Catholic, I hate them even more. They are a shower of spineless wankers.
Lurig,
I’m a Fine Gael voter – not a died-in-the-wool FG supporter. The PDs used to be my crowd until their recent demise.
Throwing the broad range of relevant issues into the mix FG are probably the least worst of what is currently around.
In reality there is damn all between the mainstream southern parties -especially as far as NI is concerned.
You’ve painted a rather stark picture of FG but to balance things out it must be borne in mind that they have put their money where their mouths are as far as all-Irelandism is concerned – promoting John Cushnahan and Austin Currie to senior rank. They engineered the first formalised toehold for the ROI in the governance of NI (the AIA). Peter Barry was arguably the most pro-NI nationalist Minister for Foreign Affairs since the 70′s – ‘ending the nightmare of the northern nationalists’ being his favourite soundbite.