Trump May Meet BoJo In Brexit Row

Could Boris Johnson emerge from the debacle of Chequers to become prime minister of Britain? That is the question following Theresa May’s capitulation, where she committed the government to a soft-Brexit that seems foredoomed to satisfy neither the Remainers or those who want to hold out for the expressed will of Britons for full independence.Mrs. May’s Brexit secretary, David Davis, was first to resign late Sunday. In his resignation letter, Mr. Davis wrote that he feared “the current trend of policy and tactics is making” leaving the EU customs and regulatory framework “look less and less likely” and that the upshot of Chequers “will be to make the supposed control by Parliament illusory rather than real.”The foreign secretary made his move the following morning. In his letter taking leave of office, Mr. Johnson feared that the Brexit “dream is dying, suffocated by needless self-doubt.” The government’s position on Brexit, he said, means that Britain is “truly headed for the status of colony,” even before Brussels has made its counter-proposal.With the Chequers agreement in hand, Mr. Johnson said “the Government now has a song to sing” but, having “practiced the words over the weekend,” he admitted that “they stick in the throat.”Mr. Johnson is being mocked by some serious people. Former party chairman Lord Tebbit admires his abilities as writer and editor, but is scornful of his record in politics, particularly as London mayor. British journalist Jenni Russell takes him to task in the New York Times. Mr. Johnson’s “ambition and superficial charm far outstrip his ability, judgment or principles,” she writes, and he is once more “destabilizing the British government and threatening the country’s future.”Anne Applebaum of the Washington Post takes wider aim. “The Brexiteers don’t have an alternative plan, or at least not one that they want to talk about in public,” she wrote. She added that their “cowardice is being revealed as well” and suggested that it “will be interesting to see whether they pay a political price.”Which is putting it mildly, to say the least.Initiating a vote of no confidence in Mrs. May would require 48 signatures (15% of Conservative MPs) to the 1922 Committee of backbenchers. Sufficient numbers of MPs dissatisfied with the Prime Minister’s handling of Brexit exist; whether there are sufficient stout hearts for the ensuing political carnage remains to be seen.Yet, as historian John Ramsden wrote, the Conservative party has an “appetite for power,” and with vast swathes of Brexiteers voicing disgust with their prime minister and party if they go to Brussels with the Chequers offer, it would not be out of character for Tory MPs to defenestrate their leader.Which brings us back to Boris Johnson. Who stands out as the next leader of the Conservative Party? David Davis would be a clear favorite as the first to stand up for Brexit principles by standing down from the Government, but rumors that he would retire from frontbench politics once the EU negotiations were completed may remove his name from the running. With a possible vacancy at No. 10 Downing Street, though, who knows?Other prominent Brexiteers, such as trade minister Liam Fox and environment minister Michael Gove, may have compromised themselves by their decision to fight for Brexit within Mrs. May’s Cabinet. This is particularly so of Mr. Gove, who damaged his political shine by “talking up” the Chequers agreement among his colleagues. Which could well leave Mr. Johnson as the last person standing.Many in the party are less enthralled, seeing the rumpled ex-scrivener as a “chancer” who lacks the discipline and integrity to be the Queen’s First Minister. I’ll always remember, though, a remark of Cardinal Spellman — that he “hired theologians.” He meant that his job was to set Church policy and for others to figure out the details. Just what a prime minister should do — focusing on the forest and not the trees — and what Mr. Johnson has been doing with Brexit.As the vote neared two years ago, it was Mr. Johnson who really stepped up with the positive vision and trumped the charges of xenophobia. He articulated an optimistic goal of Great Britain free to chart her own course in domestic and foreign affairs without interference from the EU bureaucracy. Plus he has the national wind at his back, as support for Brexit remains strong and is deepening.Mr. Johnson already has a friend in Jacob Rees-Mogg, who supported the controversial “can-do” Brexit speech that Mr. Johnson delivered in October at Manchester last October. Mr. Rees-Mogg also supported Mr. Johnson’s recent resignation, saying that Mr. Johnson would make a “brilliant” prime minister.Sound far-fetched? Name another larger-than-life son of New York who upset the Establishment with his unconventional manner but won the hearts of his beleaguered fellow-citizens and, with a vision to restore his country to greatness on the world stage, “climbed the greasy pole” to his nation’s top political office. It would be a shame if President Trump, the self-described “Mr. Brexit,” passed up an opportunity, when he visits London at the weekend, to pass along some inspiration for BoJo.“Boris Johnson is a friend of mine,” Mr. Trump said on his way to the NATO summit at Brussels. America’s ambassador in London, Woody Johnson, confirms the two men enjoy “a warm and close relationship.” Meanwhile, former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party, Nigel Farage, says that if the two men meet, Mr. Trump is “sending a signal he wants Theresa May removed.” Heaven knows Brexit and Britain need a friend in the White House.

Trump May Meet BoJo In Brexit Row

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