Liz Truss has resigned

[Emrys]

28. No, indeed.

That blast from the past deserves reproducing in fuller form:


I was struck that Truss's persona in one onstage speech she gave at a Lib Dem conference (where she infamously came out as anti-royalist etc.) is at least somewhat natural in terms of timing, body language and response to the audience, some small evidence of a sense of humour even, whereas in later life she's famously robotic and physically and verbally very awkward, to the extent that I've wondered at times whether she's had some sort of stroke or other unfortunate affliction.

Her astonishing self-regard is illustrated by the various heavily posed photos she's had taken over the years (many aping Thatcherian images) and her yearning to appear on the cover of Vogue. An old pal of mine used to use the expression "delusions of adequacy", which seems apt.

There may be a degree of sexism in some of the criticism of her, but as a would-be woman leader, she's done the cause of feminism no favours, and not ridiculing her idiocy and flat-footedness would itself be a form of sexism given the pasting male politicians take on a daily basis.

She evidently served some influential people's interests well - or so they hoped - not least the Tufton Street lobbyists and those behind the dark money that's infested our politics.

But she's not unique. How the hell is archetypal caricature stuffed shirt Rees-Mogg anywhere near the reins of government, or Thérèse Coffey within a heartbeat of being prime minister (for the next week or so at least), not to mention any of the other contenders for leadership or the cabinet at the moment?

The Tories under Johnson pruned away any semblance of competence and credibility in its hierarchy when the splits between Brexit true believers and any who had a marginally saner view of the world meant the government was stacked with barely functional swivel-eyed ideological loons and grifters - or worse, those who do know better and have some grasp on reality, but can see which side of their career's bread is buttered, so feign the lunacy to fit in and get on.