I would also suggest the FO records management and information compliance training needs improving, as does clearly training for Cabinet Ministers if even an intelligent man like Lord Mandelson sent confidential records to the likes of Epstein
"They're called secrets for a reason."
End of Lesson One.
"Always ask yourself 'How would my actions look on the front page of the papers?'"
End of Lesson Two.
The other alarming thing here is that there was this gimoniferous scandal, a huge pile of muck, and none of our rakers managed to rake it.
We'll never find out, of course, but how many separate things do we think Mandelson did while in government office that would have been a resignable offence if they became public while he was in office?
He's resigned three times already. We've now found out about a fourth (the money from Epstein) and a fifth (giving information to Epstein). He was probably doing things that warranted his resignation every week.
And then can we be sure that his behaviour was really that unusual? What other ministers have done, or are doing, the same but we don't find out about it?
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
The fact nothing ever hits Starmers desk, some poor sod in #10, desk buried under paperwork....
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Also, he already sacked him. that blunts the attack a lot more i think.
Epstein was very familiar: Tony this and Tony that and Tony the other. Was he really on first-name terms with the great man, or just basking in (imagined) reflective glory?
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
The fact nothing ever hits Starmers desk, some poor sod in #10, desk buried under paperwork....
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Mandelson's problem is that the number one thing he values his friends by is not their humour, trustworthiness, help, shared views or other mundane things like those, but the size of their bank balance.
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Great to see you fired up about corruption in high places. I look forward to your upcoming stuff on the man who views his US presidency primarily as a vehicle for personal enrichment. I just know it's going to be a terrific read.
Republicans did not lose the TX SD-9 runoff because of low GOP turnout: they lost because almost all of the independents and some of the Republicans voted Dem.
Of those who voted in the TX SD-9 runoff, 50%+ were GOP primary voters or at GOP HH; only 35% were Dems or at Dem HH
Republicans did not lose the TX SD-9 runoff because of low GOP turnout: they lost because almost all of the independents and some of the Republicans voted Dem.
Of those who voted in the TX SD-9 runoff, 50%+ were GOP primary voters or at GOP HH; only 35% were Dems or at Dem HH
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Has anyone asked Trump if there was allegedly so much cheating how was he allowed to win in 2016 and 2024 ?
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
It follows reports over the weekend that Angela Rayner has, well:-
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Has anyone asked Trump if there was allegedly so much cheating how was he allowed to win in 2016 and 2024 ?
My pet theory is that the GOP did a lot of cheating in 2020 that Trump was aware of, but not enough to win, and so he thinks his attempt to steal an election was defeated due to the Democrats stealing it from him, rather than him simply being repellent to all decent people.
Potentially explosive but I'm sceptical of the details since Ivanka Trump would have been 10 or 11 in 1992. Why take your own daughter to child sex romps?
ETA and Elon Musk was a college student, possibly still in Canada.
Some of the photos of Trump and Ivanka are decidedly... well. And he's said some grim things about her too.
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Agree. The benefit of being (apparently) oblivious to everything is that you can convincingly claim you were oblivious to stuff like this too.
There is an aggressive plan underway to take the House and the Senate, impeach Pres Trump & then savagely consolidate a permanent grip on power. We are in a war. If you fail to see that, you will be one of those crying out in shock as they usher you into a gas chamber or killing field. https://nitter.poast.org/laralogan/status/2018071956478967931#m
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
It follows reports over the weekend that Angela Rayner has, well:-
I don't really understand what has changed from Keir Starmer's perspective regarding Peter Mandelson?
He knew he'd remained friends with him after his conviction for solicitation of a minor in 2008, This was well known prior to Keir Starmer making him US Ambassador 🤨
"University to remove George Mitchell’s name from peace centre over Epstein links"
"Queen’s University Belfast is to remove the name of one of the architects of the Good Friday Agreement from a peace centre because of his links with the disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
"A bust of former US senator George Mitchell will also be removed from the university grounds."
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Agree. The benefit of being (apparently) oblivious to everything is that you can convincingly claim you were oblivious to stuff like this too.
There are limits. It's like when people who promote themselves as geniuses claim ignorance when shit hits the fan, the "I'm stupid" defence - accepting it as true, it eventually undermines trust in anything else they try to persuade us of.
Labour emphasising how much it wants to strip Mandleson of his peerage. Who cares? He’ll never be near the House of Lords again. Far more important is the mounting evidence that as a cabinet minister he passed market sensitive information to Epstein of huge value to the pedophile’s rich American friends (Steven Swinford of The Times has uncovered one damning example — there are many more — see Dan Neidle’s excellent work). Is this not misconduct in a public office? Surely Knacker of the Yard should be investigating.
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
It follows reports over the weekend that Angela Rayner has, well:-
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Has anyone asked Trump if there was allegedly so much cheating how was he allowed to win in 2016 and 2024 ?
I imagine the tortured explanation is that he won by so much it was too much even for the cheaters to stop him.
His comments are dangerous because 45% of Americans believe it, and it cannot be dismissed as a mere joke or dementia when he claims he won every state etc - he could and probably will do something about it, and people who are more competent than would be liked will be happy to enact it.
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Agree. The benefit of being (apparently) oblivious to everything is that you can convincingly claim you were oblivious to stuff like this too.
There are limits. It's like when people who promote themselves as geniuses claim ignorance when shit hits the fan, the "I'm stupid" defence - accepting it as true, it eventually undermines trust in anything else they try to persuade us of.
The Post Office enquiry produced a long list of people paid 6 figure salaries to run the post office. Who had absolutely no knowledge (according to their sworn testimony) of anything the Post Office did.
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Turns out the rich and powerful can be as personally pathetic as anyone else. More so in some cases, as the rich try to ape the super rich, and the super rich seek ways to flex their power through behaviour that would be criticised by most people, or make the powerful beg for their attention.
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Agree. The benefit of being (apparently) oblivious to everything is that you can convincingly claim you were oblivious to stuff like this too.
There are limits. It's like when people who promote themselves as geniuses claim ignorance when shit hits the fan, the "I'm stupid" defence - accepting it as true, it eventually undermines trust in anything else they try to persuade us of.
The Post Office enquiry produced a long list of people paid 6 figure salaries to run the post office. Who had absolutely no knowledge (according to their sworn testimony) of anything the Post Office did.
Where are most of them now I wonder? Probably get missed off a few invites to society events for a year or two, must be rough.
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
The infamous door step data ! It’s a poor substitute for some proper polling and parties are often liberal with the truth .
There have been enough occasions that parties have been totally surprised by a result (be it win or loss), that it's clear their own methods are no more accurate than anyone else, and successful predictions are as much luck as anything else.
It's an uncomfortable truth of political campaigning, up there with 'canvassing is not as effective as parties think it is outside of very tight contests, but it is good for making activists feel useful'.
Jenrick: "Mandelson has clearly broken the law [he] stands now accused of serious misconduct in public office and should be tried for his offences"
At no point am I defending Epstein, but I am old enough to remember when Robert Jenrick used privileged information to save Dirty Desmond £50m in taxation to poor as a church mouse Tower Hamlets Council.
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
It follows reports over the weekend that Angela Rayner has, well:-
FWIW - I think Rayner is the one Farage fears the most as an opponent in 2029.
I think that's probably right. She's pretty feisty, authentically working class, and a distinctive political personality. And represents a northern seat.
Ange vs Nigel vs Kemi would be an entertaining contest. No guarantee that Nige would prevail.
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Has anyone asked Trump if there was allegedly so much cheating how was he allowed to win in 2016 and 2024 ?
One of his campaign slogans to encourage turnout in 2024 was to make the victory too big to steal.
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Turns out the rich and powerful can be as personally pathetic as anyone else. More so in some cases, as the rich try to ape the super rich, and the super rich seek ways to flex their power through behaviour that would be criticised by most people, or make the powerful beg for their attention.
You know that ghastly aphorism about "if you want it enough, you will make it happen?" (Ghastly partly because it's trivially untrue, but mostly because it gives bad people permission to behave badly.)
Trouble is that there's a flawed bit of truth in it. If you don't want to be stratospherically rich, you will stop scrabbling after money when you are extremely comfortable, at the latest. If you don't have a pathological urge to get to the top of the greasy pole, you will say "enough" before you get close. That's true even of our more "normal", unpolitical leaders- May, say, or Starmer.
The people who make it to the top do so by wanting it more. You probably can't be a complete idiot or nutter (you all know who I mean), but desire matters more then competence. Maybe we should consider this in the renumeration packages such people award themselves.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
The infamous door step data ! It’s a poor substitute for some proper polling and parties are often liberal with the truth .
There have been enough occasions that parties have been totally surprised by a result (be it win or loss), that it's clear their own methods are no more accurate than anyone else, and successful predictions are as much luck as anything else.
It's an uncomfortable truth of political campaigning, up there with 'canvassing is not as effective as parties think it is outside of very tight contests, but it is good for making activists feel useful'.
I remember during the Scottish Indy Ref reading all about the marvellous canvassing returns ! That didn’t work out so well .
Jenrick: "Mandelson has clearly broken the law [he] stands now accused of serious misconduct in public office and should be tried for his offences"
At no point am I defending Epstein, but I am old enough to remember when Robert Jenrick used privileged information to save Dirty Desmond £50m in taxation to poor as a church mouse Tower Hamlets Council.
I expect there is a lot of it going about. People love knowing secret info, and drop feeding it out to others makes you feel powerful and important. The temptation to do it for advantage is high, and why it's so important to be a little vigorous in respect of standards and interests, because whilst it can be intrusive and burdensome, if you don't do it it devolves very quickly.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
It follows reports over the weekend that Angela Rayner has, well:-
FWIW - I think Rayner is the one Farage fears the most as an opponent in 2029.
I think that's probably right. She's pretty feisty, authentically working class, and a distinctive political personality. And represents a northern seat.
Ange vs Nigel vs Kemi would be an entertaining contest. No guarantee that Nige would prevail.
Nigel told the Speccie a few weeks ago that she was the only authentic person in the entire Cabinet.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
True, but if I lived in Gorton my postal vote would be Green - I wouldn't be voting for Labour with SKS in charge...
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
Sir Keir Starmer thought he could appeal to the sleaziest US President ever by appointing as Ambassador the sleaziest person he could think of. And it nearly worked.
It was considered a masterstroke. Kemi and Nige were green with envy and if it hadn't been for Super-Perv he'd have got away with it.
Of all his missteps this looks the most serious. Don't put the farm on him being PM by the end of the year
I thought he may survive both Gorton and Denton as well as May and put him down on the quiz as PM at end of year
I really cannot see how he survives this firestorm
Hmm. I’m still unconvinced. It shows a shocking level of judgement (Mandelson clearly wasn’t an appropriate figure for the ambassador role) but Starmer has done his usual trick of hiding behind process here and I think he’ll continue to do so. It never crossed my desk….
Agree. The benefit of being (apparently) oblivious to everything is that you can convincingly claim you were oblivious to stuff like this too.
There are limits. It's like when people who promote themselves as geniuses claim ignorance when shit hits the fan, the "I'm stupid" defence - accepting it as true, it eventually undermines trust in anything else they try to persuade us of.
The Post Office enquiry produced a long list of people paid 6 figure salaries to run the post office. Who had absolutely no knowledge (according to their sworn testimony) of anything the Post Office did.
Where are most of them now I wonder? Probably get missed off a few invites to society events for a year or two, must be rough.
What kind of heartless neon-nazi are you? They haven’t been left off any society events. Nor should they. Where else could they find their own kind?
Jenrick: "Mandelson has clearly broken the law [he] stands now accused of serious misconduct in public office and should be tried for his offences"
At no point am I defending Epstein, but I am old enough to remember when Robert Jenrick used privileged information to save Dirty Desmond £50m in taxation to poor as a church mouse Tower Hamlets Council.
Yes. He's disqualified from the conversation. Somebody needs to tell him so he doesn't come over as a rank chancing hypocrite.
Mandelson comes across as so needy. He's looking for a pat on the back from Epstein after being offered a position with Deutsche Bank and Epstein tells him to raise his sights. This was only a couple of weeks after the coalition government took over.
Turns out the rich and powerful can be as personally pathetic as anyone else. More so in some cases, as the rich try to ape the super rich, and the super rich seek ways to flex their power through behaviour that would be criticised by most people, or make the powerful beg for their attention.
You know that ghastly aphorism about "if you want it enough, you will make it happen?" (Ghastly partly because it's trivially untrue, but mostly because it gives bad people permission to behave badly.)
Trouble is that there's a flawed bit of truth in it. If you don't want to be stratospherically rich, you will stop scrabbling after money when you are extremely comfortable, at the latest. If you don't have a pathological urge to get to the top of the greasy pole, you will say "enough" before you get close. That's true even of our more "normal", unpolitical leaders- May, say, or Starmer.
The people who make it to the top do so by wanting it more. You probably can't be a complete idiot or nutter (you all know who I mean), but desire matters more then competence. Maybe we should consider this in the renumeration packages such people award themselves.
It's also an argument for using an element of sortition in the governance structure as a check on the overly ambitious types otherwise dominating it.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
I had the exact same reaction to those numbers. Uncanny.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
True, but if I lived in Gorton my postal vote would be Green - I wouldn't be voting for Labour with SKS in charge...
Well that's a separate matter. I'd vote Green too but only if I believed it was them or Reform.
Jenrick: "Mandelson has clearly broken the law [he] stands now accused of serious misconduct in public office and should be tried for his offences"
At no point am I defending Epstein, but I am old enough to remember when Robert Jenrick used privileged information to save Dirty Desmond £50m in taxation to poor as a church mouse Tower Hamlets Council.
I expect there is a lot of it going about. People love knowing secret info, and drop feeding it out to others makes you feel powerful and important. The temptation to do it for advantage is high, and why it's so important to be a little vigorous in respect of standards and interests, because whilst it can be intrusive and burdensome, if you don't do it it devolves very quickly.
The old definition of a secret is something you tell everyone you know, one person at a time.
Though Reform reporting him to the Met Police is rather taking the piss given they’re a bunch of grifting Putin apologist traitors .
I think that this could involve far more politicians than Mandelson, especially if he kept a secret diary and seeks revenge
Goodness only knows what is coming next, especially for labour politicians
Why do so many politicians and celebrities have this sense of entitlement where they think they can get away with anything ?
The obvious answer is they usually can, if it is not too public or is openly accepted in their own circles. Think of rampant drug use being enabled in Hollywood, that sort of thing, it would be very easy to get some easy busts of high profile users if police cared.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
They do *feel* about right, however
So if they’re invented they’ve invented them well
They certainly have. Lab nowhere and Ref just a few pts ahead. Perfecto.
Crossover happened today on next PM market - Rayner now favourite:
Rayner 5.2/5.4 Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8 Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
I suspect with Burnham's self combustion and New Labour crashing and burning on the coat tails of Mandelson Rayner is a decent choice.
I suspect Rayner is far smarter and savvier than Truss.
I'd like to see Emily Thornberry for PM. I'm sick of Labour's dishonesty and siding with bastards. For the first time I'd like to see Starmer go. Not just this but his judgement is really suspect. Give someone else the next 3 years
Jenrick: "Mandelson has clearly broken the law [he] stands now accused of serious misconduct in public office and should be tried for his offences"
At no point am I defending Epstein, but I am old enough to remember when Robert Jenrick used privileged information to save Dirty Desmond £50m in taxation to poor as a church mouse Tower Hamlets Council.
I meant Mandelson but being as they appear interchangeable I won't apologise for my Freudian slip.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
Comments
https://x.com/PulaRJS/status/2018358017520009539
He's resigned three times already. We've now found out about a fourth (the money from Epstein) and a fifth (giving information to Epstein). He was probably doing things that warranted his resignation every week.
And then can we be sure that his behaviour was really that unusual? What other ministers have done, or are doing, the same but we don't find out about it?
https://news.sky.com/liveblog-webview/politics-latest-mandelson-quits-labour-over-epstein-links-as-starmer-calls-for-him-to-lose-peerage-12593360
https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet 9/EFTA00736122.pdf
Trump: "Minnesota is a mess. There's something in the water up there. I won the 3 three times but I got no credit for it. It's a rigged state. Really rigged badly w/ the Somalians, and the Somalians & the theft. We gotta get 'em out, most of them. 92% don't work. Many of them drive Mercedes-Benzes."
@rothschildmd.bsky.social
"I won MN three times but I got no credit for it" is just batshit crazy dementia talk. He genuinely thinks he kept winning and "they" just kept stealing it from him. It's like he thinks squirrels stole his glasses, or the wind is saying mean things about him. This can't go on much longer.
@atrupar.com
Trump: "These people were brought to our country to vote, & they vote illegally. The Republicans should say, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting. We have states that I won that show I didn't win. You're gonna see something in Georgia"
Rayner 5.2/5.4
Streeting 5.4/5.6
And Rayner now favourite for Next Labour leader by quite a margin:
Rayner 3.75/4.8
Streeting 5.1/5.4
Labour following in Conservative footsteps - members are going to choose the person they love but who will simultaneously be the worst possible choice for winning the next GE.
If they had real friends all along, I suspect they wouldn't be driven to these sorts of jobs in the first place.
As the sharks were comin' for me
I felt Mandy pull me up, give me the kiss of life
@Ross_Hunt
Republicans did not lose the TX SD-9 runoff because of low GOP turnout: they lost because almost all of the independents and some of the Republicans voted Dem.
Of those who voted in the TX SD-9 runoff, 50%+ were GOP primary voters or at GOP HH; only 35% were Dems or at Dem HH
https://x.com/Ross_Hunt/status/2017995573840732326
Oh but it can.
Angela Rayner secures £1million war chest to kick out Keir as former deputy PM's allies say she's 'ready to go' for leadership
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15516265/Angela-Rayner-secures-war-chest-Keir-former-deputy-PMs.html
There is an aggressive plan underway to take the House and the Senate, impeach Pres Trump & then savagely consolidate a permanent grip on power. We are in a war. If you fail to see that, you will be one of those crying out in shock as they usher you into a gas chamber or killing field.
https://nitter.poast.org/laralogan/status/2018071956478967931#m
He knew he'd remained friends with him after his conviction for solicitation of a minor in 2008, This was well known prior to Keir Starmer making him US Ambassador 🤨
https://x.com/timmyvoe/status/2018310521460514896?s=20
"Queen’s University Belfast is to remove the name of one of the architects of the Good Friday Agreement from a peace centre because of his links with the disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
"A bust of former US senator George Mitchell will also be removed from the university grounds."
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/university-to-remove-george-mitchell-s-name-from-peace-centre-over-epstein-links/ar-AA1VuEUE?ocid=winp1taskbar&cvid=3151481539f742bdfd062c437fa2ea22&ei=9
@afneil
Labour emphasising how much it wants to strip Mandleson of his peerage. Who cares? He’ll never be near the House of Lords again.
Far more important is the mounting evidence that as a cabinet minister he passed market sensitive information to Epstein of huge value to the pedophile’s rich American friends (Steven Swinford of The Times has uncovered one damning example — there are many more — see Dan Neidle’s excellent work).
Is this not misconduct in a public office? Surely Knacker of the Yard should be investigating.
What does Labour have to say about that?
His comments are dangerous because 45% of Americans believe it, and it cannot be dismissed as a mere joke or dementia when he claims he won every state etc - he could and probably will do something about it, and people who are more competent than would be liked will be happy to enact it.
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
But I could believe that, albeit on the lower end of expectations for Labour, as I don't think they are completely out yet.
Surely Mandelson has to go to jail
https://www1.politicalbetting.com/index.php/archives/2026/01/27/labour-leadership-the-betting-values-with-rayner-and-miliband/
Good job Labour can keep their heads down and tough this... really? A by-election at month's end you say? And locals in May?
Oh dear.
It's an uncomfortable truth of political campaigning, up there with 'canvassing is not as effective as parties think it is outside of very tight contests, but it is good for making activists feel useful'.
Is that what you want? Cuz that's what you'll get..."
https://www1.politicalbetting.com/index.php/archives/2026/01/26/the-big-winners-from-the-weekends-labour-contretemps/
Epstein THANKED Chomsky for the insight. lol
https://www.screendaily.com/news/helena-bonham-carter-caitriona-balfe-join-cast-of-the-housekeeper-set-to-shoot-in-cornwall/5213297.article?referrer=RSS
Ange vs Nigel vs Kemi would be an entertaining contest. No guarantee that Nige would prevail.
That's hardly a gotcha question.
Trouble is that there's a flawed bit of truth in it. If you don't want to be stratospherically rich, you will stop scrabbling after money when you are extremely comfortable, at the latest. If you don't have a pathological urge to get to the top of the greasy pole, you will say "enough" before you get close. That's true even of our more "normal", unpolitical leaders- May, say, or Starmer.
The people who make it to the top do so by wanting it more. You probably can't be a complete idiot or nutter (you all know who I mean), but desire matters more then competence. Maybe we should consider this in the renumeration packages such people award themselves.
Though Reform reporting him to the Met Police is rather taking the piss given they’re a bunch of grifting Putin apologist traitors .
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c20d7y2rqw6o
So, what was it, in his upbringing, that made him so desperately needy and puppyish in the company of super rich people. It’s truly odd
I know one or two billionaires. I feel no need to fawn
Blair had some of the same neediness, as well. Tho not as bad as Lord Petey
So if they’re invented they’ve invented them well
Goodness only knows what is coming next, especially for labour politicians
I suspect Rayner is far smarter and savvier than Truss.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”