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Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#1New Post! Jun 03, 2017 @ 12:45:05
Just a bit of the lighter side of our up and coming General Election and some of the silliness being bandied around by various election hopefulls, hangers-on and other assorted nut jobs. Other UK FS'ers can feel free to also contribute to the silliness of our democratic process.



F'rinstance: Janice Atkinson, a former UKIP MEP (Member of the European Parliament), in the wake of the Manchester Bombing, has called for suicide bombers to be given the death penalty. "Many will argue that I'm calling for revenge killing. Others will argue that I'm being inhumane" she said with a completely straight face. Yes Janice, and others might point out that carrying out an execution on a suicide bomber may be just a tad difficult.

Nick Griffin, the leader of the extreme right-wing British Nationalist Party, has always had a lot to say about refusing entry into the country for extremists. How ironic then that he has been refused a visa to enter Hungary. Griffin has been declared "Persona Non Grata" by the interior ministry in Budapest. Apparently, he's appealing..... which is the first time anybody has been able to say that about Nick Griffin.

The Kipper (that's what we call UKIP candidates) candidate for Barrow in Furness foolishly spoke too close to a live mic after appearing on Newsnight recently. He joked to a researcher "If FGM stood for female gob manipulation I would probably be talked into it, but it doesn't." Oh well, if you can't laugh about the horrific genital mutilation of more than 100 million women and little girls, what can you laugh about..?






Spotted in Grimsby this week, the UKIP van will be rather familiar to anybody here who remembers another comedy character in a tweed cap with a tendency to exaggerate. We especially enjoy the message on the van that reads "Be proud of our country. Believe in Britain".

The van is a Renault. Oh, sweet irony.
Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#2New Post! Jun 05, 2017 @ 15:24:45
Doing her level best to lose an unloseable election the women who puts the PM in Pitiful Manifesto went all the way during an interview with Andrew Neal. Some derivation of Britain needing "a strong hand during Brexit negotiations" turned out to be the answer to virtually every question, be it the uncosted manifesto, a potential rise in National Insurance or extra funding for the NHS. This might be reasonably effective as an election tactic but nobody will want her on their pub quiz team after tomorrow.

Another week in the slow death of the Foreign Secretary's career. Another week in which he was horribly exposed as both a liar and a liabilty. Though some found his cribbing of Robert Peston's interview notes rather funny and his mention of alcohol while speaking in a Sikh temple absolutely hilarious, considerably less amusing was his bare faced fib to Peston that the Tory manifesto had echoed the EU Leave campaigns promise to give an extra £350 million to the NHS after Brexit. The presenters called him out on this, as hecklers have been doing since the morning of June 24 last year.

Katie Hopkins has got some neck. "People have been calling my bosses demanding that I be sacked for my tweets because my divisiveness is what ISIS wants" moaned humanoid hatebot Hopkins in her Daily Mail column about the latest terror attacks. Well, perhaps, but it's probably more likely that they rung her bosses to complain because she'd tweeted that "We need a final solution" and later called on Western Men to Rise Up". Just how low do you have to go to be sacked from the Daily Mail..? Sadly, we'll probably never find out.
Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#3New Post! Jun 06, 2017 @ 16:15:00
With only 48 hours to go before the General Election that is obviously gripping the rest of the world, those standing for the Mother Of All Parliaments are continuing to put both feet firmly in their mouths.


Granted a rare day release from Linton Crosby's secure facility, the Foreign Secretary visited a market in Newport and during the course of his campaigning told a comic book seller that his favourite character is The Hulk. No clue as to why Boris Johnson should relate to Bruce Banner, an individual who transforms himself into an irrational, mindless destructive force and who. when he inevitably snaps out of it finds his trousers have been shredded, but fair play to the comic seller who told Johnson "I hope you don't mind me saying, but I reckon you're halfway there".


Paul Nuttall, the far right's very own Mr Bean is still asserting that he will be UKIP's leader after Thursday's Cataclysm-In-Waiting and now wants to "Professionalise" his party. An interesting choice of words for Nuttall who a month ago was forced to remove from his website two references to having once been a professional footballer with Tranmere Rovers. The lie was revealed when Tranmere Rovers pointed out that this was completely untrue. After being heckled on this point for the umpteenth time, Tweedledumb Paul climbed on a big bus with claims about higher spending for the NHS after Brexit plastered all over it. Oh well, if it works once....... The bus then got stuck down a narrow lane in the Lincolnshire village of Stickford.


Former UKIP leader Nigel Farage ended a campaign visit to Eastleigh in Hampshire by warning the audience that while he was enjoying his retirment: "If they don't deliver the Brexit I spent 25 years of my life working for then I'll be forced to don khaki, pick up my rifle and head for the front line". The military metaphor naturally went down well with the Tories of Eastleigh but sounded extraordinarily crass to those of us who remember that not so long ago MP's were laying flowers in Parliament Square in memory of Jo Cox, a woman killed with a rifle by a man in khaki.

I so wish Trump would give Farage something to do in his administration. Then he could emigrate to a country that's got far more in common with his mindset than this one.
Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#4New Post! Jun 07, 2017 @ 15:57:19
We're nearly at polling day and as the Teresa May's Election-I-Can't-possibly-Lose becomes The-Election-I-Wouldn't-Have-Called-If-I-Thought-It-Would-Get-This-Close, the gaffes and cock-ups continue to flood in.



The UK terror threat level has been reduced from ‘critical’ to ‘severe’ after failing to have the impact on Theresa May’s popularity as was initially hoped.
The UK terror threat level was raised to ‘critical’ last week in order to prove to skeptical voters that Theresa May was a ‘strong’ leader who could still protect the country despite her swinging cuts to the police force.

“We really thought we’d get more traction in the polls from raising the threat level a couple of weeks before the election,” said a Tory insider.

“I mean, Jeremy Corbyn didn’t raise the threat level, did he? Neither did Nicola Sturgeon or whoever it is who does the Liberal Democrats now…Tom someone.” However, the fact that the poll boost failed to materialise raises some troubling questions for Theresa May’s team.

Could it be that the public may finally be starting to see through transparent political manipulation for electoral gain..? Surely not. Perish the thought.



"Vote Conservative" urge newspapers owned by billionaire tax avoiders. The Sun, Daily Mail and Express have urged their readers to vote Conservative in the upcoming general election in a selfless bid to protect their owners’ vast wealth.

The Daily Mail uses its front page to implore the nation to ‘vote to save Britain’ and accuses Mr Corbyn of ‘Befriending Britain’s enemies, which in this case are Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, not, as they’d previously stated, the British judiciary. The Express warns ‘Vote for Theresa May, or we face disaster’ as it links the Labour Party to an icy polar blast that will send temperatures plummeting to -1000 °C for a period of a million years. No change in the Express there, then.



Still, only one day to go and we can forget all about politics for another five years. Or perhaps only two if Teresa decides she needs a bigger mandate in order to negotiate Brexit arrangements with the EU, which has already stated they will completely ignore her mandate no matter how big it gets.
psycoskunk On December 24, 2020
Funky-Footed Skunk





A fort made of stinky socks, C
#5New Post! Jun 07, 2017 @ 17:23:28
How long has May been in office since taking over for the director of Titanic?

No, wait... I'm thinking of James Cameron.
Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#6New Post! Jun 08, 2017 @ 17:51:50
@psycoskunk Said

How long has May been in office since taking over for the director of Titanic?

No, wait... I'm thinking of James Cameron.



No, no, that was David Cameron. But your Titanic metaphor isn't entirely out of place. She has become labelled "The Political Submarine" because of the way she lurks beneath the surface and torpedoes her opponents when they're at their weakest.

David Cameron won the last General Election for the Tories only two years ago and, in line with his pre-election promise to call a referendum on Britain's membership of the EU, committed political suicide by keeping his promise.

We know how that vote went but it's the aftermath that was telling. The then Home Secretary Teresa May was - in public at least - a "Remain" candidate, but she kept pretty quiet during the campaign while Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Education Secretary Michael Gove overtly fought the "Leave" fight.

When the Leave campaign won, Cameron (a staunch Remainer) was left with no option but to resign. The leadership of the Tory party seemed a cut-and-dried contest between Gove and Johnson.

Until Teresa May threw her hat into the ring.

While everybody else was campaigning, TM was busy beavering away in the background to undermine both and build her own support base.

She won the Tory leadership campaign easily and became Prime Minister last June.

Her majority in the house is pretty thin though, and Mrs "I Have No Intention Of Calling An Early Election" May has.... er.... called an early election (the next one was due in 2020) in the hope of gaining a bigger majority so that she can do all the things she wants to do, like:

Give big tax breaks to already very rich people.

Confiscate people's homes after they die to pay for health care that they have already paid for from their taxes while they were living.

Sell off the NHS to private companies who will make a massive profit from people's suffering.

Further strip away civil rights (The Snoopers' Charter was her idea as Home Secretary)

Make further cuts to public services (she did, while Home Secretary, cut police numbers and hospital staff to save money, which is now coming home to roost during the current terror attacks)

And of course, there is Brexit. She's promised a "Hard Brexit", which means Britain will get next door to no deal at all with Europe.

She calls this "Strong and Stable Leadership" and you know what..?

She's going to win.

Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#7New Post! Jun 10, 2017 @ 03:37:41
And as the dust begins to settle and the scale of the wreckage becomes a little clearer, where are we...?

OK... it's time for all the fun-poking at Monster Raving Loonies, sorry, UKIP, to end. We're in a horrible mess and it's one entirely of the Prime Minister's making.

Bottom line..? We started off with a government that had a slim majority but wanted a big one. What she's got is a hung Parliament or rather, no majority at all.

In order to govern she will require the support of the 10 MP's returned by the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland (DUP).

Apart from a vast number of other problems that this election has created, two things stand out above all others:

Firstly, the DUP will demand a price for their support and that price is likely to come in the form of huge investment Northern Ireland and political power for the DUP. That investment will come from central funding which raises the question: Why should the British taxpayer pay to prop up the Conservative party...? Shouldn't that financial support come from Conservative Party funds..? Not a chance, mate. Millions of people who didn't vote Conservative will find their taxes being used to keep Teresa May in power.

Also, Sinn Fein, the Republican movement in Northern Ireland (the political wing of the IRA) is an opponent of the DUP and although there has been a balance in Northern Ireland since the Good Friday Agreement, which has kept the peace, it has a times been a fractious relationship. If the DUP gain too much political influence at Westminster because of their relationship with the Tories, it could destabilise the peace in Northern Ireland.

Sinn Fein have returned 7 MP's but they hold no influence at Westminster because their members refuse to take up their seats and therefore have no say in Government. They do this because to sit in Parliament requires that each member take an oath of allegiance to The Queen and that is something Sinn Fein will not do. The DUP may gain some funding for NI and gain some power, but there could now be a time-bomb ticking in Stormont (the Northern Ireland Assembly). Dangerous times for the Province.


May's second big problem is with Europe. This election was called to give her a bigger majority to wave in the faces of the bigwigs of the EU with whom her Brexit Minister, David Davies will have to negotiate. She wanted to tell the EU "I'm in charge." That is most definitely not the case now. And the EU knows it.

The problem with the negotiations now is that the EU will be able to reasonably ask "Can you carry any agreement through Parliament..?" They know that for May to be defeated in the house would only take a walkout by the DUP if anything happens to upset them, or a rebellion by less than half a dozen pro-Europe Conservative MP's. And there are significantly more of those in her party than Teresa May would like.

The clock is ticking on Brexit. Negotiations start on 19 June and must be concluded by March 2019. Britain WILL leave the EU at that time and if no deal is made by then..... sheesh..... where do you want me to start...? The magnitude of the mess we'd be in cannot be calculated.

Teresa May... and by extension, Great Britain.... is in a mess created entirely by her own arrogance and hubris. This election need never have been called. She did it entirely in her own interests and the people have proved to be not the pushover she thought we were.

Now, we go into negotiations on which our very future depend weakened, almost as good as leaderless (it's likely that May will be ousted in a Tory party coup before the year is out), rudderless and without any clear plan or mandate from the people for the most vital negotiations in our history (and if there is one thing we HAVE got, it's a history).

Jean Claude Junker, the man who clashed with May over dinner during the election campaign has already indicated that when the negotiations start, he is ready. Bring it on.

The EU will be ready.
The EU members will all be singing from the same hymn sheet.
The EU knows Britain is weak.

Does anybody want David Davies' job..?
Leon On December 21, 2023




San Diego, California
#8New Post! Jun 10, 2017 @ 04:58:05
Brexit was a foreshadowing of what transpired in November for the U.S. This election was a mandate of regret that the U.S. will likely see in 2018 as well. The youth apparently helped change the conservative tide.
mrmhead On about 18 hours ago




NE, Ohio
#9New Post! Jun 10, 2017 @ 12:51:15
What I don't quite get is when they say they will "Form a new gov't" after each election.

Is that just a foreboding way of saying "We'll get back to the business of governing" ? - having to make friends if necessary to have a majority of seats "on your side"
When they Form a new government - can they change rules?
What makes it "new"?

Are The Kinks getting back together?
nooneinparticular On March 16, 2023




, Hawaii
#10New Post! Jun 13, 2017 @ 03:10:09
@Jennifer1984 Said

And as the dust begins to settle and the scale of the wreckage becomes a little clearer, where are we...?

OK... it's time for all the fun-poking at Monster Raving Loonies, sorry, UKIP, to end. We're in a horrible mess and it's one entirely of the Prime Minister's making.

Bottom line..? We started off with a government that had a slim majority but wanted a big one. What she's got is a hung Parliament or rather, no majority at all.

In order to govern she will require the support of the 10 MP's returned by the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland (DUP).

Apart from a vast number of other problems that this election has created, two things stand out above all others:

Firstly, the DUP will demand a price for their support and that price is likely to come in the form of huge investment Northern Ireland and political power for the DUP. That investment will come from central funding which raises the question: Why should the British taxpayer pay to prop up the Conservative party...? Shouldn't that financial support come from Conservative Party funds..? Not a chance, mate. Millions of people who didn't vote Conservative will find their taxes being used to keep Teresa May in power.

Also, Sinn Fein, the Republican movement in Northern Ireland (the political wing of the IRA) is an opponent of the DUP and although there has been a balance in Northern Ireland since the Good Friday Agreement, which has kept the peace, it has a times been a fractious relationship. If the DUP gain too much political influence at Westminster because of their relationship with the Tories, it could destabilise the peace in Northern Ireland.

Sinn Fein have returned 7 MP's but they hold no influence at Westminster because their members refuse to take up their seats and therefore have no say in Government. They do this because to sit in Parliament requires that each member take an oath of allegiance to The Queen and that is something Sinn Fein will not do. The DUP may gain some funding for NI and gain some power, but there could now be a time-bomb ticking in Stormont (the Northern Ireland Assembly). Dangerous times for the Province.


May's second big problem is with Europe. This election was called to give her a bigger majority to wave in the faces of the bigwigs of the EU with whom her Brexit Minister, David Davies will have to negotiate. She wanted to tell the EU "I'm in charge." That is most definitely not the case now. And the EU knows it.

The problem with the negotiations now is that the EU will be able to reasonably ask "Can you carry any agreement through Parliament..?" They know that for May to be defeated in the house would only take a walkout by the DUP if anything happens to upset them, or a rebellion by less than half a dozen pro-Europe Conservative MP's. And there are significantly more of those in her party than Teresa May would like.

The clock is ticking on Brexit. Negotiations start on 19 June and must be concluded by March 2019. Britain WILL leave the EU at that time and if no deal is made by then..... sheesh..... where do you want me to start...? The magnitude of the mess we'd be in cannot be calculated.

Teresa May... and by extension, Great Britain.... is in a mess created entirely by her own arrogance and hubris. This election need never have been called. She did it entirely in her own interests and the people have proved to be not the pushover she thought we were.

Now, we go into negotiations on which our very future depend weakened, almost as good as leaderless (it's likely that May will be ousted in a Tory party coup before the year is out), rudderless and without any clear plan or mandate from the people for the most vital negotiations in our history (and if there is one thing we HAVE got, it's a history).

Jean Claude Junker, the man who clashed with May over dinner during the election campaign has already indicated that when the negotiations start, he is ready. Bring it on.

The EU will be ready.
The EU members will all be singing from the same hymn sheet.
The EU knows Britain is weak.

Does anybody want David Davies' job..?


Can't say I'm all that surprised that May's gamble ended up shooting herself in the foot. Betting that you'll get more support through a special election in order to actually give you power in an international negotiation? That may not be the most reckless move I've seen a government commit, but it ranks pretty high up there. Brexit wins by the skin of it's teeth and May thinks she'll get more power this soon after when Brexit hasn't even happened yet? Fat chance.

They're in an even worse negotiation position as a result. If I were advising May, I'd say give up on the EU market entirely and go for direct deals with as many other countries as possible. There's no way in hell that EU negotiations will go anywhere meaningful at this point. At least with the direct deals with other countries, they're not going to be spiteful as all hell towards you going in. This is why you don't play with fire without a plan.
Jennifer1984 On July 20, 2022
Returner and proud





Penzance, United Kingdom
#11New Post! Jun 13, 2017 @ 04:29:22
@mrmhead Said

What I don't quite get is when they say they will "Form a new gov't" after each election.

Is that just a foreboding way of saying "We'll get back to the business of governing" ? - having to make friends if necessary to have a majority of seats "on your side"
When they Form a new government - can they change rules?
What makes it "new"?

Are The Kinks getting back together?



The old government... that is, Parliament.... is formally dissolved by the Queen when an election is called. The moment this happens every MP no longer represents his constituencies and all the "mechanics" of running the country are, in effect, in the hands of the Civil Service. This frees up the political parties and their candidates for every seat to campaign... attend hustings.... you know, the process of going out to the people and making your case for re-election.

There is a fundamental difference between our system of elections and yours. You elect a president, we elect a government. The actual leader of that government can change if the party in power decides to ditch the Prime Minister in mid-Parliament as the Conservatives did with David Cameron after the Brexit vote.

This is why election campaigns here are quite short. We need to get a government elected so business can resume. We can't go on "The Campaign Trail" for umpteen months while the sitting incumbent in the White House gets on with running the country as Obama did while The Donald and Hillary campaigned.

It's a very speedy system. A short election campaign and no three month gap between election and inauguration. When the Prime Minister changes, the old one is out of Downing Street and the new one has moved in and changed the curtains and soft furnishings before lunch time the next day.

When one party has won the election, the leader of that party is summoned to Buck House and the Queen instructs him / her to form a government to run the country in her name. (Usually) 9 days after the election the Queen makes her speech in the House of Commons laying down the programme for how the country will be run for the duration of the new Parliament. This is why it is called "Forming a new government". It's a new government by definition, because the old one was formally dissolved by the Monarch.

Yeah, I know.... outdated.... anachronistic... irrelevant monarchy, yada, yada, yada, but it's a model that's copied in every constitutional monarchy around the world. It's not called "The Mother Of All Parliaments" for nothing.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), no party gained the figure of 323 seats in the Commons to have an overall majority on this occasion. This means that we either have a lame duck government (didn't that happen to Jimmy Carter..?) or the governing party forms a coalition (Conservative / Liberal Democrats 2010-2015) or there is a pact with another party (in this case, the DUP) for informal support so that a majority in the House is obtained. Not ideal by any stretch of the imagination.

Of course, they could always call another election, but that's unlikely on this occasion unless things get reaaaaaaaaallllly bad. Which they could. Labour are in the ascendant right now and another election could see the Tories out of office altogether.

I'm not sure what you mean by "change the rules". If you mean can they change the rules of how elections are held here, then the answer is no. Sure, they can tinker a bit with the procedure, but that takes a vote in the Commons. What cannot change is the role of the Queen. The government runs the country in her name Regardless of any vote or amendment or who occupies number 10, we are still, all of us, Her Majesty's subjects and she is still the ultimate authority in the land. Parliament cannot even sit without her say-so. Of course, she would never overrule Parliament. The last one who tried started a Civil War which he lost and ended up getting his head chopped off.

To oust a government requires a vote of No Confidence in the House. Parliament has to vote to dissolve itself.... then the PM goes to the Queen... and so it goes around.

It's all a matter of checks and controls and funnily enough, it works. We have a great democracy and for all it's idiosyncracies and eccentricities (it wouldn't be British without them, would it..? LOL) we usually find that the electorate keeps the loonies and extremists in check. We are, at heart, a very liberal people and we prefer concensus politics to giving one party too much power, which was what May wanted this time.

The politicians have been given a message by the people. Don't take anything for granted.

I hope this helps to answer your questions. Thanks for asking.


Oh, and the Kinks broke up in 1996. Sir Ray Davies was knighted by Her Majesty in the New Year Honours list on 1 January this year, for Services to The Arts.

And well deserved it was too.
Leon On December 21, 2023




San Diego, California
#12New Post! Jun 13, 2017 @ 04:57:41
@Jennifer1984 Said

The old government... that is, Parliament.... is formally dissolved by the Queen when an election is called. The moment this happens every MP no longer represents his constituencies and all the "mechanics" of running the country are, in effect, in the hands of the Civil Service. This frees up the political parties and their candidates for every seat to campaign... attend hustings.... you know, the process of going out to the people and making your case for re-election.

There is a fundamental difference between our system of elections and yours. You elect a president, we elect a government. The actual leader of that government can change if the party in power decides to ditch the Prime Minister in mid-Parliament as the Conservatives did with David Cameron after the Brexit vote.

This is why election campaigns here are quite short. We need to get a government elected so business can resume. We can't go on "The Campaign Trail" for umpteen months while the sitting incumbent in the White House gets on with running the country as Obama did while The Donald and Hillary campaigned.

It's a very speedy system. A short election campaign and no three month gap between election and inauguration. When the Prime Minister changes, the old one is out of Downing Street and the new one has moved in and changed the curtains and soft furnishings before lunch time the next day.

When one party has won the election, the leader of that party is summoned to Buck House and the Queen instructs him / her to form a government to run the country in her name. (Usually) 9 days after the election the Queen makes her speech in the House of Commons laying down the programme for how the country will be run for the duration of the new Parliament. This is why it is called "Forming a new government". It's a new government by definition, because the old one was formally dissolved by the Monarch.

Yeah, I know.... outdated.... anachronistic... irrelevant monarchy, yada, yada, yada, but it's a model that's copied in every constitutional monarchy around the world. It's not called "The Mother Of All Parliaments" for nothing.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), no party gained the figure of 323 seats in the Commons to have an overall majority on this occasion. This means that we either have a lame duck government (didn't that happen to Jimmy Carter..?) or the governing party forms a coalition (Conservative / Liberal Democrats 2010-2015) or there is a pact with another party (in this case, the DUP) for informal support so that a majority in the House is obtained. Not ideal by any stretch of the imagination.

Of course, they could always call another election, but that's unlikely on this occasion unless things get reaaaaaaaaallllly bad. Which they could. Labour are in the ascendant right now and another election could see the Tories out of office altogether.

I'm not sure what you mean by "change the rules". If you mean can they change the rules of how elections are held here, then the answer is no. Sure, they can tinker a bit with the procedure, but that takes a vote in the Commons. What cannot change is the role of the Queen. The government runs the country in her name Regardless of any vote or amendment or who occupies number 10, we are still, all of us, Her Majesty's subjects and she is still the ultimate authority in the land. Parliament cannot even sit without her say-so. Of course, she would never overrule Parliament. The last one who tried started a Civil War which he lost and ended up getting his head chopped off.

To oust a government requires a vote of No Confidence in the House. Parliament has to vote to dissolve itself.... then the PM goes to the Queen... and so it goes around.

It's all a matter of checks and controls and funnily enough, it works. We have a great democracy and for all it's idiosyncracies and eccentricities (it wouldn't be British without them, would it..? LOL) we usually find that the electorate keeps the loonies and extremists in check. We are, at heart, a very liberal people and we prefer concensus politics to giving one party too much power, which was what May wanted this time.

The politicians have been given a message by the people. Don't take anything for granted.

I hope this helps to answer your questions. Thanks for asking.


Oh, and the Kinks broke up in 1996. Sir Ray Davies was knighted by Her Majesty in the New Year Honours list on 1 January this year, for Services to The Arts.

And well deserved it was too.


Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, enjoyed an overwhelming Democrat majority in both the Senate and House of Representatives during his entire 4 years of his presidency. So he certainly had no "lame-duck'" status during his term.

Unless you are referring to his last two months, after losing his re-election bid to Ronald Reagan, but that situation happens to every president entering his final two months.
mrmhead On about 18 hours ago




NE, Ohio
#13New Post! Jun 13, 2017 @ 11:39:06
@Jennifer1984 Said

The old government... that is, Parliament.... is formally dissolved by the Queen when an election is called. The moment this happens every MP no longer represents his constituencies and all the "mechanics" of running the country are, in effect, in the hands of the Civil Service. This frees up the political parties and their candidates for every seat to campaign... attend hustings.... you know, the process of going out to the people and making your case for re-election.

There is a fundamental difference between our system of elections and yours. You elect a president, we elect a government. The actual leader of that government can change if the party in power decides to ditch the Prime Minister in mid-Parliament as the Conservatives did with David Cameron after the Brexit vote.

This is why election campaigns here are quite short. We need to get a government elected so business can resume. We can't go on "The Campaign Trail" for umpteen months while the sitting incumbent in the White House gets on with running the country as Obama did while The Donald and Hillary campaigned.

It's a very speedy system. A short election campaign and no three month gap between election and inauguration. When the Prime Minister changes, the old one is out of Downing Street and the new one has moved in and changed the curtains and soft furnishings before lunch time the next day.

When one party has won the election, the leader of that party is summoned to Buck House and the Queen instructs him / her to form a government to run the country in her name. (Usually) 9 days after the election the Queen makes her speech in the House of Commons laying down the programme for how the country will be run for the duration of the new Parliament. This is why it is called "Forming a new government". It's a new government by definition, because the old one was formally dissolved by the Monarch.

Yeah, I know.... outdated.... anachronistic... irrelevant monarchy, yada, yada, yada, but it's a model that's copied in every constitutional monarchy around the world. It's not called "The Mother Of All Parliaments" for nothing.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), no party gained the figure of 323 seats in the Commons to have an overall majority on this occasion. This means that we either have a lame duck government (didn't that happen to Jimmy Carter..?) or the governing party forms a coalition (Conservative / Liberal Democrats 2010-2015) or there is a pact with another party (in this case, the DUP) for informal support so that a majority in the House is obtained. Not ideal by any stretch of the imagination.

Of course, they could always call another election, but that's unlikely on this occasion unless things get reaaaaaaaaallllly bad. Which they could. Labour are in the ascendant right now and another election could see the Tories out of office altogether.

I'm not sure what you mean by "change the rules". If you mean can they change the rules of how elections are held here, then the answer is no. Sure, they can tinker a bit with the procedure, but that takes a vote in the Commons. What cannot change is the role of the Queen. The government runs the country in her name Regardless of any vote or amendment or who occupies number 10, we are still, all of us, Her Majesty's subjects and she is still the ultimate authority in the land. Parliament cannot even sit without her say-so. Of course, she would never overrule Parliament. The last one who tried started a Civil War which he lost and ended up getting his head chopped off.

To oust a government requires a vote of No Confidence in the House. Parliament has to vote to dissolve itself.... then the PM goes to the Queen... and so it goes around.

It's all a matter of checks and controls and funnily enough, it works. We have a great democracy and for all it's idiosyncracies and eccentricities (it wouldn't be British without them, would it..? LOL) we usually find that the electorate keeps the loonies and extremists in check. We are, at heart, a very liberal people and we prefer concensus politics to giving one party too much power, which was what May wanted this time.

The politicians have been given a message by the people. Don't take anything for granted.

I hope this helps to answer your questions. Thanks for asking.


Oh, and the Kinks broke up in 1996. Sir Ray Davies was knighted by Her Majesty in the New Year Honours list on 1 January this year, for Services to The Arts.

And well deserved it was too.


Thanks! Yes, helpful. So the "New Government" term just means getting back to the business of governing

One of the things I see different - could be good or bad - ALL of the MP are up for election / re-election each go-around. Here, we have staggered time frames for senators and congressmen. So it takes time for a party majority to shift, possibly over several election cycles, in which a lot can happen to win back support, or spread selective amnesia.

We couldn't change from a GOP majority to a Green majority in one November just because some slick huckster got the attention of the masses.

I think it (all up for election) would also help get some 3rd party candidates into the mix - Like Elmo, Lord Buckethead and Mr Fishfinger.
Eaglebauer On July 23, 2019
Moderator
Deleted



Saint Louis, Missouri
#14New Post! Jun 13, 2017 @ 12:04:29
@Leon Said

Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, enjoyed an overwhelming Democrat majority in both the Senate and House of Representatives during his entire 4 years of his presidency. So he certainly had no "lame-duck'" status during his term.

Unless you are referring to his last two months, after losing his re-election bid to Ronald Reagan, but that situation happens to every president entering his final two months.



It's also of note to mention that we don't just elect the president. We elect literally tens of thousands of people into government offices from the highest federal level down to municipal positions.
mrmhead On about 18 hours ago




NE, Ohio
#15New Post! Jun 13, 2017 @ 12:09:42
@Eaglebauer Said

It's also of note to mention that we don't just elect the president. We elect literally tens of thousands of people into government offices from the highest federal level down to municipal positions.



Or / Actually / Technically .....
we could get into the whole Electoral College discussion.

But for all intensive porpoises, yes we elect the President and many more.
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