The suffix "gate" gets overused in politics and political media. Every minor embarrassment or cock up gets the word gate appended to it.
Even the least tuned-in to political history will know that the use of "gate" comes from the Watergate scandal that engulfed Nixon in the 1970s. I won't go into the details of the Watergate scandal, you can read about it here, but it grew out of a desperate attempt to re-elect Nixon using a dirty tricks campaign.
Watching the emerging Number 10 dirty tricks story I feel that the suffix "gate" may be appropriate for the first time in British politics. It indicates a desperate and morally corrupt administration, willing to do almost anything to get re-elected.
The thing I find amusing about this whole sorry episode is that it shows, once again, that Labour just don't get online campaigning. Iain Dale, Guido, ConHome, Dizzy, etc. are all independent of the Conservative party and form a powerful right of centre voice, indeed their very Independence gives them their authority and the ability to be much more direct in their attacks on the government, it's policies and actions. If Tim, Iain or Gudio screw up, break the law etc, it is their screw up not the Conservative party's, shadow cabinets or David Cameron's. Because of Brown's obsessive centralizing he will find himself at the heart of this maelstrom.
This won't just be embarrassing, as the Number 10 spinners are trying to claim, this will be terminal.
Peer Bashing
3 hours ago
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13 comments:
I'm eagerly awaiting the results of the enquiry into the illegal leaking of sensitive material and the alleged 'grooming' of a junior official - or the "Green-gate scandal" as it is known.
Will the result be a whitewash, after Boris's inappropriate interference and the fact that Bob Quick has now been forced from office and replaced by the ineffective Andy Hayman, a man who simply rolls over for politicians?
Or how about an investigation into the "Quick-gate" affair - after all, surely an investigation is warranted? How come his personal life and details were suddenly splashed across the national newspapers so soon after his involvement in the arrest of a Conservative MP?
How come the Conservative politicians lined up so gleefully to condemn him, rather than polinting out the fact that the photographer concerned had broken the law - the photograph showed Bob Quick carrying top secret counter-terrorism documents and according to the Counter Terrorism Act 2008 it is against the law to publish information about the intelligence services that is "likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism".
The Conservatives have plunged to new depths - and are still digging. Instead of taking the moral high ground, they've decided to imitate the sleezy Labour party.
Excalibur,
I know you've convinced yourself that this is all a great big plot by the Tories, I can assure you we're not that well organized.
We didn't make Bob hold a secret document in front of photographers, we didn't force his team to cock up the arrest of Green etc.
You won't belive me (I don't care) but we have played this completely clean.
James,
I believe that you are genuine in your response but just suppose there was a secret dirty tricks department in Central Office, are you high enough up the food chain to be told :^)
One point in your response, James - how was the arrest of Green "cocked-up"? It is the job of the police to investigate all allegations of criminal offences. The only "cock-up" in the affair so far has been by Boris!
Happy Easter, keep up the good work.
@Excalibur
The cock-up was not following the correct procedure in Parliament (Which is a Royal Court, therefore these things matter). The investigation seemingly had scant regard for the rights of the constituents of the MP being investigated.
Boris didn't do anything wrong.
Brown used leaks for a decade in opposition. Including one about the basing of the UK Nuclear Deterrent.
'Bob' Quick was investigating a supposed breach of national security...Oh dear, what did he do to get fired?..Oh yeah! He breached national security.
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Take the foil hat off, Conrad!
Talking of foil hats:
'How come his personal life and details were suddenly splashed across the national newspapers so soon after his involvement in the arrest of a Conservative MP?'
Journalism.
Excalibur
not like you to get your facts wrong.
Andy Hayman hasn't replaced Bob Quick, John Yates has.
He is hardly someone who 'rolls over for politicians'.
In any event, Bob Quick may have had a great career, but only a fool would arrest a leading Tory frontbencher on such flimsy evidence. If anyone was guilty of rolling over to keep [Labour] politicians happy it was was Mr. Quick.
Now, the suffix 'gate' has only been applied since Watergate. The office complex, called Watergate, was broken into - and the rest is history. So if Nixon's boys had broken into Canary Wharf the suffix we would all be using would be 'wharf'. Or if they had broken into Trump Towers the suffix we would all be using would be 'towers'.
It's a good job they didn't break into anywhere in Pratts Bottom.
Many apoliogies, Anonymous, I stand corrected. Also many apologies to Andy Hayman who I slandered!
I stand by my assertions that Yates has a history of rolling over for politicians when push comes to shove.
I agreee whole heartedly about Watergate/Pratts Bottom though!
Conrad,
You're not that naive.
Wow, In your eyes I switched from conspiracy theorist to naif in the blink of an eye.
That makes you sound a bit mad.
I've just thought of another:
"Broken Gate-gate"!
See Colin Bloom's blog of 28 March for fuller details!
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