By Graeme MacKay – The Hamilton Spectator – Friday October 21, 2022
Hasta la Vista? This Time, Boris Johnson May Say, ‘I’m Back.’
It seemed at once incredible and inevitable.
September 7, 2022
No sooner had Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain announced her sudden resignation on Thursday afternoon than a familiar name surfaced as a candidate to succeed her: Boris Johnson, the prime minister she replaced a mere 45 ‘ days ago.
Mr. Johnson, who is vacationing in the Caribbean, has said nothing publicly about a bid for his old job. But the prospect of Boris redux has riveted Conservative Party lawmakers and cabinet ministers — delighting some, repelling others, and dominating the conversation in a way that Mr. Johnson has for his entire political career.
Nor is the idea of his return merely notional: Among those who are keeping tallies of the voting intentions of lawmakers, including some London news organizations, Mr. Johnson is only slightly behind his chief rival, Rishi Sunak. On Friday morning, Jacob Rees-Mogg, who is currently the business secretary and served under Mr. Johnson, became the first cabinet minister to endorse his former boss.
September 6, 2019
Mr. Johnson received both endorsement and criticism as the contest to succeed Ms. Truss gathered pace on Friday. Penny Mordaunt, now a senior minister, became the first to publicly declare her candidacy. She is considered one of the leading contenders along with Mr. Johnson and Mr. Sunak.
The prospect of Mr. Johnson back in 10 Downing Street appalls many Conservatives, who argue that voters would never forgive the party for rehabilitating him after the scandals that brought him down in July, including illicit parties held during the pandemic and misconduct allegations against a lawmaker he promoted. Embracing such a polarizing figure, they say, would splinter the Tory ranks, perhaps irrevocably.
“Only a nation which was gripped by pessimistic despair and no longer believed that there could be a serious response to its unfolding tragedies would want to take refuge in the leadership of a clown,” Rory Stewart, who ran unsuccessfully against Mr. Johnson in 2019, wrote on Friday on Twitter. (NYT)
From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …