What’s the point? When I think about the state of British politics right now, that’s the question I can’t avoid. The entire country is strapped to a runaway mine cart, and the only option seems to be clinging on and hoping that the eventual crash leads to injuries rather than fatalities. Bailing out would involve a precipitous drop into the unknown. There are no good choices. Two years ago, I was on a panel at the Labour party conference with an academic who – echoing a line once used by Bill Clinton’s lawyers about partisanship – said referendums were a “poison injected into the bloodstream of the body politic”. The phrase stayed with me, and I’ve wasted hours since then wondering what kind of poison the EU referendum was, exactly. Curare? It has certainly caused paralysis, with European leaders openly baffled that Theresa May is still so vague about her position 15 months after triggering Article 50. At home, the legislation … [Read more...] about ConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlight Brexit has poisoned our politics – and there is no antidote in sight
Politics
Meet Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive Latina shaking up politics
El Paso Times Published 2:40 p.m. UTC Jun 27, 2018 Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Tuesday night ousted the man considered most likely to replace Nancy Pelosi as leader of the Democrats in the House of Representatives. But just three days before her surprising win, she took a break from her upstart political campaign to travel to the Tornillo, Texas, tent city that is housing hundreds of immigrant children. Here are six things to know about Ocasio-Cortez: Where is she from? The 28-year-old was born in the Bronx. Her mother is from Puerto Rico. She attended Boston University, where she earned degrees in economics and international relations, and also spent time working in the office of the late U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy. After graduating, she returned to the Bronx where she became a community organizer. During the 2016 presidential primary, she worked for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. Nine months ago, she was still working as a server at a restaurant even as she … [Read more...] about Meet Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive Latina shaking up politics
Vladimir Putin: Russian-US ties ‘not at their best’ due to internal political strife in US
Relations between Moscow and Washington are not in their finest state now because of the domestic political discord gripping America, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with US National Security Adviser John Bolton on Wednesday, TASS reports. "Unfortunately, I have to say that Russian-US relations are not in their best state now," the president said. "I have said this in public on many occasions, I would like to repeat at this meeting with you. I believe that to a great extent this is the result of a bitter internal political struggle in the US." Follow Trend on Telegram. Only most interesting and important news … [Read more...] about Vladimir Putin: Russian-US ties ‘not at their best’ due to internal political strife in US
Opinion: Here’s a better way to think about identity politics
Identity politics has become a phrase of common currency in recent years, yet it is often painfully, and badly, used. Generally, it is wheeled out in a negative context. Take UK environment minister Michael Gove and Tim Farron, former leader of the Liberal Democrats, for example. Both sought to distance themselves from such thinking in two separate speeches given on the same day earlier this year. Gove said “identitarians” undermine liberal politics, while Farron condemned identity politics as a “poison”. In fact, it seems the term is used almost entirely negatively, by people who wish to argue against the concept. However, they rarely stop long enough to adequately, or meaningfully, define the term to a point of usefulness. We should recall George Orwell’s remark on the word “fascism” in his essay Politics and the English Language; that it has come to mean little more than “something not desirable”. In this … [Read more...] about Opinion: Here’s a better way to think about identity politics
SDLP’s Sharon Haughey-Grimley to step away from politics to spend time with young children
FORMER Armagh mayor Sharon Haughey-Grimley is to step away from politics next year to spend more time with her young children. One of the first people the SDLP representative told about her decision not to seek re-election was former mentor Hillary Clinton. Ms Haughey-Grimley first came to public attention when President Bill Clinton quoted a letter she had written to him about her hopes and vision for Northern Ireland. She went on to share a platform with the Clintons in Armagh in 1995 and worked for Mrs Clinton in the US Senate. She currently combines a full-time job with Ulster GAA with serving the Cusher ward of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council and caring - alongside her husband Gerard - for their three young boys. "This has been a very hard decision for me but know it's 100 per cent right for my family," she said yesterday. "I am truly honoured to have represented my community for so long and I thank all those who have supported me over the years. I'm feeling … [Read more...] about SDLP’s Sharon Haughey-Grimley to step away from politics to spend time with young children