The end of Johnson

Johnson no longer has the strength to ride the back of the tiger, and his downfall now seems inevitable.

JFK said in his inaugural speech ‘Those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside’.

Prime Minister Johnson is now living that quote as his and his party's political position begins to slip. He sees a sizable back bench rebellion to renewing covid legislation and now a former tory safe seat, Chesham and Amersham, is lost in a shocking defeat.

Johnson no longer has the strength to ride the back of the tiger, and his downfall now seems inevitable. The charm clownish behaviour and mannerisms that once many found endearing has now worn off, and increasingly he is exposed as what he truly is: an incompetent and spineless man who would do anything to gain power for its own sake.

What's more, the Tory Party is increasingly seeing that Johnson is an unnecessary accessory to success; his tactics and campaign strategy could be used with any politician that had been suitably scrubbed of dirt before media appearances.

Johnson is now a liability. He is tainted both by the pandemic and by his general existence for the last forty years of his life, and that taint is causing the Tories to lose their heartland in the south.

A new leader will emerge with a new strategy to keep both the south and the north covered in blue; a leader of softness,of reaching across the aisle, of unity and media spin and teddy bears and keeping middle class votes.

Johnson's new situation does make him comparable to Churchill, but not for the reasons he would like. Johnson, like Churchill, was useful as a Tory leader in a specific situation and, exactly like Churchill, Johnson is a poor peacetime prime minister; the party will likely cannibalise him at the first opportunity now that he has proven that he is detrimental to good governance.

In the coming years the only certainty is chaos, and possibly very shaky left-wing coalitions.