And all three have a lot more in common than popularity, and a populist streak. Italy has Matteo Salvini, America has Donald Trump and now Britain has Boris. ![]() While Boris may be a one-off in British politics, he is only the latest in a string of unlikely candidates with the common touch to take the reins of a Western government. “If you say that it is weird and bullying to expect women to cover their faces, then I totally agree.…I would go further and say that it is absolutely ridiculous that people should choose to go around looking like letter boxes.” “‘If you tell me that the burka is oppressive, then I am with you,” he wrote. In a column last August, he argued against banning the burka, although he could not resist mocking it: People hang on his words, debate them, complain about him and wonder what outrageous thing he’ll say, write or do next, personally or professionally. Johnson has a lucrative contract with The Telegraph, writing a weekly column and sounding off about the “contempt” with which Britain is treated by the EU, his plan for Brexit and why university isn’t for everyone. ![]() He has long been skeptical of Britain’s relationship with the EU. A former journalist at The Times (which sacked him after he fabricated quotes) and The Telegraph, he became editor of The Spectator, the right-leaning current affairs magazine. The polar opposite of a po-faced, patronizing British politician, he’s short of political correctness and full of surprises. He’s a Monty Python character come to life. He attended two elite institutions, Eton and Oxford, and was a member of the notorious, hard-partying Bullingdon Club, along with former PM David Cameron, when he was at university.Įven Johnson’s detractors would admit the man has an easy charm, enriched by a stream of self-deprecation, an endearing awkwardness, a seeming benevolence and a schoolboy’s love of Latin, ancient Greek, and British history. Johnson’s appeal is countrywide and cuts across generations despite - or maybe because of - his privileged upper middle-class background. Johnson then spelled out the slogan’s acronym, D-U-D-E, and declared “Dude! We are going to energize the country.” Later in the day, Johnson vowed to “love bomb” those Tory party members - and parliamentarians - who did not vote for him. He said the mantra of his campaign would never be forgotten: “Deliver Brexit, unite the country, defeat Jeremy Corbyn. ![]() “The people of this country are trusting in us to get Brexit done in a new spirit of can-do, and believing in ourselves.” “Do you look daunted? Do you feel daunted?” Johnson asked the audience in Churchillian style during his upbeat acceptance speech Tuesday morning at the Queen Elizabeth II conference center. He’s not going to let that get him down, however. Some believe that a general election could come sooner rather than later, in the autumn instead of next spring: Although Johnson may have the backing of Tory party members, when he takes office, he’ll be presiding over a divided, squabbling Parliament and working with a slim majority in the House of Commons. Johnson is a committed Brexiter and, unlike many of his colleagues in Parliament, is unafraid of a messy, no-deal scenario, which may well happen if the EU refuses further negotiations with Britain.Ĭonservative Party members also backed Johnson because they believe he’s the only candidate who could win a general election and knock out another highly controversial figure, the left-leaning Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. The pound lost some ground to the dollar during the day, trading at $1.24, while remaining at 1.11 euros.Ĭonservative Party members are hoping that Johnson will be the person who makes Brexit happen once and for all following May’s fruitless months of tug-of-war with the European Union and a series of inconclusive votes in Parliament. At the end of the day, the FTSE 100 barely moved, closing up 0.6 at 7,556.86. ![]() Johnson’s widely expected victory sent the FTSE 100 up 0.6 percent to 7,560.23, and left the pound broadly stable against major currencies, with the dollar at $1.25 and the euro at 1.11.
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