‘Nations stumble upon establishments, which are indeed the result of human action,
but not the execution of any human design.’
Adam Ferguson, An Essay on the History of Civil Society (1767)

26 May 2019

On the Record | With May Leaving, the Hard Part of Brexit Begins

Please see my latest wire as Brexit diarist for The New York Sun, ‘With May Leaving, the Hard Part of Brexit Begins’:

Can Brexiteers take any comfort in what is to date their sole consolation prize? In lieu of reveling in two months of freedom from the European Union, champions of British independence have to settle, for now, with news of the Prime Minister’s pending departure.

Theresa May’s announcement Friday came in all too true fashion, postponing her widely sought resignation from the Conservative leadership until June 7. She will remain premier until a successor is chosen, no later than the end of July.

Nothing so embodies Mrs. May’s premiership as her leaving of it — grudging, acrimonious, and interminable. Not to mention vainglorious, pompous, and disingenuous. Nevertheless, Britons can take satisfaction that she will soon be gone.

Just don’t uncork the champagne. Brexiteers have yet to secure Brexit. They’ve simply cashiered one known antagonist for many unknown aspirants to power, each awaiting his chance to climb what Disraeli dubbed the “greasy pole.”

This is, however, an opportunity for the Conservative party to begin redeeming itself. With Nigel Farage’s Brexit party polling at 37% and Tories languishing at 7%, Britain’s natural party of government has much for which to atone.

Read more . . .

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My thanks to editor Seth Lipsky of The New York Sun.