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Kenny Calls for Set-Piece Debate with Ahern on Crime
Read more about: Crime, Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, Irish Politics
Just caught the news on Today FM (story probably posted later) that Enda Kenny is doing an interview later with The Last Word (listen live)where he calls for a set-piece televised debate before the election on crime. I have to say that something like that would probably help to galvanise a national campaign message on top of local campaigns around the country and strikes me as a good idea.
I would be reluctant to focus solely on crime but why not have a debate on the issues more broadly.
FF would never agree to a TV debate on Crime because that’s FG territory through and through; couple this with the fact that FF now have 10 years of power under their belt and 10 years of dealing with crime and you’d end up with Bertie sitting there taking pot shots for the duration of the programme. As long as the Government have failed to wipe out all crime then the opposition can promise the moon as an alternative remedy and FG are desperate to bring focus back onto Justice; they lucked-out with the death of three innocents in December.
As for a general debate, it might be a good idea, but don’t we get this every election? Opposition call for leader vs. leader debate, Government refuse and are branded cowards, opposition gain a stick to beat Gov. with for a week or two and then everyone forgets.
In theory I like the idea of a debate, but we all know it will just be a more accented showcase of posturing than what we see every week in the Dail and all it will really do is push the Oireachtas elections into a far more presidential realm than party politics should be.
Ahern will avoid a debate like the plague. He’ll find any excuse he can to get out of it. On the doorsteps is where he’s good, not in the living room.
It’s probably only on crime because Kenny couldn’t remember more that a single page of cram notes on a single topic.