Tempers fray in the Dail

The health debate culminating in the no-confidence motion in Mary Harney is already heated and likely to get more so.  If the pivotal leaders debate before the last election was Bertie at his vote-getting best, then the cut-and-thrust of Dail debate illustrates the less pleasant side of his character.  Consider this RTE account of what appears to have been another successful needling of him by Eamon Gilmore.

… when Eamon Gilmore questioned Mr Ahern about the communications unit in his department.   The Labour leader claimed officials were totting up media appearances by Government critics like John Crown so complaints could then be made to newsdesks.  Mr Ahern angrily described the remarks it as a reprehensible slur on civil servants and called on Mr Gilmore to withdraw them.

This is a cowardly tactic by Bertie but one depressingly familiar to observers of US politics because it’s exactly what George Bush does when he’s criticised on the Iraq war — he says that criticism of him is criticism of people who work for him (the soldiers in Bush’s case) and then demands in outraged tones that the criticism be withdrawn.   In fact we know from the John Crown affair that the government was keeping close track of Crown all the way back to statements he made prior to the 2002 election — and who prepares that briefing book that Bertie has with him at Leaders Questions, the one he said he didn’t have to use when the cancer issue came up before?

Bertie’s salary was justified on the grounds of the accountability demands of the job.  You’d think then he’d be a little less shameless in deflecting accusations onto his subordinates.