And so it came to pass that, after a dizzying series of ups and downs, the wily old operator once again stood on the brink of power, leaving a trail of rancour and division in his wake. But unlike Donald Trump, Micheál Martin, the Fianna Fáil leader, is frustrated in his attempts to secure a second term as taoiseach – and in spectacular, tumultuous fashion – while the newly (re-) inaugurated US president accedes to office in notably calmer circumstances than those in the Dáil on Wednesday.
“The nomination of a taoiseach is usually a day of great political pomp and pageantry,” the reporter Barry Lenihan drily observes on Today with Claire Byrne (RTÉ Radio 1, weekdays), “but it has really descended into scenes more akin to Shop Street or Camden Street at two o’clock on a Saturday night.”
Given the unruly antics at Leinster House, nocturnal revellers on those Galway and Dublin thoroughfares may think this comparison an unfair stain on their reputation, but Lenihan captures the rowdily febrile atmosphere as angry opposition deputies put the mockers on Martin’s election. “Michael O’Hehir’s great word, a shemozzle, would be an understatement,” says Lenihan, invoking the late RTÉ commentator.
In fact, the reporter’s lively running description of the unfolding mayhem is more akin to a match commentary than a parliamentary report. “As I speak, [Ceann Comhairle] Verona Murphy is still struggling to gain control,” he excitedly relates. “And she’s suspended the house again!” Goooooaaaalllll!!!!
As Claire Byrne gets caught up in the Leinster House chaos, Richard Boyd Barrett almost chokes on his outrage
Doireann Garrihy returns to RTÉ 2FM as part of new line-up announced for station
On Beast Games, MrBeast gives away islands. This will be familiar to the Irish as ‘colonialism’
Clumsy de Valera documentary dooms leading revolutionary women to walk-on parts
Great sport altogether. All that’s missing is the sound of celebratory cheers from the terraces. Even Byrne gets caught up in the mood, talking about a “fairly chaotic Leinster House”. Coming from the metronomically measured host, this counts as wild hyperbole.
But the Dáil fiasco hardly comes out of the blue. Throughout the week, discontent rumbles across the airwaves about the incoming coalition’s dealings: on Wednesday, Byrne herself hears a fractious argument between Cathal Crowe of Fianna Fáil and Richard Boyd Barrett of People Before Profit, who almost chokes on his outrage at the prospect of government-supporting TDs receiving opposition speaking rights.
The host largely allows her guests to shout over each other, though she neatly sums up why the likes of Boyd Barrett are so irritated at the Regional Independent group’s manoeuvring. “This suits you to have the fox in the henhouse,” she says to Crowe. “You’ve infiltrated the opposition.”
By the end of the day, however, it’s the government parties that have been outfoxed, or at least outshouted, as the furiously inconclusive Dáil proceedings are suspended. Reviewing the shambolic events on The Last Word (Today FM, weekdays), Matt Cooper adopts a tone of knowing amusement. “It is, in its own way, sort of funny, but actually is serious and embarrassing at the same time,” the host remarks, displaying his own gift for understatement.
His guests are less restrained: the journalist Daniel McConnell labels the impasse “a badge of shame”, while the columnist Sarah Carey characterises Sinn Féin as “a party that bullies its way into what it wants”. Conscious that the discussion is beginning to resemble a one-sided pile-on, Cooper expresses pity that he doesn’t have any Shinners on the show to defend themselves, but that the party’s deputies have their phones turned off. (His rivals on RTÉ Radio 1′s Drivetime have better luck, however: the Sinn Féin TD Louise O’Reilly appears on air for an interview with Sarah McInerney; in this case it’s the Kerry Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae who has phone issues, hanging up after taking umbrage at the host’s questioning.)
Wherever the blame lies, it’s hard to disagree with the consensus among Cooper and his guests that the situation is unprecedented. When the host discusses Trump’s return to the White House, however, the air is one of deja vu, with his regular US-based pundits Marion McKeone and Cal Thomas split on familiar partisan lines. McKeone, the liberal half of the long-running double act, sounds more weary than worried as she outlines what she sees as Trump’s authoritarian playbook, while Thomas, her conservative foil, praises the incoming president’s inaugural speech as “bracing in the patriotic sense”, which is one way to describe it.
Thomas and McKeone have an amiable, knockabout rapport – Cooper’s approach is to pose a question and let the pair of them at it – and even agree on some issues (such as the abuse of the presidential power to pardon), but in general it’s hard to detect much common ground. Which is alarming, as both are, by contemporary American standards, comparative moderates. It’s yet another stark, and timely, illustration of what happens when the politics of rage overwhelm the ability to compromise. One suspects there will be many more such reminders over the next four years.
Tempers also fray on Monday’s Liveline (RTÉ Radio 1, weekdays), though unusually it’s Joe Duffy who loses the rag rather than his callers. The host is discussing a reliably contentious issue: after Tony phones in to complain about black-clad cyclists riding on dark mornings, Duffy wonders if high-vis jackets and helmets should be mandatory for bike users. He also muses on their road etiquette. “Have they ever challenged you, even though the cyclist might be in the wrong?” Duffy asks Tony, before adding, in a pained voice, “I know the cyclists are going to go mad.”
Right enough, Eoin calls in to say that he sees no need to wear such gear on his bike. (He has lights, though.) Instead, he cheekily suggests that cars should require high-vis paint. “You’re saying I will not wear a high-vis jacket out of spite, because cars aren’t painted fluorescent yellow,” Duffy splutters in reply, “That’s what you said.” (It isn’t.)
When another caller, Peter, ventures that it’s drivers who should wear high-visibility clothing, the host sounds truly incensed. “Is this April 1st? Are you joking me? I don’t think this is funny,” Duffy huffs. “Don’t take me for a fool.”
It’s an oddly irate response to a jokey remark about a deliberately slanted talking point, but the exchange clearly gets under the host’s skin: “Apart from the will to live, have I lost my senses here, listening to this rubbish?”
You said it, Joe, not me.
Ever the pro, Duffy eventually regains his composure about his “strident” debate. “Maybe the stridency was in me,” Duffy concedes, showing commendable self-awareness. If only all disagreements came to such amicable conclusions.
Moment of the Week
Amid the week’s discombobulating events, Andrea Gilligan, host of Lunchtime Live (Newstalk, weekday), is to be lauded for bringing her listeners some positive news. Accordingly, Gilligan invites Cathal O’Sullivan of Today FM on to her show to discuss “all the reasons to be happy this week”, such as why planning a holiday seemingly is good for your mental health. Still, her soundtrack could be better chosen: with the country facing a red weather warning for Storm Éowyn, it seems cruel to preface the item with a clip of Boney M singing – ahem – Sunny.
Chaos in Leinster House: how the day unfolded and what happens next
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Find The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Our In The News podcast is now published daily – Find the latest episode here
