FG's Gobshite of the Year - already!

John Deasy, Fine Gael TD for Waterford, has today announced that he’ll be challenging Enda Kenny for leadership of the party should Fine Gael fail to be in Government after the next election.

At a time when the opinion polls have given Fianna Fail a boost and the media are openly sceptical about Enda Kenny’s political appeal, Fine Gael need the latest Deasy intervention like a hole in the head.

In 2004 Deasy was sacked as Fine Gael’s front-bench spokesman for Justice, when he flagrantly and childishly broke the law by smoking in the Dail bar after the smoking ban had been introduced. He continued to do so despite several requests from Dail staff to move outside if he wished to smoke.

The addition last year of a 3rd candidate to the Fine Gael ticket for the Waterford constituency for the upcoming election was fiercely resisted and resented by Deasy and, added to his earlier sacking, means that relations with party leadership have probably never been worse.

His old man, Austin Deasy, was a former Fine Gael TD (1977-2002) and Minister for Agriculture (82-87) who also fell out with the party leadership (sparking leadership challenges to both Alan Dukes and John Bruton) and spent his last years sulking on the backbenches and sniping at his leader.

His son is clearly a chip (on the shoulder) off the old block.

I’ve emailed him the following appreciation. (to john.deasy@finegael.ie)

John,
Well done, a strong early entry for political gobshite of the year.
You already demonstrated what a childish tosser you are with that smoking lark. Now you've confirmed that you shouldn't be let near the Dail, never mind leadership of Fine Gael.
Your old man had a chip on his shoulder, it's a pity it hasn't skipped a generation.
If the leadership should happen to move to the next generation, it certainly won't be to a prat like you! Yours etc.