Putting Conor Lenihan, & the Blueshirts, to bed.

More name calling in the Dáil, with Junior Minister with responsibility for Integration Conor Lenihan giving the nazi salute and calling FG’s Leo Varadkar “a fascist”.

Lenihan is a political buffoon and a national embarrassment. He famously referred to migrant turkish building workers as “kebabs”. What fool put him in charge of policy directed at our immigrant communities? This is one Lenihan gaffe too far, it’s long past time he was demoted to the back benches.

However, Fine Gael’s long-standing embarrassment about its Blueshirt connection may be a bit overdone. After all, the Blueshirts (Army Comrades Association) had been set up primarily to protect Cumann na nGaedhael public meetings, which were being violently broken up by IRA thugs, newly resurgent since the 1932 elections which brought De Valera to power.

Fine Gael was formed in September 1933 when Cumann na nGaedhael, the Centre Party and the Blueshirt movement merged. While O'Duffy became its first leader, he only lasted a year as his more extreme views were unacceptable to the broader Fine Gael leadership. He resigned in Sept 1934.

O’Duffy died in November 1944 and was given a state funeral by the then FF government under Eamonn de Valera.

O’Duffy was only leader of FG for 1 year before being forced out. By way of contrast, Eamon De Valera led FF for decades despite having effectively defrauded the american investors in the Irish Press. Charles Haughey, the most prostituted political leader since the foundation of the state, was leader of FF for 13 years.
Both these FF leaders were also given state funerals.

Footnote: Aired by Pat Kenny on his RTE radio programme.