I’ve been using the term backwoodsmen to describe FF on this thread. Great to see I’m thinking along the same lines as the Taoiseach.
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There was a Vox pop there on Morning Ireland and some young lad was saying he votes Healy Rae. He says I know I know people say things about them but they are great me. To get things done locally. Shortly after some fella is talking about the local issues and saying that Tralee is an unemployment black spot and that the IDA have made only 4 visits to the whole county in the last year. You’d have to ask yourself what it is that the Healy Raes actually do for the county.
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The road are great.
They get hospital appointments for people, on the same date as they would have had them anyway if they just waited for them to be sent in the post instead.
People are not voting on promises tho… The majority of people under 35 are paying ridiculous rent, can’t get a house, hsve seen a lot of their friend and family emigrate, are seeing a huge upswing in suicide and mental health issues. They’re the teachers/nurses who are paid much less that their counterparts… They’re the ones working full-time and seeing a lot of it go on childcare.
Are these things going to drastically change, probably not. But people are venting and want a change from the same two horses that have pulled the cart for 100 years. Forget that Sinn Fein are seeing a spike in support, I think it’s a Good thing overall if the two big parties have to go away and think about what they are and where they are going.
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In a debate setting, when Varadkar and/or Martin go after McDonald for SF’s economic manifesto and the magic money tree she has easy responses which she’s used already:
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one of you sat in the cabinet that bankrupted the country and brought in the IMF and the other is building the most expensive hospital in the world (can also mention broadband shambles and a few other things) so save me the superior attitude;
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point about manifesto being costed and signed off by dept of finance;
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make no apologies for having a programme that focuses on investment in housing and health and closing loopholes for vulture funds etc etc (name check likes of Doherty and O’Broin’s work here as they have credibility).
I think she can still bat them away on these points, maybe that’s why they’re honing in on shadowy figures, IRA and so on.
Like I said last night, Dobbo in a 1 v 1 setting will really put her to the pin of her collar on manifesto specifics, costings, how it’ll work in practical terms, contradictions from previous positions and all that.
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Yeah a foundation level maths student could surely do the maths on 100k homes for €650m. She needs to lay low now for the week.
That has also puzzled me… When they attack her economics, she should just turn it on them and ask them if they are calling the department of finance incompetent… Let Martin squirm out of that
She’ll definitely have to back up the housing spend workings. I’ve heard a few FF backwoodsmen in work going on about that, but I’m sure O’Broin’s figures are correct.
Presuming she’s in the debate (and I’d expect it now) - it’s a big 48 hours for her.
My source in RTE has just told me that MLMD is being added to the debating ticket.
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FF’s figures on housing are similarly shakey imho. Anyway, for both of them the question is (and which Mary Lou couldn’t answer) where are the builders to build all these extra houses in the time you’ve said you’ll do it? I think both plans are not deliverable and absolutely not deliverable at that costing.
is the point not that she’s adding an additional 650m to existing funds?
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Like Shane Lowry, she’s not in great physical shape and she might be getting tired on the proverbial back nine.
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That’s my basic understanding, but she’ll need to make that very clear. Or if they’re pulling something from somewhere else to add to the pot then how much, why & when & what’ll be the impact in the other area…blah blah blah.
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Fianna Fail successfully managed to free up loads of builders and tradesmen the last time they were in power so I’m sure they can manage it again.
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Eoin O’ Broin, Eoghan Murphy and the FF one - Dara/Daire/Daragh O’ Brien were on Ivan Yates on Friday evening and Eoin O Broinn spoke about some scheme for builders to take on apprentices. I didn’t hear any details
They’re going to run courses to get 30k construction workers according to Micheál Martin.
All she has to do is to be seen standing up to the bad guys. The woke generation will be all over a woman standing up to bullies. #metoo
It will be interesting to see if Leo goes after SF after latest poll or if he sticks the boot further into Martin/FF who have been losing ground over the ladt few weeks… Leo could easily do an about turn on his SF stance, saying the people have spoken bla bla bla… But I think they are done if they go back in with FF.