Absolutely no idea.
Seems very happy
What has he done now?
Its only 8.45am. It’ll be at least another two hours before he scratches his arse
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Does he not have a guy for that?
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Philip Ryan: Baffled officials watch President Michael D Higgins dig …
Today at 08:18
Michael D Higgins says it was ‘improper’ for Israel to comment on his courtesy letter to Iran president
The annual United Nations General Assembly gathering in New York is a big event for the politicians. World leaders jet in from around the world to discuss how to save planet Earth from itself.
Former Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said it is “like Christmas” while the Taoiseach Simon Harris and Tánaiste Micheál Martin were bounding around Second Avenue in Manhattan with a new pep in their steps as they marched to and from awfully-important meetings.
It was also a big week for the President of Ireland Michael D Higgins, who was leading the Irish delegation to the United States. President Higgins is in his element at this type of event. He can speak to counterparts about the heavy topics of world affairs. With his presidency entering its final months this will be the second last UN Assembly event he will attend as president.
It didn’t start out great for the President when the United Nations officials cut off his microphone when his speech went over time during the Summit of the Future event on Sunday.
Nonetheless, he seemed in good form when he attended a press conference in the UN General Assembly after his speech. It is rare for President Higgins to do a press conference but he seemed comfortable dishing out critiques of government policies on housing and immigration.
Towards the end of the press conference, he was asked about criticisms he received from Fine Gael backbenchers after he sent a letter of congratulations to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. But the President had his own questions. “Why don’t you ask where it came from,” he asked. The letter? “No the criticism and how it was circulated, by whom and for what purpose,” he added.
Pushed again about these suspicions, he said the letter was circulated by the Israeli Embassy to Ireland. It was put to him that it was quite an accusation, and the President said a journalist got the letter from the Israeli embassy and printed it. Presumably referencing the fact that Jewish media had published criticisms of his decision to congratulate his Iranian counterpart.
“One of your journalist colleagues got it from Israeli embassy and somebody rang and asked was I concerned and I wasn’t concerned, I said,” he said.
The assembled media pack were taken aback.
Privately, Government officials were baffled by the President’s comments, especially given he made them in the middle of UN General Assembly. They also wondered why this was the first they heard of it given the security concerns associated with such as claim. “Has Michael D lost it,” one senior Government source said. Another said the President should have known better than to make such a claim when he is representing the country on the international stage. They also asked why he hadn’t told any of them about it.
Sometime later, his spokesperson issued a statement saying the President made no accusations of a leaking.
“He solely referred to the letter being circulated,” he said. “In this context, the question of reporting does not arise,” he added. The Israeli Embassy issued a statement calling the President’s comments “highly inflammatory” and “potentially slanderous”.
It was the first question the Taoiseach and Tánaiste were asked when they arrived in New York. Both said they had no evidence to support Higgins claim. Simon Harris was critical of the Israeli embassy for publicly criticising the President for sending the letter to the Iranian regime in the first instance. He was also scathing in his criticisms of Israel’s new attacks on Lebanon which have led to the death of more than 30 children in one day.
President Higgins had another pre-arranged media event on Monday and there was great anticipation on what he would say about the burgeoning diplomatic crisis. As it turned out, he didn’t really want to talk about it at all.
He certainly didn’t walk back his comments.
He said he had no regrets and said it was “improper” for the Israeli Embassy to criticise his letter of congratulations to President Pezeshkian.
He said it was “unfair” of a Jewish advocacy group in Ireland to say his comments would only serve to fuel anti-Semitic tropes. He accused the media of misusing his comments. He refused to address the fact that the letter was originally posted on Twitter by the Iranian Embassy in Ireland.
The previous day he said he didn’t know how the Israelis got the letter.
He moved his hands nervously around his notes and insisted he wanted to draw a line under the comments and focus on the work of the UN. It was all very tense and uncomfortable.
He was asked a final time if he believed the Israeli embassy was trying to undermine his office but he just remained silent.
Afterwards, civil servants whispered “that didn’t go well” in quiet corners of Fitzpatrick’s Hotel in Manhattan, while back in Dublin senior Coalition figures are thankful he doesn’t have too long left in office.
