Bozo, Lying, And Client Journalism

And so it came to pass that Rishi Sunak’s exchange with his ethics advisor appeared to have brought the desired result: there will be no further action against Clouseau-like Home Secretary Suella Braverman for what looks like a breach of the ministerial code. This is most fortuitous for two reasons: keeping her pals on side, and clearing the decks for the next shitshow.

And what a shitshow it is shaping up to be: disgraced former alleged Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson has been referred to the Police over potential lawbreaking at Chequers during the Covid-19 lockdown. This happened because Bozo, being an insufferable tightwad, got Sunak’s Government to pay his legal bills for the Covid inquiry.

In an excellent example of unintended consequences, the Government picking up Bozo’s legal tab made them the client. The lawyers got hold of Bozo’s diary and were obliged to pass on any potential illegality to the cops. It looks like family and friends were invited to Chequers during lockdown. This was Streng Verboten under Bozo’s own rules. Hence the Police referral.

As the Guardian has reported, “The Metropolitan and Thames Valley police forces have confirmed they are considering the evidence of potential lockdown breaches between June 2020 and May 2021 at Chequers in Buckinghamshire, and allegations about Johnson’s behaviour in Downing Street over the same period”. Bozo’s office has responded.

“Mr Johnson’s lawyers have tonight written to the police forces involved to explain in detail why the Cabinet Office is entirely wrong in its assertions … The events in question were all within the rules either because they were held outdoors or came within another lawful exception. They include regular meetings with civil servants and advisers”. Of course they did.

The problem for Sunak, and indeed anyone who wants to get to the facts of the matter, is that for the right-leaning part of our free and fearless press, the view still remains that Bozo may be an SOB, but he’s their SOB. So, overnight, we have seen some highly creative client journalism, along with the kind of behaviour that would see lesser mortals in Police custody.

The Daily Brexit, still called the Express, went in to bat for Bozo today, howling “Friends and allies condemn Partygate ‘vendetta’ waged against ex-PM … IT’S A STITCH-UP! BORIS FACES NEW POLICE PROBE INTO RULE-BREAKING”. Lawbreaking has been downgraded into mere rule-breaking, along with that modern tendency of client journalists.

That, to use Peter Oborne’s happy phrase, is that sources are not interrogated, but what they brief the press is just “shovelled on”. It’s obvious that this line and its accompanying assertions have come either directly or indirectly from The Man Himself. Johnson is a congenital liar, and it’s always someone else’s fault. The same paw-prints are all over the Mail lead, too.

There, we see the variation “Ex-PM livid as civil servants call in Police over lockdown diaries … BORIS THREATENS TO SUE CABINET OFFICE FOR COVID ‘STITCH-UP’”. And, surprise, surprise, “Sources close to Mr Johnson said he had already had legal advice that none of the events broke Covid rules. A friend said he was ‘seriously considering’ legal action”.

Bullshit. That’s Bullshit. For those at the back who may not have been paying attention, BULLSHIT. “Sources close to Mr Johnson” and “A friend” are Bozo himself, or someone so close to him as to make no difference. And, as Steven Swinford, political editor of the Murdoch Times, made clear in a series of Twitter interventions, the cops should be doing more than just looking.

“Boris Johnson allies up the ante and warn they will obstruct Rishi Sunak’s government unless he intervened to stop what they see as a ‘witch hunt’ … They say it’s the ‘final straw’ for Johnson and warn that MPs and members supportive of former PM will begin organising”. Over to the Secret Barrister.

“Putting pressure on the Prime Minister to intervene in a police investigation sounds awfully ‘conspiracy to pervert the course of justice’-y”. So it does. And Swinford had more. “Boris ally: ‘Boris has been supporting govt but this act is final straw … ’There are a growing number of MPs who want party leadership to act to stop these witch hunts and a group of MPs will meet today to consider options. Meanwhile members across country are being organised’”.

We go from an almost certain series of flat-out lies to one that is nailed on: “Boris Johnson’s allies claim that the decision to refer him to the police was signed off by senior ministers … They said the ministers had direct knowledge of what was happening … This is denied by cabinet office and Govt, which say there was no ministerial involvement at all”. Correct.

One pack of lies after another. Blaming others. And it’s all about Himself Personally Now. Worse, we have a series of supposedly serious journalists uncritically relaying Bozo’s tantrums as if they were unvarnished truth. Now we’re being told he’s sacking one lot of lawyers and appointing another, to be paid for by the Government. So the same obligations still apply.

Stop treating this clown seriously. Do some actual journalism. End of story.

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