By virtue of being the only competent anti-immigration voice on the panel, the big winner once again was Peadar Tóibín, following on from his successful performance in the big leaders’ debate last week. It can be fairly argued that Tóibín and Aontú are benefitting from a system that seems to intentionally exclude more radical anti-immigration parties and candidates but they have made the absolute most of their platform and will carry that momentum onwards to the election this Friday.
Presented with the opportunity to flesh out his policy platform on an issue he has been oft criticised for being overcautious and tetchy on, Tóibín put on a performance that whether we care to admit it or not will have won him favour with more moderate, immigration-skeptic voters.
Although Independent Ireland’s Michael Fitzmaurice was also presented as an immigration-skeptical voice, he fared little better than his leader Michael Collins’s performance the week before. Aontú’s social media went on a brutal line of attack against Independent Ireland during the debate, citing from Independent Ireland’s own manifesto its policy of allowing legal immigrants with a tax number to work upon arrival during a housing crisis. With the wheels falling off Independent Ireland’s campaign following the unceremonious resignation of Cllr. Phil Sutcliffe Sr and already struggling to win back the favour it lost with MEP Ciarán Mullooly’s decision to join the same European Parliamentary group as Fianna Fáil, their expectations for a significant breakthrough this cycle are likely to have been further tempered by Fitzmaurice’s performance.
Roderic O’Gorman and Helen McEntee both came across as unlikable as they ever have been, with the former especially defiantly standing over his record as Minister of Integration during the worst immigration crisis in the history of the State. Sinn Féin’s Matt Carthy seemed to be caught in a lose-lose situation, struggling to reconcile his party’s left-wing credentials with a reformulation of an immigration strategy that they hope will win them back at least some of their advantage that evaporated since the start of the year. Fianna Fáil’s James Browne also cut a fairly lacklustre figure all things considering.
The main takeaway however is this: immigration is now a national issue and one that a great proportion of the Irish people feel disillusioned with. For a significant number of Irish voters, nobody who featured on that debate stage spoke for them on this issue. That could very well be the catalyst for an electoral earthquake unlike anything that has occurred before in Irish politics.
“Electoral earthquake”…I like the sound of that! Let’s take all precautions we can to minimise the chance of a switcheroo on the ballot boxes, ma thuigeann tu me.
If the polls are true (big if) and if FG continue to drop like they’ve dropped the last week, it’s quite possible they could get humiliated – total wipeout, zero seats.
Can Simon Harris really get a quarter of Wicklow people to give him a vote? I haven’t been there and I don’t know, but it seems unlikely to me.
We need to maximise turnout – one third of us couldn’t be bothered to vote last time. We need to observe every step of the collection, storage and counting of the ballots. As Comrade Stalin said: It doesn’t matter who votes, it matters who counts the votes.
If you’re in Sligo-Leitrim, please vote MacConville and Kelly 1 and 2, and continue preferences for other honest candidates… Be careful: it’s remarkable the number of well funded pro-migration fake independents running in this area….
Beir bua!
☘💚🇮🇪
” God Save Ireland ” make Irish Democracy Work Again,once again.
The results of this upcoming Irish GE 2024 will have epic proportions for the future of Ireland,the Irish,Nation Status and Legacy come Legality.
This is THE TSUNAMI SPLIT OF IRISH CULTURE AND HERITAGE
that effects everything and everyone,never before contemplated in its history for the last 1,000 years…or it’s entirety.
Polar opposite to Trumps ” Make America Great Again ” this is of greater importance and significance to Irelands Electorate in simply
” MAKING IRELAND WORK FOR THE IRISH ” and Irish People should be acutely aware as to WHAT’S AT STAKE because Our Own Irish Children will stand in judgement to OUR COMMITMENT OR FAILURES to their own legacy…THEIR ENTITLEMENT OF HERITAGE FROM THEIR ANCESTRAL LINKAGE, and this generation of Irish Inheritance is obliged to honour our duty as such.
The core of incumbent government traitors that deny,but will seek their votes from future generations are relatively small and have failed numerous times in achieving a Majority Vote…relying on the Chancers Game of repeated counts to get a seat and then horse trading to form Coalition Governments…many were VOTED OUT- MANY TIMES.
IRISH VOTERS,
do what you did in the referendum, despite all incumbents against you.
do not vote for the incumbent parties of FF-FG-GRN-LAB-SD-PBP-SF.
do not transfer your vote to any incumbent party.
NOT FORGETTING,
The Deaths During Lockdown…Old Peoples Homes especially…RIP.
The Apartheid Laws, Sudden Deaths,Business Failures…NO INQUIRY.
Compulsory measures that were coercion in disguise, THE MASK.
The Loss of your FREEDOM AND LIBERTY.
ALSO,
RTE,
the big spunger and tax parasite propaganda machine of govt. who failed as always FAIR REPRESENTATION IN THE ELECTION.
NGO CARTEL,
The tails that wag the dogs of Irelands governance.
The Traitors,
DEHUMANISED THE WOMAN…all Irish Women and Irish Girls.
RADICALISED THE CHILD…all Irish Children were indoctrinated.
INFANTALISED THE MAN… all Irish Men were ridiculed,scapegoats.
DESTROYED THE NATION… all of Ireland,farms homes and ports.
LOST YOUR FUTURES SHOULD YOU VOTE THEM IN AGAIN.
…that is the tsunami that will destroy everything IRISH…go ahead now
🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪 💚💚💚 ☘☘☘
If you think O ‘Gorman is bad , wait until # Lady Ivana becomes Minister for No Justice in a 3 way coalition with F F / F G ! Asylum applications will very soon hit 1,000 per week ( double the average tally for the year to date ) .