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To think Diane Abbott was off her face on the radio this morning?

588 replies

Ginlinessisnexttogodliness · 02/05/2017 09:53

www.lbc.co.uk/radio/presenters/nick-ferrari/diane-abbotts-agonising-interview-over-policy-cost/

Fragrant Diane, she really is the kiss of death.
My toes are still curling

OP posts:
CoolCarrie · 02/05/2017 11:04

Yes I have taken the time to comment on both threads. Remember Mo Mowlam ? She is the kind of female Labour MP needed now, and the late Jo Cox. Articulate, smart women not hypocrites like DA.

Elendon · 02/05/2017 11:04

I put Diane Abbott and Boris Johnson in the same league regarding foot in it (though, I'm being kind to Boris, if I'm honest).

He gets away with it, she gets the full dressing down.

Remove the log from your own eye, before trying to remove the splinter from your neighbour's eye.

Ginlinessisnexttogodliness · 02/05/2017 11:05

GwenStacey be read far worse on mn than this thread or the other DA one.

Why are you so outraged? She came across as incapable, half asleep and then accused Ferrari of lying. It was shocking.

OP posts:
TinklyLittleLaugh · 02/05/2017 11:05

Boris's wife is Asian I think. But yes, he embodies the worst of the British public school stereotype. And, to be honest, I expect no more from him.

Dianne Abbott is labour and I expect more from her. And she should be such an inspirational person: a black woman succeeding in a white man's world. And she's just doesn't deliver that..

cdtaylornats · 02/05/2017 11:06

One reason I dislike her is her desire to get rid of fee-paying schools charitable status - now that her kids have been through them. She is a classic socialist hypocrite.

LadyRoseate · 02/05/2017 11:09

I actually think Dianne Abbott is cut a lot of slack in the media because she is black and female.

I think this too. I'm not saying sexism and racism don't exist, they absolutely do and will have hindered her in millions of ways large and small. But there is also the factor that media types and her labour colleagues will be very aware of the racism and sexism accusations that will be flung if they are hard on her.

I think if she was a white male and talked in that condescending way, demonstrated the hypocrisy she has and messed up that badly in interviews, the knives would be out a lot worse and she'd be reviled and mocked more than she is. And probably sacked.

wickerlampshade · 02/05/2017 11:10

Africa and the Caribbean are exactly the same thing right?

from newspaper articles at the time:

Miss Abbott also risked fury among her white colleagues in the Labour Party by saying they would 'never understand' the Afro-Caribbean culture of parents wanting to do the best for their children.

I think the direct quote was "West Indian mums will go to the wall for their children.”

because of course white parents and those who can't afford fees won't go to the wall for her kids? If you're a politician and you want to send your kids to private school then go for it. Just have the brains not to spend years before that decision mouthing off about others who do the same.

LadyRoseate · 02/05/2017 11:10

Boris is a figure of fun and widely derided in the media, as well as quite often called a deeply nasty piece of work. He doesn't get away with it and there's been talk of him being booted out after his Syria comments this week.

Ncforthispost2005 · 02/05/2017 11:11

foodtime why can't you just admit she is a hypocrite on education?

She said on This Week 'West Indian mums will go to the wall for the kids'. When challenged by Andrew Neil that wouldn't all mums be the same she just repeated the same comment again and didn't reply.
She has also said she choose her son over her political reputation (may not be the exact words before you pull me up but that was the sentiment) so I think she even recognises herself that she is or at least would be seen as a hypocrite.

I do think she probably gets more stick than she would as a white man but I also think that interview this morning was awful as are a lot of her interviews. She has never been particularly balanced (as you would expect for any politician) but she used to be quite coherent and make sense but since she has been in the Corbyn's shadow cabinet she seems to have lost all of this.

This interview is now the main news story on BBC news so we are all not imagining how bad is was or being racist and sexist because we are saying that is the case.

Elendon · 02/05/2017 11:13

So Theresa May's response at nurses going to food banks wasn't shocking? It was abhorrent and a disgrace! However, she has shown her hand on exactly what she thinks. Inept and totally unsuitable for the remit of Prime Minister.

FeedTheSharkAndItWillBite · 02/05/2017 11:15

Just listened to this interview.

Good lord. What was she thinking? She didn't prepare for this at all...
This is actually rather disgraceful.

ProphetOfDoom · 02/05/2017 11:16

She's charismatic, taken stances I've both applauded and shook my head at in disbelief. This isn't the only occasion she's not learnt her brief, especially figures & stats.

I have no strong axe to grind if politicians of any persuasion use private education but to do when you've previously castigated others for doing exactly that to make a political point is utter hypocrisy. I also wonder how a Blairite can now be an ardent Corbynite, leading Labour into some political wilderness. I do question her sincerity/ intelligence/opportunism.

Batgirlspants · 02/05/2017 11:18

Absolutely loved it. Can't abide that horrific hypocrite and it's made my day. Always thought she was incompetent but this was a level
Beyond embarrassing.

The trouble with Corbyn and Abbott are they surround themselves with supporters and so can't actually accept or deal with proper scrutiny snd criticism.

Bringmesunshite · 02/05/2017 11:21

"The usual reason ". That would be because she can't marshal her facts in an interview.

foodtime · 02/05/2017 11:22

Today 11:11 Ncforthispost2005

foodtime why can't you just admit she is a hypocrite on education?

She said on This Week 'West Indian mums will go to the wall for the kids'. When challenged by Andrew Neil that wouldn't all mums be the same she just repeated the same comment again and didn't reply.
She has also said she choose her son over her political reputation (may not be the exact words before you pull me up but that was the sentiment) so I think she even recognises herself that she is or at least would be seen as a hypocrite.

I have agreed that it was not the best thing to do especially after all the things she has said. But I can see why she did it. I think the fact she chose her son over her political reputation is a good thing. Things change and something's your views change.

I know I'll be attacked for this but I see where she's coming from with West Indian mums. I am British but both my parents are brazilian and I have been lucky enough to travel a lot. I think parents in the Caribbean and in Northern Europe do things differently and I think it's a style I prefer. Does that mean I hate British styles of course not but they do a lot of things that I like.

foodtime · 02/05/2017 11:23

Today 11:13 Elendon

So Theresa May's response at nurses going to food banks wasn't shocking? It was abhorrent and a disgrace! However, she has shown her hand on exactly what she thinks. Inept and totally unsuitable for the remit of Prime Minister.

Completely agree!!!

Orlantina · 02/05/2017 11:25

We seem to be stuck between a rock and a hard place at the moment.

I would happily leave this country but family makes it impossible.

HelgaHufflepuff76 · 02/05/2017 11:25

Sorry but I have to agree with Foodtime here.
Diane Abbot is no worse than shit loads of white, male politicians, but gets an inordinate amount of abuse.
I think Theresa May was much worse in her recent interview and didn't get this much criticism, and she's the bloody Prime Minister!

DissonantInterval · 02/05/2017 11:27

Thanks for the lbc interview link. Dear lord that was virtually unlistenable to. She was just making up the figures on the spot - you could hear her talking really slowly so she could attempt to work out some credible sounding numbers. No one is going to be fooled by that. It was grim. She is grim. And sadly right now the party is grim. I don't want them to be so grim. I'd love to be able to stick one to Theresa and vote labour.

RoseGoldProsecco · 02/05/2017 11:27

But Foodtime - her idea of "going to the wall" was to pay for education. The same advantage that she wants to deny other children, and that she was so outspoken about her colleagues giving to their kids.

That's not "going to the wall", that's just using your privilege after your own party has failed to make any improvements to state schools whatsoever, and then using your race to try and justify it. Whilst denigrating others at the same time.

The reason people still go on about it is that it was such an appalling lack of judgment, that it means she is absolutely not competent or capable to assist in running the country. Whichever poster said they would like to see her as Home Secretary has actually shocked me more than anything else I've ever seen on here. I can think of few people who would be worse at that job (admittedly Boris Johnson is one of those few!).

FatherJemimaRacktool · 02/05/2017 11:28

That's the worst interview performance by a senior British politician that I've ever heard (and I'm a member of the Labour party and an ex-civil servant, so god knows I've heard some bad political interviews in my time).

Two really worrying things about it for anyone who thinks that a functional opposition is essential in a parliamentary democracy. First, one of Labour's most senior politicians seems either to have lost the ability to think on her feet or become so complacent inside the Cobynite bubble that she doesn't care if she sounds like the hungover student who turned up to class and suddenly realised they were supposed to be doing that week's presentation. Any even half competent politician could have made a better effort at getting hold of the interview than she did. She used to be very sharp, so something's gone badly wrong.

Second, and more worrying, is that she obviously wasn't properly briefed. She should have had all the figures in front of her from the start, clearly marked up, with speaking notes. The fact that it took a good 5 minutes before someone stuck the figures in front of her suggests there's no infrastructure of competent advisors and other back office people of the kind that parties need to function. This is the most basic requirement of politics - if you don't have people doing this then you don't have a party that has the organisation and competence to operate even as an oppostion party, let alone a governing one.

I'm a Labour member in a Labour/Lib Dem marginal and until this I was still planning, despite everything, to vote Labour. I'm not sure I can now.

PhyllisNights · 02/05/2017 11:28

Diane Abbott has a particular tone to her voice. You'll notice it if you watch Questin Time.

I am sick to death of people being misogynistic and racist about her. Endless comments about the way she looks, her teeth.

She's been a long time civil servant. Show some damn bloody respect.

Orlantina · 02/05/2017 11:30

She's been a long time civil servant. Show some damn bloody respect

Respect is earned. That was a car crash interview at the time when Labour really needs to show people it can run the country.

I hate the Tories. But Labour are a joke. That interview was awful.

CoolCarrie · 02/05/2017 11:33

She hasn't earned our respect in her, Do as I say, not as I do attitude!

Ncforthispost2005 · 02/05/2017 11:34

Foodtime I do take offence as I would also 'go to the wall' for my kids as would 99% of mums I know. Unfortunately most of us can't afford to send our kids to a private school for selective education courtesy of a salary paid by the publics taxes.

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