To wonder how on Earth Mandelson can carry on and how the Prime Minister can back him?

[TowersofGable]

Seriously, have you read the messages?

Anyone with any ounce of integrity would have resigned immediately. Instead we get the ghastly spectacle of him hanging on to see if it all blows over.

Of course he wanted to stay on. Mandelson loves proximity to power and money. There's nothing a very rich man, like Trump or Putin, loves more than flattery and Mandelson's an expert, as you can see from his slavering emails to Epstein. God, these people are awful and they demand our admiration. No wonder they're susceptible to being schmoozed and believe everyone really does admire them. Look at the people surrounding Trump. Who'd choose it if they didn't have an agenda of their own? Who's next for the poisoned chalice?

I think there's worse to come over the weekend to be honest. Brace yourselves, a lot more embarrassing and cringe worthy communications will be released for the Sunday papers.

This debacle really weakens Starmer. He has no political instincts. Mandy himself in his interview with The Sun said more would come out, including emails. Wasn't this, Prince Andrew's banishment, and the close and loving link with a convicted paedophile enough to show him (and Ms Cooper) that he needed booting out?

TBH I was astounded when he was appointed ambassador to Washington. He had always struck me as sleazy, and to me it cast a lot of doubt on Starmer’s judgement. Though it did occur to me that he just wanted Mandelson out of the way, but then you’d think he’d have sent him somewhere a lot more far flung and comparatively less significant!

In any case, IMO Starmer showed yet more weakness in not sacking him 24 hours sooner.

I think Keir Starmer's advisers must hate him. Look at this Mandelson rubbish it's going to go on and on like Rayner's tale. His communications team must hate him too. Nobody in No 10 seems to have any idea of the need to manage the story and how things escalate if you let it run. It's exasperating, bloody incompetent and unnecessary.

Well, let’s just say he has a certain disrespect and disdain for women. When talking to me he was spitting when talking. That, or it was sperm 🤮

Ive met him a couple of times he is so dislikeable. A similar vile vibe to Farage (who I have also had the displeasure meeting). Snakelike and beady eyed.

The utter hypocrisy is astounding.
Boris Johnson was absolutely and rightly exposed for allowing a donor to pay for wallpaper and redecoration of Nos 10. Starmer & Co accept multiple gifts of clothes, free holidays, apartments, etc. But apparently “it’s different” when it’s Labour (or a right wing press conspiracy)

Boris Johnson backs both Zahawi and Hunt - the first of whom self refers (as Rayner did) and admits his taxes aren’t right and resigns (as Rayner did) and Hunt is proven to have followed the law (as Rayner did in the first housing “issue”) but its Tory sleeze and “different” with a million excuses when Starmer backs the bloody housing minister who apparently “made an innocent mistake” about umm…. Housing laws because she’s so busy/has a disabled son / don’t take the right advice (insert other excuse)
Boris Johnson ‘backed’ Chris Pincher despite evidence that he had sexually assaulted people by “groping” them and it’s such an error of judgement that it actually ends his term as PM. Starmer actually fucking appoints someone who was Epstein’s “best pal” and is in contact with him & supports him after he’s been convicted of child abuse and trafficking which Starmer would have absolutely known …. due to the “thorough” vetting process so he said but now actually he’s fired.
It’s unbelievably ridiculous. Johnson was an absolute disgrace but it’s is absolutely clear that Starmer & the Labour Party are EXACTLY the same and yet the left bleat in how it’s “not the same”
it’s exactly the fucking same and instead of holding him and them to account, the tribalism is so ingrained that black is now white
I despair

You might want to catch up on Bozo's interesting financial machinations both in office and since. He's lucky there are more newsworthy stories at the moment and nobody's paying any attention to the expose in the Guardian. The depressing. thing is that we've become so inured to base politicians that the 'revelations' are exactly what we've come to expect. Club life. We're not in it.

And zero charisma.
Can’t they get him some media training ffs?!

Have you read the content of the messages? He was clearly involved, it’s not just that he associated with Epstein.

No I hadn't.

Hence I asked the question.

I wasn't aware I couldn't educate myself here.

You didn’t though, you asked if the other chap was under suspicion when the messages were sent.

Yes. He'd been sentenced and Mandelson was conveyng his sympathy saying how unfairly JE had been treated by the law.