Larry Donnelly: The Donohue affair and protests of recent weeks show that the political mood here has darkened...
“NOTHING IS ON the level. Everything is a deal. No deal is too small.” This is the mantra of long-time Boston Herald columnist and radio talk show host, Howie Carr, about how the “people’s business” has often been conducted by elected officials in the back rooms and corridors of power in my hometown.
My great-uncle Frank Kelly, who was a Boston City Councillor and Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General, once lamented to my father that the next generation of politicians was so stupid that they were happy to take cheques as donations instead of insisting upon cold, hard cash. Online mob On Twitter, however, fury was palpable and pervasive. Charges of “cronyism” and “corruption” abounded. “A fascinating insight into how the Irish establishment has always worked” was another claim. Numerous attempts were made to tie the misguided efforts of businessman Michael Stone and his associates to hang posters touting the candidacy of Donohoe, his friend, to millions in government contracts awarded to the proud north inner city native’s firms with absolutely no proof.
Thousands packed the streets of Limerick last weekend – other gatherings and marches were held in Galway, Letterkenny, Tralee and more – to convey a collective sense of outrage at the excessively crowded hospitals and myriad further problems in the health service. Sinn Féin has been the main beneficiary of the discontent to date. Nonetheless, as has been unearthed during the past several days, the party has also made a series of missteps when it comes to electoral expenses.
In sum, a substantial and diverse cross-section of the Irish people is mad as hell at the moment. Politicians of all stripes have to determine how best to engage with, address and assuage anger. That won’t be easy.
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