Ryan Bohlis a Middle East and North Africa analyst at Stratfor.
British prime minister Theresa May and American president Donald Trump speak in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington DC, January 27 (The Prime Minister’s Office/Jay Allen)
As always, yes and no.
Yes, because the ideology of austerity-driven neoliberalism, that which is championed by Theresa May’s suddenly flailing government, is a major component of the ruling Republican Party in the United States. It’s what Paul Ryan, the speaker of the House, believes in: cuts to public services to benefit the private market.
Yes, because Brexit, the alt-right-driven anti-immigrant, anti-globalization geopolitical self-harm project is propelled by the same forces that elected the current head of the Republican Party, Donald Trump.
The British flag flies over the Houses of Parliament in London, England (Unsplash/Matt Milton)
There is still a lot to digest from last week’s British election. The promised Conservative landslide never materialized. Labour gained seats, including in affluent constituencies like Kensington that it won for the first time, but it also fell short of a majority. Theresa May remains in power but has been weakened. She must rely on the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland for a majority, which threatens to upset the delicate balance of power in Ulster.
We can nevertheless say two things with certainty:
The trends spotted in last year’s Brexit vote are accelerating.
Britain’s then-home secretary, Theresa May, speaks at a mosque in East London, England, February 12, 2015 (UK Home Office)
Given the vote share Labour has accrued in England under Jeremy Corbyn, ideas from Britain’s mid- to late-twentieth century are once again mainstream — and they pose an ideological challenge to the liberal consensus that is in many ways deeper than last year’s vote to leave the EU. Read more “Conservatives Need to Reevaluate Beliefs After Defeat”
British prime minister Theresa May speaks with the American defense secretary James Mattis at Lancaster House in London, England, May 11 (DoD/Jette Carr)
Britain’s ruling Conservatives have lost their majority in Parliament, going down from 329 to 318 seats.
Nick Ottensis the founder and editor of the Atlantic Sentinel.
View of the Houses of Parliament from Whitehall in London, England (Shutterstock/Alan Copson)
Britain’s ruling Conservatives are projected to lose control of Parliament. The exit poll for Thursday’s election shows them falling from 330 to 314 seats. Twelve more are needed for a majority.
Assuming the exit poll isn’t too far off, what does this mean for Britain’s next government, its major political parties and the process of divorcing the United Kingdom from the EU? Read more “What Britain’s General Election Result Means”
British Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron (Shutterstock/Finbarr Webster)
This British election is an impossible choice for liberals like us.
We can’t possibly support Jeremy Corbyn, whose policies of nationalization and unilateral nuclear disarmament would compound the disaster of Brexit — which he did far too little to prevent — many times over.
But we are not impressed with Theresa May either. She was the best possible candidate to succeed David Cameron last summer, but only because the alternatives were worse. Many British voters could make the same calculation this week. Read more “Liberal Democrats Are the Least Bad Option in Britain’s Election”
