By Helen Raleigh
Monday, August 12, 2019
The Times of London did an interesting profile of
Dominic Cummings, the brain behind the Vote Leave movement in 2016 and now the
most senior adviser to Prime Minister Boris Johnson. It said that right after
winning the Brexit vote in 2016, he told supporters, “If we ever want to send
up a signal that Westminster is cheating the vote and we need to form a new
movement, you will see ‘the bat.’”
On Nov. 18, 2018, the day former prime minister Theresa
May signed her unpopular Brexit agreement with the European Union, Cummings
tweeted an image of the Batman logo with these words: “Please get in touch. DM
is open.’’
Looks like Johnson got the message. By appointing
Cummings, the “Batman,” as his most senior adviser, Johnson showed he is
committed to delivering Brexit. But as we know too well, every “Batman and
Robin” episode has a villain. For the current Brexit episode, Jeremy Corbyn,
the leader of the opposition Labour Party, seems to be the perfect Mr. Freeze.
Corbyn’s Socialism and
Antisemitism
The 69-year-old Corbyn is Britain’s version of Bernie
Sanders. Corbyn joined the Young Socialist party when he was in school and has
been a fervent believer in socialism ever since. He championed many radical
left ideas, including the belief that U.S. imperialism enslaved the Latin
American countries. He “proclaims solidarity with socialist campaigns and
governments in places such as Cuba, Chile, Nicaragua, and El Salvador” and
feels very comfortable with “shar[ing] platforms with representatives of Hamas
and Hezbollah.”
Like Sanders, Corbyn had been on the sidelines for
decades, but in 2015, he unexpectedly won the leadership position of the Labour
Party as socialism was revived in the United Kingdom, just like in the United
States. Since then, he has pushed his party farther left into socialism.
Last year, at the Labour Party’s conference, he laid out
a socialist agenda with the goal of fundamentally transforming the United
Kingdom politically and economically, should he become the next prime minister.
Similar to Sanders and his comrades, Corbyn wants to end capitalism,
“nationalize public services and some major industries, and force all large firms
to give their employees a share of the business and a voice on their boards.”
Under Corbyn’s leadership, the Labour Party has become
not only more socialist but also more antisemitic. Since 2015, U.K. media
reported hundreds of antisemitic incidents or allegations involving Corbyn’s
allies and supporters. In 2018, the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the
Jewish Leadership Council held an event together to protest the growing
antisemitism in the Labour Party.
Some longtime moderate Labour Party members share the
Jewish community’s concern. They are especially disappointed that Corbyn “has
consistently shown himself to be neither willing nor able to address the
concerns of the Jewish community and many mainstream MPs.” A number of Labour
Party MPs, such as Frank Field, resigned from the party because it has become
“a force for antisemitism in British politics.”
Corbyn’s Fight Against
Brexit — and Boris
Regarding Brexit, Corbyn led the Labour Party campaign
against it in 2016. After the “Leave” camp won the referendum, Corbyn initially
said the result must be honored. But in an interview with BBC recently, he told
the interviewer he would “make a case to Parliament in September to get another
referendum” and his party will “do everything we can to take no deal off the
table or stop a damaging deal of the sort Hunt or Johnson propose.”
The U.K. media reports that Corbyn scheduled an emergency
meeting with his comrades on Sept. 2, one day before Parliament comes back from
summer recess. His plan is to push for a vote of no confidence in Johnson’s
government, possibly within the first week of September. In his deputy John
McDonnell’s words, Corbyn will go to Buckingham Palace in a taxi to tell the
queen “we’re taking over” if Johnson
loses a vote of no confidence in September.
If he forces Johnson out, Corbyn will form a “caretaker”
government with other small leftist parties before a general election is
triggered. Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the Scottish National Party, indicated
she is interested in joining Corbyn to build a “progressive alliance” and “lock
Tories out of government.” But Cummings, the “Batman,” suggested if Johnson
loses a vote of no confidence, he can refuse to resign and wait 14 days for the
general election to be triggered.
The outcome of a general election will be a toss-up
because both the Labour Party and the Tories have their own hurdles to
overcome. It’s not a sure thing for Corbyn. A poll early this year shows “a
majority of voters believe the Labour leader has been dishonest and ineffective
in his handling of the [antisemitic] problem.” And, “[o]f voters who
acknowledge Labour has an anti-semitism problem, almost a third (31%) say it
will make them ‘much less likely’ to vote for the party.” Lord Charlie Falconer
warned that Corbyn will never become the prime minister if voters fear he and
the Labour Party are antisemitic.
The United States Can
Help Anti-Socialism in the U.K.
For Johnson and the Tories, many Britons are anxious
about a “no deal” Brexit — that Britain will leave the European Union and its
single market and custom union without an agreement. The “Remainers” have been
making predictions of what a “no deal” Brexit would look like: “shortages of
fresh food and other consumer goods, problems with medical supplies and
confusion over regulations and customs tariffs.”
While the final effects on Oct. 31, the Brexit deadline,
may not be so apocalyptic, Johnson and his “Batman” must acknowledge some
disruptions are likely to occur, and they need to convince voters that they
have a good plan to address any problems.
As a longtime ally of the United
Kingdom, the United States can and should help the Johnson administration fan
off attacks from Corbyn and the Labour Party. The last thing we want to see is
our strongest ally be taken over by socialists. President Donald Trump spoke
before about a possible bilateral trade deal between the two countries.
Recently, 45 Republican senators delivered a letter to the U.K. embassy in
Washington, D.C., pledging:
If Britain leaves the EU with no deal, we will work with
our administration, your government, and our friends in the EU to minimize
disruptions in critical matters such as international air travel, financial
transactions, and the shipment of medicine, food, and other vital supplies. We
also will advocate for a new bilateral trade agreement, as early as your Brexit
terms would allow, that reflects the centuries of open commerce between our
nations.
A trade deal between the United States and United Kingdom
will be a vote of confidence for Johnson and Brexiteers. It will provide a
sense of certainty to Brits that they are not going to walk down the path to
self-determination alone. Hopefully with the assistance of the United States,
Johnson and his “Batman” will defeat the U.K.’s socialists and honor the
majority of British people’s wish of exiting from the EU.
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