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Sunday 27 May 2012

Harriet's At It

Friday, 6th March 2009

My politics students at City University in London were delighted to have a visit from a master hack today. Kevin Maguire was an entertainining and marvellously indiscreet guest.

The final question was straight and to the point: "What did Mr Maguire think Harriet Harman was up to?" Kevin thought for about a second before replying: "She's at it." He also confirmed that Number 10 thought she was "at it" too.

He made the point that Harriet Harman was an accomplished politician who had managed to win the Labour deputy leadership without the support of the unions. Her positioning on Fred Goodwin's pension and Post Office privatisation, was, he felt, a clear pitch for the leadership (and so did the people around Gordon Brown).

I'd say Kevin has been "at it "(political journalism) long enough to know when a politician is "at it".

Filed under: Gordon Brown (918 more articles) , Harriet Harman (87 more articles) , Kevin Maguire (1 more articles) , Labour leadership (387 more articles) , Lefties (23 more articles) , Politics (UK) (76 more articles) , Post Office (7 more articles)

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seb

March 7th, 2009 10:01am Report this comment

Martin

Was Comrade Kev wearing his 'I Love Gordie' badge? And did you happen to notice the colour of his nose?

Michael Igoe

March 7th, 2009 4:10pm Report this comment

It appears Harman has had a brainstorm, lost her head (unwise in a senior politician) or simply played to the gallery. Take your choice. Where does the mysterious 'Court of Public Opinion' sit, and who's on the jury? How are its verdicts enforced, and who delivers them? This latest comment is one of a list of stupid outbursts made by politicos in the recent past (such as 'defending democracy' by withholding information. Now there is double-think, if ever there was.) Rabble-rousing demagogy or just stupidity? Does it matter greatly, if the result's the same - approving copy in the right rags?

David Short

March 7th, 2009 6:27pm Report this comment

Politics students? They still exist? Even at a university such as City University?

What do they think they are going to graduate to?

How many of them are there?

How much will each of them owe when they graduate? Are they assets written up on some books of some bank?

Do they realise they'd be better off delivering pizza and looking for a job?

I think we should be told!

Clark HT

March 7th, 2009 7:03pm Report this comment

We do still exist David. We specialise in ordering pizza while looking for jobs (there aren't any). I am £20k in debt, graduating this July. Plans post-graduation? MA - it's the only sensisble option.

By way of an aside, Kevin Macguire is a hateful man. Glad some find him entertaining as the hatred I hold for him needs balancing out somehow.

Diversity

March 7th, 2009 8:02pm Report this comment

What Harriet is doing - apart from what she is saying - is unmistakeable. Ms Harman fought for and won the Deputy Leadership so that she had a position from which Mr. Brown could not sack her when she bid for the Leadership. Her Leadership campaign is now on track or ahead of schedule. As and when there is a contest, she will probably start as the leading candidate. Brown, in her view, is incapable of leading Labour to victory so there is nothing to lose from starting her campaign while he is still in office. Doing so wrong-foots the candidates that Gordon can sack. For Kevin Maguire not to be aware of all that, he would have been 'at it' for so long that he was past it.

Fergus Pickering

March 7th, 2009 11:32pm Report this comment

Go Hattie go! We love you!

Ann

March 8th, 2009 6:46pm Report this comment

She is a hateful person, an unprincipled opportunist with low cunning but no real brain. These are just her good points. She is also mega-arrogant, with nothing to be arrogant about.

Ian C

March 11th, 2009 2:19pm Report this comment

Ann,
That qualifies her for the job she seeks!

Hannah Hudson

April 10th, 2009 3:38pm Report this comment

David Short -- I'm part of Martin's class at City - we're not politics students, but rather postgraduate journalism students specialising in politics. (See Martin's previous blog post: http://www.spectator.co.uk/martinbright/3379136/bloody-students-the-next-generation.thtml)

Along with death and taxes, the only thing certain in journalism at the moment seems to be the need for political coverage, and as such it's not a bad area for aspiring journalists to start their careers.

Naturally a job is the next step for all of us in Martin’s class. Yes, we will graduate with debt (as will all other graduates), but to say we're wasting our money ignores the fact we will emerge as trained journalists, producing quality journalism – hopefully for top-class magazines like this one.

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