‘Incredible Hulk’ Johnson promises October 31 Brexit
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has likened himself to The Incredible Hulk in his determination to take Britain out of the EU on October 31.
The Mail on Sunday newspaper reported that Johnson said he would find a way around a recent parliamentary vote ordering him to stall Brexit rather than have a no-deal exit.
“The madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets,” Johnson was quoted as saying. “Hulk always escaped, no matter how tightly bound in he seemed to be
and that is the case for this country. We will come out on October 31.”
Parliament repeatedly rejected the deal former prime minister Theresa May negotiated with the EU, and earlier in September rejected leaving with no deal, angering Britons who voted three years ago to quit the bloc.
Johnson wants to harness that anger to win a majority in an early election, but he has been thwarted by the opposition that wants to first ensure Britain cannot leave the EU without a deal.
The Liberal Democrats, with 18 seats in Britain’s 650-seat parliament, tried to lure remainer voters on Sunday, saying it would stop Brexit and reject any Brexit deal Johnson struck if it won an election.
“If people put into government as a majority government, the ‘Stop Brexit’ party, then stopping Brexit is exactly what people will get,” said Liberal Democrats leader Jo Swinson.
Johnson wants a new deal without a “backstop” tying Britain against its will to EU rules after it leaves to avoid checks on the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. The EU insists on the backstop. Britain has not presented a detailed alternative. Johnson said he was “very confident” before his meeting with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker on Monday. “There’s a very, very good conversation going on about how to address the issues of the Northern Irish border,” he said. “A huge amount of progress is being made.”
The Labour Party called for details of his proposals.
Johnson drew parallels between Britain’s situation in Brexit talks and the frustrations felt by fictional scientist Bruce Banner, who when enraged turned into the super-strong Incredible Hulk, often leaving a trail of destruction.
“Banner might be bound in manacles, but when provoked he would explode out of them,” he said.
The Sunday Times reported that Johnson adviser Dominic Cummings raised the idea of suspending parliament for a second time. Parliament is suspended until October 14, a decision challenged in the courts by those who say it is an attempt to block debate on Brexit.
On Saturday, former Conservative minister Sam Gyimah said he was switching to the Liberal Democrat party in protest against Johnson’s Brexit policies and political style.
Swinson said she believed she could win an election. But polls suggest the Liberal Democrats, which in its modern form has not won more than 62 seats, are unlikely to be able to stop Brexit outright. Polls published late on Saturday painted a conflicting picture of the Conservative Party’s political fortunes under Johnson.
A poll by Opinium for the Observer showed Conservative support rose to 37% from 35% last week, Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour held at 25% and Liberal Democrat support fell to 16% from 17%. Support for Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party remained at 13%. A poll by ComRes for the Sunday Express put Conservative support at 28%, down from 30% and just ahead of Labour at 27%. ComRes said only 12% thought MPs could be trusted to do the right thing.
THE MADDER HULK GETS, THE STRONGER HULK GETS. HULK ALWAYS ESCAPED, NOW MATTER HOW TIGHTLY BOUND IN HE SEEMED TO BE