Casey starts with ‘walk in the park’ swipe at Higgins
PRESIDENTIAL hopeful Peter Casey said he thinks the election will be a ‘clean campaign’, shortly after declaring Donald Trump was a ‘serial womaniser and abuser and his behaviour was a disgrace’.
In what was a colourful start to the Presidential campaign, Mr Casey also levelled a charge at his fellow nominee Gavin Duffy, saying his preference to take the full Presidential salary was perhaps due to a lifestyle to which he had become ‘accustomed’.
And Mr Casey raised questions about what he claimed was a 42% reduction in public appearances by President Michael D Higgins in recent years.
‘The bottom line is if it goes down by 42% over the next seven years, he’ll be taking a walk around, a stroll, in the park once a week and that will be the height of it,’ he quipped.
He was speaking yesterday in RTÉ, where he participated in a debate on Radio One’s News at One with three of the other candidates; Liadh Ní Riada, Joan Freeman and Gavin Duffy. Speaking after the debate, Mr Duffy dismissed the jibes from Mr Casey as being ‘classic Peter, he’ll throw out these quips’.
‘As you get to know Peter, you’ll know he has a sense of humour. At least it’s a sense of humour to Peter. He’s going to be very colourful in the campaign. I don’t take it personally, if Peter makes a comment like that, it’s Peter’s unique sense of humour.’
Candidate Joan Freeman finally revealed the businessman behind her mystery €120,000 loan is Herbalife founder Des Walsh, who is based in Los Angeles. She said it is a loan fully in compliance with Standards In Public Office regulations, and she intends to repay it with an interest rate of 9%.
She also said she had received a loan of €10,000 from Michael Madden, a Tipperary native based in New York who helped her ‘in the setting up of [Irish suicide prevention centre] Solace House’.
President Michael D Higgins was unable to attend the debate because of prior commitments, while candidate Seán Gallagher said he would not attend any debate that does not include all candidates.