May’s tenacity is admirable even if legacy is ruined

IN the chaos of Brexit it’s too early to say how Theresa May’s deal will pan out or whether she will survive as leader. But no matter what the future brings, it’s undeniable that her resilience in the most thankless role ever to be created in British politics has defied those who belittled her when she squeaked into power after Michael Gove’s coup against Boris Johnson. May says that she is proud of Tory grandee Ken Clarke’s appraisal of her as a ‘bloody difficult woman’. She claimed that it would help her wrestle the best possible deal in Europe. In the Digital Age of ever shortening attention spans and instant news, it’s often said that modern leaders must have mass telegenic appeal. Macron, Trudeau and Obama (at the beginning of his presidency if not at the end), had an unflappable charm and selfconfidence that inspires adulation.

Theresa May has none of the charisma or good looks of these youthful dynamos. She is plodding, pleasant and tireless and these qualities have kept her in power.

Her deal may be an elaborate fudge that saves her country from the economic Armageddon guaranteed by a hard Brexit. It also delivers the worst of both worlds. She failed to get a consensus over two-and-a-half years about Brexit but with so many self-serving cowards around her, she was not entirely to blame.

Her extraordinary tenacity is admirable. Her legacy is probably ruined, except in one regard. She didn’t run from the poisoned chalice of Brexit like David Cameron or the megalomaniac blowhards in her party who hadn’t the guts for the challenge.

MICHELLE OBAMA says that Melania Trump, right, declined her offer to advise her about life in the White House as is the tradition between outgoing and incoming First Ladies. That’s probably because Melania Trump had no intention of leaving glitzy Trump Towers until she absolutely had to.