Steve Harper decided to start out his run to 24 Sussex by impuning the integrity and impartiality of the public service and the judiciary.
When a new government arrives looking for moles and spies and partisans among the bureaucracy, they inevitable wind up slaughtering thousands and breeding the kind of cynicism and distrust that actually works against the government.
The bureaucrats are the ones who know how the machinery works. They know how to make it work for you.
or against you.
Like the young master corporal, saddled with an obviously arrogant young officer.
After leading his platoon through woods and swamp in the pitch blackness, the young officer proudly stops his men and orders them to dig.
Checking his map, the master corporal protests that they can't dig fully prepared firing trenches in this spot.
After some back and forth, the master corporal looked to the more senior non-commissioned officer judging the exercise. The warrant officer glared back at the master corporal and told him to follow orders.
Come sunrise, there was a text-book position with deep trenches, steel reinforcement and overhead cover.
There too was the control tower of the local airfield, the controllers in their tower staring in amazement through their binoculars at the new inhabitants in the open space been the runways.
In short order, young officer was gone, to be replaced by a smarter guy.
"See," said the old warrant officer, to his younger friend. "There's more than one way to get rid of a stupid officer."
Many the minister and indeed the government that have been brought down by just that approach.
Keep, it up Steve. Your first months leading a minority government will be very interesting to watch.
