Statement by the Communist Party of Ireland on the Irish Presidential Election.

The Communist Party of Ireland recognises that the office of Uachtarán na hÉireann is largely symbolic. Incumbents, such as President Higgins, have used the office to raise issues of concern to the people of Ireland, such as homelessness, the genocide in Gaza, the erosion of Irish neutrality and promotion of the Irish language.

They are, however, precluded from taking any independent political action by Article 13.11 of the Constitution which states that,“No power or function conferred on the President by law shall be exercisable or performable by him save only on the advice of the Government.” Recognising the limits of the office, we believe that the present election is important because there is a clear demarcation between the two candidates representing the government parties and Catherine Connolly who is supported by an ad hoc broad left and republican front.

The government candidates, in particular Jim Gavin the Fianna Fáil candidate, are seeking to use the Presidential election as an unofficial referendum on Irish neutrality. Gavin, who has no history of political involvement opened his election campaign by calling for the abolition of the triple lock on the deployment of Irish Defence Forces abroad. Echoing his handler, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Gavin has called for the bypassing of the UN Security Council when deploying Irish troops abroad, instead relying on decisions made by NATO or the EU. Neither Fianna Fáil nor Fine Gael campaigned on the removal of the Triple Lock in the last General Election.

They have repeatedly refused to give the people a vote on the issue. The Taoiseach is determined to abolish the Triple Lock and the danger is that in the event of a victory for Gavin in the Presidential Election, he will try to claim that as support for the abolition of the Triple Lock.

Abolishing the Triple Lock will mean further erosion of neutrality and closer links with NATO. It will mean diverting billions of euros from health, housing, education and social services into the coffers of US, European and British arms companies.

It will mean turning Ireland into a target in any future wars launched by the NATO/EU Bloc. It will mean our sons and daughters slaughtering and dying to enforce US/EU/British control over resources in Africa, Asia and South America. It will mean abandoning the anti-colonial, progressive and internationalist ideals of Ireland’s long, and unfinished struggle for National Independence and joining with the oppressors.

The Communist Party of Ireland supports Catherine Connolly’s campaign for the office of Uachtarán na hÉireann. She is the only candidate supporting the retention of the Triple Lock. She is the only candidate who opposes the Genocide in Gaza and calls for action not words. She articulates a vision of Ireland in which the needs of society come before the interests of the wealthy.

We call on all those who wish for a sovereign, re-united, neutral and socialist Ireland to campaign for Catherine Connolly in your workplaces, in your schools and colleges, in your communities, your unions and your sporting and cultural organisations.

TURN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION INTO A REFERENDUM ON NEUTRALITY AND PEACE.

VOTE CONNOLLY NO. 1

That applies to Zelensky too. Also to most states supported by NATO, or the portrayal of those antagonized by NATO. It’s almost as if it’s a worthless definition.

The real damage is in channelling what could be a millions-strong grassroots movement directly into the graveyard of the Democratic Party. All that energy, all that hope, are funnelled into meaningless action like phone banking and canvassing for a party that is structurally, irrevocably dedicated to preserving capitalism. Instead of building real, independent power through unions, strikes, and community networks, people got a cult of personality around one candidate.

Reforms under capitalism are always conditional and designed to demobilize the masses. Imagine if all that energy had been directed toward unionizing every Amazon warehouse, organizing mass rent strikes, and building community mutual aid networks that create real dual power. Look at movements like MAS in Bolivia to see what’s possible.

I think this point is key in learning how to tell a socialist from a “socialist”. If one’s political activism is dedicated to building popular power structures that transcend themselves and held by sectors of the working class, that’s a socialist.

But if one models their political activism around getting themselves into office and builds only structures to position themselves as “the socialist alternative” that just needs to “get elected”, that’s not a socialist. That’s a charitable liberal carrierist.

Can’t say I’m surprised or even disappointed. It’s a social-democrat running through the D party proposing some reforms. It’s the bare minimum, and even if he was some sort of secret communist he would be expelled from the blue party very quickly if he had a good take there.

On the other hand I still think he’s worth supporting critically over his proposed reforms, while criticizing harshly on his failures. NorthWesterners expect too much from electoralism and individuals and forget about parties.

The current Haitian government is a provisory council appointed by the OAS, armed with Washington-paid Kenyan police, and some of the “gangs” are demanding new elections since the president was assassinated in 2019, and also calling for a more sovereign Haiti.

It’s a mess, but also seems inline the renewal in focus on the Caribbean. Control the Sea around Venezuela, isolate Colombia and Mexico’s East while retaking the Panama Canal and Ecuador.

ITT: people confusing remarks by a parlamentarian as official statements by the Ministry of Defense or the head of the executive.

The red line about deep strikes has been around ever since the beginning of the war, with only minor adjustment of nuclear policy since the Storm Shadow/ATACMS deployment back in November last year. Instead of nuclear war all we got was the live test of the Oreshnik.

The current Russian leadership is cautious to a fault when it comes to nuclear escalation. A single parlamentarian is not going to change that, and the headline is misleading. Instead of being smug about it for the 100th time since the beginning of the war, pray that the UA army doesn’t get their hands on a dirty bomb.