No, Boris Johnson isn't defeated

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson's loss of his Tory parliamentary majority, done very theatrically by the British equivalent of RINOs, just as he was speaking to parliament, was billed as a disastrous defeat for his Brexit agenda. Brendan O'Neill at Spiked wrote this:

Tonight’s vote by MPs to seize control of the parliamentary agenda in order to prevent a No Deal Brexit is not, as they claim, a wonderful assertion of parliamentary sovereignty against a dictatorial executive led by Boris Johnson.

No, it is an assertion of the political elite’s arrogant authority over the people. If MPs have seized power from anyone this evening, it is from us, the public, the millions who voted to leave the EU. This isn't parliament vs the executive – this is parliament vs the people, and it opens up one of the greatest, most troublesome constitutional crises of modern times.

He's right, of course. And Johnson himself understood the implication, tweeting this yesterday:

Jeremy Corbyn wants to cancel the referendum and argue about Brexit for years. I am committed to leading our country forward and getting Britain out of the EU by October 31st #LeaveOct31 — Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) September 3, 2019

Because yes, if thing stand as they do now, delays will go on into eternity, each deadline pushed back, and an exit from the European Union impossible. The EU, of course, will notice this and just keep throwing up a wall of resistance to a deal to ensure that Britain stays, like it or not, or else keep moving the goalposts - into eternity. When delays are endless, what an opportunity. These useless satraps have nothing better to do, after all. They like the pounds flowing in.

LIKELY SCENARIO:

* The parliament now will pass its law to demand a deal-only Brexit, allowing Europe to set the terms,

* They will appeal to the queen,

* They will get the Lords to sign on (although this is far from certain actually)

* Johnson will respond by calling a general election, something that everyone knows will take guts, because he’s putting his job on the line.

* The Brits are going to notice that, too, and in all likelihood will vote for him. People like a fighter and they like political courage. There’s also a zeitgeist of populist revolt, worldwide, going on.

I was reading in one of the UK papers that the rebels are now worried the Boris might still win in the end. Even if they pass the Act requiring him to ask the EU for an extension to Article 50, he could actually scuttle the extension himself because EU law requires all EU members to vote for the extension, including the country making the request, and in a twist of irony, Johnson could actually vote against his own “forced” request even if every other member country agreed, thereby scuttling it.

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