Liam redux

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McDonnell and Abbot – contrast and compare

Way back in the mists of time Diane Abbot had a reputation as a bit of a lefty. In her own house she probably still does. John McDonnell has been grafting for years and can be relied on to turn up to support any picket line or campaign. To help clarify things here’s a handy…

Liam
1–2 minutes

Way back in the mists of time Diane Abbot had a reputation as a bit of a lefty. In her own house she probably still does. John McDonnell has been grafting for years and can be relied on to turn up to support any picket line or campaign.

To help clarify things here’s a handy little table to which I’m happy to add further rows.

John Mc Donnell

Diane Abbot

Mostly seen

At picket lines, addressing left wing meetings.

Sitting on a sofa with ex Tory minister Michael Portillo.

Son

Leaves meetings to take him to football matches.

Sends him to public school, like most other Hackney parents.

Can be relied on to

Support a strike, endorse a campaign.

Say “My dear friend Michael Portillo”

Westminster village

Seems to hate it

Has a second job talking about it

Asylum

Voted strongly against a stricter asylum system.

Voted moderately against a stricter asylum system

Working people shouldn’t pay for the crisis

No doubt about it.

?

Leadership of the Labour Party

Not much in common with them

Hasn’t done too much to annoy them

Credibility as lefty

Sky high

Minimal

21 responses to “McDonnell and Abbot – contrast and compare”

  1. harpymarx Avatar
    harpymarx

    LOL! Says it all very succinctly Liam!

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  2. Differences between McDonnell & Abbott « Harpymarx Avatar
    Differences between McDonnell & Abbott « Harpymarx

    […] that succinctly explains the differences between McDonnell and Abbott then look no further than Liam’s blog. Spot-on comrade, […]

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  3. Jodley Avatar
    Jodley

    John McWho?

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  4. bristolred Avatar
    bristolred

    Top notch mate!

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  5. jim jepps Avatar
    jim jepps

    It’s all true enough – but I think you missed a box off – likelihood of getting on the leadership ballot paper… zilch and slim

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  6. paul walker Avatar
    paul walker

    yes – perhaps we should all join the greens instead

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  7. Derek Wall Avatar
    Derek Wall

    John McDonnell is the left choice including those of us who joined the Greens long ago (1980 in my case).

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  8. graham Avatar
    graham

    yada yada yada… mcdonnell ABUSE DELETED and too white,
    abbott can win mcdonnell can’t thats the difference.

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  9. Liam Avatar
    Liam

    If the extent of one’s interest is backing the winner then the smart thing to do is back whichever one of the Milibands is supposed to be more left wing. Though this may need some probing at the sub-atomic level.

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  10. alf Avatar
    alf

    Diane Abbott has had ample opportunity to associate herself with various struggles over the past 13 years but has failed to do so. Her input has been minimal to say the least.
    Whilst appealing to some for obvious reasons, the issue is which candidate aids the resistance to Tory/ Lib Dem cuts and stood opposed to the New Labour project from day one. Obviously John has shown a consistency and reliability on this and many other issues internationally as well.
    Diane Abbott’s standing is clearly opportunistic and to attempt to spoil and confuse the issues.
    Liam has succintly made the relevent points comparing records, and that is what counts. A candidate who supports a movement or a candidate who pushes personality and highly questionable politics, as well as class allegiances.
    We need builders of the movement and now not opportunists.

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  11. alf Avatar
    alf

    Go to Diane’s website. No mention of working class struggles, campaigns aginst illegal wars, etc etc etc etc. Silence says much.
    http://www.dianeabbott.org.uk/campaigns.aspx

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  12. Steve Avatar
    Steve

    I am a MacDonnell supporter but I don’t see any problem with Abbott sitting on a sofa with Portillo. I would love to see left wing politicians appearing on mainstream programmes.

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  13. Donkey Avatar
    Donkey

    I thought Diane Abbott voted for war

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  14. chjh Avatar
    chjh

    alf is wrong on at least two counts. Diane Abbott’s election leaflets highlighted her opposition to both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

    As for “associating herself with various struggles”, she spoke out publicly against Hackney Labour Council’s cuts programme around 1999/2000; she has been probably the most consistent defender of abortion rights in the Commons; she’sbeen good on civil liberties isues; and she’s spoken on several Stop the War platforms here in Hackney.

    She’s not the best left Labour MP, but there are worse. And as a prominent LRC member told me this morning, if she gets on the ballot paper and McDonnell doesn’t, the left will have little option but to support her.

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  15. prianikoff Avatar
    prianikoff

    “..if she gets on the ballot paper and McDonnell doesn’t, the left will have little option but to support her.”

    Agreed – and to mandate her politically, like any other representative of the left.

    Meanwhile, support McDonnell ‘cos his politics are better (and he’s already offered some support to DA)

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  16. alf Avatar
    alf

    The Lib Dems opposed the war! 1999/2000 some time ago.
    Yes she may appear the “lesser of 2 evils” if John is ruled out but that does not stop saying she falls far short of consistency.
    We have every right to demand of her and others who claim to be for working people to stand up consistently.
    Sitting on a sofa is fine but what she says whilst on it is another matter.

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  17. ID Avatar
    ID

    She would not just be the ‘lesser of two evils’ if she got on the ballot and McDonnell failed, but she would represent a qualitative advance on any of the Blairite or Brownite candidates. She is neither, she is a genuine, but flawed left-wing figure. I seem to remember doing rather a lot of work for another genuine, but flawed, left-wing figure over the last few years – George Galloway. The same applies here.

    McDonnell is significantly better, of course, and I would prefer to support him, but Abbot is still a leftist MP, one of the few. It is just as foolish to deny it for her as it was to deny George Galloway’s credentials. We will see what happens.

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  18. alf Avatar
    alf

    Yes the problem is that our movement has to readily relied on” flawed but genuine” so-called leaders and top down campaigns, rather than democratic bottom up committees which build locally a strong base uniting wider forces.

    Either some see movements as recruitment material or a threat to their own “leadership”. Perhaps we should stop relying on second best and start relying on ourselves and be more prepared for a new approach which recognises the need for a more open approach where the Left talk to each other and not against each other if we are to build the type of movement that is needed.

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  19. ID Avatar
    ID

    Alf

    “Perhaps we should stop relying on second best and start relying on ourselves and be more prepared for a new approach which recognises the need for a more open approach where the Left talk to each other and not against each other if we are to build the type of movement that is needed.”

    Perhaps, but if you write people like Abbot and Galloway out of ‘the left’ that doesn’t solve anything: it just denies obvious political reality. I’m all in favour of criticism where its merited, but refusing to support people who for all their flaws are part of the left is just another form of sectarianism.

    For instance, one key dividing line in the recent past between genuine and fake lefts in the Labour Party was over John McDonnell’s 2007 leadership candidacy. Diane Abbott, to her credit, was one of those who did nominate McDonnell. Cruddas, despite an apparent promise to do so, refused when the chips were down and therefore is responsible for Gordon Brown’s coronation. This is a dividing line between a fake left and a genuine left, even if flawed.

    Abbott deserves support, even if it is criticial, whereas the followers of Compass, who are political agents of neo-liberalism, do not. To withhold it on grounds of secondary flaws is to miss the big picture, and is an example of the left ‘talking against each other’. In other words, an form of sectarianism.

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  20. alf Avatar
    alf

    No one is writing anyone out of anything, but what we need to do is consider who is best prepared to help take the movement we want to build forward.
    yes as far as Abbott is concerned critical support where appropriate and not sectarian. The issue was that John has been more consistent. I agree we must reject sectarianism but also beware of opportunism.

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  21. ID Avatar
    ID

    Indeed we must beware of opportunism. But I don’t see how critical support for an Abbott leadership bid, if such goes ahead, is opportunist. I see opportunism when some from Respect argue on SU blog that Ed Miliband is not too bad and would be preferable to John McDonnell. If that is true, one wonders how he has garnered the support of Judas Kinnock – Tony Blair’s mentor.

    That is grotesque opportunism particularly given the fact that all of the declared candidates except for Abbott and McDonnell are making anti-immigration part of their pitch, but I see Abbott’s declaration as potentially something positive particularly in that it strongly counterposes itself to that anti-immigration crap. Such differences about deadly serious things like that are the kind of thing that splits are made of, by the way.

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