Taoiseach Brian Cowen has denied being drunk or hungover during an interview on RTÉ's Morning Ireland. Speaking to TV3, he said such comments were ridiculous and 'uncalled for.' Following the interview Fine Gael's Finance Spokesman Michael Noonan claimed there were concerns over the leadership of the country. Mr Noonan said there was little to inspire confidence. 'There was a feeling this morning ... that this can't continue, the game is up.' Mr Noonan said the Taoiseach sounded tired, but that he was a long way from Galway and he did not want to say anything personal about him. He did say, however, that what struck him was the uncertainty in Mr Cowen's approach and that the Taoiseach had no clear answers. Labour spokesperson Roisin Shortall said the interview was inept and claimed only an election could save the country. During the interview, Mr Cowen mistakenly referred to the Croke Park Agreement as the Good Friday Agreement. Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said the Taoiseach was 'very hoarse' during the interview on Morning Ireland. He said that the content of the interview was quite clear and focused on the estimates and the Budget. 'There is always a social dimension to occasions such as this week's Fianna Fáil gathering, but no more than that.' When asked was the Taoiseach's interview an embarrassment, Micheál Martin said that there are always challenges in politics. Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey has said he is 'absolutely astounded' at the controversy surrounding the Taoiseach's tone of voice in the Morning Ireland interview. He said the reaction to Mr Cowen's performance was a 'sideshow' generated by Fine Gael. Final day of Fianna Fáil conference http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0914/fiannafail.html Sounded like he had a late night alright!
This is real playground stuff, you get the feeling that no-one knows what the fcuk to do and gets caught up in the name-calling bullshit instead of dealing with the issues.
A non story that has dominated the national airwaves all day. One lad on Joe Duffy 'nearly crashed his car' when he heard it....I mean I ask you. He sounded a bit hungover, but even from the snippets of the 9 minute interview that I heard, he certainly didnt sound like he was talking drunken gobbledeegook...well any more so than normal. At least he wasnt making up words unlike my namesake! 'He's entitled to his socialisation'
Nail, hammer, head! There's a good chance I'll be going into work Friday morning with a bit of a head on me after being over for the game on Thursday night - should I just resign my position now in case of sparking outrage?
But you are not running the country in the middle of an economic crisis! This is supposed to be a think-in where they are coming up with solutions for job creation and to find 3billion in savings/cuts in the December budget. And I'm sure there is a certain amount of that going on. But the nations media have decamped to Galway for the few days and this is just terrible PR. Of course he is entitled to his downtime and a few beers at a "socialisation", but if you know you are going to be on Morning Ireland for a live interview, and you are already a poor communicator, and your party is on the ropes, the last thing you need is leave yourself open.
So long as he didn't drive himself to the studio then I don't see what all the hype is about. You'd swear he was swinging out of a bottle of whiskey during the interview
+ 1 Not when he was one of the architects of our downfall as Minister for Finance from 2004 till 2008....
I agree with these boys. I don't like the man, regardless of him gettin us into this mess, he still has the most stressful job in the country. He's entitled to a few pints after a stressful day of work. I know i'll have few after work tonight anyways...
Having spoke to him a couple of times, I couldn't really tell the difference. He sounds like that most of the time
I wonder is he a heavy drinker or if it's a media myth? Anyone remember him on the late late and the roasting he got regarding his alcohol consumption?
I've seen some pics of him slumped in a corner of a pub langers out of his head but I say so what, There is a lot of stress to his job no matter what you think he is responsible for politically , everyone needs to wind down.. silly silly story today.
I heard the interview live this morning and my own immediate reaction was that he was after a 'heavy night'. I did not need the media to form my opinion. What was shocking for me was the fact that his 'handlers' allowed him to go on the radio not that he had a few bevvy's last night.
I don't care if he drinks. I care when he drinks. I love a pint myself and if I do have a few tonight I will go into work tomorrow and my work will suffer if I'm hungover. But it's not as important a job as that of a political leader or a surgeon going into their mornings work dying. They made a career choice. Everyone is entitled to a drink. However people like Cowen have made a career choice where they should only be doing so on select occasions. To be honest I see a guy on the Late Late who's family has to migrate to Australia as he's lost a family business that's 120 years old, and then hear that our country's leader (and Minister for Finance when things started to go pear shaped) has been out on the lash the night before an important radio interview. Frankly, I'm not surprised people are very very angry.
Particularly after Conor Lenihan falling asleep while waiting to be interviewed by TV3 at the same gig afew years back.... http://www.tribune.ie/archive/article/2005/sep/11/all-over-the-gaffe/
Good points F@ces...it should also be remembered that Cowen is from a political dynasty, (he took his father's seat) and well knows the demands of office.
I have no love for the man, however I agree with Cowen that its a new low in Irish politics. The opposition whoopers can't come with anything useful to say, they are constantly playing silly games like this and the fact it comes from Twitter is quite fitting. Not suprising when they have a joker like Kenny at the helm. I saw Cowen on the news a few times today and he looked fresh as a daisy.