Watch this clip of Boris Johnson being absolutely skewered by a question from the press and his awful, bumbling reply
Brad Klapper of the AP has asked a STUNNING question of Boris Johnson, putting our own UK journalists to shame:
Watch the three minute below, or read our transcript:
Oh my. AP reporter Brad Klapper lays it in to Boris Johnson. Quite the question. https://t.co/jd638DmDfx
— SimonNRicketts (@SimonNRicketts) July 19, 2016
Here’s the transcript:
You’ve accused the current US President Barrack Obama of harbouring a “part-Kenyan’s ancestral dislike for the British Empire” whilst claiming untruthfully at the time that he didn’t want a Churchill bust in the Whitehouse.
You’ve described the possibly future US president Hillary Clinton as someone with “dyed blonde hair, pouty lips and a steely blue stare, like a sadistic nurse in a mental hospital.”
You’ve also likened her to Lady MacBeth. Do you take these comments back, or do you want to take with you into your new job as some sort of indicator of the type of diplomacy you will practise?
And then, one for the Secretary of State, give that Mr Johnson lead a campaign that your Government viewed pretty universally as detrimental to UK, EU and even US interests, what confidence do you have that as Foreign Secretary, will Mr Johnson represent the interests of anyone but himself?
Is the Mr Johnson you saw in the referendum campaign what the UK, EU and US needs right now – at a time of so many challenges?
And Boris’s reply is masterclass in non-information where he basically says, “I’ve said too many things to apologise about.”
“I’m afraid that there is such a rich thesaurus now of things that I have said that have been one way or another, through what alchemy I do not know, somehow misconstrued that it would take me too long to engage in a full global itinerary of apology to all concerned.
“And I think most people who read these things in their proper context can see exactly what was intended – and indeed I find that virtually everybody I’ve met in this job so far understands that very well, particularly on the international scene.”
And what the hell does “obiter dicta” even mean? Don’t email in, we’ve googled it, some legal term, clearly thrown in the bamboozle rather than elucidate.
It’s gone down a treat on the old Twitter – let’s see some reactions shall we? Let’s just do three:
1.
John Kerry's face when a US journalist accuses Boris of making "outright lies" is quite something. pic.twitter.com/s8zR55BE1r
— Richard James (@richjamesuk) July 19, 2016
2.
John Kerry reacted to a journalist accusing Boris Johnson of telling "outright lies" 4 different ways in 1 second. pic.twitter.com/u8FMNcfVYd
— Jamie Ross (@JamieRoss7) July 19, 2016
3.
American journalists ask Boris Johnson the questions that need to be asked. Why are their British counterparts so spineless?
— Tom London (@TomLondon6) July 19, 2016
Source: https://twitter.com/SimonNRicketts/status/755476735680970752