The Art Of Politics: Coups, Corruption, Charges, It’s June

by Richard Bruton

You can write thousands of words about politics and politicians and still not get to the crux of it all. Or you could let the world’s greatest political cartoonists take a swing at ’em. It’s The Art of Politics…

You want one image to sum up the month? I reckon it’s this one from David Rowe, with Boris and Trump both having their respective cases coming up…

Because it’s been something of a busy month for both floppy-haired liars and cheats. Shall we begin with the orange one?

USA – Presidents Under Fire, Elections Underway…

So, let’s begin with Trump…

The first ex-President to be charged/arrested in a federal prosecution. He pleaded not guilty to criminal charges alleging that he retained classified documents after he left the White House. So, that’s 37 classified documents charges. These are the documents he took from the White House and stored at Mar-a-Lago – yep, including in a toilet.

But, given how divided America is and how Trump supporters will back Trump all the way, all of this is hardly hurting his reputation and certainly won’t stop him getting the Republican nomination.

The orange/yellow smog/pollution that was blanketing a lot fo the US during the month was a gift to cartoonists in a month where the Donald only went and got himself indicted again (and again and again and again…)

Bill Bramhall –

Peter Brookes –

Christopher Weyant –

Chris Riddell –

Kal –

Pat Chappatte –

And there were an awful lot of boxes…

Ann Telnaes –

Tim Campbell –

Mike Luckovich –

David Rowe –

Chris Britt –

And then there’s the Election…

Very little going on in terms of the election in so many ways this month – mostly because Biden’s just getting on with things, including falling over a bit. Meanwhile, Republics are basically keeping a little quiet after the whole Trump thing with no-one wanting to be the one to come out and criticise him.

David Rowe – on the runners…

Mike Luckovich – on DeSantis’ one-trick pony act…

Ann Telnaes – on Mike Pence throwing his hat in the ring for the Republican nod…

Meanwhile, Biden Vs Sandbag…

Gran’pa Joe was giving a speech thing and fell over a sandbag…

Peter Brookes –

Tim Campbell –

And Tom Stiglich on the same…

Oh, and Pat Robertson died.

Good.

Bill Bramhall –

Chris Britt –

Now, over to not-so-Great Britain

Oh, Boris, Boris, Boris…

We started the month with more Covid hearings about just how much partying ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson was really doing during lockdown. It was, as you should always expect from Bozza, a shitshow.

My favourite bit was how he decided he was taking the taxpayer for a ride and using (at UK taxpayers’ expense) legal counsel provided by the Government. Of course, as it’s legal counsel for the government, they have a duty to report any new issues to the people running the hearings. Which is exactly what they did when they got hold of his diaries listing all the new lawbreaking.

Ben Jennings –

Chris Ridell –

Morten Morland –

Then the Government launched a legal challenge to the government’s own Covid public inquiry to stop the handover of more embarrassing and potentially damning WhatsApp messages.

Boris, seeing all this, decided he’d hand them over voluntarily, thus making the Government

look even more ridiculous. Why, it’s almost as though he’s got some kind of evil plan to do harm to the Government.

Rebecca Hendin –

Morten Morland –

And another Morten Morland –

And we got to the middle of the month with Boris seeing the Partygate inquiry’s findings and promptly quitting as an MP.

This was, of course, just after the announcement of the former PM’s honours list, a long list of political aides, buddies, fundraisers and Lord only knows what, to be elevated to the House of Lords for life, including some of the youngest people ever made Peers. And there’s a whole other story in there about the 29-year-old aide who became the youngest ever life peer.

Anyway, Johnson quitting led to another couple of Tory MPs quitting, meaning even more trouble for Sunak’s Government. Again, it’s like he’s doing it on purpose isn’t it? (Well, yes.)

Nicola Jennings –

Chris Riddell –

Meanwhile, Rishi Sunak’s woes just keep on coming whenever Boris is involved…

Dave Brown –

Henry Beaumont…

And of course, all that means that Rishi Sunak’s promise of transparency and accountability from Governnent is about as much use as a chocolate teapot…

Nicola Jennings –

This is the same Rishi Sunak who deliberately missed the vote in the Commons on whether to impose sanctions on Boris – and he wasn’t the only one to do so – all of them Tory…

Ella Baron –

The Covid Enquiry and years of Tory rule…

The other thing the Covid enquiry did expose was how terribly the Tory rule has affected the country, making it singularly unprepared for something of this magnitude, with the spending cuts leaving the country especially vulnerable and unprepared. Meanwhile, George Osbourne, architect of all these years of austerity that has stripped the country of so much and put millions into poverty, stepped up and defended the policy.

Nicola Jennings –

Nicola Jennings again – this time on George Osbourne…

Financial Crisis – part 849…

With public services stripped to the bone, with wages way, way behind the cost of living, with more and more people in poverty, Britain now has to face the problems of inflation pushing mortgages payments up and up and up and up… making millions more financially precarious…

Seamus Jennings –

Ben Jennings –

Chris Riddell –

Harrymataz… The Prince in Court…

Boris wasn’t the only one to have use of lawyers this month either, as Prince Harry was in court to accuse the Mirror Group of newspapers of phone hacking and generally being the British tabloid press…

Ella Baron –

And the same idea and wording from Morten Morland –

The War In Ukraine… and the uprising in Russia

15 months and counting… and the word is of a counter-offensive coming from Ukraine – or is it dissenting voices in Russia…

Nicola Jennings –

Steve Bell – on the collapse of the Ukranian Nova Kakhovka dam, with Ukraine blaming Russian occupying forces for the destruction, flooding a large area of the war’s frontline and causing an ecological disaster.

And Kal on the same…

But all was not rosy at home for dear old Vlad the invader… the Wagner group of mercenaries turned from Ukraine and began a march on Moscow. Russia narrowly managed to avoid a coup and/or a civil war when the troops controlled by Yevgeny Prigozhin aborted the march on Moscow.

Despite Putin’s claims of clamping down, Prigozhin was exiled to Belarus (although no one is quite sure as I write this quite where he is – and how long he’ll live is anyone’s guess now) whilst the Wagner mercenaries won’t be prosecuted.

All of this led to the world taking a long pause – a nuclear power in a possible civil war, the leader looking weak. Oh boy.

PX Molina –

Pat Chappatte –

Ben Jennings –

Steve Bell –

Morten Morland –

And Morten Morland again…

And we shall end with the great Roger Langridge, whose comics are always a joy to read, a brilliantly funny comic artist/writer. His regular Hotel Fred can be autobiographical, it can be fantastical. And sometimes it’s absolutely on the nail…