Kerry: Brexit may not happen

[DCBob]

Washington (AFP) - US Secretary of State John Kerry said that Britain's vote to leave the European Union might never be implemented and that London is in no hurry to go.

Speaking one day after talks with Prime Minister David Cameron, Kerry said the outgoing British leader feels "powerless" to negotiate a departure he does not want.

"This is a very complicated divorce," Kerry told the Aspen Ideas Festival, referring to Britain's negotiated exit from the EU after last week's "Brexit" referendum.

Kerry, who visited Downing Street on Monday, said Cameron was loath to invoke "Article 50" of the Lisbon treaty, which would trigger a two-year timetable for departure.

London, Kerry explained, does not want to find itself boxed in after two years without a new association agreement and to be forced out of the EU without one.

And, he added, Cameron "feels powerless -- and I think this is a fair conclusion –- to go out and start negotiating a thing that he doesn't believe in and he has no idea how he would do it.

"And by the way, nor do most of the people who voted to do it," Kerry said, apparently referring to "Leave" campaigners such as former London mayor Boris Johnson, now the frontrunner to replace Cameron as premier.

Asked by the panel moderator if this meant the Brexit decision could be "walked back" and if so how, Kerry said: "I think there are a number of ways."

https://www.yahoo.com/news/top-us-diplomat-kerry-says-brexit-may-not-234207180.html?nhp=1

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This sounds like Kerry is speaking for Cameron. I suspect the Brits are going walk this thing back somehow.

[Stinky The Clown]

1. I felt this all along. And not a single one of the BrexitBackers have the balls to do it themselves.

Long story short - ain't gunna happen.

When (if) Boris becomes PM, if he doesn't Brexit stage right, he will exit stage left, chased by the 50% of Brits pissed off about . . . . well, they don't actually know, but they know they're by gawd pissed about it. And Boris BETTER do something and do it right fucking now.

Or else.

Cuz they're pissed.

Pissed right off.

In the American sense of pissed. Or in the British sense of pissed.

Or both.

Probably.

Yeah.

He better do it.

Cuz.

You know.

Its bad.

Something is bad.

Real bad.






Pass that sack of chips, now would ya?

And a pint.

[dubyadiprecession]

2. The british aren't like us, they can hold another referendum at the drop of a hat.

[Chakab]

3. They don't need another referendum. Referenda aren't legally binding in their system of government.

[FailureToCommunicate]

4. Encouraging if possible. It was insane to have their future decided by a up or down vote that had

such a relative small "majority" decide the outcome. As this Boston Globe op ed points out, it's harder for a couple to get a divorce than what Britain just voted to do...

"THE REAL LUNACY of the United Kingdom’s vote to leave the European Union was not that British leaders dared to ask their populace to weigh the benefits of membership against the immigration pressures it presents. Rather, it was the absurdly low bar for exit, requiring only a simple majority. Given voter turnout of 70 percent, this meant that the leave campaign won with only 36 percent of eligible voters backing it.

This isn’t democracy; it is Russian roulette for republics. A decision of enormous consequence — far greater even than amending a country’s constitution (of course, the United Kingdom lacks a written one) — has been made without any appropriate checks and balances..."

https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2016/06/24/britain-democratic-failure/Mx888Cle7t6OUyuWyX8n2M/story.html

[reign88]

5. Oof I don't know

While a small percentage of "leavers" may change their vote, there would still be a huge amount who don't and would be very upset and disillusioned by a reversal of fortune. I don't think it would be so great.

Markets have rebounded now too, which do uses the flames a bit, and trade deals can still be forged as they are between any countries not in the EU.

At some point maybe England decides to come back, but I think at this point they need to forge ahead as they are, vote intact. Cameron walling away was ludicrous honestly. Imagine a US President just going "screw this, I'm out!". He can do what he pleases but it's still a very uncool move IMHO.

Don't think that will turn out well for him in the long run.

[randome]

7. It was a meaningless vote in the first place.

It was stupid to put something like this up for a public vote.

Many of the 'leavers' regret their vote. Now that many have had a chance to recover from their drunken binge of the night before, things look very different to them.

[Bad Thoughts]

6. So London will go to war with England's xenophobic majority

The problem is that British politicians have had it both ways with its public, insisting on exceptionalism, providing less and less relief to workers, shifting emphasis to finance, blaming the EU along the way. Time for them to take responsibility for their own affairs ... or own up to the fact that the EU has provided many necessary benefits to Britain.