In this episode I use the famous Enoch Powell quote about political lives ending in failure "unless they are cut off in midstream at a happy juncture" to ask if any of the three leaders will know when to go?

I consider Ireland's three main party leaders through Powell's lens: is Mary Lou McDonald in trouble as leader, is Micheál Martin now delaying the inevitable; and is Simon Harris, racing toward a juncture he may never reach.

Does any party have a succession plan... or even see the merit of one?

In this 6 minute long episode Derek sets out why the government response was wrong to focus primarily on a security solution to a political problem... a political problem which its own senior members had flagged weeks ahead.

I have revised the opening 5 minutes of this previously published podcast to include clips from that March 2017 interview - after some extra research I found an audio recording of the full interview. see link below.

In this Mooney on Politics podcast episode I consider how Taoiseach Micheál Martin’s stance on Irish unity has shifted since 2017. From promising a detailed white paper and “blueprint” for reunification to today’s emphasis on Shared Island, reconciliation and keeping constitutional questions at arm’s length.

Link to that 2017 interview via YouTube:

Link to print RTÉ March 2017 news report

In this episode I look at Taoiseach Micheál Martin’s unsurprisingly solid Oval Office performance with Donald Trump.

I express regret that opposition parties here took such a overwhelmingly negative stance on his performance. But... even more... I regret that Martin fails to communicate as well on domestic issues as he does when in the White House.

I also ask why, with government satisfaction on the floor, Sinn Féin still isn’t breaking through... and look to the Gerald Barry rule of politics... at some point every opposition leader is the worst ever opposition leader.

In this podcast episode I argue that Fianna Fáil TDs can’t afford to sleepwalk into 2027. Three Taoisigh in one year (2027) would make the party (and government) look ridiculous.

There are several simple truths that must be faced:

• Micheál Martin’s time as leader is naturally running out
• 2026 is the year for renewal, not 2027
• Fianna Fáil must decide what it stands for, and who best conveys that

The alternative, the default position is just to continue with Micheál Martin... and wander meekly into the darkness

In this episode I argues for reforming Ireland's Triple Lock military deployment system by updating... not scrapping... multilateral criteria to include UN General Assembly resolutions and regional organisations.

Indeed the whole Triple Lock debate is meaningless without addressing recruitment crises and investment shortfalls of the past decade and a half. Ireland's defence capability crisis was government made... it will not be sorted by Triple Lock three-card-chicanery.

You can read the core script from this podcast on my website.

In this final podcast of 2025 I look at a most consequential (but messy) year in Irish politics. I assess how the parties of government and opposition performed. I then conclude with a very personal league table of the newly elected TDs politicians who impressed most over the past 12 months.

In this penultimate podcast of 2025 I look at the fallout from Fianna Fáil's review into the disastrous Áras 2025 campaign and which of the several competing analyses of what happens next, I agree with. (Spoiler Alert... I take some elements from each).

I also explain why I cannot see Martin making it through 2026... and why its in no one's interests that he does.

In this very short episode (based on a recent local radio interview) I wonder if Fianna Fáil is still a serious political party?

The leadership's mishandling of the presidential campaign is now compounded by its mishandling of what should have been a simple report into that fiasco.

Ironically... when I am asked which new TD has impressed me most... I reply that it is a Fianna Fáil one... Albert Dolan... proving that there is still some future hope for Fianna Fáil

In this week's episode Derek throws an eye over the impact on government stability of the departure of Pascal Donohoe for the World bank... and wonders why Taoiseach Micheál Martin now questions the linear nature of time and why a delay is not actually a delay... or of any consequence