How 'thundering disgrace' led to President resigning

[David Cochrane]

The 1976 papers are getting good coverage in today's newspapers, I'll do a roundup of them in another post. One article in particular that has caught my attention is the exchange between then President Cearbhall O Dalaigh and Defence Minister Paddy Donegan over the President being called a "Thundering Disgrace", as far back as I can remember, this is the first introduction to politics I ever had, being told about the exchange by my grandfather when I was a child (though I may add I wasn't born until 5 years later).

THEY were only three words but they shook the nation, provoked a constitutional crisis and led to the first resignation of a president in office.

"A thundering disgrace" was how Defence Minister Paddy Donegan described President Cearbhall O Dalaigh when the minister addressed troops at Columb Barracks in Mullingar on October 18, 1976.

The President's "sin" was to refer the Government's tough new anti-terrorist emergency powers legislation to the Supreme Court to test its constitutionality.

Well worth a read on the Irish Independent website.

[Twin Towers]

How coarsened we have all become. Nobody would resign today over a verbal affront to their person or office.

[FakeViking]

We even have the misLeader of our nation admitting to accepting payments in return for unspecified favours, stuffing state boards with his mates, telling blatant lies about CJH. What would it take him to resign?

[FutureTaoiseach]

Shows FG's contempt for the Constitution and the president's impartial role in fulfilling his/her role as guardian thereof and their unfitness for govt.

[popper]

It was the implication by Donegan that O Dalaigh was somehow responsible for the death of Garda Clerkin (by persons unknown) that was the real insult rather than calling him a fking disgrace. There was interesting defence of Donegan recently in Times by that Jim Duffy character.

[hiding behind a poster]

Shows FG's contempt for the Constitution and the president's impartial role in fulfilling his/her role as guardian thereof and their unfitness for govt.

God, what a gormless post. And you even forgot to mention their cryptounionism, their tax-and-spend economic policies that destroyed a perfectly functioning FF-created land of milk and honey in 1981, the fact that they cunningly release private constituency polls to the media, the fact that Tim O'Malley was on 4% in 2002 and blah blah blah blah blah.....

[smiffy]

Shows FG's contempt for the Constitution and the president's impartial role in fulfilling his/her role as guardian thereof and their unfitness for govt.

Moron.

[David Cochrane]

It was the implication by Donegan that O Dalaigh was somehow responsible for the death of Garda Clerkin (by persons unknown) that was the real insult rather than calling him a fking disgrace. There was interesting defence of Donegan recently in Times by that Jim Duffy character.

What? It was the defence minister calling the President a "Thundering Disgrace" in front of the defence forces, of who the President is head of the Army.

O Dalaigh himself made it clear that unsalvageable damage to the special relationship between President and Minster for Defence.

"That relationship has been irreparably breached not only by what you said yesterday but also because of the place where, and the persons before whom, you chose to make your outrageous criticism."

[jjcarroll]

It is suprising that there is no mention of the killing of Garda Clerkin in the Independent piece especially with Jim Duffy's piece so fresh in the mind.

[Gladstone]

The President should have demanded (even tho he could not gaurentee) the defence ministers resignation.