There’s an interesting trend afoot: crying politicians. Vaughan Gething, the First Minister of Wales, threw composure to the wind last week as the latest politician to give in to a bout of tears. The beleaguered Gething, who had only been in post since March, was seen sobbing during the no-confidence vote that he lost.
The sight of politicians showing emotion, especially male politicians, is not as new as it seems. As the historian Martin Francis explored in his iconic article, Tears, Tantrums and Bared Teeth, Churchill dealt with his surging emotions openly and tearfully. This, argued Francis, was a sign of a new political culture, with the tight association between masculinity, grandeur and stiff upper lip teased apart as social mores began to relax.
But there is something performative and downright annoying about the sight of blubbering politicians today. We all know that in a social world where power is dispensed based on how much victim status you can claim, tears are a powerful move. As an inveterate, helpless cryer myself, I know this first-hand.
But what exactly are we looking for in our leaders? Surely it’s not the same emotional transparency we demand from reality TV stars. Surely our obsession with “honesty” and feeling – over and above rationality, conviction and moral backbone – doesn’t apply to the people in charge of our country, our finances, our Armed Forces?
It certainly has seemed so in the past few years. But with any luck, as Britain finds itself on the precipice, voters will look less for the childish, emotive treatment of the normal hurly burly of politics and more to the firm leaders capable of charting a course through the choppy waters ahead.
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