Some people in the Conservative Party seem to have extraordinarily short and selective memories. The prime minister, in his final days, seems to have no awareness of recent history at all. Nothing other than concussive amnesia could explain the extraordinary speculation about Boris Johnson returning to office.
It seems that “hasta la vista, baby” may have been more a sinister promise than a jolly throwaway remark when Mr Johnson declared his (apparent) intention to resign a few long weeks ago.
According to Rory Stewart, one-time colleague of, and rival to, Mr Johnson, “I’m afraid he has an extraordinary ego and he believes he was badly treated … I fear we are going to end up with a second Berlusconi or a second Trump trying to rock back in again.”
