'Hasta la vista, baby': Boris Johnson says goodbye to House of Commons
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Well, you can't say he doesn't have a way with words.
Speaking at his final weekly parliamentary address on Wednesday, outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson ended his last Q&A and debate session with a comment surely as unique as his truncated time on Downing Street.
"We've helped, I've helped, get this country through a pandemic and help save another country from barbarism. And frankly, that's enough to be going on with. Mission largely accomplished," Johnson said. "I want to thank everybody here and hasta la vista, baby."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Terminator-inspired finale was met with "a round of applause from most on his own side," Reuters writes. Schwarzenegger — er, Johnson — then followed things up with a bit of advice for his successor: "[S]tay close to the Americans," focus "on the road ahead," and "remember, above all, it's not Twitter that counts. It's the people that sent us here."
Johnson earlier this month agreed to step down from his role as leader after a series of long-running scandals prompted resignations within his cabinet. The race to replace him has now narrowed to two finalists: former finance minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. The winner will be announced in September, and Johnson will stay on until then, per The Washington Post.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Political cartoons for February 3Cartoons Tuesday’s political cartoons include empty seats, the worst of the worst of bunnies, and more
-
Trump’s Kennedy Center closure plan draws ireSpeed Read Trump said he will close the center for two years for ‘renovations’
-
Trump's ‘weaponization czar’ demoted at DOJSpeed Read Ed Martin lost his title as assistant attorney general
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
How ‘Manchesterism’ could change the UKThe Explainer The idea involves shifting a centralized government to more local powers
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
What is at stake for Starmer in China?Today’s Big Question The British PM will have to ‘play it tough’ to achieve ‘substantive’ outcomes, while China looks to draw Britain away from US influence
