Ahern’s departure not what he envisaged
Of course, this is not the way he envisaged going.
When he was re-elected for a third consecutive term as taoiseach following the 2007 general election, Mr Ahern built a novel and seemingly impregnable coalition that had a comfortable majority in the Dáil. The Fianna Fáil-Green-PD government looked capable of surviving its full five-year term to 2012. Mr Ahern effectively anointed his successor by talking up the talents of his deputy, Brian Cowen. The plan seemed clear: an orderly hand-over some time in early to mid-2011, with Mr Ahern departing to the sound of applause in his ears and the tantalising possibility of running for the presidency later in the year.