President had choices

I have never believed in a hierarchy of respect and nobody, whether president or pauper, should ever be subjected to personal abuse.

However, I was surprised to hear Joe Duffy on his radio show ask, several times, if it was legitimate to protest against President Higgins. Thirty years ago Michael D Higgins TD protested against US President Ronald Reagan being awarded an honorary degree by UCG. In fact I agreed with his sentiments at the time and still do but that doesn’t belie the fact that he obviously believed it to be a legitimate protest.

Much has been made of the legal advice that President Higgins was given in terms of not submitting the recent Water Bill to the Council of State or to the Supreme Court. Again, for legal advice to be proven to be correct it has to stand up in a court of law.