“We have helped, I have helped, to make this country a pandemic and to help save another country from barbarism. And, frankly, it is enough to continue. Mission fully accomplished, for the time being,” he said.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is one of the most popular action movies of the 1990s. (Three Star Images)
The Spanish phrase for “see you later” is best remembered as the slogan of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character in Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
He used his speech to give some advice to his still undetermined successor.
“Stay close to the Americans, stand up for the Ukrainians, stand up for freedom and democracy everywhere,” he said.
“Remember, above all, that it’s not Twitter that counts, it’s the people who sent us here.”
His farewell to Parliament came when the contest to replace him was reduced to two candidates.
Boris Johnson resigned under enormous pressure as prime minister. (AP)
The next leader of the Conservative Party, and therefore prime minister, will be Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss.
Penny Mordaunt was eliminated from the last two with 105 votes from members of parliament.
Sunak won 137 votes and Truss got 113.
Crises that have shaken the government of Boris Johnson
Sunak has long been considered the favorite.
He served as Johnson’s Chancellor of the Exchequer (finance minister) from 2020 to 2022 and gained a largely positive public profile after introducing popular measures during the coronavirus pandemic, such as the permit and discount regime in food in restaurants.
He has recently been pressured by questions about the tax status of his wife, Akshata Murthy, a billionaire who has his home in India.
Some Conservatives were concerned that Sunak would find this level of scrutiny difficult, and are concerned that it will sink under pressure from being prime minister.
Rishi Sunak is the favorite to be the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. (Getty)
Despite this, he has consistently led the group among Conservative MPs in the first rounds of voting.
Surveys of Conservative members can be difficult, especially at such tumultuous times, but in those that have taken place Sunak has consistently been second behind Truss among party members.
Even if he came to power, he would have to overcome criticism from political enemies of all kinds.
Opposition leaders would be quick to remind Sunak that he was fined at the same Partygate event as Johnson.
They will also wonder why Sunak remained loyal to Johnson for so long, only to resign after the scandal involving Johnson’s main whip, Chris Pincher.
Things get worse when the Johnson loyalists are taken into account, believing that Sunak’s resignation was the time when Johnson’s office as prime minister began to collapse.
So while Sunak might be the favorite, he will be surrounded by enemies on all sides.
Truss also has a Johnson association problem.
She still serves as Johnson’s Secretary of State and will do so until she finally leaves office in September.
He has been on the side of his leader during all his scandals, justifying the fact that he did not resign over the Pincher scandal because he was coordinating the UK’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
This explanation might be compatible with some, but conservatives also consider Truss to be Johnson’s continuation candidate.
Among his main sponsors are some of Johnson’s most loyal allies, which could cause him to dissociate himself from the current prime minister.
It will also be difficult to distance oneself from Johnson’s policies.
Truss, who voted for the UK to remain in the European Union, has become an archivist since the 2016 referendum.
Liz Truss is Boris Johnson’s favorite candidate to replace him. (Getty)
Since Johnson took office, she has been his secretary of commerce and his secretary of foreign affairs.
Like the first, it has hit as hard as Johnson on each and every one of the signed trade agreements, even those that were simply UK-era renewal agreements in the EU.
She has also been a staunch supporter of Johnson’s plan to rewrite a controversial part of the Brexit deal, the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Truss has spent much of his time in high office building a power base and is very popular with both MPs and the Conservative base.
Sunak and Truss will now spend the summer campaigning for Conservative grassroots members before the party announces the winner on September 5th.
After that, Johnson will resign from the queen, whom he will later visit his successor and be invited to form a government.