THE STATE OF UNITARY

It was nice knowing you. Actually, it wasn't.

 While citizens in the UK are shaking their heads at the resignation of Liz Truss after 44 wacky days, many Americans are asking, Do those Brits know how good they have it? 

In the 233 years of presidencies featuring the likes of Millard Fillmore, James Buchanan, Warren Harding, and Herbert Hoover, there has been only one resignation. And the guy who did quit isn't necessarily in the top 10 worst. Of the three who were impeached, all of them kept their job -- even the one who was impeached twice. Talk about job security!

In the UK, things are different. Twelve prime ministers have resigned since the beginning of the 20th century. That figure should make PMs think twice when they decide to do something rash. Admittedly, I had to refresh my memory as to Truss's crime was: unfunded tax cuts. 

Wow! If that were the standard we were held to in the US, most office holders would be looking for a new job in six weeks. 

And by job, we mean the
watercolor of hedgehogs
he's been working on.

Yes, the Brits do it right. Screw up, you're out. Sometimes you don't even have to screw up. Winston Churchill helped save the UK and the world from a Nazi takeover; voters thanked him by suggesting he pursue his little painting hobby full time. Maybe he just reminded them of, you know, a world war. (In America, President Roosevelt had already died, so we did the next best thing and stopped listening to big band music.)

The British way of running things also provides endless hours of entertainment, whether it be the daily soap opera As the Royals Turn, or the Monty Pythonesque debates in the House of Commons, where they get to vent their spleen on the Prime Minister on a weekly basis. I remember the Republicans suggesting that President Bill Clinton agree to that arrangement. Clinton would have likely mopped the floor with them, then gotten the White House cleaning staff to mop the Oval Office floor after he got through with the interns.

If you ever wondered what Bugs
Bunny would look like if he were a 
British lawyer.

Another thing about the British government are the titles office holders have. Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal sounds like the guy who kept an eye on the outhouses. And until I did a little research, I thought the Chancellor of the Exchequer kept an eye on the former chequers. And why can't our lawyers wear funny gray wigs and big napkins around their necks when in court? It would the Harvey Weinstein trials that much more fun to watch.

Yup, the Brits know how to keep their legal and political system television-worthy, even as they -- and the rest of the world -- move closer to the abyss of nuclear destruction. We'll trade you six Congressmen for just one MP who talks like Nigel Bruce.

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