I’m almost always the last to know these things, but isn’t this a precious picture of Micheal Ring dashing front of the new Fianna Fáil family picture?

Suzy yet again has the best find of the day. A copy of Fianna Fáil’s canvassers guide. Those facts and figures quoted in the 8 second gap a canvasser has at your open door. Included. Policy talking points. Included.

There are so many interesting parts to the document. My favourite being:

Q: Did Fianna Fáil blow the boom?
No. While mistakes have been made, the reality is that we dramatically cutthe national debt, saved in the National Pensions Reserve Fund, andinvested in infrastructure and services when we could. Without these Ireland would be much weaker today, and we wouldn’t have the necessary basisfor recovery.

What’s your favourite part of the guide?

I really don’t know where to begin. In a strange way, I’ve found it difficult to blog about Irish politics. The reason – it’s far too unreal. A surreal animal. Just a mere three years ago, would we have predicted that Fianna Fáil could be in government all by themselves. A minority government. That Brian Cowen’s #lameclaimtofame would be as the shortest reigning leader of Fianna Fáil. That Harney would skiddaddle out of Cabinet so quickly.

The words of Christopher Monckton shouting down Deirdre Búrca last Friday night on The Late Late Show ring out nice and loud on this early Monday morning.

I started blogging about politics as a way to release steam at the rabid absurdity in the Irish political scene. Things have hit new levels of madness, and sometimes it’s easy to think that the joke is on us.

So the EU and IMF are touching down tomorrow. Dick Roche is laughing on Newsnight and joking about while electioneering for Fianna Fail? Where are the Greens? Oh yes, Dan Boyle has assumed his patented Bad Cop position while Gogo is karting up and down Kildare Street. They are damned pissed at the Government, but they are part of the Government.

One thing, I’d like to ask – where is the leadership in the Greens. Has anyone seen John Gormley?

Liveblogging this afternoon’s cabinet reshuffle speech by Brian Cowen in the Dáil. We expect Cowen to rise in the Dáil at 3:30 this afternoon and announce his cabinet team.

(If you prefer the ScribbleLive view of the liveblog, check out the SL page)