In any event, some Brexit watchers think they have seen similar tactics from Mr. Johnson before. Last year, he talked tough but then retreated and signed the withdrawal agreement from which he is now threatening to reject. He has also been threatening to walk out of the current trade talks since early summer if progress was insufficient. “There’d be all sorts of breakdowns, all sorts of chaos,” Mr. Johnson said. For many supporters of Brexit, Mrs. May’s government was nothing short of a humiliation, with Parliament paralyzed, Britain missing deadlines for leaving the European Union and their project ridiculed.

Source: New York Times September 26, 2020 13:07 UTC