So you can take a guy with good looks and a big head, but you can’t take a good guy with a big head? That doesn’t sound very “keepsake.”
“It is simply a complete lie to suggest that James has many millions of followers,” a spokesman for Mr. Carr told the BBC. The Australian reports that the tweet caused Mr. Carr to lose his job as Australia’s Minister for Innovation and Industry.
“Mr. Carr was told there was enough evidence to show that any prospective employer would not view him as ‘a long-term member of Parliament who did good public service and who acted accordingly,'” the spokesman said.
In court, Mr. Carr claimed that the tweet about his LinkedIn profile — “there is nothing glamorous about being an MP. It takes time to do your job and it takes no glamour” — was taken out of context.
He had to admit in court that the tweet was not intended as a joke, but as a description of what is actually a tough job. The satirical paper The Australian ran a piece that characterized Mr. Carr as a “new man,” quote, “a political casualty, and an apparent leader of the anti-politician movement.” The column quotes critics who suggest Mr. Carr is probably a better politician behind a curtain than on the stage.
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“It was entirely and absolutely the intention of Mr. Carr to make the point that, yes, being an MP can be hard and it takes a lot of time to do your job and it takes no glamour. But the whole purpose of a politician is to do the job,” his lawyer told the BBC.
This article first appeared at The Conversation.