Courtesy: Yomiuri Shimbunmorning edition of September 4, 2007
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yosano Kaoru and LDP Secretary-General Aso Tarō team tackle a prostrate Endō Takehiko while a horror-struck Prime Minister Abe Shinzō, clutching Endō's tiny, Teddy bear-like replacement Wakabayashi Masatoshi, screams for them to stop.
Frankly, if The Asahi Shimbun's account of the Endō takedown is accurate, I do not think Yosano and Aso give a hoot what Abe is screaming:
Abe left out of the loop as aides pushed Endo to resign
Asahi Shimbun
In his efforts to portray himself as a decisive leader, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe probably hadn't counted on his senior executives swooping in for the kill ...
(continues in Japanese here)
If only Endō had remembered to tell Abe's political secretary Inoue Yoshiyuki, who had stayed behind when Abe went on his Bay of Bengal tour (the first time Inoue had ever not traveled with his boss, some have said)
for the expressed purpose of carrying out "physical examinations" (shintaikensa - 身体検査 - I should really create a special glossary of Abe political failure terminology) on the backgrounds and finances of the candidates for Cabinet positions, that "Oh yeah, I have been waiting to hear back from Legal on a political embezzlement dispute...three years now I guess."
Poor Inoue...he is in a heck of a lot of trouble.
Later - The English language version of the Asahi Shimbun article has reappeared online. Enjoy.
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