While the former president did not speak to the media at the Labour dinner, one Labour member reported there was a conversation with Higgins about Trump which centred around Trump\u2019s use of gold paint for his tacky re-decoration of the Oval Office.<\/p>\n
![\"PHOTO-2026-09-04-11-30-13\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1788531317_832_.jpeg\")
\n Michael D Higgins arriving with his wife Sabina at the Labout think-in in Galway yesterday. Labour Party<\/p>\n
Labour Party\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to say it\u2019s the first time I\u2019ve ever spoken at a Hawaiian-themed event,\u201d Labour leader Ivana Bacik said, before turning to the special guests and expressing her utmost appreciation for their work and commitment over the years.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The evening was very much about honouring veterans of the party, who received honours on the night, with some regaling stories of the good old days when Labour was flying high.\n<\/p>\n
Labour languishing on 3% in the polls\u00a0<\/p>\n
But now, it is a very different time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Labour is languishing at 3% in the opinion polls, with the Social Democrats on 10%, according to the latest\u00a0Sunday Independent\/Ireland Thinks poll.<\/p>\n
Both parties hate to be questioned about what the difference is between the two parties (this reporter was once booed at a Social Democrats press event for asking just that).\u00a0<\/p>\n
But once again, Bacik faced those questions on Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOur distinctive identity as a party has always been about delivering change, about actually delivering change \u2014 not content to sit on the sidelines, not content to stay in opposition forever, but about getting in there and making a difference in our communities,\u201d she replied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was a sentiment echoed by Labour members The Journal spoke to over the two-day event.\u00a0<\/p>\n
No one seemed overly concerned about the rise of the Social Democrats, calling them the \u201cflavour of the month\u201d.<\/p>\n
One TD asked: \u201cWould they actually go into government? I don\u2019t think so?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
This TD said the Labour Party wants to enter into government and knows the highs and the lows of what that entails. They questioned whether the Social Democrats would take the risk of entering into government as the smaller party.<\/p>\n
Labour knows all too well what damage it can cause to a party, having never really recovered from the austerity years when Labour was in government with Fine Gael.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bacik was asked about the politeness between her and Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin at times, and whether her elbows were sharp enough.<\/p>\n
In comparison, Social Democrats Holly Cairns regularly finds herself in tetchy exchanges with the Taoiseach.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think our elbows are always sufficiently sharp. We\u2019ve always been about constructive politics. I don\u2019t believe in, and my colleagues don\u2019t either, we don\u2019t believe in simply criticising for the sake of it, simply trying to score political points.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re too serious about our politics for that. We believe in trying to make change for people, actually delivering on change. We\u2019re a party that has a proud record of delivery, and that again marks us out from other parties,\u201d said Bacik.<\/p>\n
Similar to the Fianna F\u00e1il leader, Bacik doesn\u2019t appear to have much time for polls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She said they consistently underestimate her party.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019ve seen in successive elections since I\u2019ve become leader has been Labour outperforming polls and bringing forward new, hardworking, and highly committed public representatives,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Asked specifically if she was worried about the Social Democrats, Bacik said Labour was \u201cin it for the long haul\u201d.<\/p>\n
She pointed to an increase in party membership, with people of all ages interested in joining the party.<\/p>\n
Bacik also said she hopes to achieve an increased mandate in the next election. It\u2019s a steep hill to climb with those recent poll numbers.<\/p>\n
But the next election is some way off, which is why the party has gone down the road promising big-ticket items in their alternative budget, with the full realisation that they will never have to deliver upon them.<\/p>\n