Is Paisley the new Dev?

Dean Godson in The Times considers the career of David Trimble, who resigned today as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party. Hat-tip to Slugger O’Toole.

Like W. T. Cosgrave, President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State during the civil war era of the 1920s, Mr Trimble stayed in office long enough to force many of his DUP opponents to play by the revised rules of the political game.

This may prove to be a very apposite comparison. Many expect the DP to implement the deal that it came to power by opposing, just as De Valera’s Fianna Fail did in the Republic in the 1930s.