Deirdre Heenan: Foster overplayed her hand and became her own worst enemy

The fall of the DUP leader is a cautionary tale of hubris, myopia and stubbornness

While Arlene Foster has been depicted by some as too liberal for the DUP, it would be wrong to cast her as progressive or moderate. Picture: Getty

In December 2015, one of Arlene Foster’s first visible acts as the new leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was to tweet a picture of herself accompanied by a quotation from CS Lewis: “There are far, far better things ahead than we leave behind.” It seemed to perfectly capture the political mood of cautious optimism and hope for meaningful change in the beleaguered North.

Now, after more than five turbulent years as leader, Foster’s ...