20 years ago a politician with Johnson's baggage would have got nowhere near the cabinet never mind Downing Street.
He has the media on his side and they determine who they want in charge and whose life they wish to ruin. Present Johnson as a harmless buffoon with fluffy hair one minute, the jack the lad sex machine the next. Casual racist comments followed by a round of applause for the nurses and carers. He's got more faces than Big Ben.
He's valued by how he is perceived, who he isn't rather than what he does.