The 2011 Irish General Election was inevitably about the short-term following the bursting of the economic bubble. This time, Enda Kenny, taoiseach, has ensured that the 2016 election is a traditional short-term focus election campaign with the main arguments on taxes, bribes for voters and related budget issues, while the mainstream media also maintains a passive traditional role in being a facilitator for the politicians rather than a catalyst in forcing them to address challenges facing Ireland beyond the 2021 horizon of the 32nd Dáil Éireann.