Michelle Mulherin does not stand alone. Another Mayo supporting senator is fuming at the GAA's decision to withhold the automatic right to an All-Ireland ticket from senators.
The Irish Independent report that Noone had written to Paraic Duffy and let him know that she had always been provided with All-Ireland tickets.
She made the claim that the 'only difference between TDs and senators is that TDs get paid more.'
Had a CSPE teacher made such an argument in a classroom, it'd surely prompt a raft of inquisitive hands to shoot into the air.
"But miss, aren't TDs elected by the people?'
Most senators are elected by at least some of the people. Catherine Noone, for instance, was elected by the Industrial and Commercial Panel, a conglomeration of business organisations around the country.
Mulherin, by contrast, was a Taoiseach's nominee. Though, she is an ex-TD. Noone, despite being a Mayo woman, ran in Dublin West as Leo Varadkar's running mate at the recent election.
Noone also asserted that senators are as committed to GAA clubs in their communities as TDs.
Judging by the discussion on Liveline today, admittedly not always a sound barometer of public opinion, the refusal to allow senators access to All-Ireland tickets on the same basis as TDs is not yet viewed by the public as one of the great injustices of our time.
Catherine Noone's previous forays into sport, by the way, include a flip-flop on the legitimacy of MMA as a sport (we won't unleash the dogs on the senator by repeating too many of the details here) and her expression of sympathy for Brazilian Garth Brooks fans the day after Garth pulled the plug on Croker and the Brazilians were humiliated 7-1 in their own World Cup.
