Poor Dale Butler.

When he was a backbencher he had popularity, but no power. Now as a Cabinet Minister he has power but will soon have no popularity at the rate he is going.

That's because there are checks and balances in politics that prevent even the most talented leader from finding and holding on to that magical combination of popularity and power for very long.

Many people, possibly including Mr. Butler, felt he was unfairly left out of the Cabinet in the Government's first term.

But that omission gave him the freedom as a backbencher, along with his own considerable personal standing, to stake out positions that appealed to a broad cross-section of the community, and if they went against Government positions, then so be it.

That freedom may well have given him enough leverage to win Warwick North East - a seat few other Progressive Labour Party politicians could have won. Following the downfall of Jennifer Smith, new Premier Alex Scott granted Mr. Butler's wish and brought him into the Cabinet - the only “rebel” to be so elevated.

Mr. Scott may have recognised Mr. Butler's popularity and talents. But he may also have had in mind the old axiom that “you should keep your friends close and your enemies closer” when he made the appointment.

And some of Mr. Butler's own colleagues are no doubt enjoying Mr. Butler's discomfiture as a he struggles with the limits of Cabinet “collective responsibility” compared to the freedom of the back benches.

That struggle began as soon as he became Minister of Youth, Sport and Community Affairs when he made the innocent and worthwhile suggestion that Bermuda should have a text book on Portuguese history and Bermuda's Portuguese heritage. This drew a swift rebuke from the Education Ministry that he was stepping out of his territory.

Most recently, in answer to a reporter's question, he committed Government to looking at curfews for teenagers - an idea that former Home Affairs Minister Terry Lister had already rejected outright. A day later, he produced a “clarification” that also tried to lay the blame on the Press, a move more typical of the normal PLP politician than the pre-election Dale Butler, who has generally benefited from a positive press coverage.

All of that pales in comparison with the problems Mr. Butler has encountered concerning Cuba.

When the political furore over Cuba was at its height earlier this year, Mr. Butler broke party ranks and made a principled stand against Bermuda's links with the communist state, saying that the Government's wishes for closer ties with Cuba were “political fantasy”.

“… We need to pause and reflect on the fact that the human rights record of Cuba leaves a lot to be desired,” he said, adding that he had no problem going against the party's position because his views reflected the principles of the party and the concerns of his 1,300 constituents.

“I was given the responsibility in this House not to be a mouse or a blind follower.”

The constituents who proceeded to elect him must have been amazed at the speed with which he changed species. Just weeks after joining the Cabinet he was jetting off to Cuba to sign the memorandum of understanding on cultural exchanges with the very government he was chastising months earlier. The reason for the volte face? The Cabinet Minister's ultimate fall-back - collective responsibility which decrees that once the Cabinet has made a decision, dissenters must toe the line or resign.

This is a tricky thing. In 1995, Ann Cartwright DeCouto felt so strongly about Sir John Swan's decision to commit Bermuda to an Independence Referendum that she resigned from Cabinet.

But it is unlikely that this was the first thing she disagreed with, or the first time she found herself in the minority. All Ministers have to decide when it's worth living to fight another day and when it's worth resigning.

Evidently, Mr. Butler felt Cuba wasn't worth resigning over and it is easy to understand why. Having been in the Cabinet for just a few weeks, it would be hard to give it up, and with it, the chance to achieve some meaningful improvements in the lives of Bermudians.

But politicians should also know that voters have long memories and are unimpressed with people who “speak out of both sides of their mouths”. If there's any doubt about that, look no further than Dr. Ewart Brown's standing since his “we had to mislead you” speech.

Mr. Butler has time to make up for his act of hypocrisy. But he should know that it will be a long time before anyone takes his words at face value.