View source for John A. Costello

== Irish Free State ==
In 1922, Costello joined the staff at the office of the attorney general in the newly established [[Irish Free State]]. Three years later he was called to the inner bar, and the following year, 1926, he became attorney general upon the formation of the [[Cumann na nGaedheal]] government led by [[W. T. Cosgrave]]. While serving in this position he represented the Free State at [[Imperial Conferences]] and [[League of Nations]] meetings.<ref>Anthony Jordan (2007). ''J. John A. Costello 1891–1976 Compromise Taoiseach'' ( Westport Books), p, 22.</ref>

He was also elected a bencher of the Honourable Society of King's Inns. Costello lost his position as attorney general when [[Fianna Fáil]] came to power in 1932. The following year, however, he was elected to [[Dáil Éireann]] as a Cumann na nGaedheal TD. His party soon merged with other parties to form [[Fine Gael]].<ref name="elecs_irl">{{cite web |title=John A. Costello |url=http://electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=1837 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070827084146/http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?id=1837 |archive-date=27 August 2007 |access-date=1 June 2009 |work=ElectionsIreland.org}}</ref>

=== Blueshirts speech ===
On 28 February 1934, a Dáil debate was held on a bill to outlaw the wearing of uniforms (specifically designed to curtail the [[Blueshirts]], a uniformed movement then associated with Fine Gael and formed to defend their candidates, meeting and rallies from IRA attack). Costello made a speech opposing the bill that has generated controversy ever since. In response to an assertion by [[Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration|minister for justice]] [[P. J. Ruttledge]], that the Blueshirts had fascist leanings like the Italian [[Blackshirts]] and German [[Brownshirts]], and that other European nations had taken similar actions against similar organisations, Costello stated:

{{cquote|The Minister gave extracts from various laws on the Continent, but he carefully refrained from drawing attention to the fact that the Blackshirts were victorious in Italy and that the Hitler Shirts were victorious in Germany, as, assuredly, in spite of this Bill [..] the Blueshirts will be victorious in the Irish Free State.<ref name="Oireachtas">{{cite book |url=http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0050/D.0050.193402280015.html |title=Dáil Éireann – Volume 50 – 28 February 1934 |publisher=Oireachtas |location=Dublin |page=15 |access-date=17 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120925204515/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0050/D.0050.193402280015.html |archive-date=25 September 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>}}

The remark was a small part of a much longer speech whose main point was that the bill was an unconstitutional overreaction by the Fianna Fáil government and an unfair scapegoating of the Blueshirts movement.<ref name=Oireachtas /> However, the quote has since been the subject of much debate regarding the extent to which the Blueshirts, and by extension Fine Gael – and Costello himself – had ties to European fascist movements.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kirk |first=Tim |url=https://archive.org/details/opposingfascismc00kirk |title=Opposing fascism: community, authority and resistance in Europe |author2=Anthony McElligott |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780521483094 |page=[https://archive.org/details/opposingfascismc00kirk/page/n102 91] |url-access=limited}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Anonymous |title=International solidarity with the Spanish Republic, 1936–1939 |publisher=Progress Publishers |year=1974 |location=Moscow |page=191}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=McCullagh |first=David |title=The Reluctant Taoiseach: A Biography of John A. Costello |publisher=Gill & Macmillan |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-7171-4646-8 |location=Dublin |pages=536}}</ref>

=== Other Dáil activity ===
During the Dáil debate on the [[Emergency Powers Act 1939]], Costello was highly critical of the act's arrogation of powers, stating: {{cquote|We are asked not merely to give a blank cheque, but, to give an uncrossed cheque to the Government.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ó Longaigh |first=Seosamh |title=Emergency Law in Action, 1939–1945 (Ireland in World War II: Diplomacy and Survival) |publisher=Mercier Press |year=2004 |isbn=1-85635-445-8 |editor-last1=Keogh |editor-first1=Dermot |location=Cork |pages=64 |editor-last2=O'Driscoll |editor-first2=Mervyn}}</ref>}} He lost his seat at the [[1943 Irish general election|general election of 1943]] but regained it when de Valera called a [[1944 Irish general election|snap election in 1944]]. From 1944 to 1948, he was Fine Gael front-bench spokesman on External Affairs.

=== 1948 general election ===
{{main|1948 Irish general election}}

In 1948, Fianna Fáil had been in power for sixteen consecutive years and had been blamed for a downturn in the economy following [[World War II]]. The [[1948 Irish general election|general election]] results showed Fianna Fáil short of a majority, but still by far the largest party and appearing to be headed for a seventh term in government.

However, the other parties in the Dáil realised that between them, they had only one seat fewer than Fianna Fáil; if they banded together, they would be able to form a government with the support of seven Independent deputies. Fine Gael, the [[Labour Party (Ireland)|Labour Party]], the [[National Labour Party (Ireland)|National Labour Party]], [[Clann na Poblachta]] and [[Clann na Talmhan]] joined to form the first [[Coalition government|inter-party]] [[Government of the 13th Dáil|government]] in the history of the Irish state.<ref>McCullagh pp.157–165</ref>