he wasn't playing the long game, he is playing the same game now as then, politics. All his actions are weighed against the affect on the next election. There is no other concern with him or the others in power.

Promises made before elections are just phrases used to put the other side off balance or force the other side to react. They are never really meant to be acted upon if there is any political cost.

Playing the long game, nah just waiting out inevitability, as in it wasn't going to stand anyway and he had that luxury to rely on