Advance another’s plans, whether intentionally or not:to what extent are they playing the government’s game?...
‘You're playing his game!’ snorted a Channel 4 News presenter at the New Labour minister, alleging that the government was trying to ‘frighten people into voting for you’.
He is playing the columnist's game of making a fuss to get noticed.
Being no respecter of politicians, he is refusing to flatter him by playing his game.