Cameron & co on McCain & Palin
Let's not forget that our British Tory bunch of losers are joined at the hip with their US official sister-party Republican bunch of losers. They must feel pretty gutted today:
Cameron on McCain:
David Cameron, speaking at a dinner hosted by Barclays Capital at the World Economic Forum in Davos January 27 2008:
“Every generation has to fight and win the argument for free trade and open markets. Just look at the presidential election in the US.
“On both sides of the political divide, there are candidates advocating protectionist policies. There is one clear exception - and I admire him a great deal for his stance. Senator John McCain did my party the great honour of addressing our annual conference two years ago, and we saw then the courage and conviction that saw him go to Michigan and tell the voters directly that the old jobs weren’t coming back and that protectionism was no answer to today’s economic problems. He didn’t win the primary, but he certainly won a lot of respect.”
David Cameron speaking to Time magazine January 24 2007:
“The Conservative Party has also always had a number of good contacts with the Democrats, and we should have contacts with both sides but obviously the Republicans are our sister party. We’re together in the International Democratic Union and other bodies and there are good and strong ties there.”
But now he's singing a different tune suddenly (wonder why?):
David Cameron, November 5 2008:
“In these difficult times people everywhere are crying out for change. Barack Obama is the first of a new generation of leaders who will deliver it - he has my whole-hearted congratulations.”
Shadow Cabinet Member Francis Maude on McCain:
In the Times:
"I'm a strong supporter of McCain. But I think this is shaping up to be a very even race and we need to be in good shape with whoever wins the presidency. There is certainly a lot to be learnt from Obama - he's an interesting guy.”
In http://www.publicservice.co.uk/news_story.asp?id=7483 on 24 October 2008:
"Former Conservative Party chairman Frances Maude has predicted that Republican candidate John McCain will win the US election, writes Dean Carroll. Maude said he thought that McCain would serve only one term, which would then be followed by a presidential election battle in four years time between Sarah Palin and Hilary Clinton. Having attended the Democratic Convention in Denver, Maude added: "It was a most amazing event and Barack Obama is a formidable performance artist. I was one of his 85,000 closest friends in the stadium when he made his keynote address."
Shadow Defence Secretary Liam Fox on McCain:
Interview for his local paper the Clevedon Mercury:
"While waiting for Dr Fox to prepare for a defence briefing for the regional Press in his Portcullis House office, which used to be David Cameron's, his Atlanticist beliefs are clear. Stickers for John McCain's US presidential election campaign, a detailed map of Afghanistan, pictures of himself with George W. Bush and Air Force One"
Liam Fox on Sarah Palin:
http://conservativehome.blogs.com/centreright/2008/09/thoughts-on-the.html#more
""From the time she became John McCain’s surprise running mate the Republican convention knew that the performance of Governor Sarah Palin would be pivotal. And she nailed it."
Louise Bagshaw, Tory A-List PPC for Corby and East Northamptonshire:
http://conservativehome.blogs.com/centreright/2008/09/sarah-palin-and.html
I find her presence of mind and dedication to duty amazingly impressive."
"It's the political brilliance of the announcement that they kept it quiet for so long."
"There's lots more as to how he made this fantastic selection."
posted by Luke Akehurst at 1:39 pm
30 Comments:
Is it any wonder that anyone reading this blog has the deepest suspicions about your motives if only for the fact of your occupation.
Glowing reports from up the arse of your own beliefs are no reports at all.
Readers have learnt to deconstruct the cloud of farts which to yourself self-evidently have a vintage bouquet.
As Guido points out, Brown was fucked. He backed Clinton not Obama.
3:35 pm, November 05, 2008
I don't think you quite get it ... Clinton & Obama are in the same party. Brown is a member of the sister party of their party.
Cameron is a member of the same political family/tradition/international group of political parties as McCain and Palin!
The Tories' mates in America have just spent weeks trying to smear Obama as a socialist.
Can you explain what you mean by "the deepest suspicions about your motives if only for the fact of your occupation" 'cos I haven't got a clue what that means. Are you saying that you think I have some kind of commercial interest in the outcome of the US Presidential election?
I also don't quite get how you can describe a list of "from the horses' mouths" quote from Tories as "Glowing reports from up the arse of your own beliefs".
4:10 pm, November 05, 2008
More on the tory twists now that Obama has been elected.
Cameron tried to jump again on a passing bandwagon today, but Obama's win is bad news for Dave, who just last year was busy 'palling around' with McCain.
The extra bad news is that the McCain economic philosophy and the Cameron/Osborne economic thinking around deregulation is the same - and this was decisively rejected by U.S. voters.
No spin can get round that!
4:49 pm, November 05, 2008
I'm amazed by the incredible amount of public interest in Sarah Palin. Good or bad, she's become somewhat of a pop icon. People are dressing like her to be and/or mock her all at the same time.
For instance, I found this video on dressing like Palin:
http://www.mindbites.com/lesson/668-how-to-dress-like-sarah-palin
5:01 pm, November 05, 2008
lol. Obama's mine - no he's MINE!
No, you don't get it Luke. The Dems are not your "sister" party. Even Obama equates to tory-lite. Indeed, that why many top tories came out for Obama.
Obama is Tony Blair al la 1997 - not Gordon Brown 2008. I'd say he's got more in common with Cameron than Brown for crying out loud.
Get your own resurgence.
5:28 pm, November 05, 2008
Let's not forget that our British Tory bunch of losers are joined at the hip with their US official sister-party Republican bunch of losers. They must feel pretty gutted today:
But The Republicans are a Sister party to NLP Blair and Bush got on well as with all the other NLP creepy cronies, Blair went further than that and made the NLP a Poodle to them-Does that then make NLP a Sister Party to the Tories?
6:41 pm, November 05, 2008
@kris
Good points - although I suspect that Obama is somewhat to the left (whatever that really means) of Luke. He is certainly less authoritarian and not as keen on killing people.
8:09 pm, November 05, 2008
I think you are VERY wrong luke by all accounts. Most British conservatives are considered liberal by American standards. There are very few British politicians from any side that would argue against a National Health Care System....yet in America the republicans are almost 100% opposed.
As for the FREE market, we don't have an electable party that is opposed to the idea. All our main parties are slaves to Adam Smiths belief of deregulation and no control.....including your Mr Brown....the new world order man.
In fact it was Cameron who rightly argued about distancing ourselves from American policies while Tony Blair was licking G W Bush's ass. 1000s of Britains best men and women have died as the result of the close relationship between Labour and the republican party. 1000s more will continue to die as a result of the continued war on so called Terror.
In fact Brown now has a real problem. What will he do If Obama pulls American troops from Afganistan. Brown has so clearly committed himself to the end...while Obama has not.
I think most people think the best man won but lets look at the facts Luke. Obama isn't left wing in the slightest and has a lot to live up to after so many promises of change and very little substance of what he's going to change.
There is no sister party Luke, Labour have very little in common with the democrats. Obama isn't actually a party man at all...he's a maveric.
9:54 pm, November 05, 2008
You're sounding rather desperate Luke, I was at a Tory meeting this evening and 75% of the audience, including the MP present, would have voted for Obama.
Clutching at straws again Luke and you did sound like a 10 year old, in your first paragraph.
Really quite funny.
11:17 pm, November 05, 2008
Cracking post Luke.
2:30 am, November 06, 2008
30 years ago I would have probably agreed with this post. But look at the facts...Labour is now called new Labour and all the traditions of the labour party have been lost for good.
New Labour has kept some of its liberal ideals but most of its links with socialism and the left have been dropped. Labour are now very conservative and probably the most authortarian government we've since the second world war. 20 years ago Labour were opposed to trident....but now it's very different. 30 years ago we believed in nationalisation.....again you are still talking about selling off public companies....post office.
While the conservatives have taken the left Labour have moved sharply to the right....giving the UK two right wing parties. Both parties have no identity and no link with working people.
8:24 am, November 06, 2008
It is strange what a fantasy land some Tories are in - and in trying to link with the Democrats are taking part in a rewriting of history that would make even veteran Lib Dems proud.
Can the Conservatives claim a link with Obama, yet at the same time express sincere admiration for Sarah Palin - the most right-wing VP candidate since, well, Dick Cheney.
Palin, a nasty piece of work who sought to link Obama to terrorism and claimed he wasn't American enough (hint, hint), seems to have a great fan-base in the Conservatives.
Cameron flag-waver Louise Bagshawe said: "Palin is maybe the one candidate who could pull off 2012. I remain utterly impressed by her, and hope to see her as the nominee. She is a political rock star and in a different political climate she can win."
9:54 am, November 06, 2008
If you want to get some feeling on how Brown compares to Obama then please listen to the recent interview with Rupert Murdoch. He clearly shows that Brown is pro free trade in direct contrast with both our European partners and Obama.
Brown is the man of the new world order, a world where basically every British worker has to compete with the likes of China and India. If you really want to be working 60 hours a week, no holidays, no rights and for next to nothing then carry on supporting Brown.
We can't compete and FREE TRADE will not bring the world out of poverty. All it will do is make the richest even wealthier and the poorest even poorer. Protect British Industry or face the financial consequences.
China and India have virtually no welfare system, they have no workers rights, they work in an almost slave environment. We are using these countries to make virtually all our products and we are buying them using money we don't even have. The money made is lining just a few pockets. This is what Brown supports....the death of the British economy and way of life.
10:18 am, November 06, 2008
I think it is genuinely interesting how much support Obama had/has among Tories. Kennedy managed much the same in the 60 & 64 elections. I also imagine both parties will look to associate themselves as best they can with a new winner, an inspirational speaker and someone who is not associated with the disaster of Bush.
But while Blair made a HUGE misjudgement* in cosying up to the Bush administration, I don;t think the UK electorate see Brown relationship with Bush in the same way.
* Even those who thought he was right in what he did (and I am definitely not one of them) must admit that the return on his investment was, how shall I put it... well, it was sub-prime, at least.
I am sceptical as to whether UK voters will look to the USA and draw the conclusion that Cameron is like Obama and deserves their support. They just might, but who has been inspired by Cameron in the same way? He's not got the oratorical skill and he certainly hasn't got a "narrative" to which people will relate. Class resentment was crassly misapplied during the Crewe by-election. But Cameron has not got the degree of empathy that Blair could apparently turn on at will - and n fact they come from broadly similar class backgrounds.
But I think the biggest problem in terms of how US politics play here is when people like Fox and Bagshawe look to Palin as a future candidate for 2012. That just makes them look as lightweight as her. And before anyone wonders, it's not the Christianity, or the hockey-mom in with a wardrobe costing $00s of $000s or the dodgy use of power in pushing someone out of their job or the hair, or the pit bull campaigning. It's the ignorance, stupid.
10:20 am, November 06, 2008
Oh and by the way, speaking of ignorance, Obama has no intention of withdrawing from Afghanistan. he has spoken clearly, I believe, of extending military operations into the tribal areas of Pakistan, in fact. He will phase a withdrawal of troops from Iraq. That will be far from problematic for Brown, it will more likely give him the impetus/ hook he needs to hang UK withdrawal on too.
10:23 am, November 06, 2008
Brown is an embarrassment compared to Obama - he isn't even in the same league.
We need change in Britain, a leader of substance, hope and belief; someone who can string a sentence together not a mentally-deranged one-eyed wierdo.
If the Labour party don't oust him the Tories will. As simple as.
12:33 pm, November 06, 2008
Brown was a member of the cabinet when they chose to go to war. Brown saw the facts and he knew about the controversy.....as key cabinet members resigned over it. Brown voted for war knowing it was not legitimate.
Our economic problems while related to markets in the US are also the result of poor economic decisions and financial deregulation. Brown was key to this and Blair had very little involvement at all.
Brown is incompetent and not fit for office and the sooner the country removes him the sooner we can start to rebuild this country.
Obama is leagues above Brown and their beliefs are very different. Brown is a man of the free market whereas Obama is looking to protect American exports and control imports.
You say Obama is committed to Afghanistan but is he really. Recent intelligence suggests the war in both countries is not going our way. I can't honestly see Obama committing more troops to a region slipping into civil war.
2:40 pm, November 06, 2008
I had to laugh yesterday when an enraged Teletext viewer ( presumably a Tory ) denounced Obama as a mere speech maker and said he had done nothing of any real note in his life. He could have been describing Cameron!
3:10 pm, November 06, 2008
I must also point out that Obama was elected which is a lot more than you can say about Brown.
3:59 pm, November 06, 2008
How many of you are going to pre-register for an I.D card. Obviously Luke will be the first in the Q.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7712275.stm
4:02 pm, November 06, 2008
Rich, on Obama & Afghanistan, here you go:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/07/23/obama/
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Story?id=3434573&page=1
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/20/obama.afghanistan/index.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/14/AR2007081400950.html
True these references were so obscure that they could only be found by doing a Google search. We all know how difficult and time consuming that can be.
On Brown, my point was not that he was not a cabinet member, but that the UK public do not perceive him as responsible for Iraq the way they regarded Blair.
6:16 pm, November 06, 2008
First it is deemed acceptable to mock McCain over his age and inabilty to type due to injury and now Shamik mocks Brown over his semi-blindness.
Is this really the new world where Obama has taken us?
You Obama supporters will soon realise that the Democrats chose the wrong person to stand when he messes up in office.
I can remember an unemployed union man in the early nineties telling me we should never again have a woman prime minister after the mess made by the last one. I shudder to think that one day people may be saying the same thing about black candidates.
I say this as a Labour member who wants a good Democrat as president and not just someone who is all talk and has seduced the world like a cult leader.
6:34 pm, November 06, 2008
In a rather belated reply to Alexander. Hasn't McCain and his mate Arnie both not addressed the Tory party Confernce praising David Cameron? Correct me if I am wrong isn't the Conservative Party a memeber of the International Democratic Union and guess who is also affiliated the Republician Party!
Finally who helped George Bush Snr's election campaign by digging dirt on Bill Clinton's days at Oxford? Oh yes it was the Tory Party!!
This isn't Luke clutching at straws it is the Tories being shamlessly opportunistic jumping on any bandwagon they can!!
7:09 pm, November 06, 2008
Dan, those posts are before his CIA security briefing. I'm not sure Obama will be so eager to send more troops to this region knowing the odds.
We are losing far too many troops and no matter how many men we pour into this region we are going to be faced with the same security problems.
The Russians tried and failed what makes you think the coalition can do any different.
Having served there I can tell you that while the enemy is under equipped and often too eager to run into battle they are very resilient and able to regenerate quickly and effectively. You kill 100 and two months later there are 1000 to take their place. We used to keep head counts and it is shocking when you realise how many you are killing and many more are willing to take their place. Horrid but that's the reality out there.
I detest the Taliban and all it stands for and would like nothing more that to wipe them off the face of the planet, but the problems of this region are the result of problems elsewhere.
Mr, while I agree with you about mocking McCains age, the fact is he is probably too old to be president. He's more than capable of the job but for how long.....8 years and he's nearly 80.
I was against Obama as a candidate at first but having witnessed his campaign I think he's going to do a very good job.In fact if you look at his plans then for the first time in a long while America is very left of Britain...something Brown should be ashamed of.
I think this will be the decade when America bounces back and takes its place as the most powerful economic super superstate. Bush used his army, Obama will use trade as his weapon.
8:24 am, November 07, 2008
I know that there are plenty of world leaders in their seventies and McCain seemed to get his words in a twist fewer times than Obama (57 states indeed!), so I judge each candidate on an individual basis.
I was in the States and in the car and listened to one debate on the radio and thought it was obvious that McCain thrashed Obama. Then it turned out that the majority of TV viewers felt that Obama was the winner. It was like Nixon and Kennedy all over again that someone can act the salesman and convince you they are right as you can see them.
I also found over there that people who admitted that they had over borrowed and brought their financial woes on themselves supported McCain for stability and experience (perhaps a lesson for Labour over here?). Those who would not accept responsibility for themselves, such as not making the effort to find work, just blamed the government for everything that went wrong for them and supported Obama.
All Obama has achieved in my eyes is writing a couple of books and campaigning to be president. If he really had the answers then he would have worked harder in the senate instead to prevent the economic mess Americans are in now.
Obama is supposed to be a great speaker, although I just agreed with the Democrats outside the convention who said he looked shifty. I always thought he looked shifty and untrustworthy and then I found out that he relies so much on his autocue that he doesn't look into people's eyes enough. Not even a great speaker, so what is he good at?
He is portrayed as a messiah who will solve all the afflictions of the world, at least that seems to be the expection of his supporters around the world.
I am very sorry, but the only way from here is down.
p.s. Great news about the by- election. Hopefully we will keep the loathsome Tories out after all.
10:11 am, November 07, 2008
MR .....People have to take responsibility for their actions but in this country Brown basically put a lot of pressure on people to jump on the housing market. He promised stability and no more boom and bust.
As a result most people borrowed heavily to get onto seemingly crash proof housing market. These people can not be blamed for this mess....the blame lies at number 10 for allowing this mess in the first place.
I work, but we are still finding this year very difficult. I borrowed to get my children onto the housing market because I honestly felt that there wasn't the will in government to control prices. I can't be blamed for wanting to make sure my children have a secure place to bring up their family.
Obama is not shifty, his body language is very open and relaxed. McCain on the couldn't relax due to his links with the right wing republican camp...he didn't feel comfortable at all.
You say you've been to America, but did you witness the extreme poverty. 3rd world in some places and not the result of being lazy...the result of being kept down by Americas wealthy. Imported workers working in vile dangerous conditions and keeping the American dream alive for just a few.
In some ways what has happened in the USA is also happening here. The gap between the lowest paid and middle income is at its highest since 1970.
10:58 am, November 07, 2008
This government never forced anyone to borrow beyond their means or get greedy and want things now rather than save up for them. I never have and have never even owned a credit card (I am a public sector worker on less than the national average). I have good friends who took out 100 per cent mortgages and I feel very sorry for them now, but I know that it is them who is at fault. The sooner people realise just how much power they have over their own lives, the better.
I agree that there certainly is a lot of poverty in the US and much of that falls at the door of Republican administrations over the years. That's why we need a good Democrat to sort things out.
The example I gave is of a thirty-year-old man who is living at home and sponging off his parents. He has a business degree and will only settle for becoming rich and running a successful business. He has only made $3000 in the past year and sits around at home, getting up at 11am. He refuses to look for a job in a store or some such and blames the Republican party for his poverty. He was going to vote for Obama and his parents told me that they don't know what to do with him.
8:25 pm, November 07, 2008
Mr, well you will always get those types....nothing will change that. The fact that he voted for Obama won't change a thing for him. America doesn't like lazy people and that will never change. In the states if you don't work you starve, the problem at the moment though is the lack of opportunities for working class americans.
I read today that General Motors have said it won't last the year unless they are bailed out. They are running out of cash fast. These are the issues Obama will has to resolve....the banks was easy....saving the wider economy is the tuff one.
Back home I'm having my own troubles with cash flow. The bank has withdrawn our overdraft and in December we will need it to pay our staff. December is tuff anyway because no one pays there bills on time and in general we are looking at January before we start seeing any improvement in cash flow. Without an overdraft facility we may have to terminate more contracts this month so we can meet our commitments. The mad thing is that we have an order book that takes us till next spring.
I think the government is going to have to do something quick or we are facing a very bleak christmas.
12:29 am, November 08, 2008
Years ago I went out to the USA and I was really shocked by the poverty. I noticed a community of black families living under a Motorway viaduct in Florida. They were living in shacks made of any scrap rubbish around such as polythene sheeting and corrugated iron, none of these people had electricity or running water.
When I went to the Mid West I Saw Families queuing up at the Salvation Army soup Kitchens, due to a poor crop that year.
A lot of Workers I met did not receive any holiday pay or the average was just 2 weeks a year holiday. The USA is actually a backward Country and a lot of people there live in 3rd world conditions!
12:22 am, November 10, 2008
Mark, there are a lot of people dependent on Soup kitchens in the states. You should read "Into The Wild", very interesting journey of a young man living off his wits.
I'm so glad Obama won and I hope he brings real change.
12:47 am, November 10, 2008
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