Having joined WebCameron in my guise as “Charon QC” many moons ago (I saw his first vidcast) I was amused to receive a ‘temperate’ email from David. The subject line read ” Boris wins – exclusive David reaction video”
What was fascinating – post council / mayoral elections, reading The Observer editorial today (and Andrew Rawnsley), was the emphasis on qualifying comment; hedging about with ‘It is mid-term’, ‘Labour lost it, The Tories did not win it’ and the inevitable caveat that there are still two years to go before Brown faces the electorate – that is, if the Labour Men in Togas don’t decide to put on an impromptu production of Julius Caesar first.
The other amusing comment – by Alexander Deane, former Chief of Staff to David Cameron – was that David Cameron has succeeded in de-contaminating The Conservative ‘brand’ ( in the mind of the fickle, largely uninformed and apathetic British electorate – my addition). A turnout of 45% is hailed as a triumph. Christ on a bicycle… even Zimbabwe can manage a 120% turnout. A quick trip to Google revealed a number of entries about ‘de-contaminating the Tory brand’. I do wander how many people in Britain actually know what the political parties (a) are doing (b) what they say they will do in their manifestos and (c) care. I get the feeling down at The Bollo and other watering holes that quite a few people don’t give a damn about politics. Mind you… some of the people I tend to meet ‘of an evening’ are often so over-refreshed they can’t even remember (at that time, and only at that time) where their houses are, let alone if they have fallen into a ‘negative equity’ situation – and long may that continue. All is, after all, restored come the dawn.
Andrew Rawnsley’s article was interesting: He was honest enough to admit that the press will now take the Tories more seriously…. but then exuberance and enthusiasm took hold and readers were treated to a number of subtle gems in one beautifully executed sentence: “There will be bigger and more eager audiences for the speeches of the shadow cabinet. When David Cameron calls, people will come running. When he asks for a favour, it will be swiftly given. When he has a photo call, everyone will want to be in it. Keep an eye on Richard Branson. The more that David Cameron is regarded as a winner, the more likely he is to become one.
I, for one, cannot wait to see Richard Branson upending David Cameron and then squirting him with champagne or, being pictured on a foreign trip with David Cameron to advise on British business interests abroad
I do hope that Mayor Karloff will not become too sensible now that he is the most powerful Tory in the country. We have a hint that Boris may well revert to type with the immortal words, as reported by Rawnsley today … ” I was elected as New Boris and I will govern as New Boris,’ … he joked in the early hours of Saturday morning, trying to reassure voters and his colleagues that the chaotic and brick-dropping side of his character will be permanently suppressed.”