Clegg refuses to rule out long term deal with Tories-End of Libdems?

[Titanic99]

I’ve had to condense this title to meet the space requirements of the forum.

 

· I watched a very interesting and revealing interview with Nick Clegg on Andrew Marr this morning with the key points summarised as follows:

 

· He talked about such a thing as “Liberal Conservatism” and refused to rule out a longer term deal with the Tories.

 

· He acknowledged that he initially took a lot of stick over his decision to go into Government with the Tories.

 

· Andrew Marr pointed out that there’s a lot of speculation that Vince Cable could be the first person to jump ship shortly.

 

· The reason for his change of mind concerning the need for immediate cuts is the problems witnessed in Greece.

 

· He was very firm about reform to the House of Lords in this Parliament with PR being the model to be implemented.

 

· He was significantly less convincing that the vote on changing the voting system would be in this Parliament.

 

In my humble opinion I believe the Libdems are effectively finished now, I believe Clegg and a few others will go over to the Tories, whilst the other MP’s and supporters will go to Labour.

 

I just don’t see how he can fight the next election without doing this, what do Libdems stand for now after what has happened and on what platform could they fight the next election.

 

It’s just a shame for us all that they’ll have rushed this 55% majority legislation through Parliament before it happens.

[HeadingNorth]

I would have thought you'd be right behind any legislation that prevents the Tories from calling an election whenever it suits them, but apparently not.

 

I dare say the Lib Dems will fight the next election on exactly the same platform as this one - govern on their own if they win enough seats, and co-operate with the winning party if they don't.

[Vague_Boy]

I would have thought you'd be right behind any legislation that prevents the Tories from calling an election whenever it suits them, but apparently not.

 

It would also affect a future Labour government (unless they repealed it). Not what the NuLabour apparatchiks want to see at all.

 

I'm not a betting man but I'd be willing to stake quite a bit that, had the LibDems sucessfully formed a coalition with Labour, we would not be seeing this slew of ant-Nick Clegg trolling from Titanic and Wednesday1.

 

What was it that Mrs Thacher said about being "one of us"?

[Titanic99]

I dare say the Lib Dems will fight the next election on exactly the same platform as this one - govern on their own if they win enough seats, and co-operate with the winning party if they don't.

 

I thought they'd said they would seek to reach an agreement.

 

In no way does that constitute a commitment to sell your principles down the river for a place in government.

[I1L2T3]

I would have thought you'd be right behind any legislation that prevents the Tories from calling an election whenever it suits them, but apparently not.

 

I dare say the Lib Dems will fight the next election on exactly the same platform as this one - govern on their own if they win enough seats, and co-operate with the winning party if they don't.

 

There so much wrong with your post I don't know where to begin. So I won't

[Titanic99]

I'm not a betting man but I'd be willing to stake quite a bit that, had the LibDems sucessfully formed a coalition with Labour, we would not be seeing this slew of ant-Nick Clegg trolling from Titanic and Wednesday1.

 

 

How exactly is this thread anti Nick Clegg, it briefly and accurately summarises what he said on the Andrew Marr show and offers people the opportunity to comment on what he has said.

 

If people want the Libdems to join the Tories or Labour then they are free to say so, likewise if people want them to be distinct from both then they can comment on that.

[Longcol]

 

In my humble opinion I believe the Libdems are effectively finished now, I believe Clegg and a few others will go over to the Tories, whilst the other MP’s and supporters will go to Labour.

 

I just don’t see how he can fight the next election without doing this, what do Libdems stand for now after what has happened and on what platform could they fight the next election.

 

I can't think of any reason while large swathes of Lib Dem supporters would go over to either party especially if the coalition proves anything like succesful in reducing the deficit. Surely that would strengthen the Lib Dem hand in places where they'd finished second to Labour?

[Berberis]

So let’s get this right, according to the exposed Labour propaganda distributer who openly lies and propagates miss information, the Lib Dems are to merge with the conservatives and the only solution is for Lib Dem voters to now vote Labour. Hmmm, I smell “what comes out of a cows backside” from titanic yet again. Thankfully people are not as stupid as you or as stupid as you think they are.

 

Get a life and get over it. You and your beloved party LOST. Now, better politicians are going about fixing the damage done by Labour. End of story.

[plekhanov]

I’ve had to condense this title to meet the space requirements of the forum.

 

· I watched a very interesting and revealing interview with Nick Clegg on Andrew Marr this morning with the key points summarised as follows:

That you consider your absurdly gap laden & skewed summary to include the 'key points' tells us more about just how idealogically blinded you are than the interview you pretend to be summarising. Amongst other things you dismissed and distorted are:

 

• the initial discussion about how the Lib Dems said before the election that they'd try and from a government with the party that got the most votes.
  

Discussion about how a coalition with Labour wasn't viable due to:

• Labour very internally divided about what to do
  
• prominent MPs knocking it in media during talks
  

· He talked about such a thing as “Liberal Conservatism” and refused to rule out a longer term deal with the Tories.

He refused to rule out forming another with the coalition in 5 years time, it would have been astonishing if he had ruled that out. Just as it would be astonishing if he ruled out working with Labour in 5 years time.

 

As for 'Liberal Conservatism' Marr raised the term (which you'll find in any decent book on political theory alonside Liberal Socialism) & Nick correctly pointed out that Liberals & many Conservatives share a similar approach the relationship between the individual and the state & power which can help hold the coalition together. He contrasted this shared approach with New Labours top down authoritarianism, other Lib Dems have made the same point to you in the past and you didn't understand it then either.

 

· He acknowledged that he initially took a lot of stick over his decision to go into Government with the Tories.

And then pointed out the coalition was then overwhelmingly approved, I guess you didn't have "space" for that bit eh?

 

· Andrew Marr pointed out that there’s a lot of speculation that Vince Cable could be the first person to jump ship shortly.

And Nick pointed out what groundless nonsense that is.

 

· The reason for his change of mind concerning the need for immediate cuts is the problems witnessed in Greece.

Not just Greece the Eurozone in general combined with the fact that the books are even worse than they feared thanks to Labour's irresponsible unfunded spending commitments.

 

Extended discussion on just how bad a financial state Labour have left the nation in and the difficult times with difficult & unpopular decision we have ahead.

 

· He was very firm about reform to the House of Lords in this Parliament with PR being the model to be implemented.

 

· He was significantly less convincing that the vote on changing the voting system would be in this Parliament.

What complete nonsense there was zero indication that the referendum wouldn't be in this Parliament.

 

It’s just a shame for us all that they’ll have rushed this 55% majority legislation through Parliament before it happens.

It's a shame that you "missed" the discussion about how the "55% majority legislation" actually gives parliament a new power taking it from the Executive & how 55% is a low figure by international standards & lower for example than the figure Labour introduced in Scotland.

 

In my humble opinion I believe the Libdems are effectively finished now, I believe Clegg and a few others will go over to the Tories, whilst the other MP’s and supporters will go to Labour.

 

I just don’t see how he can fight the next election without doing this, what do Libdems stand for now after what has happened and on what platform could they fight the next election.

All Nick did was not rule out working with the Conservatives again in 5 years time (something it would have been insane for him to do) & you leap from that to the Lib Dem being finished you trully have excelled yourself this time.

 

Anyway if anyone would like to see the debate for themselves rather than getting it 2nd hand filtered through the delusional mind of a die hard Labour supporter it can be seen here & is about 20 minutes long.

 

edit. just to say the interview segment starts at about 33 minutes I tried to use a bookmark which started at that point but I'm not sure if it worked.

[andyofborg]

I can't think of any reason while large swathes of Lib Dem supporters would go over to either party especially if the coalition proves anything like succesful in reducing the deficit. Surely that would strengthen the Lib Dem hand in places where they'd finished second to Labour?

 

this is why labour central has instructed titanic99 to go into overdrive on here. if the coalition is successful,(however you want to define success), then voters will have a centre right conservative party exorcised of ghost of thatcher and a centre left lib dem party which has proved it can govern to choose from. its a set of options that leaves the labour party out in the cold.

 

a good parallel would be 1925, when baldwin advised the king to let the labour party form the succeeding government. the resulting labour government didn't last long but it proved the labour party could govern and resulted in the liberal party being stuck on the edge of the political scene for 80 years.

 

I'm quite sure the labour high command see the parallel too and worry that a successful coalition stands quite a good chance of doing the same thing but in reverse.