Monday 17 May 2010

Reply - Clare Balding (+Obama Reaffirms 'Special Relationship')

A few weeks ago I asked my intellectually challenged friend who he was going to vote for at the General Election, to which he replied, "Oh probably that Scottish bloke."

"Really? I didn't have you down as a fan of Gordon Brown." I replied.

"No not him, I mean the other one, Cameron something."

True story.

Anyway, no sooner had PM David waltzed through the door of number 10 then he got the obligatory call on the old dog. Nope, not the one from his mother Mary, asking him why he never called any more, or from Sketchleys telling him that they'd removed the gravy stain from his flannel suit, it was, of course, from Barack Obama.

I now quote the Daily Telegraph, not because I read it, but because it was the first result to come up when I typed "Obama" and "Special Relationship" into Google. It suggests that the US President 'reached out' to David Cameron (another tiresome use of that apalling expression) just minutes after he had been installed as the new PrimeMinister:

Mr Obama placed the call from his desk in the Oval Office, before a small pool of news photographers, in what amounted to one of Cameron's first official duties after taking over from Gordon Brown as prime minister.

"Today, I was pleased to call David Cameron to extend my personal congratulations for the successful campaign that he ran and for becoming the new British prime minister," Obama said in a written statement.

"As I told the prime minister, the United States has no closer friend and ally than the United Kingdom, and I reiterated my deep and personal commitment to the special relationship between our two countries - a bond that has endured for generations and across party lines."

Mr Obama said that relationship was "essential to the security and prosperity of our two countries, and the world."



Wow, he's got a pool in the Oval Office.

William Hague has since travelled to Washington DC to meet and greet Hillary Clinton for knee-jerk relationship-clarification duties and the two countries shall, it seems, continue to merrily suckle on the bosom of each other's friendship.


In other news, I have been informed that TV Sports Presenter Clare Balding will not be available to sign my Union Jack flag since BBC policy prevents her from doing so.



I believe it is the policy of the Beeb not to show any form of friendship towards Americans.




(Right: Clare and I in happier times)

Wednesday 12 May 2010

A Change to the Dynamic?

So we have a new Government and a new PM.

I'm certainly not going to waffle on about the shortcomings of a hung parliament, the difficulties facing a coalition government, the need for a change to the voting system or whether an old woman in Rochdale will now be unwelcome in The Star of Bengal, as there are far too many political bloggers being paid to do that already.


What I will say is that a certain repercussion will be felt by one of our American cuzins (mispelled intentionally) in particular, namely US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who it seems took something of a shine to Labour's (reportedly) dashing former foreign secretary David Milliband, he of the tidy haircut and youthful swagger. Well on the plus side for him, he may end up leading his party.


Hillary, as you may or may not know, previously spoke thus of David in that heavy-hitting political tome Vogue Magazine:

"...Yes well if you saw him it would be a big crush. I mean he is so vibrant, vital, attractive, smart. He's a really good guy. And he's so young!"

Whilst according to the Indian Express (I'm not making this up), Mr Milliband stated that his US counterpart was "...Delightful to deal with. Someone who laughs and can tease."
Hmmm.

Anyway, their will be no more pressing of flesh between the two of them now, handshakes I'm talking about, and Mrs Clinton will have to start afresh with William Hague.


Will the magic still be there? Who knows or dares to dream but I fear that the savagely curtailed embryonic romance between Hillary and David may act as a possible precursor to the souring of the Transatlantic alliance. Hell hath no fury and all that.