Anthony Barnett (London, OK): This exchange in which Gordon Brown replies to Bernard Jenkin MP who was Shadow Defence Secretary at the time of the Iraq war shows how deep a problem we have. I saw it thanks to Tim Montgomerie running it in Conservative Home. His point is that Jenkins scored a home run on how British forces have been militarily defeated and are being replaced by the US. But i was struck by the first part of the answer:
The Prime Minister: "I agree very much with the first part of the hon. Gentleman’s remarks—that the removal of Saddam Hussein will be seen in history as a decisive act that made possible a democracy in Iraq...
With two-party collusion on the 'success' of the decision to invade and the Lib-Dems nervously not wanting to be positioned as unpatriotic, the political class (including most of the media who went along with it) will never admit that the unwashed who took to the streets were wiser and more far-sighted than the British elite. Of all the criminal and sleazy corruptions of British politics this was the greatest and it will continue to reverberate. The words of Blair's instruction to our Ambassador should be inscribed over the door of No 10, where they were spoken: "We want you to get up the arse of the White House, and stay there". And here is an Xmas competition: how long will it be before both Conservatives and Labour agree that "history" will see this as a "decisive act" that undermined traditional democracy in this country?
