From the UK Guardian - Mr. Brown Goes To Washington .. read the Great comments!

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

Mr Brown goes to Washington

Today at Camp David, Gordon Brown finessed his hand: he reaffirmed British-American ties, but signalled the beginning of withdrawal from Iraq.
Ewen MacAskill

July 30, 2007 6:32 PM | Printable version

Gordon Brown got what he wanted from Washington. Brown has established the kind of ambiguity in the relationship that did not exist between Tony Blair and George W Bush. The various hints and comments from his government so far - from Douglas Alexander and Lord Malloch Brown - have created a sense that Brown is establishing distance from the Bush administration.

At the same time, at Camp David today, he and Bush exchanged compliments and warm words about the continuing close relationship between the US and Britain. So Brown has got it both ways.

Continued at http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/ewen_macaskill/2007/07/mr_brown_goes_to_washington.html

Comments, link above


Comment No. 731193

July 30 19:33
ESP


I was waiting for the first CIF piece on the Bush/Brown meeting. And a load of cobblers it is too - just as i predicted.

Interestingly, Ewen gets carted out to write this "lets make the best of Brown's almost Blair-identical relationship with Bush" article.

Withrawing slowly? We've been withdrawing slowly for a long time now. Any slower withdrawal and we'll be paying some of these poor lads their army pension before they get home.

There is no change whatsoever in the US/UK relationship and how many times does Brown need to say it for the Guardian to believe it?

This media manipulation of the facts is really scraping the bowels of revisionism. If this had been Blair we'd be hearing about him being a poodle just about now for the hundredth time.

Whats wrong evberyone?



Friendlyflier

Comment No. 731194

July 30 19:33

I keep seeing these live press conferences from Camp David or the Rose Garden and thinking 'I've got this wrong.The elected President of the United States isn't an academic or analyst, or hsn't proved himself in any field as such,but that doesn't mean he's a stupid man, does it?I mean, these comment pages have a fair few posters who voice pretty sophosticated and intelligent opinions themselves, so the US President has to be smarter than them, doesn't he?'
Nope.He's a genuine fucking moron.
I watched the whole conference, and apart from Bush's leading anecdote to a waiting international press corps for about 5 minutes about who won the 10 pin bowling match they'd organised last night, the only really revealing moment came when the buffoon told a US journo whose birthday it was that 'wasn't it great he was able to live in a country where someone under the age of 40 could get to ask the President a question (?!?!)
Brown interjected that 6 members of his cabinet were under 40.
Not a colgate moment exactly, thank god.
Lets hope Brown bides his time for a year or so til that buffoon is out of the way then he'll be able to get down to trying to clear up the mess with a Democratic government.

Briar

Comment No. 731244

July 30 20:05
GBR

I could do with a lot less finesse and a lot more honest outrage at the crimes perpetrated by Bush and his cronies.

SunnyCloudy

Comment No. 731254

July 30 20:09
GBR

"There is no change whatsoever in the US/UK relationship and how many times does Brown need to say it for the Guardian to believe it?"

Well, I think Ewen is right to look at subtle diplomatic hints to tease out what may unfold before us. I find your reasoning very simplistic SinEmbargo. I do think there is a lot going on behind the scenes, although its still too early to tell. There is so much that could happen between now and 2009 that trying to decisely predict where Brown will end up as another lapdog or not is still futile.

But there's no harm in speculating. After all, that's why we're here right?

HammerTime

Comment No. 731382

July 30 21:51
GBR

Good article. Brown is trying to have it both ways - keep the anti-war part of the British population happy by moving away from Bush and Iraq. At the same time he knows that making it to obvious can mean retribution from the US in all sorts of ways, starting with David Cameron getting to stay in the White House for a few nights, and going upwards from there.

Brown's no fool.

ariksilverman

Comment No. 731395

July 30 22:05
USA

"Gordon Brown got what he wanted from Washington."

A genuine cheeseburger???

At least he didn't have to get down on his knees in the oval office like Tony Blair and Monica Lewinsky.

Wolfette

Comment No. 731401

July 30 22:09
AUS

Who will be the first Graud or Indie correspondant to tell their readers that in Brown they have a PM who is more Blair than Blair, just spinning it differently - as can be seen in an instant from Macaskill's report.

How about his policies on national security? How about keeping use of military force against Iran an option on the table? How about immigration? And now he's in US quoting Winston Churchill!

You know guys, way-back-when it was Brown and Blair who invented New Labour. It was actually Brown who was the driver of policy development for more than 10 years before NL took power. He and Blair were/are joined at the hip on the US alliance and national/international security, no matter who the President is.

Blair the poodle? The Graud and the Indie have peddled the bullsh*t for so long it's apparently easy to play them for suckers.

CrunchyCapsicum

Comment No. 731417

July 30 22:22
NZL

"Today at Camp David, Gordon Brown finessed his hand..."

If you finesse your whole hand at once, you are likely to be thrown out of the bridge club.

One card at a time, please!

JusticeIsMine

Comment No. 731436

July 30 22:37
GBR

Hang on, listen to what Brown said.

We are going to see some BIG changes!

At least I hope so.

ariksilverman

Comment No. 731440

July 30 22:41
USA

CLARIFICATION

"Gordon Brown got what he wanted from Washington."

A genuine cheeseburger???

At least he didn't have to get down on his knees in the oval office like Tony Blair (to pray with a fellow evangelical) and Monica Lewinsky (to serve the pizza she had delivered).

Continued at link above