Weren't People Here Telling Me The Liberal Democrats Were The Real Progressive Party In The U K?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

If so why did they form a governing coalition with the Tories?

[Oregone]

1. Because everything in life isn't a third grade lesson plan

Should they declare their allegiance to the power of Grayskull and bring forth justice with a claymore?

[HipChick]

2. What other option do they have?

[AmericaIsGreat]

3. Because Clegg became Deputy PM

and they got 4 important cabinet seats?

[arcos]

5. And they got their referendum on proportional representation... nt

[ZombieHorde]

4. Liberal does not mean the same thing in the UK as it means in the US.

UK liberals are more like US libertarians.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

6. That's What I Thought

~

[FrenchieCat]

7. Guess real progressives can be pragmatic too.......

Because if you can't get nothing done, what's the point in the end?

[PM Martin]

8. Labour was unwilling to make any deal.

Considering the crap about to hit the fan they may have decided to give it to the Cons.

[Ozymanithrax]

9. Because getting something small done trumps whining that nothing ever gets done.

It is about results...

[western mass]

10. I can see the reasoning

They get their referendum on proportional voting - the central promise of their platform.

Labour were thrown out for a reason. Getting in bed with Labour would have looked like a return to the same old politics; it wouldn't have looked good, and disastrous if nothing did change.

A Lib Dem-Labour coalition would have meant a razor-thin majority dependent on the unpredictable minor parties. This way, it's just the two partners and more stable control.

If things go south under the Tories, Lib Dems as the minor partner can shrug and say "we tried - but the Conservatives were driving the bus and they drove it over the cliff. Next time let *us* drive."

[DFLforever]

11. Many Lib Dems voters have found out the hard way

this isn't necessarily so. Commentators at the Guardian's website are really sick about this coalition. I feel badly for them.

One Lib Dem voter called them just another right wing party - but unlike the Tories - lacking the guts to go to war.

[depakid]

12. For one thing, they got a referendum on what Americans call IRV in return

(not to quite a number of cabinet positions).