Gordon Brown tries to Distance Himself from the Hated Blair

June 1, 2007 (LPAC) "There certainly is a political vacuum in Britain at the moment, with Tony Blair making his very prolonged farewell tour. Blair is certainly in a strange mental state," a London source told EIR today. "People are counting the days until Blair goes: there are 26 to go!"

Gordon Brown, who will succeed Blair as Prime Minister, is keeping a low profile until Blair is finally out on June 27, because he wants a smooth transition, but behind the scenes he is certainly planning some surprise political initiatives which will appeal to the population, and finish off Tory leader David Cameron in time for the next parliamentary elections. Brown is presenting himself as a more "traditionalist" leader, appealing to working people's needs, and moving away from Blair's "Third Way" ideology.

The Tories are headed for oblivion, just as Blair is, was this source's view. Shadow (opposition) Chancellor George Osborne even said last week that David Cameron is the "true heir of Tony Blair" at a time when almost everyone in the U.K. is just waiting for Blair to go. The Tories under Cameron are likely going to try and claim Blair's legacy, when it has been discredited with the population. The Tories have been so demoralized since Blair's original resounding victory in 1997, that they have been desperately trying to out-do Blair since, and gone down to one defeat after another. In 1997, they lost because they were still operating as if it were 1987, and the Tories are still a decade behind. One of Cameron's worst recent blunders, was to reverse himself on education policy, and ultimately stick to his endorsement of Blair's educational changes. Most members of the Conservative Party are convinced that the old educational system was much superior to the current one. Among other "modernizations," Blair wanted to cut the focus on Shakespeare in English classes. The British workforce is certainly less skilled than it was 10 years ago, and this is something Brown may also focus on to distance himself from Blair's policies, including the close ties to George W. Bush.