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Little and Large gang up on posh boy Cameron
The Mole: Clegg’s triumph in the first debate increases the chances of Brown seeking a Lib-Lab pact
David Cameron is under pressure to drop his nice guy image and come out fighting tougher after Nick Clegg, the Lib Dem challenger, outshone both the Tory and Gordon Brown in the first round of the leaders' debate.
Sky TV marked it Clegg 37 per cent, Brown 32 per cent and Cameron 31 per cent, while the Sun gave Clegg 51, Cameron 29, and Brown 19. The ITV instant poll of 4,000 viewers marked it Clegg 43, Cameron 26 and Brown 20.
Clegg's personal triumph will increase the chances of Gordon Brown seeking a Lib-Lab pact, especially after the televised leader debate was dominated by Brown's efforts to 'love bomb' the Lib Dem leader. Brown repeatedly told the viewers "I agree with Nick..." It sounded like he was preparing the ground for the negotiations in a hung Parliament, especially over electoral reform, which Cameron will not offer Clegg.
Clegg and Brown looked like a new Little and Large double-act as they made Camo the piggy in the middle. Together, they ganged up on the posh boy with too much blusher, who appeared puzzled as to why he was failing to connect.
There were times when Brown looked like a plodding heavyweight chasing two lighter, younger fighters around the ring. However, it's a three-round fight. Next week it's international affairs but the final round could be the decider, when the debate will be dominated by the economy.
Blair once said Brown would deliver a clunking fist on Cameron. It's in the final round that he has to do it, and Cameron, in turn, has to find a knock-out punch of his own to floor Brown.
Cameron's best shot in last night's debate was the repeated use of the 'tax on jobs' attack on Brown's increase in National Insurance Contributions. But the Tory appeared so desperate to be 'nice' on television, he even avoided direct eye contact with Brown.
Camo will now be advised to mix it with Brown, punch below the belt if necessary, and jab hard at Brown's age, as a living embodiment of Old Labour. "You just don't get it Gordon... cutting taxes is good for the economy."
Brown stuck to policy, and sounded magisterial. His strongest case against Cameron was the fear factor. He repeatedly said he feared that the Tories' pledge to take £6bn out of the economy would cost thousands of jobs. That will play powerfully with the hundreds of thousands of public sector workers, worried about their jobs.
The TV debates may have got off to a cagey start, but they could still prove the decider in this close-run election. ·
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Interestingly people who listened to the debate on the radio reported a win for Cameron.
Brown was truly dire - and the one thing that did come over is how much Nick Clegg despises him.
The fact that this is indeed a close run election is an appalling indictment on the terrible weakness of David Cameron as a leader. Many a sixth former with a passing interest in politics who had the courage to face down a TV audience could have made a more impassioned and meaningful appeal to the Great British electorate to turf traitor Brown and his disasterous regime into the streets.
No surprise that we were treated to the nauseating sight of a Brown/Clegg love-in. The former will do anything to hang on to power, the latter anythhing to gain some. In the face of this joint onslaught David Cameron's attempts to be reasonable sadly misfired, although on reflection they may gain greater approval. For me, the most worrying part of the debate was that none of them was prepared to concede that savings in the tens of billions will not really address the mountain of debt which has to be cleared and every department will have to make quite severe cuts. No good calling for honesty if you are not prepared to acknowledge this obvious fact!