Cesspool on the Potomac

NY Times breaks Clinton scandal

Hillary Clinton's got to be sitting around thinking, "Bill hasn't screwed me for years, and now he's done it twice in a week!" After the ex-President's fierce attacks on Barack Obama sabotaged Hillary's chances in the South Carolina primary, today the New York Times reports that in 2005 (a) Bill… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 31 Jan 2008 3:54 PM. There are 2 comments so far. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Is the O-mentum back?

On the Democratic side, a raft of new polls from Super Tuesday primary states came out yesterday, and they indicate that Barack Obama may be narrowing the gap on Hillary Clinton in some key Feb 5 contests. This set of polls — the first to be taken after Obama's landslide… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 31 Jan 2008 10:00 AM. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Who won the GOP debate?

At long last, primary debate season in America is drawing to a close. Tonight, the remaining Democrats have their first and only mano-a-womano debate, but last night saw the final scheduled Republican debate held, naturally, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. Westmonster can tell you that… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 31 Jan 2008 9:05 AM. Permalink

Department for Tax and Spend

Help help, here comes the IFS

As if poised to prove our point about sleaze, this morning sees the the publication of the annual green paper from the Institute of Fiscal Studies, and ohmygod does it have some worrying stuff in it for Alistair Darling. The overall gist: the economy is slowing, the deficit is growing,… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 31 Jan 2008 8:58 AM. Permalink

Ministry For Feral Media

Caesar's wife? Puh-leeze

There's a cracking piece in the Speccie this morning about how the Conway affair is really, really, really bad for the Tories and their soft lead. It finishes with this reference to Andy Coulson: In a briefing to the Tory front bench in December, Andy Coulson, Mr Cameron’s excellent communications… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 31 Jan 2008 8:42 AM. There are 2 comments so far. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Which way will Edwards' support flow?

Westmonster can't even seem to go out to lunch these days without another candidate dropping out of the U.S. Presidential race. Today, news comes that John Edwards is calling it quits, in a move that could have major consequences for the Democratic nomination contest. Edwards, who's been polling around 15… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 30 Jan 2008 3:26 PM. Permalink

Department for Diffrunt People

No cribbing, Mr Cameron

Call us cynical (actually, call us love gods, but cynical love gods), but isn't it a little odd that Cammers gives an interview to the Sun this morning recommending more stop-and-search powers, on the day that Jacqui Smith is likely to do the same, and a day after Ronnie Flanagan… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 30 Jan 2008 10:48 AM. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Arrivederci, Rudy

Rudy Giuliani, who had staked his entire campaign on pulling off an unlikely victory in the state, emerged the big loser in the Florida primary — finishing in a distant third place behind John McCain and Mitt Romney. Giuliani is now expected to drop out of the race in advance… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 30 Jan 2008 10:28 AM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

What's the deal with McCain?

News flash: John McCain pulled out a narrow victory over Mitt Romney in the bitterly contested Florida Republican primary last night, the most recent "biggest primary of primary season," and the one that pundits (and candidates) were saying would likely determine the eventual GOP nominee. You'd expect McCain to gloat,… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 30 Jan 2008 9:44 AM. There are 4 comments so far. Permalink

Department for the Tyburn Jig

Canary in the goldmine?

We've always had a soft spot for the Chief Inspector of Prisons. Not necessarily the current incumbent, Anne Owers (although she may be red hot, we don't know), but for the office itself. And mainly because the office seems to be a lightning rod for government criticism, and a pretty… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 30 Jan 2008 9:12 AM. Permalink

News from the Carlton Club

Derek Conway: 1.5 million to you, sir

You've got to hand it to the Mail. They've taken the Derek Conway story and battered it into submission, a process which has handed Labour a massive gift and made the Tories look two-faced and shabby. And this from the Tory wives' inhouse paper. This morning they've itemised all the… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 30 Jan 2008 8:48 AM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

Ministry for Local Policies for Local People

Squeamish on Jasper

The FT's Westminster blog ponders this morning on why the mainstream press aren't pursuing Lee Jasper with quite the - ahem - glee of the Standard: A growing number of pundits are wondering why the mainstream press aren't writing much - if anything - about Lee Jasper. The London mayor's… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 30 Jan 2008 8:30 AM. Permalink

News from the Carlton Club

Blond, bouncy, one for the boys

Our thanks to the Mail for taking the Derek Conway story into new, unexpected and glorious places: Son Freddie celebrated his 21st birthday on the Commons terrace. His brother Henry, like him an Old Harrovian, is now a fashion writer who was pictured leaving a nightclub with actress and singer… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 29 Jan 2008 2:14 PM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

Ministry for Inducing Daily Mail Apoplexy

"Bleak future" for beloved curry

Westmonster never realised that making a curry required a skilled chef — we've always used the drunken logic that what's eaten whilst pissed was prepared whilst pissed. But pity the poor punters of Northampton, where, according to Lib Dem councillor Sadik Chaudhury, restrictive UK immigration laws have led to 10… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 29 Jan 2008 1:03 PM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

Department for Tax and Spend

Bye bye Rupert

Has Labour finally turned its back on Rupert Murdoch? It looks that way with this morning's announcement that BSkyB has been told to reduce its share in ITV to 7.5% by John Hutton. The sale is expected to end up costing Sky £250 million, thanks to the decline in ITV's… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 29 Jan 2008 9:21 AM. Permalink

Department for Diffrunt People

Spare a shekel for a judicial review, sir?

Multi-millionaire Stuart Wheeler (that's his daughter pictured, since you ask) has got his cap out by proxy in the Telegraph this morning, with John Gouriet asking for money to fund Wheeler's attempt to have the Lisbon Treaty made the subject of a judicial review. Gouriet, in Grand Constitutional Words Written… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 29 Jan 2008 9:15 AM. There are 3 comments so far. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Florida's two-ring circus

It seems to Westmonster all the big news has been coming out of the Democratic camp lately, following Obama's big win in South Carolina and the Bill Clinton backlash that followed. But today in Florida — home of 2000's hanging chads — there's a contest that's meaningless among Democrats, but… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 29 Jan 2008 8:51 AM. Permalink

News from the Carlton Club

Putting sleaze into perspective

The Telegraph is claiming that Tory MP for Eastbourne Nigel Waterson was arrested on Sunday night for 'assaulting his children'. Not being reported anywhere else, as far as we can see.… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 29 Jan 2008 8:46 AM. Permalink

Department of Doublespeak

You say sleazy, I say sleazy

The blue-bloods are up in arms! Tim Montgomerie's blue-and-blue army at ConservativeHome are enraged by the failure to kick Derek Conway out of the Commons and remove the whip, and their fury is only going to be enriched by the revelation that Conway may have given another 32 grand to… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 29 Jan 2008 8:43 AM. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

US election primer latest

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 28 Jan 2008 5:58 PM. Permalink

Ministry for Local Policies for Local People

Galloway seeking housemates

Thanks to Harry's Place for this gem from George No-mates Galloway: an open letter appealing for people to join his platform, Respect Renewal: There is a crisis of representation for trade unionist, ethnic minorities, those in poverty and on low wages, those facing racism and other forms of discrimination, sex… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 28 Jan 2008 3:55 PM. Permalink

MPs: Working Hard... For YOU!

SDP or Tory?

We've received an email alleging that Robert Wilson, current Tory MP for Reading East and Shadow Minister for Higher Education, actually stood as an SDP candidate in Redlands ward in Reading in the the late 1980s. Which would make his denial to have ever been in the same party as… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 28 Jan 2008 3:13 PM. Permalink

Ministry for the Tin Ear

Want fries with that degree?

Imagine you're a party of government. You've made education a key priority, and even appointed one of your most talented ministers to take on the education portfolio. The opposition, however, has recently been on the offensive over education — making it the centrepiece of their new agenda, and gaining ground… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 28 Jan 2008 10:19 AM. Permalink

Department for David Beckham Studies

What would Maurice think?

This is somewhat off-topic, but Westmonster's alma mater Peterhouse has made the news in surprising fashion thanks to a study which shows that promiscuity leads to academic failure. The gist of the study is that students at poorly performing Cambridge University colleges had the most sexual partners. More sex =… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 28 Jan 2008 9:32 AM. Permalink

News From The Big Tent

President Blair opposed by PM Brown?

There's a delicious piece of troublemaking in the Telegraph this morning, speculating that El Gordo and his allies may sullenly resist a Blair EU presidency because it would be bad for the Labour Party in a general election: A Brown ally said: "Imagine what a field day the British media… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 28 Jan 2008 9:13 AM. Permalink

Bag carrying

Admins = accidents waiting to happen

We at Westmonster don't want to add to the media frenzy around party funding, added to over the weekend by revelations about Alan Johnson. All we will say on the matter is that this is a result of the law of unintended consequences, and the best thing for all concerned… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 28 Jan 2008 9:06 AM. There are 3 comments so far. Permalink

Meedja on the Insanity Pills

Guido a Conservative? Gosh!

Hey, did you know Guido Fawkes favoured the right over the left? Gosh, neither did we. Amazing, isn't it? It certainly seems to have surprised the Telegraph's Three Line Whip. Although we didn't realise it was quite as blatant as this, which appeared in the footer of an email the… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 25 Jan 2008 12:04 PM. Permalink

News From The Big Tent

Weirdos in government

Remember all the John Redwood Vulcan gags back in the mid-1990s? They accompanied the last days of John Major's administration, and they represented a moment when the British press finally lost its last vestiges of respect for the governing fraternity, egged on by a strengthening Opposition that saw a useful… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 25 Jan 2008 8:28 AM. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Anti-Clinton backlash begins

Since Hillary Clinton's "surprise" New Hampshire win, the story in the U.S. Democratic presidential race has been Bill & Hill's two-headed, four-fisted attack machine and its success in slowing down Barack Obama. Today, there's evidence that the story is changing, and that a media backlash against the Clintons may be… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 24 Jan 2008 10:33 AM. Permalink

Ministry for making Alistair Campbell roll his eyes

Welcome to Fat Fighters™

Sigh. We at Westmonster are growing weary of writing stories about the political tone-deafness of this government. Whilst the Tories take control of the political agenda, sound ever more sensible by the day, and feature a leader who's making transparent appeals to specific (and powerful) voting constituencies, Gordon Brown's government… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 24 Jan 2008 9:57 AM. Permalink

Ministry for Local Policies for Local People

Ken live on BBC London

Welcome to our live coverage of Ken Livingstone's appearance on BBC Radio London. Given the last few days it should be quite - ahem - interesting. Click on "Read More" to read the whole thing. Gordon Brown gave Ken his full support for Ken in PMQs today, saying a "Labour… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 23 Jan 2008 6:02 PM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

Department for David Beckham Studies

Gove's sharp elbows

Good post by the Indy's John Rentoul on Cameron's interview in the Times this morning, when he seemed to condone such middle class sharp practice as pretending you're a God-botherer in order to get Jemima and Sebastian into a decent church-run state school. Cameron said this: “I think it’s good… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 23 Jan 2008 3:27 PM. Permalink

Department for Ctrl-Alt-Delete

Gordon Brown, Iain Dale reject

We love this: Iain Dale claims Gordon Brown has sent him four separate friend requests on Facebook. So, assuming El Gordo doesn't use Facebook himself, someone must be doing it for him. So why would that someone assume Iain Dale would ever accept a request from El Gordo? And why… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 23 Jan 2008 11:13 AM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

Ministry for Local Policies for Local People

There goes another one

While BoJo tries to smooth over past transgressions, it's getting worse and worse for Ken. This morning, the deputy to his under-fire advisor Lee Jasper has quit, after flagrantly lying to the Beeb over an expenses-paid trip to Nigeria. It's the first high-level resignation among Livingstone's team during the current… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 23 Jan 2008 11:02 AM. Permalink

Department of Doublespeak

Show us your papers

ID cards. The policy that no-one seems to want but which keeps coming back. Today, it's the news that internal Home Office papers show the full scheme has been put back at least two years. There's no way of knowing yet if this is an official leak, buttering us up… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 23 Jan 2008 10:52 AM. Permalink

All change please

Cameron nearing 1992 levels?

Polls are la-la and mood music in the papers is pointless. When we want to know which way political sentiment is running, we turn to Mike Smithson's Political Betting, and today he's got a doozy. He reckons the predicted number of Tory seats in an election, according to Sporting Index,… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 23 Jan 2008 10:36 AM. Permalink

Ministry for Wink, Wink, Nudge, Nudge

Vaizey: Just happy to see you

Westmonster doesn't mind hitting below the belt, as it were, especially when the subject makes it so easy. We have to say we got excited, very excited — so excited — when news came over the wire that Cameron buddy Ed Vaizey popped an "herbal" Viagra substitute with Matthew Wright… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 23 Jan 2008 9:52 AM. Permalink

Meedja on the Insanity Pills

Anatole hearts Gordon. Not.

What the hell has Gordon Brown ever done to Anatole Kaletsky? The esteemed economic commentator went nuclear on El Gordo this morning, arguing that the Northern Rock plan - convert the debt into government bonds, then sell the thing off - represents a government cock-up on the scale of the… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 22 Jan 2008 12:37 PM. Permalink

Department for Expanding the British Museum

What would Dave do?

Reading through the Hansard transcript of last night's EU Treaty debate on TheyWorkForYou, a few things become clear. Firstly, the boy Miliband did a good job, on paper, of laying out what the Treaty is for and why it's different to the constitution. He even admitted (after nudging by Ken… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 22 Jan 2008 9:23 AM. There are 2 comments so far. Permalink

Cesspool on the Potomac

Obama: Bill's cool, but can he dance?

Was Bill Clinton, as Toni Morrison famously said, America's first black president? Barack Obama, speaking in last night's Congressional Black Caucus debate amongst candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination, ain't so sure: "I would have to, you know, investigate more of Bill's dancing abilities … and some of this other… read more…

Written by Andrew Levy on 22 Jan 2008 9:13 AM. Permalink

Meedja on the Insanity Pills

Where was Auntie?

Call us Daily Mail-reading pinko-crunching moaners, but isn't it rather odd that the BBC's Ten O'Clock News - just finished - made no mention of the accusations levelled at Ken Livingstone on the other side 90 minutes beforehand? And wasn't it even more bizarre that BBC London News made no… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 21 Jan 2008 10:38 PM. Permalink

All change please

Did you stay up for Ken?

Well, we missed the first broadcast because we were having dinner, but thanks to Channel 4 +1 we were able to catch Martin Bright's Dispatches programme on Ken Livingstone. The chargesheet, in summary: Ken likes a drink He keeps some bizarre company Some of London Development Agency's money has gone… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 21 Jan 2008 10:16 PM. Permalink

Department for Tax and Spend

Energy smash-and-grab?

It's perhaps a little surprising that the power companies are doing their very best impression of Messrs Scrooge at the moment, given that their regulator, Ofgem, has alerted the government to the possibility of a nine billion quid windfall tax. It's complicated, but bear with us. The European carbon trading… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 21 Jan 2008 1:47 PM. Permalink

Department for Kite Flying

El Gordo's Get Out of Jail card?

Does El Gordo have a constitutional get out of jail card, and is it called PR? They may just be kite-flying, but the Indy this morning has a speculative piece saying that Jack Straw's Ministry of Justice will this week set out options for replacing Westminster's first-past-the-post system. No other… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 21 Jan 2008 9:36 AM. Permalink

getting down wiv da kidz Dept.

Political commercials

Two types of political commercial this morning: 1. El Gordo promoting the UK Politics channel on the American-owned YouTube. It's a classic 10 Downing Street-era Brown perfomance - a weird combination of fake smiles interspersed with terrifying gloom. And the sound of a door slamming somewhere. Google, the owner of… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 21 Jan 2008 9:19 AM. Permalink

Meedja on the Insanity Pills

Portrait artist selection process

So, you're the most successful Labour leader in living memory. You've had a decade as the Top Dog in British politics. You fancy getting your portrait done. Should your portrait painter: Be the son of a senior Tory MP? Have a series of right wing icons (Prince Philip, George Bush… read more…

Written by Lloyd Shepherd on 21 Jan 2008 8:50 AM. There are 1 comments so far. Permalink

January 2008 Archives