Our American Cousins
Bush and Cameron: the not-at-all secret meeting
In yet further evidence that pretty much everyone in the world knows that Labour are lagging disastrously behind the Tories, George W. Bush thought it prudent to arrange a meeting with David Cameron while he was in the country.
The practice of a visiting US President meeting opposition leaders is nothing new - Bush has had previous shindigs with Iain Duncan Smith, Michael Howard and Charles Kennedy. This time, however, there does seem to be a sheen of expectation around the whole thing: as in 'say hello to the man who'll be running the country come 2010.' Not that Bush is bothered - he'll be long retired by then, and reportage of British current affairs would only get in the way of those colouring books he's been meaning to get round to.
D-Cam himself issued the following statement:
"I had a very productive meeting with President Bush, taking forward some of the issues we discussed when we met in Washington last November. I raised the situation in Zimbabwe, and the pressing need to do everything possible to prevent Mugabe from stealing the election. It is extremely important to make sure that independent observers have full access to the poll. We continued the discussion we had before about the importance of standing up for free trade. I underlined the commitment of the Conservative Party to Britain’s role in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. I also raised with the President my concerns about the need for improved co-ordination of the civilian effort of the ground, and greater clarity and unity of purpose between the different military chains of command - in particular between the NATO-led International Security assistance Force (ISAF) and Operating Enduring Freedom.”
Evidently discussion of the big issue - whether we're due for a Cameron/McCain nightmare ticket to lead us kicking and screaming into the next decade - was left under wraps ...
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