Hugo Young (London Guardian): It's time for Blair to quit

[Jack Rabbit]

From the Guardian of London
Dated Tuesday July 8

Blair has run out of steam - it's time for him to quit
All leaders eventually lose the power to enthuse. This one is no exception
By Hugo Young

Tony Blair is facing a crisis of credibility not on one front but two. They are his most punishing challenges in six years. He makes the big one sound like the BBC, and the weapons of mass destruction, and the unforgivable attacks on his integrity, concerning which a bloody battle will now unfold that has no winner. It matters deeply, for nothing is more important than the truth about why a country went to war. But it may not matter to so many people as much as the other erosion of belief. This is the existential crisis of a party leader who needs to face the unthinkable fact that he may have stayed too long.
Last week he almost began to admit it. For observers of Blair's usual verbal certainties, his admission that he has been getting the words wrong all these years was a startling flash. Targets? Delivery? Hell, these don't seem to be doing the trick, he said. What, Patricia Hewitt chimed in, are we really all about? The question goes deeper than words. A third term looms, and the high command seems to have no idea what to do to make it mean something. They yearn for radical renewal, yet the only reliable route towards it, I expect, is too radical to contemplate.

Read more.

[Cha]

1. Time for blair to go!!,,,,I wonder if tony plans to take anyone down...

with him?

[T_i_B]

2. Time to quit indeed

Blair is becoming an increasing liability to the progressive movement as it is quite evident that he is batting for the other side. Under Blair "new" labour, whilst obtaining a massive amount of power, has lost it's purpose, it's principles and it's soul in the proccess.

However, those who think that Blair will quit are deluding themselves. Blair is all about power and he will hang on to power for as long as he possibly can. Given the sycophantic nature of his MP's and the inability of the grass roots to challenge Blair he will be leading "new" labour for a while yet I'm afraid to say.

Sad really as this country needs a Real Labour Government.

[Merlin]

3. Maybe he should take a hint from Clinton's idea.

Big Dog said at his JFK library speech on 5/29/03 that perhaps we should change the 22nd ammendment to allow more than two terms so long as they're not consecutive.

Maybe Blair should step aside now, and let a clamor build for him to come back in a few years. He's certainly young enough.

I know it'll take me a long, long time to forgive him for his complicity in Bush's war crimes.

Loved this quote in the article:
"...all policies, as is well known, are at some stage perceived to fail."

Seems to be very true.