Quote:
Originally Posted by MTVN
I feel sorry for them really, they were in such a difficult situation after the election and Clegg's been the one holding the Coalition together but then gets turned on by the Tory-endorsed No campaign. The Lib Dems are generally very good on a local level as well, it's a shame that voters have punished them so badly
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I try not to be too judgemental about the fact Clegg entered a Coalition with the Tories, because the LD's focused so heavily on attacking Brown's incumbent government in their election campaign, they would have been labelled hypocrites for choosing Labour instead. However, I am afraid this is a disaster of their own making otherwise. Whatver backroom deals they felt they had to make, nobody forced them to regurgitate virtually every piece of Tory spin, make a u-turn on Tuition Fees, support their slash and burn cuts agenda and VAT rise (remember they supposed to be Keynesians and Vince Cable in fact started out as an SDP member... how does somebody change their mind on this overnight?), and support the underhand privatisation of the NHS.
The Conservatives did NOT have a mandate to lead this country and were in no position to be calling the shots and so I can only surmise that the Libs did this for a little bit of short term stature and a few more seats in cabinet. This is the cancer of the modern politician. Long-term influence and public trust are completely secondary to immediate political gains.