The Labour Leadership Contest To Lose

From Guido:

Guido’s source cautions that we have been here before and Brown has a knack of hanging on by his bitten down fingernails. Chickens are not being counted. Campaign teams are however being assembled in readiness with the weekend of June 12/13 pencilled in for them to break cover. Miliband’s SpAd Sarah Schaefer has sounded out a team ready to go within weeks, Alan Johnson’s unsuccessful deputy leadership campaign team is also clearing the decks. The game is very much on…

Well, yes, we have been here before. Brown has been on the ropes far too many times for anyone to really be counting him as down and out before he actually is forced from the leadership. But he is running out of supporters and options. We could see some sort of leadership challenge after the Euro/Local elections.

But if it does come down to a Johnson/Miliband contest, then the former gets my support. Not because there is anything in any way good about Alan Johnson, but at least he is that grinning, over-grown idiot of a schoolboy David Miliband. Can you imagine David Miliband on the international stage? We’d be (even more) of a laughing stock with that geek gurning at Obama etc.

But there is one massive factor that means another coup d’etat in the Labour party is unlikely: who’d want it? Seriously, who would want to be Labour leader and Labour Prime Minister now? You’re going to lead the party to defeat, and you’re going to be forced out of office by some preening youngster fuck like Purnell or (good God help us) Burnham. This would be the Labour leadership contest to lose, which is why I think all the likely candidates would be very cautious before forcing it. Brown may survive the coming election catastrophe because no-one else wants his job.