Skip to main content

Why Ed Miliband is experiencing his West Wing moment



Labour leader sets political weather by following in the footsteps of President Jed Bartlet who spoke from the heart
Share 129




inShare1
Email



Ed Miliband is setting the political weather this week because he is following the example of President Jed Bartlet in the West Wing, played by Martin Sheen Photograph: Channel 4


A good leader of the opposition scores points off the government. A strong leader of the opposition sets the political weather.

Ed Miliband, largely written off as a weak leader for the past nine months, has gone from the first goal to the second in little more than a week.

Miliband's extraordinary rollercoaster of a ride over the past week will reach a new high on Wednesday when the Tories and the Liberal Democrats support a Labour motion calling on Rupert Murdoch to abandon his bid for BSkyB.

The vote may make no legal difference to the bid which is now being examined by the Competition Commission. But it will send an almighty signal to Murdoch who knows that it will be difficult for him to take full control of BSkyB if parliament says no.

For the first time Labour critics are uttering a thought they assumed would never enter their minds. This is that they cannot imagine David Miliband setting the agenda in the same decisive way as his younger brother has over the past week.

In a superb column in the Times on Tuesday, Rachel Sylvester wrote that Ed Miliband is living out one of the finest moments of the West Wing. Aides of the Labour leader are so delighted with his performance that they are ending meetings declaring:


Let Bartlet be Bartlet.

Miliband needs no reminder of what this means because he was studying at Harvard when US liberals, in despair at the presidency of George Bush, tuned in for their political fix of life under a fantasy Democrat president in the West Wing.

Aides to Bartlet coined the great phrase after a brain storming session as they worked out how to respond to a drubbing he had received in his first mid-term elections. They decided that the best strategy was to allow Bartlet to follow the famous advice of Polonius to be true to be himself. Their new strategy was designed to contrast with Bill Clinton who famously responded to the appalling mid-term results in 1994 by tacking to the right.

The strategy worked for Bartlet because the West Wing's consultants – former Clinton aide Dee Dee Myers and former Ronald Reagan speech writer Peggy Noonan – wanted to show that voters tend to respond favourably to a sincere politician. Obviously West Wing fans gloss over the fact that Clinton's move to the right worked for him when he won a second term in 1996.

Miliband is doing well this week because he is following in the footsteps of Bartlet and is being true to himself. His attacks on News International ring true because he has never made much of an effort suck up to the Murdoch empire.

There were times during the Labour leadership contest when some fans of New Labour asked whether Miliband was concerned that he was alienating Murdoch. The future Labour leader said he didn't care and would speak his mind.

But the Labour leadership contest showed that Ed Miliband does not have a completely pure record. It emerged last September that David Miliband had been invited to dinner by James Murdoch. Rebekah Brooks was also due to attend the dinner. It turned out that Ed Miliband had been invited to dinner by Dominic Mohan, editor of the Sun. Brooks was also due to attend that dinner.

For the moment, though, Miliband is riding high. Downing Street will be taking stock. It will support Miliband's call for Rupert Murdoch to drop his bid for full control of BSkyB. But it is just a week since Downing Street sources were critical of Miliband for "betting the farm" on an outright assault on News International.

Popular posts from this blog

Study Abroad USA, College of Charleston, Popular Courses, Alumni

Thinking for Study Abroad USA. School of Charleston, the wonderful grounds is situated in the actual middle of a verifiable city - Charleston. Get snatched up by the wonderful and customary engineering, beautiful pathways, or look at the advanced steel and glass building which houses the School of Business. The grounds additionally gives students simple admittance to a few major tech organizations like Amazon's CreateSpace, Google, TwitPic, and so on. The school offers students nearby as well as off-grounds convenience going from completely outfitted home lobbies to memorable homes. It is prepared to offer different types of assistance and facilities like clubs, associations, sporting exercises, support administrations, etc. To put it plainly, the school grounds is rising with energy and there will never be a dull second for students at the College of Charleston. Concentrate on Abroad USA is improving and remunerating for your future. The energetic grounds likewise houses various

Best MBA Online Colleges in the USA

“Opportunities never open, instead we create them for us”. Beginning with this amazing saying, let’s unbox today’s knowledge. Love Business and marketing? Want to make a high-paid career in business administration? Well, if yes, then mate, we have got you something amazing to do!   We all imagine an effortless future with a cozy house and a laptop. Well, well! You can make this happen. Today, with this guide, we will be exploring some of the top-notch online MBA universities and institutes in the USA. Let’s get started! Why learn Online MBA from the USA? Access to More Options This online era has given a second chance to children who want to reflect on their careers while managing their hectic schedules. In this, the internet has played a very crucial in rejuvenating schools, institutes, and colleges to give the best education to students across the globe. Graduating with Less Debt Regular classes from high reputed institutes often charge heavy tuition fees. However onl

Sickening moment maskless 'Karen' COUGHS in the face of grocery store customer, then claims she doesn't have to wear a mask because she 'isn't sick'

A woman was captured on camera following a customer through a supermarket as she coughs on her after claiming she does not need a mask because she is not sick.  Video of the incident, which has garnered hundreds of thousands of views on Twitter alone, allegedly took place in a Su per Saver in Lincoln, Nebraska according to Twitter user @davenewworld_2. In it, an unidentified woman was captured dramatically coughing as she smiles saying 'Excuse me! I'm coming through' in the direction of the customer recording her. Scroll down for video An unidentified woman was captured dramatically coughing as she smiles saying 'Excuse me! I'm coming through' in the direction of a woman recording her A woman was captured on camera following a customer as she coughs on her in a supermarket without a mask on claiming she does not need one because she is not sick @chaiteabugz #karen #covid #karens #karensgonewild #karensalert #masks we were just wearing a mask at the store. ¿ o