Tony Blair would be President of the EU, but only if they give him enough power. This is one good reason for Gordon Brown to fight giving the EU power [or at least the President role], as Blair being President of the EU would be his nightmare.

This is a perfect reason to re-post William Hague's speech in the EU (Amendment) Bill in which he paints the picture of Brown receiving Tony Blair as "Mr President"...

Watch the video of Hague's hilarious demolition of Gordon Brown in his speech on the EU (Amendment) Bill below [via Harry Hook].

Or read the text here at Daily Referendum.

Even Miliband can't help from laughing!

David Cameron and the Conservative Party are calling for Brown to "stop dithering" about whether or not to call an election, and effectively tells him to 'bring it on'. At the same time, William Hague says at the conference in Blackpool that "the Conservative Party is ready, it is hungry for victory and if Gordon Brown ever summons up the courage to call an election we are going to beat him."

The polls appear to say the opposite, giving Brown leads of 7-11 points - if the election was tomorrow, of course. But it is also claimed that much of this increase in the polls is focused up in the Labour heartlands of North England, with the electorate in both Scotland and South England not being anywhere near as enamoured with the Great Clunking Fist. But the recent boundary changes "give" the Tories an extra 10-5 or so extra seats straight off. This is also compounded by the fact that in 35 council by-elections since Brown took over as prime minister, the Tories have a nine-point lead over Labour. And these are real votes, not just opinion polls - especially based as they are on the Brown Bounce and Labour conference.

If Brown calls an election, he can only lose. If he does anything less than come back with a majority greater than his current 66, he will have effectively lost, no matter that he still has a majority in the Commons. Thus, for him to win it would require a virtual decimation of the Tories - something that is unlikely, even with his poll lead.

By calling for Brown to stop "dithering" and just call an election, the Tories are aiding and abetting Brown and his government in painting him into a corner - very soon he will have to either call an election or look like a dithering coward, which isn't exactly a characteristic desirable in a prime minister. By allowing himself to be boarded in in this way, Brown has missed at least one trick. He should have either ruled out an election or called one in his conference speech - even if it was simply to say that there would be an election this autumn, but without mentioning a date yet. As his loyalist ministers have been stoking up the election fires, if he does not go it will be a big blow to his credibility.

I'm still not convinced he will though.

Sources: The Times, The Telegraph, BBC

Charles Kennedy, the former leader of the Liberal Democrats, forced out because he was - and had been for years - an alcoholic, is refusing the rule out a return to front-line politics and challenging Ming the Merciless the doddering old fool Campbell for his old job. His reply to the question "Are you going to be the comeback kid?" was:

He does seem to show some signs of still being under the influence, however, since he seems to have forgotten how many hours are in a day, and how many days are in a week, saying:
Of course, that could also have been meant as a joke, and a subtle sideswipe at Ming's leadership.

Will, or can, Charles Kennedy ever return to front-line politics? I'm not sure it's possible. Wherever he goes, whatever he does, his alcoholism [former or otherwise] will always hang over his head. Whatever happens, the Liberal Democrats should not be stupid enough to put him back in the leadership position. He may still be popular, and more so than Ming, but to put him back as leader would be a huge mistake. For one, it would be a step back in time. Like Hague could never really be Conservative leader again, Kennedy can never be Lib Dem leader again. In these jobs, you only get one chance. For a party to go back to an ex-leader makes them look weak and backwards-looking, rather than strong and forward-looking.

Kennedy, unlike Hague, shouldn't return to front-line politics at all. No matter what he does or where he goes, the shadow of his alcoholism will always hang over him. Commentators will question everything he does through that lens, and it will always come up again and again in any interview. Since he resigned [or, rather, was pushed] over a personal issue, there is no getting over or away from it in the public mind. He should instead concentrate on building a non-political career. After all, it's not like the Lib Dems are ever going to make it into government!

Sources: The Telegraph, BBC