The British Parliament has overspent, over-regulated and over-taxed. That is what needs changing in the U.K. It's that simple, and yet none of the candidates for prime minister seems able to say so clearly.
The current election matters, of course, to to British, but also to the West, generally. The U.S. needs a European partner and NATO needs a leader. Unfortunately, British party leaders still can't find their way. Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats has shot up in the polls, entirely because of a good showing in the first TV debate. But underneath his attractive appearance is a lack of substance. Moreover, the built-in national weakness of his party in various ridings (districts) means it would be hard for it to win a majority of seats even with a majority of votes. The Conservatives--who seem to have raised the taxation issue only to let it slip away--still lead in polls but are offering one plastic phrase after another. So is Labour. The Liberals are retreading Obama's posters and offering "Hope."
They all want "Change", of course. But no one seems serious about it.
The leader who takes on spending, taxes and regulations in a convincing way may not get an instant response. The British public may be too divided into special pleading factions to appreciate the message at once. But leadership is about looking ahead and seeing the truth that others avoid. At some point in the campaign the voters will respond positively.
Most disappointing is David Cameron of the Tories. As Theodore Roosevelt said of William Howard Taft, "He means well feebly." His abstract chatter about "The Big Society" is numbing.
The great English Conservatives of the past--Disraeli, Churchill, Thatcher--were brave as well as prescient. They trusted their principles. They took chances, not surveys.
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