Nick Clegg: The deceit and the conceit

Nick Clegg adopted Ming's ploy to deceive the British electorate by asking for a referendum on being a member of the EU.

It allows shallow Lib Dems (by no means all of them) to claim I want a referendum - just not the one which they promised ....

Nick Clegg was on Radio 4's Today programme this morning trying to call black white. He clearly learnt a little from his humiliation on Newsnight last night where the pure conceit of his position was laid out for him. He tried - and because he wasn't a Conservative - was allowed to talk out the time allocated. ( This was clearly his intention as at one point he even mentioned there's not much time left so let me explain .... Meaning if I talk long enough you won't have a chance to expose my rank hypocrisy any more ).

Newsnight gave him a rougher ride. Working on these lines - So the Lib Dems are being ordered to break their election promise and not vote one a proposal for a referendum on the EU Constitution ( which is what it really is ). That after the manifactured rage about not getting their own measure through - the only reason for which is the naked politics of trying to deceive their electorates that they "wanted a referendum".

The public can see this rank hypocrisy and deceit for what it is, and whilst some Lib Dems may not be able to break their word and will vote with the Conservatives today, the public have seen their party for what its is: dishonest, unreliable, hypocritical and deceitful.

It is also a party that's policies are dismantling the United Kingdom and handing its people over to an alien state where they will always be a small minority and from whom they may never recover their freedom.

In the short term Lib Dem MPs can expect to be rewarded not with 20 pieces of silver (the going rate for this sort of betrayal) but with P45s.

Update: Iain Dale watched Newsnight also and thought :

"I defy anyone to watch last night's Newsnight interview with Nick Clegg and tell me they think the Lib Dem position on an EU Referendum is anything other than a fiasco. Watch it for yourself HERE. It's about 15 minutes in."

Guido picks up on the discipline hole Nick Clegg has dug himself - there are shades of William Hague and his then leader of the house of Lords about this. In particular the elephant trap Paxo offered Clegg on if he'd asked for Lib Dem front bench resignations if they didn't refuse to vote as he told them to. Clegg's answer where evasive and paxman repeated the question to try to gain clarity. If in fact Clegg has asked for these letters then his credibility with his own MPs will have been destroyed by this interview.

Norfolk Blogger - whom Iain Dale quotes - deserves much credit for calling it the way he see's it - even though he's currently a Lib Dem. If more people interested in politics refused to be dragged along by party loyalty and spin when something that really matters comes up then perhaps the people's faith in politics could be restored. Well done Nich.