The Spectator

In an interview with The Spectator last September, Mark Penn, Hillary Clinton’s chief strategist, advanced the following paradoxical political principle: ‘What we have tried to do is make sure people understand that you need experience to bring about change.’ To translate: in order to usher in the new, it helps to be old — or at least to have been round the political block. The thrilling start to the US presidential primary season has revolved around the (often infuriatingly vague) notion of ‘change’, and the question of who is best placed to implement it. Which of the candidates, in practice, truly personifies the clean break with the Bush years that the American electorate seems to crave?

For the answers to the Impossible Quiz, click here.

As in Iowa, you can’t help but notice the enthusiasm gap between Republicans and Democrats. This morning Obama drew 3,000 people and no one seemed to mind the event starting an hour late or that a large chunk of the audience had to be located in an overflow room. The majority of the crowd were families with young kids: political pay dirt.  There were only 600 people at McCain’s event. Admittedly it was in a much smaller town and there were more people waiting outside, but unlike at Obama’s most of McCain’s attendees were older voters—the average age must have been comfortably over fifty. If you're a Republican you have to worry about how fired up the Democratic voters are and just how many independents Obama is bringing to the party.

Analysis coming up.

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We now have the full audio of last night’s Spectator / Intelligence Squared Iraq debate available. Whatever your opinion on Iraq, it really is worth listening to, the speakers were eloquent exponents of their positions and the questions from the floor were in the finest, robust traditions of British public debate. Also, do read Lloyd Evans’s excellent review of the event.

You can now listen to the Spectator / Intelligence Squared Iraq debate from Methodist Central Hall by clicking here. The cast of speakers is stellar and includes William Shawcross, Sir Christopher Meyer and Tony Benn.

The US needs the UK Sir: David Howell is certainly correct (Letters, 1 December) in pointing to the massive shift of wealth to Asia and oil producers, a development to which I have repeatedly called attention in my columns for the Sunday Times, most recently this past week. But that, so far, has little to do with my contention that the maintenance of world order remains the responsibility of the United States, a responsibility that can best be discharged with Britain at its side. Yes, Britain should pursue other relationships that a changing world makes useful to it.