http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3102039.stm

PM's US admirers set sights on White House


He is the complete outsider - no hoper, in fact - being pressed to join the 2004 race for the White House, the politician who wowed the US Congress while facing increasingly testing times closer to home.
The car stickers, mugs and t-shirts are on sale. The campaign team is up and running. You can even sign the petition urging him to stand.

Yes, the campaign to take Tony Blair from Downing Street to Washington, ousting his pal George Bush along the way, has begun - tongue firmly in cheek, of course.

 
Could Blair beat Bush?
That's not to say that Jim Bursch, founder of the Blair 2004 campaign, isn't an admirer of the prime minister. He is - very much so.

The website he has set up to promote the man he describes as "leader of the English-speaking world" carries a selection of speeches and articles hailing Mr Blair. And the t-shirts and stickers are as genuine as Mr Bursch's respect for the prime minister.

Mr Bursch, who lives in Los Angeles, says he was inspired to set up the campaign after the joint press conference between Mr Blair and President Bush at Camp David on 27 March, a few days into the Iraq war.

"I was persuaded to support the war in Iraq by Tony Blair, and I found myself preferring his articulate leadership to President Bush's, well...let's just say inarticulateness," he said.

  He explains things in a reasoned, thoughtful way, as opposed to the grunts and groans of Mr Bush.

Jim Bursch
Blair 2004 campaign  
"I said to myself, 'I wish that guy was our president.' I am an American who supports the aims of the Iraq war, but not a supporter of President Bush personally."

Mr Bursch kitted Mr Blair out with a campaign t-shirt and coffee mug as a birthday present for the prime minister's 50th on 6 May. "I received a very nice thank-you note from his communications secretary acknowledging the gift," he said.

"The Blair for President campaign is a way of expressing appreciation for Mr Blair and support for the Iraq operation, in a slightly tongue-in-cheek way," he said.

Qualities

Unfortunately for Mr Bursch, under the US constitution candidates for the presidency have to be US citizens.

And nor could Mr Blair increase his presidential hopes by moving to the States and applying for citizenship: presidential candidates have to be "natural citizens" - either born in the US or born outside the States to American parents.

But Mr Bursch believes that in a fantasy world where the prime minister was able to put himself forward to challenge President Bush for the White House, Mr Blair would win "hands down".

"He has exactly the qualities and the policies that a majority of Americans would vote for," he said.

 
The website carries Blair speeches
"He's got what Al Gore sorely lacked in 2000 - charisma. And he has demonstrated that he will exercise power to secure the American people in a post 9/11 world."

So what is the key to Mr Blair's appeal? "He does a great job of explaining the big picture, and staying focussed on the greater goals, without getting mired the commentary of day-to-day developments - which is the news media obsession.

"He is able to put things in context in a way that Mr Bush can't.

"He explains things in a reasoned, thoughtful way, as opposed to the grunts and groans of Mr Bush.

"At the end of the day, the most important point that Mr. Blair makes about Iraq is that the international community - even if it's just Britain and the USA - must deal decisively with the likes of Saddam Hussein when he poses a threat and defies the peaceful efforts of the international community to address that threat."

Admiration


  Tony, you made Britain great again, do the same here!

Campaign supporter  
According to Mr Bursch, his admiration for the prime minister is shared by many others in the US.

"Whenever he speaks to the American people, as he did from Congress recently, the admiration grows," he said.

"On the political spectrum, the far right loves him for his support of President Bush and the US; the centre to centre-left appreciates his thoughtful articulation of the need to address security issues; and I think the American left is probably just dismayed by him.

"This is in contrast to how he seems to be regarded in Britain, where he is lambasted from the right and the left and keeps a tenuous hold on the centre."

As for Mr Blair's domestic problems, Mr Bursch believes few Americans will be aware of them.

Heat

"It may have to do with the differences in our political systems and political parties. The Republican party, which is currently in the majority, is known as a more disciplined party when it comes to supporting the leadership.

"Mr Bush is taking some heat like Mr. Blair, but it's much more intense for Mr Blair. I doubt most Americans are aware of that."

Mr Bursch's website has a petition signed by around 600 people urging Mr Blair to seek the presidency.

"I think the Honorable (sic) Mr Blair is a great leader, and a person with tremendous intellect and wisdom," says one supporter.

"You're the man Anthony," says another. "Tony, you made Britain great again, do the same here!" adds another.

But it isn't all good news. Some of those from the UK who've come across the Blair 2004 site are enthused by the idea of the prime minister crossing the Atlantic - but for different reasons to those suggested by Mr Bursch.

"I am from the UK - you can have him," writes one signatory. "Take him away from us - please!"

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3102039.stm


"I am from the UK - you can have him," writes one signatory. "Take him away from us - please!"

purleese

lol once the US saw what he was really like they'd want rid straight away.