And yet the really terrifying thing is that Blair seems to share the assumptions behind the Downing Street memo. He wants to go out with that sensation of triumph. He wants the laurels on his brow, and the captive tribesmen manacled before his chariot, and the matrons ululating his name from the rooftops.

In his indifference to reality, he is chilling, Neronian. This is no longer about the interests of the country. It is not even about the Labour Party. It is all about him, his desire to prosecute his long-running feud with Gordon Brown, and his vainglorious desire to be well remembered — to have a “legacy”.

Well, it is not a good enough reason to remain in office. The point of being prime minister is to serve the interests of the country, not himself. It is obvious that Blair intends to spend his last year simply luxuriating in power, while all 3,000-odd government spin édoctors (or as many as remain loyal) squander untold millions burnishing his image.

It is a disgraceful project, and it must be prevented. I say this with no selfish, strategic or party objective. In fact, from the Tory point of view, it would be ideal if he stayed on and on and on. Blair has the distinction of bringing civil war not just to Iraq, but also to the Labour Party. It is quite stupefying that Siôn Simon MP — the man we all assumed would be Ney to Blair’s Napoleon — should revolt in this way. How many ministers and understrappers resigned yesterday, because their Prime Minister would not resign immediately himself? Was it six or seven? For 10 years, we in the Tory party have became used to Papua New Guinea-style orgies of cannibalism and chief-killing; and so it is with a happy amazement that we watch as the madness engulfs the Labour Party. ~Boris Johnson, The Daily Telegraph

It’s no surprise that Blair is a raving egomaniac, surely, but it is amazing that he would jeopardise so much simply to have a victory lap through May 31, which is apparently the date by which he is going to resign.  He has managed to strongly alienate people in his own Cabinet and some of his long-time loyalists, and his ‘presidential’ style of leadership has finally left him with too many enemies.  On the other side, the precipitous attempt to push Blair out may have badly damaged Brown’s chances of succeeding to the leadership in that long-promised stable and orderly transition. 

We miss out on this sort of political bloodsport, which is a pity for several reasons, not least because we have no ready mechanism to force out an incompetent or someone who has overstayed his welcome.  Our system allows for tremendous misrule, provided (in theory) that it is not actually criminal, while a parliamentary system, whatever other problems it might have, can severely punish political leaders who merely become too attached to their own importance and power or who make the wrong political move.