The old man held on until the last minute, but the hammer fell in the end. Senator Bob Corker, tenure of more than a decade, out. Defeated by a Trump-backed challenger, a car dealer named Marsha Blackburn. The Tennessee primary was a referendum on the party establishment. The president's base turned out, the Washington crowd stayed home. Result: a rout.
Westminster watches these things. And sighs with relief. The American system, with its open primaries and low-turnout contests, is a brutal meat grinder. One bad week, one ill-advised tweet, and a career is over. Our system is different. Safer. A party leader can survive a disaster. Ask Jeremy Corbyn.
The contrast is stark. Britain's parliamentary system is designed for stability. Prime Ministers are chosen by their MPs, not a popular vote. This insulates them from the mob. It also insulates them from accountability, but that's another story.
Here's the key insight: the US primary system rewards extremism. To win a primary, you need to rally the base. The base is a narrow slice of the electorate, highly ideological. In the UK, party members have a say, but the final decision rests with MPs. This tends to produce more centrist leaders.
But the gap is narrowing. Labour's leadership contests have become more American in recent years, with mass membership votes. The Tories are moving that way too. The danger is clear: if we import the US system, we import the instability.
For now, though, the contrast wins. The UK system looks calm and rational. The Prime Minister is safe in her seat. No primary challenger can unseat her before the next election. This gives her space to negotiate. To compromise. To govern.
Of course, the price of that stability is that we sometimes get leaders who persist long after their sell-by date. Theresa May is a case in point. But better a lame duck than a car dealer with a Twitter account.
The lesson from Tennessee is this: the political class in the US is terrified. They should be. The president's endorsement is a nuclear weapon. It vaporises careers. In the UK, the worst that can happen is a vote of no confidence. And even then, the PM gets a second chance.
So as we watch the chaos across the pond, we can afford a small smugness. Our system is not perfect. But it's better than the alternative. At least for now.
One caveat: the backbench. Our MPs are not powerless. They can rebel. They can call for a vote. They can force a leadership challenge. But it's a slow process. It requires organisation, a paper trail, a secret ballot. It's not a TV spectacle.
That's the British way. Quiet. Dignified. Deadly. The Americans have their reality show. We have our committee rooms. Two different worlds. Tonight, the British world looks a little better.
