The Tory Tightrope

It seems there's a growing clamour amongst bloggers for David Cameron to start beating Labour up about the budget.

Especially attacking Gordon Brown on the amount of debt and borrowing without the requisite reductions in publice finance that the government proposes over the next 10 years.

The problem for the Tories is that the man in the street hasn't the first idea about the level of national debt nor does he understand GDP. Most bloggers that take an interest in politics do, so its easy for them to criticise the Tories as no being pro-active enough.

The problem is its too easy for Labour to then start the mantra of "Tory cuts" and destroy the Conservative lead in the polls.

Cameron is playing Labour at their own game: in 1997 Labour said they would continue with Tory spending plans and thereby gained acceptance with the public and were voted in. Cameron is playing the same game. By refusing to engage in any discussions about financial policy, he is first refusing to allow Labour to pin the Tory cut badge on him.

Its a tightrope for the Conservatives. Navigating a clear path to election victory isn't straightforward as some bloggers insist it is.