Cameron Becomes Conservative Prime Minister of Great Britain

The first conservative overthrow of Labour socialists since Margaret Thatcher in 1979!

I watched the BBC live as the car took Prime Minister Gordon Brown to Buckingham Palace to resign his office and recommend that Queen Elizabeth II call Conservative Leader David Cameron to form a new government.

LONDON - MAY 11: Britain's Queen Elizabeth II greets David Cameron at Buckingham Palace in an audience to invite him to be the next Prime Minister, on May 11, 2010 in London.

Cameron is the 12th Prime Minister during Queen Elizabeth II'nd's reign. Her first was Winston Churchill.

It's an amazing contrast with the American system. Especially so after four days following the election when no one knew what the outcome would be. Conservatives won the most seats in Parliament; but not a majority and socialists held out hope that they could engineer a deal to stay in power. That effort failed Tuesday and Brown resigned and followed overhead by news helicopters left Number 10 Downing Street to visit Buckingham Palace to see the Queen. After the meeting, his car had to wait in traffic like everyone else while other senior Labour cabinet ministers left their government supplied homes and offices that many had occupied for years.

On television, or live Internet, anglophiles were treated to stunning aerial images of central London. What a treat!

Yank's Perspective

One thing that is so apparent is the lack of a big inaugural ceremony. No parade, just a quick meeting with the Queen then out with the old and in with the new. American conservatives may also note that while this is a significant win, the biggest swing to conservatives in 80 years, our conservative cousins will have one hand tied behind their backs in what is reported to be a coalition agreement with the Liberal Democrats made necessary because conservatives failed to win majority control of Parliament.

There's more to come with the shakeout from this arrangement and likely will not be most agreeable to conservatives in Britain or this country. Such arrangements simply underscore the need to achieve solid conservative majorities!

New Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron is no Margaret Thatcher. And as we watch Europe's financial system teeter on the brink, one thing becomes clear: Britain needs another Thatcher as badly as the U.S.A. needs another Reagan!