British Prime Minister Gordon Brown: So Far So Good

LONDON, July 2, 2007 — -- No one, not even his arch political enemies, are suggesting that new British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is enjoying the current terror crisis, but he seems to have benefited politically, nonetheless.

The botched firebomb attack at Glasgow airport and the interception of two car bombs in London have created an unexpected, and mandatory, stage on which Brown is defining his crisis leadership style.

In the immediate aftermath of the Glasgow incident, Brown addressed the nation live on TV. The statement, in which he urged the public to be vigilant and vowed to never give in to terror, was brief enough to be replayed in its entirety on all news channels and loaded with extractable short bites for later news shows and reporter's packages.

In a random, informal sampling of opinion on the streets of London, some people were sympathetic to Brown.

Andrea Macini, 34, who has lived here for 12 years, told ABC News, "It's a shame. I wouldn't want to be in his shoes right now. He's been in the chair for a week and he's already not sleeping at night."

Peter Oborne, a right wing conservative British political commentator, who is certainly not a natural ally of the ruling Labour Party, had a surprising score card for Brown. He told ABC News, "I think the role of a political leader in this sort of crisis is mainly choosing the right words and letting the security services get on with their jobs. I think he [Brown] got off to a good start."

Oborne added, "He is proving to be politically adroit, with brilliant political positioning, with his new Cabinet — which already embraces a former member of the Conservative Party — and he has appointed others who are outside of elective politics. He has marginalized the Conservatives, and it's very clever. He is much smarter than people realized."

That, of course, is a worry for the opposition Conservative Party, whose job mandate it is to pick holes in the policies and practices of the ruling party.