On the road with Gordon in the search for hearts and minds

It was a gamble, more than Gordon Brown’s aides had cared to admit.

It was a gamble, more than Gordon Brown’s aides had cared to admit. Every last detail of the new Prime Minister’s press conference at Camp David had been planned, from the tone of the Prime Minister’s voice to the colour of his tie. The President’s team had taken issue with a few passages of Mr Brown’s text, and amendments were made. But it was not the content of the text that mattered. It was — well — the whole damn thing.

As we waited in the sweltering Maryland heat of Camp David, on a huge expanse of immaculate turf, a driving range doubling up as a helipad for three military choppers, a Marine asked if we were being looked after, whether we had been given sodas and cookies: Camp David is a naval base, so they welcome you ‘on board’ when you arrive.