Nick Clegg’s carefully crafted battle cry in today’s Times, outlining his intention to target Labour seats in the next election as the Lib Dems strive to become the new ‘dominant force of progressive politics’, has prompted much discussion in the blogosphere.

Largely skipping over the intricacies of an article that Clegg clearly put great thought into, contributors (see the comments) are falling over themselves to argue that his claim that "Labour has misread the demand for individual and grassroots empowerment in contemporary Britain" jars with his own party’s conspicuous lack of opposition to the Lisbon Treaty.

Many of these comments are probably motivated by staunch opposition to the treaty itself but, putting to one side the specificities of that document, the underlying accusations of weakness should worry Clegg. The party lost more than three frontbench rebels when it helped the government to block a referendum last March (accused by some of reneging on an election pledge) – it forfeited a great deal of public confidence. Clegg must shake off the aura of weakness and amateurism often associated with his party if he is truly to be seen as a viable alternative to Brown. Perhaps his strongly defined vision of Liberal politics in the modern age will initiate that transformation.

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