The word is spreading through political Washington that the new president wants to shake up the way the US government relates to its allies, which will leave little space for the sentiment of old ties. There was a concrete clue when the White House announcement of Mr Brown's trip was made last Saturday. Mr Obama's mouthpiece Robert Gibbs declared: "The United States and the United Kingdom share a special partnership." Those familiar with the thinking of Mr Obama's top team say that use of the word "partnership" rather than "relationship" is an important distinction - it illuminates Mr Obama's belief in practical measures that work, not the old way of doing things.
The new administration seems to care little for what the British have contributed in Afghanistan or Iraq in the past; what matters now is simply how many more troops Brown is willing to pledge for the surge in Afghanistan. It's a very hard nosed, short-term approach rather than one rooted in a sense of enduring alliance. It seems the special relationship is being significantly downgraded.
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