Even put within the context of his own error-strewn career, Conservative mayoral candidate Boris Johnson’s statement that he wants Hillary Clinton to be elected President, argued at length in the Telegraph, must go down as one of the most stupid things he could possibly say.  I assume it’s just one of his japes.  I hope it’s one of his curiously charming bounder’s comments that he made without regard to the actual words that he propagated.

But let’s say that he actually means it.  The crux of his argument is that Bill Clinton would make a better presidential spouse than the maritally-challenged Rudy Giuliani could possibly afford.  Wait for the incredulity to kick in.

He readily concedes - and rightly so:

She represents, on the face of it, everything I came into politics to oppose: not just a general desire to raise taxes and nationalise things, but an all-round purse-lipped political correctness.

He concedes - and rightly so - that the most important issues are:

Who should have their finger on the nuclear button? Who should be Commander-in-Chief of the American military, the hugest and most lethal killing machine in history?  The world may still face all kinds of economic upheavals, as the panic from the American subprime mortgage sector spreads around the world, like a kind of financial BSE. Whose brain can we rely on to protect us?

For all the importance of the President’s position as Commander-in-Chief of the America’s military might, for all the significance of his role as head of state of the world’s largest economy, and for all the powers enshrined in the constitution of the presidency, Boris makes his decision based on who sleeps in the presidential bed.  And, like Boris, I slap my forehead in astonishment.

Clinton is economically naive, spouting nonsense that is only believable because it’s placed in the wider context of a very left-of-centre Democratic nomination race.  She has lauded the New Deal, called the free market the “most radically disruptive force in Americna life”, and lobbied for heavy tariffs on (of all things) candlemakers.  Her support of more stringent campaign finance reform, a ban on flag-burning, and computer game censorship threatens freedom of speech.  She has offered each 18-year old $5,000 to pay for beer college.

This doesn’t sound like a programme that Boris should support.  When he spoke to UCL last October, he asked people to guess who his political hero is.  Margaret Thatcher?  Winston Churchill?  Robert Peel?  No, no, et mille fois non.  His answer was the mayor from Jaws, because, in Boris’ words “he did absolutely nothing: just as government should.”  Wonderful answer, illustrating a sound libertarian philosophy underpinning his characteristic umming and erring.  So what the hell is he doing endorsing her?

I hope that it’s just political posturing.  I really, really do.  Just as Ken Livingstone monopolises the left-wing vote, so Boris has his staunch supporters to the right.  The mayoral race therefore hinges on who can cannibalise the Liberal Democrats’ voter base: winning their second-choice votes.

Due to the timing of the mayoral race, Boris can easily change his tune after he (hopefully) wins, cite events in the primaries, and switch to Giuliani or whoever else.  If he does that, he can claim ‘no harm, no foul’, and move on to replacing bendy buses or whatever else he wants to do with the GLA’s £10.7bn budget.  If he doesn’t, and this is a sincere and honest statement in favour of Clinton’s candidacy, and therefore the principles that she espouses, it must go down as Boris’ most stupid gaffe to date.