"[[Nick Cohen|[Nick] Cohen]] assures me that he has no intention of following [[Paul Johnson|[Paul] Johnson]]'s long political journey. Since he is a personal friend, whose journalism I admire (I hired him twice, once on the Independent on Sunday, once on the NS), I believe him. But I don't underestimate the sense of betrayal on the left. When the rest of the press was cheering on [[Tony Blair|[Tony] Blair]], particularly in new Labour's early days, Cohen was his most virulent critic and almost the only coherent voice asserting "real left" values. Now, in some eyes, he has deserted the cause when it needs him most."