AND BEHOLD - there was great rejoicing too in Islington. Mr Tony Blair's household was ecstatic at the news of President Clinton's return to the White House. Mr Peter Mandelson - spin doctor supreme and Labour campaign chief - cooed excitedly. The American result was proof that when a party of the left fully embraced the centre it was unstoppable.
Cynics might say that parties of the left appear to prosper after admitting they got it wrong on all the major issues, having abandoned their ideological baggage and re cast themselves in their opponents' image. But "morning for America" was no time for such begrudgery. And it clearly left New Labour's "muesli and sun dried tomato" brigade hoping a transatlantic wave will carry them to power when Mr Major finally names the day for the British general election.
And if the behaviour of the Conservative Party at Westminster is anything to go by, they clearly have good grounds for confidence. "I really despair of that lot," moaned one Labour man the other day - himself not at all reconciled to Mr Blair or sure that he fancies a Blair led government. The objects of his ridicule were Mr Douglas Hurd land Mr Kenneth Baker. These two "grandees" had roused themselves to attack Mr Michael Howard's plans to import American style mandatory prison sentences.
Mr Baker insisted the case for minimum sentences was "at best not proven, others would say inefficient and potentially dangerous". Mr Hurd said a policy on crime had to extend beyond locking up prisoners, and referred woundingly to a "race for votes".
Leave aside that there is much about the Home Secretary deserving of criticism. Leave aside that much of the legal and judicial establishment seriously question Mr Howard's addiction to the notion that "prison works".
The point was that here were two former Home Secretaries who, in their day, would have demanded loyalty and scorned those who have made life such a misery for the Prime Minister.
Now as their parliamentary careers draw to a close their best contribution was to provide Mr Major with another dollop of headlines proclaiming Tory divisions.
Nor are Mr Major's problems confined to the backbenches. Mr Howard and the Education Secretary, Mrs Gillian Shephard, have been playing silly beggars, too. After a public dressing down from Mr Major, Mrs Shephard went to the Commons and repeated her disagreement with her boss on the restoration of corporal punishment.
Mr Howard then scrambled into the fray, declaring his own position and compounding the damage already caused to cabinet unity.
Tory MP Mr George Walden (one of the army standing down at the election) saw two things at work here. One the natural desire of the Home Secretary "to ingratiate himself with what he clearly perceived as the mindless multitude." But more importantly, his detection of a potential rival from the soft end of the party "encroaching his macho territory". For, as Mr Walden puts it, "like Mrs Shephard, he has his eyes on the prime minister's job."
So, just weeks after a successful party conference, the "death wish" brigade appear once again at their work anticipating an election defeat.
With friends like these, Mr Major has no need of enemies. Indeed, he could be forgiven for privately thinking they bloody well deserve a good spell in Opposition. And yet, and yet ...
Mr Major looks beyond Westminster to happenings on the ground, pinches himself, and wonders if he might yet confound them all. For out there, something is stirring. It is slow, to be sure. And nothing like enough. But a Tory recovery is confirmed by the results of last month's spate of council by elections, with a swing of between 7 per cent and 15 per cent. The Liberal Democrats lost seven of nine seats they were defending - six of them to the Tories.
This has prompted some of the experts to revise downwards their forecast for the size of a Labour majority. For the results suggest an overdue correction of the more outlandish opinion polls, and imply that some middle class former Tory voters are finally "coming home" - particularly in the southern counties. Mr Major must only wish he could send his troublesome MPs home from now to polling day.
But as Labour celebrates Mr Clinton's victory, he may also console himself with the main message of the American election. It's still the economy, stupid!