Today wasn’t supposed to like this. The Tories and the Lib Dems were supposed to have reached an agreement by now, shaken hands in front of the cameras and we were going to be moving on. The national interest and economic stability was going to be put first.

Instead, the negotiations have gone public. Labour’s deal – a bill to make AV the voting system immediately, without a referendum (assuming they can get it past the commons) has been made public. Brown has stepped down. Labour are doing everything they can to keep the dream of the Rainbow Coalition together. The Lib Dems, on the other hand, have sniffed at the offer from the Tories: A referendum on AV for the British People, and we now know it’s their final offer.

That’s it then. All we can do is wait. But suddenly it feels like the Lib/Con deal is off and the Lib/Lab deal is on, and I’ve completely lost my ability to look at this objectively. Lib Dem activists on Twitter are saying:

Apparently Tories have offered Lib Dems a referendum on Alternative Vote, final offer. Surely, surely, they can’t say yes? (@alexfoster)

@CharlotteGore If that’s their final offer, fuck ‘em, frankly. (@stealthmunchkin)

I’ve just finished on the phone with a Lib Dem that I know that works in a Constituency office. He says at least 3 people will tear up their membership cards if there’s a deal with the Tories. The grassroot Lib Dems are as thrilled with the idea of a coalition as the Tories, and in their contempt for each other we may well yet see tribal party politics prevail.

It’s all getting a bit horrible out there. The hope of a non-partisan Government that puts dealing with the deficit first is a very, very tough thing to just let go of just like that.

The Lib Dem’s dilemma is still an impossible one, but looking from the outside I still have to hope and believe it’s possible for them to do the right thing.