Get Well Soon Jack!

Posted on 5 February 2010 | No responses

So, a non-partisan moment here… because, although I may not always agree with the policies of the NDP I do have great respect for Jack Layton.  He is an incredibly valuable opposition voice in the House of Commons, and incredibly valuable to Canada as a whole.  He has done so much great work in his political career.

So, that said, I just wanted to say get well soon Jack.  I know you’re a fighter.  Luckily it seems that your prostate cancer was caught in time, so this is very good news.  Many Canadians are diagnosed with and survive prostate cancer every year and I know you will be one of them.  Keep on fighting.  You’re a good man, and I expect to see you and the stache back fighting Harper in the House of Commons soon!

Lies from the Conservatives… Starring Peter Braid.

Posted on 5 February 2010 | 8 responses

I have never seen a clearer example of Conservative talking points making one of their MP’s look incredibly foolish than in this video.  My former MP Peter Braid (from when I lived in Waterloo) gets completely embarrassed by Bob Rae for the lies in his talking points… then continues to repeat the same things over and over, never addressing the questions and just looking foolish overall.  Check it out, it made my day.

What the Liberals Need to Do

Posted on 2 February 2010 | No responses

Now, I’m no expert.  I certainly don’t have all the answers, but from talking to many people recently (because my conversations almost always digress into politics) I have noticed a simple theme.  That theme is that the Liberals need to explain why they would be a better government than Harper’s and moreover, exactly what they would do if in power.

I have expressed previously my happiness about the current work the Liberal party is doing during Harper’s little vacation, because they are engaging stakeholders and presenting legitimate ideas, but now it is time to go further, much further.  They have their Thinkers Conference coming up, so I understand the reluctance to release anything too substantial at this exact point, but as soon as that is done they need to go much further than they have.

My thought is that they need to put out their ideas and policies in one simple sheet or policy book.  Inform Canadians of their main points.  Work from the starting point of “how are the Liberals going to help Canadians?”  Provide clear, concise, and well-researched policies.  This is the key.  Canadians want, and need to know, the specifics of how a Liberal government will be better for Canada than the current Conservative government.  This is currently what is missing, and from my recent conversations what is holding many people back from actually supporting the Liberals.  The Liberals need the support of these undecided voters… and to get them the Liberals need to let them know exactly why they should be voting for them.  Exactly why, provide specifics.

As a note, yes – a party can get into trouble promising too much.  If you are not able to accomplish it all it can look bad, but this is a risk the Liberals should take.  If they honestly think they can and should do something then they should put it out there.  If in the end they can’t do it (which with the experts around the table should rarely happen) they simply need to be honest about it, apologize, and move on.  Right now Canadians want ideas and this is what the Liberals should be providing us.  Honest, progressive, tangible, and feasible ideas.

The key is to get ideas out there.  This is what Canadians want, and is how a party will get votes.  Obviously, as a Liberal I have faith in the party, and I honestly feel that they are be the best party to run this country.  The Liberals need to keep in mind that there is a very large undecided vote out there and these people want to know why they should vote for a particular party – so Liberals, get on it and explain why you are best fit to govern this country, because you are… but right now people don’t know why this is true.  Tell them.

So Liberals, put together your policy book and prove you have ideas, because right now people are doubting it, and moreover don’t see why you are a good alternative to Harper.  You need to prove it.  Harper’s prorogation, and the backlash that went with it, has created an opportunity for the opposition to shine – take this opportunity and run with it.  The next election is yours to lose.  Prove you deserve it.

What Next?

Posted on 1 February 2010 | No responses

Really, what is next in Canadian politics?

Liberal and NDP MPs are currently hard at work in Ottawa, and those on their self-imposed vacation will come back when Parliament returns in early March.  At that point we get a Throne Speech and then a confidence vote.

What happens after that?   How does that vote go?

Poll numbers are slowly creeping in favour of the Liberals, but it is still a dead heat.  Do they want to risk an election at this point?  I’m not sure.  It could be a huge risk, because there is no guarantee in victory, but they have certainly had a good showing over the past couple months, which I’m sure has increased their confidence levels.

But do Canadians want an election?  Last time that threat was made the Conservative polling numbers jumped up.  I fear this will happen again.  We have had far too many elections (for the non-political dork types like myself) in the last couple years, and I know Canadians have definitely tired of it.

On the other hand, one of the best Conservative talking points, made quite clear the other day by Tony Clement, is that “if you don’t like us then vote us out.”  This applies to the parties in power as well.  By not voting out the Conservatives in confidence votes does make the opposition look weak on some levels.  I can see this as a good point.  In a pure and simple argument, if you don’t like the government in power you shouldn’t support them in votes of confidence.  Unfortunately this perspective is simplifying it far too much.  In the current Canadian political climate people don’t want an election.  Voting out the current government will likely severely hurt your polling numbers – and this is not what the opposition wants, because then they will lose the election, and bring us back to exactly where we are.  The trends in the polls seem to show that Canadians care more about not having an election then the actual actions of the parties.  I’m sure this will change soon enough though, once a reasonable amount of time has passed from our last election.

My honest opinion is that the current situation, especially for the Liberal party, is quite the Catch-22.  They can’t support the government, but they can’t vote them out.  It’s tough.  This is going to require some great strategy on behalf of the Liberal team.

My personal opinion?  Take the heat and support the government for a while longer.  This is a self-imploding government in my opinion.  They have multiple scandals, plus the prorogation right behind them.  They are losing control of the fantastic messaging they have held for the past few years, and losing their lead in the polls.  Give them time to further damage their image, because when they come back they are going to be pummeled with questions about their anti-democratic agenda and the Afghani prisoner scandal.  If given enough time Canadians will be more inclined to go back the polls, allowing opinions to rest on ideas instead of  the “I don’t want an election” sentiment.

Simply put – further expose the scandals and incompetence of our current government, while developing a good rapport with the Canadian public and publishing many solid platform policies.   The Liberals have the ability and talent to move forward with a strong plan like this, but they need to be patient.  They need to ensure they execute their strategy properly and slowly move the polls towards them, but this will take time.  Do it properly and build to a strong Liberal government – preferably a majority.

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