Was in Ottawa for the leadership reveal, and I’ve been meaning to write a blog reflecting on the race. First off, let me thank all the volunteers and party staff who worked during the weekend and throughout the race. While the obvious winner was Justin Trudeau, and congratulations to his
Continue readingTag: David Bertschi
The Liberal Scarf: Winners and losers in the LPC leadership race – besides the obvious winner
Was in Ottawa for the leadership reveal, and I’ve been meaning to write a blog reflecting on the race. First off, let me thank all the volunteers and party staff who worked during the weekend and throughout the race. While the obvious winner was Justin Trudeau, and congratulations to his
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Specific policies mentioned in the Toronto Liberal Leadership Debate
In keeping with my goal of policy centric coverage of the Leadership contest, this post contains largely a list of various policies mentioned by the respective Candidates at the Toronto Liberal Leadership Debate. The ability to articulate a clear policy vision for Canada, not just utter platitudes and generalities, is paramount
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Liberals One-on-One
The moderator failed to ask the tough questions, such as “Mr. Bertschi, why on earth are you wearing that scarf?“ My mind has been on the Ontario Liberal leadership race the past few months, so I’ll admit to not having paid close attention to the federal contest. Not wanting to
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Vancouver Liberal Leadership Debate: First Impressions
As following the recent NDP and GOP leadership races so poignantly demonstrated, leadership debates are best at demonstrating the electibility of candidates. Basic values come through as well, but these are largely shared in a party, and specific policies are usually just tossed in more as rhetorical tools to act
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Liberal Leadership Pool
Who will cross the finish line first? While a Justin Trudeau cakewalk in the Liberal leadership race doesn’t seem quite as inevitable as it did two weeks ago, most pundits still regard his win as inevitable. However, while discussing the relative strengths of the Coyne and Takach campaigns over drinks
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Interview with David Bertschi
After brunch with David Merner and my trip to the George Takach launch, my tour of lesser known Liberal leadership candidates lands on David Bertschi today. While not an “official” candidate yet, Bertschi has been campaigning longer than most. He was the first candidate to launch a website, and even
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Canada’s Greatest Losers
Last week, Martha Hall Findlay and Karen McCrimmon declared their candidacies for the Liberal leadership race. This week, George Takach has taken the plunge. I’ve posted one blog interview with David Merner, and will have others with David Bertschi and Alex Burton next week. Deborah Coyne, meanwhile, has already released more fresh ideas than we’ve seen from Stephen Harper during his entire tenure as Prime Minister. These are seven very different candidates with seven very different messages, but the one … →
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Great Moments in Political Analysis
You’ve got to love anonymous Liberals: A source in one of the developing campaigns for two Ontario Liberals who have been laying groundwork for a federal leadership bid for several months said initial activity by McGuinty organizers has included extensive public opinion polling. “I’ve heard from a couple of sources
Continue readingThe Equivocator: In Defense of “Second Tier” Candidates
On July 4th Bob Hepburn wrote this silly article: “Warning to Liberals: Beware delusional no-hope leadership candidates.” I would like to defend these so-called “no-hope” candidates. The next Liberal leader is unlikely to be elected Prime Minister in 2015. We must have a 2 election strategy. The Liberal Party cannot
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics blog: ndp and liberals searching for a pulse on the prairies.
Tweet You can be forgiven if you missed it. Hundreds of Liberals from across Alberta gathered in Edmonton last weekend for the biennial meeting of the Liberal Party of Canada in Alberta. Bob Rae Speakers and guests at the weekend conference included interim Liberal leader Bob Rae, Scarborough-Agincourt MP Jim
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Liberal Leadership Update: Trudeaumania?
The Liberal Party’s National Executive is set to meet next Wednesday to set the party’s leadership race rules. Shortly thereafter, Bob Rae will announce his intentions and, from there, the dominos will fall. With BBQ season soon upon us, it won’t take long to figure out who’s running, even if the formal declarations take a
Continue readingCalgary Grit: An update on all the people MAYBE running for Liberal leadership
The expectation is that rules for the Liberal leadership race will come down in June, setting the stage for a summer of getting to know the men and women wanting to lead Canada’s third party. But while we won’t know the rules of the race for another month or two,
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