Theresa Lubowitz on the Death of Substantive Policy Canada is teetering dangerously close to the death of substantive policy as we know it, with the rise of a populist Conservative Government, a populist NDP Official Opposition, and a struggling Liberal Party so afraid of irrelevancy it has spent the last
Continue readingTag: Liberal leadership
The 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 readingThe Equivocator: Micah Goldberg: Trudeau Leadership Needs Big Ideas
Politics is more about timing than it is skill. Being the right person in the right place at the right time is more conducive to political success than being the wisest, best-educated or most prudent individual in the world. With Bob Rae’s decision to respect his oath not to seek
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Justin Trudeau is a Serious Candidate for a Serious Party
I agree with Andrew Coyne that the Liberal Party of Canada needs to be the party of bold policy ideas and that on some issues we need to be to the left of the NDP/to the right of the Conservatives. However, I strongly disagree with Mr. Coyne’s assertion that “a party
Continue readingImpolitical: Liberal leadership movement
A few developments to note. First up, word came last night of LPCBC President David Merner’s announcement that he is leaving that position in order to run for leader. I spoke with David on the weekend while he was at the LPCA meeting in Edmonton. Merner is a native Albertan,
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Justin Trudeau: Thomas Mulcair’s worst nightmare
If Justin Trudeau was leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and an election was held today, then three of Thomas Mulcair’s nightmare events would take place Firstly, and most seriously, roughly 1 in 3 NDP supporters would switch their votes to the Liberals. Secondly, the LPC and CPC
Continue readingImpolitical: Supply management & #LPC leadership
I have two reactions to the issue of supply management becoming the first prominent issue to be featured as part of the still very early Liberal leadership race. First, uh, how did this issue which most Canadians have not likely even heard of get to be a lead-in issue? Does
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Justin Trudeau: The Power of the Brand
The latest Angus-Reid poll has some startling results for all parties. It seems that if Justin Trudeau was leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, the party would be propelled from its current third place behind the NDP and Harper new Tories, into the first choice of the majority of
Continue readingImpolitical: Fun with headlines, etc.
“Liberal leadership: Justin Trudeau could lead Liberals to first place, new poll shows.” Um, what? I read this report twice. But nowhere do I see in that Star report anything to support the sensational headline. He’s first in one online poll on possible Liberal candidate names, yes. Vaunting the party
Continue readingImpolitical: The morning after
Interesting report last night on CBC’s The National for those still looking for some more news on the big story of yesterday. Notably, a certain MP who has been keeping a very low profile during all the leadership talk seemed to suddenly emerge as part of the story. Elsewhere, every
Continue readingImpolitical: Rae not running
Not much time to write anything so just a few quick thoughts… Rae has said all along that he had not made a decision about running, despite the presumptions being made. He has been saying it in scrums repeatedly. As recently as Monday he said it along with a joke
Continue readingPressing Politics: Protected: It’s Justin, Not Pierre’s Son: Trudeau The Next Liberal Leader?
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
Continue readingImpolitical: A thought on the leadership hullabaloo
Tomorrow the National Board is deciding on a motion or set of procedures pertaining to the Liberal leadership race and the conditions under which candidates, including Bob Rae, would be permitted to run. I don’t know what the details will be, despite the leaks, and will await the decision. I
Continue readingLeopard spots
Hot on the heels of the non-news that the Liberal Party’s national executive would rule soon that interim leader Bob Rae is “allowed” to run for the permanent leadership (he could anyway, but whatever), social media, the blogosphere, and the mainstream media are full of reports suggesting that Rae may
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: May Another Man Win
The Libs have decided to let Bob Rae run for the LPoC leadership. Which is OK by me because I basically think he’s served the party well, is not some kind of 5th columnist and etc., and really ought to be treated fairly and with respect. I also don’t think
Continue readingPolitical Twitter makes me cry
This is all pretty obvious stuff, but it needs repeating, especially as we head into the Liberal leadership period. I’m not calling anyone out here, but it would be nice if all politicians – Liberal, Conservative, New Democrat, & Green alike – tried to use Twitter in a more authentic
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: The Bullshit Vision Thing #nlpoli
Dean MacDonald, the undeclared leader of the provincial Liberal Party spoke to a crowd in Port de Grave district on Saturday night. There’s an account of his speech in the Telegram’s Monday edition. Dean crapped on the provincial Conservatives for all sorts of things. Most of all, he seemed to
Continue readingcenterandleft: Bob Rae’s Steep Climb
A Leger Marketing poll was conducted between April 2nd and 4th, and showed the NDP on top of the pack, with 33%, leading the Conservatives by 1%. The Liberals were far behind at 19%, the same level of support given in May 2011. Leger’s information confirms another poll done earlier
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Thomas Mulcair’s flip-flop on cannabis is disappointing but not surprising
On January 25th, 2012, a survey was released on EndProhibition.ca (a pro-NDP anti-prohibition website) where Thomas Mulcair’s campaign stated that he was in favour of decriminalizing cannabis and was very much in favour of medical marijuana. On March 18th, 2012 Mulcair was doing a t.v. interview with Tom Clark (see
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Dalton McGuinty speaks at the Liberal Party of Canada Biennial Convention 2012
Favourite quotes: “Polls can impede our vision of the future.“ Laurier’s Definition of Liberalism: “I am a Liberal. I am one of these who think that everywhere, in human things, there are abuses to be reformed, new horizons to be opened up, and new forces to be developed.“ “At a
Continue reading