Today, probably about 40% of the eligible voters of Toronto-Danforth will vote a new Member of Parliament into place, following the death of their old one, NDP Leader/Messiah Jack Layton. The riding is, in all likelyhood, going to stay NDP. Below is a chart of the riding since the 1999
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Driving The Porcelain Bus: democraticSPACE Supports Thomas Mulcair
Here is the post by democraticSPACE: [I’ve added emphasis in bold.] Seeing the extreme positions taken by Republican candidates in the U.S. gives us a clue as to the typical dynamic of leadership races –- first, having to win over a party’s base who are more dogmatic than the electorate
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: The decisive question
Following up on my candidate questionnaire and previous posts about party organization, I’ll offer my own observations on the final two questions I posed to the leadership candidates. I start from the premise that the primary goals of a leader are to serve as the party’s public face and chief
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Roundup
With the NDP’s leadership campaign entering its final week, it’s no great surprise to see plenty more punditry than usual surrounding the race. But what might influence the ballots cast this week (which may end up making all the difference)? – The most attention over the last day or so
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Questionnaire Response – Niki Ashton
Finally, Niki Ashton had this to offer in response to my party organization questionnaire: 1. As leader, what changes (if any) would you seek to make to the NDP’s:(a) caucus management and discipline? Caucus members are elected as New Democrats, and I believe that, where there is a clearly established
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Questionnaire Response – Paul Dewar
While noting the resources involved in responding to a request for information delivered late in the NDP’s leadership campaign, I have to be impressed when a candidate who could easily enough have pointed to a well-publicized platform plank instead deal directly with the specific issues raised in a questionnaire. And
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Questionnaire Response – Thomas Mulcair
Here’s Thomas Mulcair’s response to my leadership questionnaire on the NDP’s party organization: 1. As leader, what changes (if any) would you seek to make to the NDP’s:(a) caucus management and discipline?(b) membership engagement and organizational structure?(c) policy development process?(d) candidate recruitment and nomination process?(e) relationship to other political parties?(f)
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Questionnaire Response – Peggy Nash
Last week, I crowdsourced some questions to the NDP’s leadership candidates about their plans for party organization. (Unfortunately the comments have disappeared, and I’m still working on getting them to reappear – but as you’ll see I incorporated changes into my draft version.) Obviously it’s been a busy time for
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
Random readings to occupy your time. – Stephen Maher and Glen McGregor are still digging into Robocon – with a focus on figuring out exactly how “Pierre Poutine” assembled lists of anti-Con voters to target. And Sixth Estate both points out that the count of affected ridings is up to
Continue readingTrashy's World: One progressive party under one banner?
“Nope,” I said. “They’re too goddamn stupid.” That’s what Warren Kinsella told Bobby Kennedy Jr. when asked if the NDP and Liberals could ever be persuaded to work together. And he was right. As long as the progressive vote is split between the two parties in this fine country, Harpo
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Roundup
The latest couple of days worth of news as the NDP’s leadership campaign enters its final week – aside from multiple candidates including Niki Ashton, Paul Dewar and Peggy Nash all taking the opportunity to call for unity in the wake of the continued overreaction to Ed Broadbent’s latest comments.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Mark Kennedy reports that once again, Canadians are largely opposed to the Cons’ plans to attack social supports: The poll found that 49 per cent of Canadians are preparing for a “bad news” budget from federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and that 57
Continue readingknitnut.net: I’m starting to wish I hadn’t joined the NDP
I can hardly wait until March 24th when all the NDP leadership candidates stop compaigning for my vote. My phone has been ringing off the hook with recorded messages from different candidates and their various supporters, telling me why I should vote for them, or inviting me to participate in
Continue readingThe Scott Ross: The Undemocratic Conservative Coalition
There is only one federal party in Canada that calls for the creation of a coalition. Of the four major political organizations, there is only one that has in its constitution as one of its founding principles the responsibility to develop such a union. It isn’t the Green Party, it
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On saintly proclamations
Ed Broadbent’s recent foray into the NDP’s leadership campaign has certainly attracted plenty of media attention. But it’s worth taking a skeptical look as to why the story has been such a media favourite – and why we should resist the temptation to focus our discussion of the race on
Continue readingA BCer in Toronto: Our raison d’être can’t be opposing
The always bubbling in the background chatter about thedream of a few to see the Liberals and NDP to merge or form some sort ofcoalition came to the surface again recently with comments made by Liberal MPJustin Trudeau in Victoria and broadcast by Sun TV. Here’s a snippet: “By 2015,
Continue readingFar and Wide: NDP Leadership Race Goes "Liberal"
It really is quite astounding, that someone with as much political experience as Ed Broadbent would so openly and fundamentally attack the candidate who is the consensus favourite to assume the NDP leadership. I would categorize his comments as reckless, but perhaps worse outright dangerous, leaving much potential for lasting
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Why I’m Voting for Nathan Cullen
Nathan Cullen has my vote. Let me begin by saying that we are at an historical moment in Canadian history. We are being besieged by an increasingly draconian corporatist, neo-conservative and neoliberal Conservative Party government which is far worse than Mulroney’s free trade corporatist “Progressive” Conservatives from a generation ago. This government is an
Continue readingBroadbent Comments About Mulcair Betray NDP Principles
Given that Thomas Mulcair the perceived front-runner in the NDP leadership race, it’s not surprising that rival campaigns would attack him. It is perhaps a bit more surprising when a former Leader and one for whom a lot people (myself included) have respect, Ed Broadbent, does the attacking. In effect,
Continue readingFar and Wide: Harper Will Galvanize Opposition
The “anything can happen” camp in both opposition parties will resist any talk of co-operation, but if you live in the world of probability rather than possibility, sober conclusions must be entertained if we are to truly rid Canada of a government I personally consider a scourge. A divided opposition
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