But there also was a good reason to wait--the NDP convention. I didn't go, and I was not shy about saying that I thought the party--my party for so long--had gone terribly astray during the last election. To let Justin Trudeau run to its left! What a terrible abandoning of what the NDP has always been in Canada--the voice on the Left with the good ideas.
That the stunning repudiation of Thomas Mulcair appeared to be a surprise to those close to him shows just how little they'd been listening to the rank and file, or for that matter the electorate. It's not having lost an election that's a problem. It's having lost an election by running on Centrist ideas. And it's not that Mulcair and company weren't warned.
Full disclosure is necessary on that point: I was president of Mulcair's riding association from 2011 to 2013, so I knew to whom to send emails when Lee (an economist) wanted to point out the fallacy of running on a no-debt platform at a time when the economy needs stimulus and interest rates are very low. Similarly, for years I've tried to get Mulcair to take a more pro-active stand on protecting the Canada Health Act and our single-payer system. There were others in the party who also blew whistles but weren't listened to.
So we shall see what we shall see. In the meantime here's bit of orange I clicked back when the world seemed to be going Orange in 2010-2011....
2 comments:
The idea Trudeau ran to the left of Mulcair is an establishment media lie. (I'm not a Mulcair supporter or even NDP for that matter.)
For one, both CBC Vote Compass and PoliticalCompass.Org put Mulcair's NDP significantly left of Trudeau (PC.O: Trudeau 20% right; Mulcair 0% right or dead center.)
Second, all of Mulcair's policies that were left of Trudeau: 1) federal carbon pricing; 2) daycare; 3) pharmacare; 4) reversing Harper's $15-billion a year in corporate tax cuts; 5) reversing Harper's $36-billion healthcare transfer cuts; 6) opposing TPP free trade; etc.
Trudeau is like Obomba: a right-of-center fake agent of change. If Obama had delivered the goods, there would be no desire for the real thing in Bernie Sanders. Hopefully the new NDP leader will bring Bernie to Canada. Put an end to 30 years of Tough Tory Times beginning with Mulroney.
Ron, I think the problem there was packaging, as well as the balanced budget promise.
Jeremy Corbyn and Bernie Sanders both demonstrate that there is an appetite for politics based on defending the rights and interests of the working class, "ordinary people", the 99% or however you prefer to put it.
It will be interesting to see the contenders for the NDP leadership. I live in Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie, the riding of Alexandre Boulerice (and am a big fan), but it might be better to have a leader who is not from Québec, and there are a couple of potential women candidates, which would be positive.
I'm sure that Bernie, who lives not very far away, is no stranger to Montréal...
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