Ottawa-based Toronto Star reporter Susan Delacourt tells us that new democratic party leader Jagmeet Singh is on a roll. She tells us that Singh has reasons to be optimistic about the election we could be in shortly. While it seems mean to poop on Jagmeet’s parade, the truth is the polls err. He will be lucky to have 24 NDP members still in the house after the election.
The sad situation is that Jagmeet does not have much support among the other 23 NDP members. Oh sure, they all voice their support, but you might not want to delve too deeply into the depth of that loyalty. And none, realistically, can see him as prime minister of Canada. The optimism of Canadians does not run that deep either.
What Canadians have not seen from Jagmeet is leadership. His decency is not questioned. Nor is his concern for others. His experience as a lawyer is one of his strengths. His experience in martial arts probably contributes to his self-confidence. He is an intelligent man with a warm personality.
But leadership requires more. The new democrats need someone to lead who sees the needs, the aspirations and the potential of Canadians and has the confidence to build visions of a better future in the minds of his listeners. That is not Jagmeet.
And Jagmeet Singh is no Jack Layton. Jack Layton was never going very far as a Toronto councillor but he seemed to grow into the job as leader of the NDP. The biggest surprise with Layton was how he made Quebec pay attention to him. Conversely, Singh is a yawn in that province. Bigotry is more open there.
And what kind of campaign are the NDP going to run? We are hearing that Jagmeet claims that the success Trudeau had in managing the pandemic was because the new democrats forced him to meet their demands, in exchange for their support for the liberal minority. And since the liberals and conservatives claim they will create a million jobs, the NDP should also make that claim.
When the new democrats finally pull away from their socialist and old-style union roots, they might have something for Canadians. Jagmeet does not.
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Copyright 2021 © Peter Lowry
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