There is a discomfort in seeing hockey stick-mounted maple leaf flags flying from pick-up trucks. Maybe the flags that simply say ‘F*ck Trudeau’ are a clearer message. In any case the flags that some politicians seem to be flying today differ strongly with the parties to which they tell us they belong.
Take the top four contenders for the federal conservative leadership. Front-runner, MP Pierre Poilievre flies under the flag of the freedom convoy. How he can pander to these extremists and run for the conservative party, while bad-mouthing the Bank of Canada and promoting Bitcoin, is something of a puzzle.
Former Quebec liberal premier, Jean Charest flies under the flag of the former Mulroney conservatives of 30 years ago. It seems he is finding that politics have changed.
Charest’s friend, Former MP and mayor of Brampton, Patrick Brown, is the retail politician who delivers down the middle of the road. In his campaign website, he describes himself as a successful businessman. That is a rather odd claim for someone who has never run a business.
The last conservative contender worth mentioning is MP Leslyn Lewis. She is probably the best educated in law and appeals to the anti-abortion side of the conservative party.
The most controversial of conservative flag wavers is the premier of Ontario, Doug Ford. Ford is a populist. His only flag is that of Ford Nation, a Toronto-based support group, in that he supports and they benefit.
The conservatives in Quebec fly many flags but the right-of-centre Coalition Avenir du Québec flies the confused flag of discrimination against those who wear religious symbols or speak English. As premier Legault is facing an election later this year, he is promising inflation bonuses of $500 each to Quebecers if they re-elect him.
Prime minister Trudeau waves the flag of environmentalism. He tells us how much less pollution there will be in the future despite his spending billions of taxpayers’ money to twin the Trans Mountain pipeline. The dual pipeline will be completed next year to take Alberta tar sands bitumen to Burrard Inlet to export to Asian refineries.
It would seem that we need to check and see exactly what flag our politicians think they are operating under.
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Copyright 2022 © Peter Lowry
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