It must be the frequency of conservative party leadership contests that make them seem to go on forever. No wonder Canadians seem bored with politics. In a week when the most exciting political stories are on the east side of the Ottawa River or in the far north, you know that it is still the dog days of summer.
But I bet you think MP Pierre Poilievre has already won that conservative leadership. That could be the bad news for the conservative party. I think sensible liberals are more concerned about Jean Charest. The former Quebec liberal premier is the kind of guy that the last two federal conservative leaders tried to be. Both Scheer and O’Toole tried to drive their party down the middle of the political road and became road kill.
But Canadians are not about to warm to Pierre Poilievre. He is the high-risk candidate. Sure, he appeals to the people from the truckers’ convoy. He appeals to some of our younger Canadians who fail to understand how divisive he can be. Any Canadian who has paid attention to what has happened in the United States over the past ten years can understand how divided that country has become.
We hope that Canada could never become that divided. It has taken over 50 years of Alberta acting as though it is not the favourite of the politicians in Ottawa. Alberta politicians have made a mantra of blaming Ottawa for everything.
But then, why would any sensible Canadian voter be impressed by politicians who constantly blame others for our nation’s problems without providing any answers themselves. Mr. Poilievre says he wants to make Canada the freest country in the world, when it already is one of the freest in the world. He says he wants smaller government. A smaller government would nor be able to build the high-speed electric train systems we need in this country. How would a smaller government be able to maintain the international trade that our country enjoys? Would a smaller government be able to protect our country? Would a smaller government look after our seniors, our disabled, our sick? The problem is that Mr. Poilievre is spouting hollow political slogans because he has no solutions. He is a fraud.
-30-
Copyright 2022 © Peter Lowry
Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to: