One of our favourite news people, Tom Clark, tried to corner Interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae the other day on his weekly Global show: The West Block. Tom knew before he asked how tough it is to corner a long-time politico such as Rae. Tom asked Rae what really big idea the Liberals would carry into the next election in three years. He got a glib answer. It was the politically right answer but it left no time for them to discuss where Canada’s Liberals really want to go.
That is hopefully a question that will be answered this coming weekend at the Liberal Party of Canada’s Biennial Convention in Ottawa. There needs to be at least three indicators to be a strong movement in any one direction. The first indicator will be the choice of a new party president. The second will be if the delegates really work at returning the power in the party to the party’s grass roots. The third indicator will be a judgement call as it depends on how heavily delegates side with social democratic type resolutions. The betting is that coming out heavily on the side of a more democratic party, better party functionaries and a more left-wing policy stance will guarantee the party a left-wing leader two years from now.
Once the Liberal Party recognizes that it has to be a left-of-centre party, it can come up with the big idea that enables the voter to vote yes or no. The party tried the middle road through to the last election and all that got them was third place. Nor can the party just be an alternative to Stephen Harper’s miserable Tories. To win the votes of the New Democratic Party and restore the Liberal Party to power, the party must have the new ideas, the confidence and the plan that will restore our country and our people.
Tom Clark knows very well how the Liberal Party functions best. He has covered many party gatherings over the years and he has seen that when the party gets the bit in its teeth, the leader is in for a wild ride. It was Pierre Trudeau and Lester Pearson before him who gave the Liberal Party its head and gained from the policy ideas that emerged and the quality of the candidates who came forward. It was the right-wing leaders–Turner, Chrétien and Martin—who lessened party input and drove the party to its current poor representation in the House of Commons.
It is up to the delegates at this convention, starting Friday, to reset the stage. There are many foolish resolutions on the table to try to distract them from where the party needs to go. They need to choose their battles, choose the party functionaries and the direction that will rebuild the real Liberal Party. We wish them well in their quest.
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Copyright 2012 © Peter Lowry
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