In writing about the honourable members we elect to our legislatures and parliament yesterday, an image kept coming to mind of our new Member of Parliament for Barrie–Springwater—Oro-Medonte. It is not a positive image. The honourable gentleman who now represents the riding is an acolyte of Patrick Brown, the new leader of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party.
And nobody can draw the visceral hatred of a political foe as quickly and as vehemently as Patrick Brown MPP. The man is not widely loved in this his hometown. He spent nine years in the Harper Conservative government and did nothing for his country or city but vote Conservative. In the few times of a free vote being called by the Harper government, he voted against women’s rights.
But it is his stand-in Alex Nuttall, the new Member of Parliament, who assumed the cloak of Patrick Brown in Barrie—Springwater—Oro Medonte, The two Conservatives currently share the rural Springwater and Oro-Medonte townships in their federal and provincial ridings. In the next provincial election, they will have the same electoral district boundaries.
Brown is teaching Mr. Nuttall to be a ‘retail politician’ like himself. It is a position where you never have to explain yourself to voters. Nothing you do in the community is presented as political. It is all presented as serving the community, using community events, charity drives and family activities.
Frankly, Mr. Nuttall is more of a failure in politics than Mr. Brown. Throughout the overly-long federal election campaign, Mr. Nuttall appeared petulant, angry and was unwilling to debate his opponents. He was probably too much out of his depth. His responses in the few appearances, were he showed up, were waspish and included unnecessary attempts to smear an opponent.
In the recount after a very tight finish, you could see where Mr. Nuttall lost most of the Barrie polls. It was the overwhelming lack of knowledge of him in the rural parts of the riding that eked out a narrow Conservative win.
That is why Patrick Brown is back in town to take that boy in hand. It would never do to have the Liberals get smart and start building organizational strength in his riding over the next two years. Brown expects to have a safe seat ready for him in 2018 when he will want to spend his time trying to win the province.
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Copyright 2016 © Peter Lowry
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