There was an event years ago when the Liberal Party president and this writer were taking a rest after helping set up chairs for a large party meeting. And yes, it was part of our jobs. Because authority in the party comes with responsibility. You do whatever needs to be done.
Justin Trudeau needs to hear what that party president said those years ago. As he caught his breath, he said the it would sure be easier to send the party office a cheque. And it is.
This comes to mind with reading what happened at the Halifax meeting of the Liberal Party’s national board the other day. It seems that Prime Minister Trudeau presented the board with a plan to do away with membership in the Liberal Party of Canada.
Our idealist prime minister seems to think that we are wasting our time worrying about membership fees. He just wants the names of people that the party office can bombard with requests for funds.
But what he does not seem to understand is that the party has worked with a multi-tier system of membership for many years. Electoral district lists have always been sectioned with party members being the smaller list. The larger list was always made up of people in the district who gave money, took signs or were otherwise supportive of the party. With the party’s centralized LiberaList now working (most of the time) Justin seems to think that anybody who does not mind being spammed by the party can have all the privileges of Liberal Party membership.
That party worker who will doggedly go out and canvas for the Liberal candidate night after night is worth more than a lot of $100 contributors. The campaign worker who braves the elements to put up signs, keeps making those phone calls, greets potential workers at the campaign office, does a literature drop or collects money for the campaign is usually a paid-up member of the party. They are people you get to know and trust. They are not elitist. They are your neighbours.
And these are the people you want giving opinions on party policy ideas. They are the people you want at party conventions to listen to ideas and consider resolutions. These are the people you want to choose from for party office. And, most important, these are the people you want choosing the candidates who will run for the party in their electoral district.
Thinking about it, Justin’s father never really understood the Liberal Party either. He just appreciated it. What his son needs to learn is the difference between leading the party and using it.
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Copyright 2016 © Peter Lowry
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