Meet Andrew Scheer, leader of the conservatives and ambassador to the 905 ridings of Ontario from the more peaceful, less frantic reaches of Prairie conservatism. The 905 region is also known as the Golden Horseshoe that wraps around the City of Toronto. It is also home to much of the wealth that drives Toronto. The conservatives have to win this area to win enough seats to form a government again in Ottawa.
Scheer assures us that his conservatism is not much like the bombastic conservatism of Doug Ford at Queen’s Park. He probably has a point that he is not much like Mr. Ford. He lacks the charisma.
We hardly knew Mr. Scheer when he was picked as the least contentious, and least interfering speaker of the house of commons after the 2011 election. It was a parliament that had the first majority conservative government in Ottawa in many years.
And it was when Hell broke lose. It was the least orderly parliament in many years. It suffered from too many cheap shots and catcalls. Questions to conservatives went unanswered or simply drew insults. That parliament passed questionable and often undemocratic bills without being given time for proper consideration. It was a record low point in foreign affairs. It was a house needing a good house keeper, not Andrew Scheer.
But once the public had done with the Harper government, it was Andrew Scheer who won enough support to be the new conservative leader. Of 13 leadership hopefuls, he was the least likely to do anything. And he did little but carp.
And he is now out there on the hustings—mostly in the 905—telling Canadians that it is time for them to get ahead—because they can be sure that a Prairie conservative does not believe in the government helping its citizens.
Don’t ask this conservative to add Pharmacare to Medicare. He is certainly not interested in doing anything about our endangered environment. Oh sure, he makes promises, because he wants you to elect him. Don’t count on him coming through with anything meaningful. He wants to help his friends, the conservative premiers. He wants to help the rich. Like all conservative ideologues he is a mean-spirited person. He is also a social conservative, do not ask him about women’s rights.
I call him ‘Chuckles.’ He is a clown.
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Copyright 2019 © Peter Lowry
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