As Cherniak on Politics blogs tonight, and as Keith Boag's story on the CBC National news reveals, representatives of the NDP and the Conservatives had a deal. They agreed some time ago that they would both block the inclusion of the Green Party in the debates. And they stuck with the deal until Jack Layton "turned turtle".
Which is interesting. First, when the news first broke that May would not be allowed in to the debates, I happened to be on the air on the Ottawa radio station, CFRA, doing a weekly panel on Afternoon Edition with host Rob Snow. When I suggested that the Conservatives and NDP had colluded to keep the Green Party out, my co-panelist and the NDP's official campaign spokesperson, Brad Lavigne, denied it vehemently. As it turns out, that was exactly what happened.
This brings us to the second point. In past elections, I had the privilege of talking to many thousands of people in Ottawa Centre, many of them (too many!) who voted for the NDP. In the six month campaign that Ed Broadbent and I ran together in, I knocked on well over 60,000 doors before our campaign stopped counting. I write this to say that, during that wonderful experience, I gained some appreciation for what these good people looked to the NDP to do for them. Working with Stephen Harper was not high on their priority list. They did not expect or want Jack Layton to work with Stephen Harper to defeat a national child care program. They did not expect their representatives to vote to end the Kelowna Accord, and to spend all their energy defeating a Liberal government that had just secured an international agreement to further the Kyoto objectives and deal with climate change. They did not want the party they voted for to work with Stephen Harper to force an election which achieved Layton's objective: a Stephen Harper minority government.
No, that is not what NDP supporters elect their Members of Parliament to do. They don't see politics the way Jack Layton does: the Liberals are the ultimate enemy and it doesn't matter what tactic you use, what progressive policy you bring down as long as you defeat the enemy.
So the challenge for Layton is that this new deal with Harper just underlines to his potential supporters the sometimes symbiotic relationship between these two unlikely partners. They say the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Jack's problem is his potential voters don't share his definition of who the ultimate enemy is. For them, on most days, it is not the Liberals. It is not the Green Party. It's the guy who stands most against what they believe: Stephen Harper.
Which is interesting. First, when the news first broke that May would not be allowed in to the debates, I happened to be on the air on the Ottawa radio station, CFRA, doing a weekly panel on Afternoon Edition with host Rob Snow. When I suggested that the Conservatives and NDP had colluded to keep the Green Party out, my co-panelist and the NDP's official campaign spokesperson, Brad Lavigne, denied it vehemently. As it turns out, that was exactly what happened.
This brings us to the second point. In past elections, I had the privilege of talking to many thousands of people in Ottawa Centre, many of them (too many!) who voted for the NDP. In the six month campaign that Ed Broadbent and I ran together in, I knocked on well over 60,000 doors before our campaign stopped counting. I write this to say that, during that wonderful experience, I gained some appreciation for what these good people looked to the NDP to do for them. Working with Stephen Harper was not high on their priority list. They did not expect or want Jack Layton to work with Stephen Harper to defeat a national child care program. They did not expect their representatives to vote to end the Kelowna Accord, and to spend all their energy defeating a Liberal government that had just secured an international agreement to further the Kyoto objectives and deal with climate change. They did not want the party they voted for to work with Stephen Harper to force an election which achieved Layton's objective: a Stephen Harper minority government.
No, that is not what NDP supporters elect their Members of Parliament to do. They don't see politics the way Jack Layton does: the Liberals are the ultimate enemy and it doesn't matter what tactic you use, what progressive policy you bring down as long as you defeat the enemy.
So the challenge for Layton is that this new deal with Harper just underlines to his potential supporters the sometimes symbiotic relationship between these two unlikely partners. They say the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Jack's problem is his potential voters don't share his definition of who the ultimate enemy is. For them, on most days, it is not the Liberals. It is not the Green Party. It's the guy who stands most against what they believe: Stephen Harper.
3 comments:
I'm glad to see that blogging agrees with you my friend. Next step, links on your sidebar!
I think the NDP will lose a lote of votes in this election & probably a few seats too as their followers begin to really see how closely aligned Layton really is with Harper.
I also expect to see Layton change tactics soon & begin to slam Dion & the Libs much, much more than Harper & the Cons. And this, too, will cause the NDP to lose votes. Those who would vote NDP most definitely will not vote Cons. They will go Libs or the Green Party.
Yup, we have a new Blue Orange Coalition - the colours compliment each other on colour charts and in politics as well.
Blue Orange - out to destroy democracy one little backroom dirty trick at a time.
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