The Next Conservative Leader

[Kirkhill]

The sort of "advice" which Conservatives need to ignore, in total, is the sort offered, in this column, which is reproduced under the Fair Dealing provisions of the Copyright Act from the Globe and Mail, by Jeffrey Simpson, unofficial spokesman for the Laurentian Elites:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/globe-politics-insider/jeffrey-simpson-for-tories-a-long-list-of-difficult-questions/article27008823/

Please, please, PLEASE Conservatives, ignore every single word after "Think about Shakespeare’s plays." We should, all of us, think about Shakespeare's plays more often than we do, that's good advice for one and all, but everything that follows is intended to help the Liberals, not the Conservatives.

Do not worry about why the CPC government was "at daggers drawn with scientists, civil servants, “experts,” journalists, the cultural community," those "communities" were "at daggers drawn with YOU before you turned on them.

"How did we manage to fritter away about a fifth of the support we had secured in the 2011 election by voting day 2015?" "Why are we by far the least-favoured second-choice party, with the fewest number of people who would consider voting for us?" and "Is it the correct strategy to try for a maximum of 40 per cent of the electors?" are interesting academic questions and party followers, not its leaders should worry over them.

Especially ignore Mr Simpsons concerns that the most likely leaders "are holdovers from the Harper years. They were ministers in Harper governments. They helped frame the government’s policies – at least they did at the margin, given that so many decisions were framed by Stephen Harper. But they defended those policies. They did so in the verbally pugilistic, take-no-prisoners style so typical of the Harper party. They were, are and will be Harperites," he's just annoyed because your, Conservative, opposition "front bench" is qualitatively superior to all but a tiny handful of Prime Minister designate Trudeau's.

Read Mr Simpson's column, "know your enemy," as we used to say ... then do the reverse.

What the CPC needs to do is to:

    1. Reconnect with its legitimate values and ambitions, which are grounded in the families who live in the suburbs around Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto and Ottawa and in the small cities and towns that stretch from Vancouver Island to the Avalon Peninsula;

    2. Enunciate those values, clearly to all Canadians;

    3. Select a leader who personifies those values ~ and there are many useful candidates, including several "Harperites."

Jeffrey Simpson says "Harperites" with a sneer of contempt; Conservatives need to say it with pride. Jeffrey Simpson represents a fast fading past of elites and croyism; Stephen Harper is the face that showed us the way to a better, more egalitarian society.


Edit: format

Simpson paraphrasing Rex Harrison

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Doz5w2W-jAY

Why can't a Conservative be more like a Liberal?

He is the last troll from whom I would be taking advice.

 

[Brad Sallows]

Get used to it.  As the wave of bubbly Barbie journalism about the Trudeau family recedes, there will much more of this "advice": "Go away and be quiet in a retreat for a long time - preferably at least one full election term.  When you come back, be sure to have purged all the experienced members (so that we can then criticize you for lacking depth of experience).  Whoever remains in contention for leadership should be politically to the left of Bob Rae.  Continue navel-gazing intensively and commenting publicly about it.  Above all, do not be misled by those who would attribute the loss to simple voter fatigue, popularity contest politics, and a decade-long campaign waged by the establishment whose noses were put out of joint when Paul Martin was removed."

Conservatives would do better to read Charles Cooke's "The Conservatarian Manifesto" and use it to develop some ideas and policies for a Canadian context.  Those should be developed quickly; every stumble by the federal government - and to a lesser extent, the ON and AB governments - should be met with a discussion of alternatives, not a vaccuum which allows the issue to die quietly.

 

[Jed]

Get used to it.  As the wave of bubbly Barbie journalism about the Trudeau family recedes, there will much more of this "advice": "Go away and be quiet in a retreat for a long time - preferably at least one full election term.  When you come back, be sure to have purged all the experienced members (so that we can then criticize you for lacking depth of experience).  Whoever remains in contention for leadership should be politically to the left of Bob Rae.  Continue navel-gazing intensively and commenting publicly about it.  Above all, do not be misled by those who would attribute the loss to simple voter fatigue, popularity contest politics, and a decade-long campaign waged by the establishment whose noses were put out of joint when Paul Martin was removed."

Conservatives would do better to read Charles Cooke's "The Conservatarian Manifesto" and use it to develop some ideas and policies for a Canadian context.  Those should be developed quickly; every stumble by the federal government - and to a lesser extent, the ON and AB governments - should be met with a discussion of alternatives, not a vaccuum which allows the issue to die quietly.

Now that is sage advice.

 

[Edward Campbell]

Get used to it.  As the wave of bubbly Barbie journalism about the Trudeau family recedes, there will much more of this "advice": "Go away and be quiet in a retreat for a long time - preferably at least one full election term.  When you come back, be sure to have purged all the experienced members (so that we can then criticize you for lacking depth of experience).  Whoever remains in contention for leadership should be politically to the left of Bob Rae.  Continue navel-gazing intensively and commenting publicly about it.  Above all, do not be misled by those who would attribute the loss to simple voter fatigue, popularity contest politics, and a decade-long campaign waged by the establishment whose noses were put out of joint when Paul Martin was removed."

Conservatives would do better to read Charles Cooke's "The Conservatarian Manifesto" and use it to develop some ideas and policies for a Canadian context.  Those should be developed quickly; every stumble by the federal government - and to a lesser extent, the ON and AB governments - should be met with [size=14pt]a discussion of alternatives, not a vaccuum which allows the issue to die quietly.[/size]

That's why a well managed, fairly lengthy, leadership race is important ... it will give a range of candidates, experienced ones (Harperites, in Jeffrey Simpson's sneering words) and newcomers, too (I hope a handful of rank outsiders will challenge, if only to help propagate a wide range of ideas) opportunities to enunciate and test ideas and visions.

I hope the leadership campaign, per se will start on/about 1 Jan 16 and last until, about, mid 2017, with enough events to keep the Conservative friendly media ~ there's a lot of it in the print media ~ engaged, and attract some interest from the (less friendly) TV networks.

 

[Kirkhill]

Meanwhile, walking and chewing gum will be required.

In addition to the internal discussion the Conservatives must keep the Liberals on their toes. That must be the focus of the Interim Leader. To keep the Conservatives as a viable alternative - and to keep pointing out when the Liberals adopt Conservative policies and keep reiterating - I told you so.

 

[Edward Campbell]

My guess on the interim leader vs party leader strategy is that some contenders for the interim leader job are, in fact, just testing the (support) waters and might even be disappointed if they win because, according to the CPC's own rules the interim leader cannot run to be party leader. Some others are, seriously, interested in  both jobs but they believe, as of now, anyway, that M Trudeau is a two term (eight year) PM and they can enhance their own reputations by being very good interim leaders and then, in 2019, when the CPC, yet again, is the opposition party, they can challenge for the party leadership and be the one who leads the CPC back to power in 2023.

If you are under 50, today, you will still be under 60 when 2023 rolls around. Consider:

Rona Ambrose:  46
Maxime Bernier: 52
Jason Kenney:      47
Kellie Leitch:        45
Erin O'Toole:      42
Michel Rempel:  35
-----------------------
John Baird:          46
James Moore:    39
Peter MacKay:    50

 

[Edward Campbell]

So, the interim leader is ...

The Honourable Rona Ambrose
Source: http://www.conservative.ca/cpc/welcome-interim-leader-rona-ambrose/

 

[vonGarvin]

So, the interim leader is ...

The Honourable Rona Ambrose
Source: http://www.conservative.ca/cpc/welcome-interim-leader-rona-ambrose/

"Half of your cabinet are women?  That's cute" 

 

[vonGarvin]

So, the interim leader is ...

The Honourable Rona Ambrose
Source: http://www.conservative.ca/cpc/welcome-interim-leader-rona-ambrose/

PS: Is she single?  ;D

 

[brihard]

Another far-right social conservative. Ugh. They didn't friggin' pay attention to a thing. They aren't going to swing the Canadian political centre - those of us they lost to the iberals in this election - by pandering to the far right base. We aren't looking for an ardent pro-life libertarian to make the Conservatives palatable again.

At least this rules her out for being the 'real' leader of the party. But I am concerned about how this will shape the rebuild.

 

[GR66]

Another far-right social conservative. Ugh. They didn't friggin' pay attention to a thing. They aren't going to swing the Canadian political centre - those of us they lost to the iberals in this election - by pandering to the far right base. We aren't looking for an ardent pro-life libertarian to make the Conservatives palatable again.

At least this rules her out for being the 'real' leader of the party. But I am concerned about how this will shape the rebuild.

The interim leader isn't about policy.  It's about providing a steady hand and guiding the party through the process of picking a new leader.

 

[vonGarvin]

We aren't looking for an ardent pro-life libertarian to make the Conservatives palatable again.

What's wrong with defending life at its most vunerable stage?

Oh, right, "women's rights" and all that other double-talk nonsense to justify homicide.

 

[Edward Campbell]

What's wrong with defending life at its most vunerable stage?

Oh, right, "women's rights" and all that other double-talk nonsense to justify homicide.

It doesn't matter what the leader, interim or new, believes in her or his heart and soul ... all Conservatives who want to govern this country again must understand, and tell all the other Conservatives, that a woman's right to have an abortion, for her own private reasons, is a settled issue. It is fine to express opposition to it, that (free expression) is also a right, but a Conservative leader and a Conservative front bench must always, without fail, vote to sustain "choice" or whatever one wants to call it.

 

[brihard]

It doesn't matter what the leader, interim or new, believes in her or his heart and soul ... all Conservatives who want to govern this country again must understand, and tell all the other Conservatives, that a woman's right to have an abortion, for her own private reasons, is a settled issue. It is fine to express opposition to it, that (free expression) is also a right, but a Conservative leader and a Conservative front bench must always, without fail, vote to sustain "choice" or whatever one wants to call it.

Precisely this.

 

[Jed]

It doesn't matter what the leader, interim or new, believes in her or his heart and soul ... all Conservatives who want to govern this country again must understand, and tell all the other Conservatives, that a woman's right to have an abortion, for her own private reasons, is a settled issue. It is fine to express opposition to it, that (free expression) is also a right, but a Conservative leader and a Conservative front bench must always, without fail, vote to sustain "choice" or whatever one wants to call it.

Very true. But for Brihard's edification, If you are prochoice, as the majority of Canadians appear to be, you are condoning the killing of unborn babies for primarily matters of convenience. A hard truth generally not accepted by individuals. 

But we of a certain age have been accused of being baby killers before and I imagine it will be ever thus by those of a lefty persuasion.

 

[Lumber]

If you are prochoice, as the majority of Canadians appear to be, you are condoning the killing of unborn babies for primarily matters of convenience.

I just have a lot of shares in planned parenthood...

 

[jollyjacktar]

I was moonlighting on the east side of Centre Block today and saw some interesting sights.  I did see a very somber looking Jason Kenny come across the way and into the east entrance and I think perhaps Chris Alexander as well. 

What I did see that really made me laugh inside was the sight of three reporters (one was Robert Fife) and camera crews running like the hounds of hell were after them as they belted from behind the Library and out towards the front of the building.  I guess they had tried to or did ambush Mr. Harper as he left out the back door and wanted to get out front to catch the PM leaving.  I don't think I've ever seen the press move like that before.  The reporters were trying to look as dignified as they could while on the run. ;D  Note to self.  Don't become a cameraman, they really looked like they were suffering.

On a side note, there was a ceremony involving a good chunk of the big brass (CDS excluded) and a goodly sized host of military veterans, a children's choir, RCAF musicians etc in the Senate Chambers (?) which went on for some time.  I noted that all of the guest left looking very happy and content with their visit.  Nice to see.

 

[ballz]

Another far-right social conservative. Ugh. They didn't friggin' pay attention to a thing. They aren't going to swing the Canadian political centre - those of us they lost to the iberals in this election - by pandering to the far right base. We aren't looking for an ardent pro-life libertarian to make the Conservatives palatable again.

At least this rules her out for being the 'real' leader of the party. But I am concerned about how this will shape the rebuild.

I haven't seen anything about her that appears libertarian to me, other than her claiming to be one.

While pro-life libertarians exist (not uncommon but not the majority from my experience) and the position can logically be justified using libertarian principles, most of the other stuff is pretty clear cut. You can be a libertarian with social conservative views/values, but you can't really call yourself a libertarian if you advocate social conservative policies.

 

[Brad Sallows]

>We aren't looking for an ardent pro-life libertarian to make the Conservatives palatable again.

However did they create the illusion of governing as centrists - regardless of their personal beliefs - so successfully that the Liberals decided to move left of the NDP as a campaign strategy?

It was a short vacation from the politics of fear-mongering, hidden agendas, extremism, etc.  Back to your regular anti-Con programming.

 

[brihard]

>We aren't looking for an ardent pro-life libertarian to make the Conservatives palatable again.

However did they create the illusion of governing as centrists - regardless of their personal beliefs - so successfully that the Liberals decided to move left of the NDP as a campaign strategy?

It was a short vacation from the politics of fear-mongering, hidden agendas, extremism, etc.  Back to your regular anti-Con programming.

I have voted Conservative before, and likely will again, so you can wind your neck in. I just have no time for the religious-right, Reform element within the party. I am not afraid of the Conservatives, because the courts will wind in most of their silliest nonsense. I do have concerns about some of their policies, and I find some of their policies ass backwards.