E.R. Campbell said:
This article, which is reproduced under the Fair Dealing provisions of the Copyright Act from the Ottawa Citizen suggests that the Liberal Party of Canada needs a real (small l) liberal like Margaret Thatcher. I would go a bit farther and say that Canada needs a real (small l, Gladstonian)) liberal political party:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/opinion/columnists/Liberals+need+Margaret+Thatcher/8235786/story.html
I've plowed this ground before, commenting on the tenets of liberalism and the drift away from them, in the Liberal Party of Canada ever since the Kingston Conference of 1960.
Gladstone stood for individual choice, limited government, protection of the individual from the government, fiscal prudence and equality. He was the antithesis of Pierre Trudeau, Brian Mulroney, Jean Chrétien and Stephen Harper all of whom ran or run too large, too intrusive, too expensive and too privileged governments.
E.R. Campbell said:
...
The default for soft-core conservatives has always been the Liberals. There’s just one problem – Justin. Even Liberals secretly admit that if their leader’s name were Gaston Tremblant, he’d still be a high-school drama teacher.
“He has good people around him,” they insist. It’s not clear who they’re trying to reassure – other people, or themselves.
That's the dilemma: we dislike Prime Minister Harper, we're tired of him; we want the Liberals to take over for a while, but they need a grown-up leader ...
I repeat what I have said many times before: we, Canada and Canadians,
need a Liberal Party, an alternative to the CPC, a "government in waiting,"
but the Liberal Party we need, in its own turn,
needs a leader ... Justin Trudeau is not it. The CPC is right: he's
"just not ready", and, in my opinion, he's never going to be "ready," he will always be a high school drama teacher. Tell me, honestly, all of you who are fed up with Stephen Harper:
do you really want Justin Trudeau in 24 Sussex Drive?
The LPC needs new leadership ... soon, but in any event before it takes over the reigns of government.
My fervent hope is that in the next election the Liberals finish third again and Justin Trudeau resigns and goes back to whatever rich kids with no particular skill set do ...
There are some good choices for
interim leader while the Party reorients itself (in policy) and picks a new leader: Carolyn Bennett, Irwin Cotler and Ralph Goodale all come to mind.
For the next leader, the party also has some good choices (only a very few of which I would support) including: Judy Foote, Marc Garneau, Ted Hsu, Kevin Lamoureux, Dominic LeBlanc, Geoff Regan, Judy Sgro, and,
my choice, hands down,
Scott Brison.
I could well imagine being happy to see a Liberal government led by Scott Brison ... I might not vote for my local LPC candidate but I can see myself being happy with a Liberal majority government, while, still, supporting a CPC which can and will provide an alternative when we need it.
:sorry:
