In these dog-days of summer, the Liberal leadership race has all but vanished from sight or hearing. Certainly, the spending restrictions preclude the candidates spending 2 months on cross-country meet and greet tours, so most are taking a break before the September debates and October delegate elections. Or, like Gerard Kennedy, brushing up on their skills - he's spending a month in Quebec to practice his French.
Also, the Israeli attacks on Lebanon and the rescue of Canadians from that country have taken the spotlight.
Those of us remaining in the city and thinking about politics have been left to wonder what the leadership candidates are thinking on perhaps the biggest foreign crisis since the end of the Cold War. Left to wonder since the candidates have been out of sight and sound. Coming to our rescue, The Toronto Star ran a piece on the Liberal Party leadership aspirants' views on the crisis in Lebanon last Friday. Through no fault of The Star's, the man most Canadians and Liberals would want to hear from, Michael Ignatieff is traveling Europe and unavailable (or not willing to go on-record).
Having read through the statements, if the vote were today, I'd have to give my support to Stephane Dion. His comments on Lebanon are exactly what mine would be. Volpe and even Brison have strayed way too far towards a Made in America foreign policy and the others can't make up their minds about pandering to Israel or supporting a foreign policy that seeks to end the slaughter of civilians in southern Lebanon (Israeli forces killed over 50 civilians - women and children - in a bombing attack on a Lebanese village yesterday; one of many daily similar attacks). Regrettably, we don't know where Ignatieff stands on the issue, but we do know his position in the leadership race is damaged if he doesn't soon get back to Canada and/or make a statement.
