Constituency voting is only two weeks away and Parliament has resumed for the autumn session, so it’s time for the Liberal leadership contest to get serious. Following the withdrawal of Caroline Bennett last Friday - she gave her support to Bob Rae - nine candidates remain. One newspaper I read (Globe? Post?) had a column suggesting the party should refund the $50,000 deposit to any candidate who would drop out before “super weekend” to get down to more reasonable numbers, but it doesn’t appear likely that there will be more changes before October 1, voting day in Thornhill.
Another “debate” was held in Vancouver on Sunday. The process is tedious to say the least, and I can’t imagine how they will turn this into a prime time media event in December if no one else withdraws. That said, several of the marginal candidates (Fry, Volpe) are excellent speakers and will make for a good impression, but since they don’t stand a chance they will hardly command attention on the night before voting.
It’s very regrettable that Stephane Dion is so weak in English - his ideas and experience are strong ( I hope he will finish in first or second place on the first ballot) but he can’t command a national audience in both official languages. Perhaps his English is as good as Jean Chretien’s, but Christine seldom tried to explain complex ideas, so he got away with it. Dion is far too cerebral for only basic English. And he is too much of a foreign affairs bleeding heart for my liking.
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On the other end of the scale, Michael Ignatieff is, I fear, far, far too cerebral in both languages. He has the ideas and I support him on most of the issues, but can he communicate with the Tim Hortons crowd in Saskatchewan or Alberta? He may be the most intellectual man ever to run for PM in Canada but hat doesn’t mean the country will warm to him. Trudeau had the charisma to offset his brilliance but Ignatieff doesn’t have that going for him (yet?). I have met his wife Zsuzsanna, and she may be able to soften the image once people learn how to pronounce her name.
Of the other leading candidates, Bob Rae seems bored with the whole thing, except that he doesn’t want his university rival (Ignatieff) to win. He is way too soft on the international issues (Afghanistan and Iraq) and his proposal for a national drug plan is not federal jurisdiction.
Gerard Kennedy spoke French every chance he got to convince a Vancouver audience he is bilingual. The crowd in Quebec City the week before wasn’t was easily fooled. He remains arrogant without cause. His record is one of little achievement: never finished university, managed an operation to give away food to the poor (that’s got to be a tough sell!), gave control of the Ontario teaching professional college to the teachers union and then quit his education portfolio with a host of unfinished business.
Scott Brison has the best ideas and speaks passable French and is the right place on the international issues but lacks the connections in the Liberal Party. There are ample other excuses to mark him down without alluding to his gender, but it’s a factor that people will take into the voting booth even if they never speak about it publicly.
Finally Ken Dryden - smart and able but his speaking puts everyone to sleep waiting for the next word. How anyone with the reflexes he displayed in the NHL can be so slow orally is a mystery.
The wheeling and dealing which will commence after super weekend will be fascinating to watch. Bob Rae has garnered the support of the two candidates who withdrew. Will Gerard be the next to endorse Bob Rae? Will Ignatieff be able to pick up an endorsement before voting commences in Montreal or will Bob be the one with momentum? Will Scott endorse Iggy (they are closest on international issues and most domestic ones)? Stay close to your TV.
Another “debate” was held in Vancouver on Sunday. The process is tedious to say the least, and I can’t imagine how they will turn this into a prime time media event in December if no one else withdraws. That said, several of the marginal candidates (Fry, Volpe) are excellent speakers and will make for a good impression, but since they don’t stand a chance they will hardly command attention on the night before voting.
It’s very regrettable that Stephane Dion is so weak in English - his ideas and experience are strong ( I hope he will finish in first or second place on the first ballot) but he can’t command a national audience in both official languages. Perhaps his English is as good as Jean Chretien’s, but Christine seldom tried to explain complex ideas, so he got away with it. Dion is far too cerebral for only basic English. And he is too much of a foreign affairs bleeding heart for my liking.
.
On the other end of the scale, Michael Ignatieff is, I fear, far, far too cerebral in both languages. He has the ideas and I support him on most of the issues, but can he communicate with the Tim Hortons crowd in Saskatchewan or Alberta? He may be the most intellectual man ever to run for PM in Canada but hat doesn’t mean the country will warm to him. Trudeau had the charisma to offset his brilliance but Ignatieff doesn’t have that going for him (yet?). I have met his wife Zsuzsanna, and she may be able to soften the image once people learn how to pronounce her name.
Of the other leading candidates, Bob Rae seems bored with the whole thing, except that he doesn’t want his university rival (Ignatieff) to win. He is way too soft on the international issues (Afghanistan and Iraq) and his proposal for a national drug plan is not federal jurisdiction.
Gerard Kennedy spoke French every chance he got to convince a Vancouver audience he is bilingual. The crowd in Quebec City the week before wasn’t was easily fooled. He remains arrogant without cause. His record is one of little achievement: never finished university, managed an operation to give away food to the poor (that’s got to be a tough sell!), gave control of the Ontario teaching professional college to the teachers union and then quit his education portfolio with a host of unfinished business.
Scott Brison has the best ideas and speaks passable French and is the right place on the international issues but lacks the connections in the Liberal Party. There are ample other excuses to mark him down without alluding to his gender, but it’s a factor that people will take into the voting booth even if they never speak about it publicly.
Finally Ken Dryden - smart and able but his speaking puts everyone to sleep waiting for the next word. How anyone with the reflexes he displayed in the NHL can be so slow orally is a mystery.
The wheeling and dealing which will commence after super weekend will be fascinating to watch. Bob Rae has garnered the support of the two candidates who withdrew. Will Gerard be the next to endorse Bob Rae? Will Ignatieff be able to pick up an endorsement before voting commences in Montreal or will Bob be the one with momentum? Will Scott endorse Iggy (they are closest on international issues and most domestic ones)? Stay close to your TV.
