I can’t help but think that many people don’t really take the time to critically think about why they say certain things, but rather take “talking points” from whatever news sources they have (whether TV, family etc) and parrot those points as their own. Throwing in a curve-ball like this, which is something many new outlets like to ignore, really puts them off guard.

That being said, lets not forget that a majority conservative government, at least one under Harper, would probably have followed Bush into Iraq and would possibly consider the exploration of reinstating capital punishment and abolishing pro-choice rights.

Harper’s appearance as more of a centrist these days is exactly because of the reasons you have stated (a play for a majority government) and I do not believe it represents any concrete ideological change of paradigm.