Lately the Liberal party of Canada has displayed a funny little characteristic that is eerily similar to the Republicans south of the border: neither of them can stand the idea of not being in power. Obviously all political parties want to be in power, but in the case of the Liberals and Republicans, there seems to be a lack of long-term strategic thinking that might one day lead them to a solid majority representation. Instead, they seem to be fighting tooth and nail for immediate leadership, and are using dirty tactics to do so. The Republicans wrote the book on dirty modern political tactics, but the Liberals have seemed eerily sneaky as well.

The Liberals, after the sponsorship scandal which helped sweep Harper into power, should have seen that period as an opportunity to reorganize and develop a long-term game plan that would one day deliver them a majority government once again. Instead, the last few years have seen them consistently lose elections, swap leaders, sign a coalition agreement under Stephen Dion, elect Michael Ignatieff when Dion was sliding in the polls, and now they have tabled a non-confidence motion that is likely to fail this week. This doesn’t seem like a party focused on its future; rather, it seems like a party intent on gaining immediate control while gambling away future prospects. They seem unwilling to wear the ‘Opposition’ title and are trying desperately to climb back into that more familiar ‘Government’ role.

On what strength do the Liberals think they could win another election should the non-confidence vote pass? The strongest, most recurrent theme of their narrative has been anti-Harper more than anything else. Unfortunately for the liberals, Harper isn’t as unpopular as they think he should be. Threatening to topple the government, twice, in the midst of economic instability, does not sit well with the Canadian public. It does not look like a party out for the interests of the nation. Instead, it looks like a party that is whining about its lack of power.

It seems as though the Liberals have taken their position as the ‘default’ party of Canada as something of a right, and all it will take it some Tory-bashing to be swept back into power where they belong. Harper however, has generally looked like a strong world-leader, and his economic recovery plan seems to be working, at least on the surface.

The Liberals probably considered this moment as the best chance to bring down the Conservatives that they’ll have for a long time coming since Tory responsibility for economic recovery is still a contentious political issue since it has not been proven decisively either way. If the recovery continues to gain steam, so will the popularity of the Conservatives, and then the Liberals would really have a difficult time trying to climb back into power. If on the other hand, the recovery is proven to have been poorly managed by the Tories, then the Liberals might have a shot farther down the road. Either way, for the Liberals to regain power, they need a long-term strategy that involves reinventing themselves. This way, they can put up a strong showing once the Harper-led conservatives make a mistake, and all democratic governments eventually make a mistake big enough to bring them down.

My advice to Mr. Ignatieff is simply this: take all the time necessary to rebuild the party from the ground up, set out clear plans and make sure that message gets out across the country, and pick your battles wisely. Let the country know who you are and what the Liberals envision for the future of Canada and Canadians. Wait for the Conservatives to dig their own grave before you try and throw them in. Trying to topple the government now just looks like an envious party willing to create political instability, and by extension sustain economic instability, in order to regain power. Instead, they should take their time with what they sow, and the political future will be a pleasure for them to reap. Sorry Mr. Ignatieff, but the case for Harper is just too strong right now.

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Tags: Liberal Party, michael ignatieff

This entry was posted on Friday, October 2nd, 2009 at 4:17 pm and is filed under Federal Government. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.