By Paul albers
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Stephen Harper was absolutely correct when he said: "any Conservative, anywhere, at any time, can, by criticizing other Conservatives, become an instant and enormous media star." I know he was right because I experienced the same phenomena myself.
about a year before the Progressive Conservative and Canadian alliance parties decided to merge I was running a website critical of the Liberal government. Its existence was ignored by the mainstream media, but I still had enough visitors each month that I considered the site to be a modest success.
Uniting the right was a major step towards the objectives of my website so I took a keen interest in the Conservative leadership race. Belinda Stronach had already received fawning praise and harsh criticism from the media. I wanted to see and judge for myself so I attended her lavish Ottawa campaign reception. I also went hoping to talk with her supporters and find out what it was that motivated their loyalty.
It quickly became apparent to me that the Liberals would easily win another majority with Belinda at the helm of the new party. I never saw a worse campaigner. Even party members working for her victory said that they only expected Belinda to be competitive in her second campaign against Paul Martin.
Concerned that a Stronach victory would ensure another Liberal majority, I added a new section to my website warning other conservatives against supporting her campaign and explaining my own reasons for opposing her candidacy. Suddenly I was getting unsolicited calls from the media and giving interviews to Charles adler of CJOB radio and Sean Durkan of The Hill Times.
In the dying days of the leadership race another website emerged highly critical of Stephen Harper. The content of the site was merely a repetition of Belinda's increasingly desperate attacks on Harper yet in less than 24 hrs it was being covered by CTV's National News and major national newspapers. It seems that the more conservative the target, the more media attention is generated from criticism.
at first the author of the anti-Harper website was unknown, but eventually was revealed to be Mike Pal, a 21 year old Political Science student from the University of Calgary. Pal claimed to be part of a group of hundreds of party members called 'Grassroots Conservatives' who opposed Harper's leadership bid, yet he was unable to provide any information to back up that claim when I asked him myself. The illusion of widespread opposition to Harper vanished as ballots were cast and counted days later.
Once again a very small group (this time led by Carol Jamieson) has claimed they have the support of legions of party members all united against Harper. Once again the media eagerly jumped at the chance to amplify the critics without bothering to verify or consider contrary evidence, and yet again it has all fizzled out after just a few days.
Less than 1/10 of one percent of party members Joined with Jamieson in expressing discontent with Harper's leadership, far fewer than the 16 percent that voted for a leadership review only a few months ago. Under Harper's leadership, party membership has climbed to the largest of all political parties in Canada. Their war chest overflows with the donations from grassroots members eager to see the Liberals beaten, Harper was greeted by larger than expected crowds on the BBQ circuit and both the Conservative caucus and the vast majority of rank and file members stand united behind their leader, including Peter McKay.
Carol Jamieson and her cohorts hoped an over-eager media would be able to pressure the party into rejecting the wishes of the grassroot members, an odd tactic for someone in a party that wants to resolve the democratic deficit.
If the grassroots really wanted Harper gone, he would already be gone. Conservatives have a well earned reputation for stabbing leaders in the back. although internal fights have frequently caused Tories short term grief at the polls, in the long run there have been benefits.
Stockwell Day lost the confidence of his party and was forced to call a leadership election. The alliance took a serious hit in the polls at the time but this revolt by party members led directly to the uniting the right and holding the Liberals to a minority government. Party members willing to oust a poor leader are a check against domination by the party elite as well.
The Liberals keep their conflicts hidden, but they are there just the same and fester into government-paralyzing power struggles that keep visionless leaders in office far longer than what is good for the country or the party.
Perhaps Jamieson and her fellow travelers wished their party propped up a corrupt government, or didn't try so hard to expose underhanded Liberal tactics. The Conservatives aren't capable of being that kind of party. The membership is united by deeply held shared ideas and they will not stand for a leader who doesn't represent their views well.
Selling those ideas to Canadians who are comfortable with the pandering and handouts of the Liberals will not be easy, but Harper has a record of outperforming expectations. The polls have shifted and will continue to shift but Harper's place is secure at least until the end of the next federal election. Jamieson on the other hand has used up her 15 minutes of fame.
Paul albers is a freelance columnist living in Ottawa. He can be reached at: paul.albers@rogers.com
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