Posted in the National Post Published: Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Liberals and left-wing media pundits like to say Prime Minister Stephen Harper has a "hidden agenda." Then inevitably they go on to suggest this agenda is actually a blueprint to transform Canada into some sort of scary, George W. Bush inspired neo-con, right-wing nightmare.
Of course, the more the Liberals and the left-wing media stoke these imaginary fears, the more wary many Canadians become about handing the Conservatives a majority government.
Scare tactics do work. So maybe the way to counteract such fears would be for the Conservatives to put forward their own conservative agenda.
In other words, instead of allowing the Left to define them as scary, Conservatives should aggressively define themselves. What would such a conservative agenda include? Well here's a partial list:
Make government smaller/cut taxes Like successful conservative politicians Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, the Conservative Party should unapologetically push for much smaller government, for much lower taxes and for much more freedom. This is kind of a no-brainer.
Make health care better Why is Canada's health care system plagued with long waiting lists (or perhaps they should be called "suffering lists"), doctor shortages and escalating costs? Because a virtual government monopoly runs health care, that's why. It follows that the way to improve health care is to introduce free market principles into the system. In other words, Conservatives should offer Canadian patients more choice.
Be reasonable about green stuff Most so-called "green" political plans seemed designed to empty our wallets rather than to actually help the environment. The Conservatives should pledge that any environmental scheme they adopt would not simply be an excuse for bigger government, more bureaucracy and higher taxes. And yes, they should also promise to kill the Kyoto Accord once and for all.
Inject democracy in the workplace Today in Canada, our labour laws permit union bosses to infringe on the democratic rights of unionized employees. For one thing, they can take dues employees are forced to pay and use them to subsidize various radical left-wing causes. That's wrong. A Conservative agenda should promise to end forced unionization in Canada.
Protect the right to free political speech This federal election is not truly free. We have an election gag law on the books which imposes severe legal restrictions on how much money citizens or groups can spend during elections to express political opinions. The gag law is a serious infringement on every Canadian's right to free speech. The Conservatives should scrap it.
Defend English language rights in Quebec We need a political party to support the rights of Anglophones living in Quebec who are persecuted with that province's draconian anti-English language laws. The Conservatives should promise to ensure that all Canadians are treated equally under our Charter of Rights and Freedoms no matter where they live.
Rein in MP greed Why do we allow MPs to vote themselves pay raises? Isn't that a clear conflict of interest? Taxpayers should have a say in MP pay. What's more, the gold-plated MP pension plan should be adjusted so that it's more like what's available in the private sector. Bottom line: The Tories should promise to reform MP compensation.
Needless to say, this sort of conservative program is guaranteed to send chills up the spines of Canada's leftwing elite. But at the same time, a lot of Canadians would support these sorts of policies, which if enacted, would make Canada a better and freer place.
What's more, such an agenda would make this federal election a true battle of competing ideas and visions, and not just an issueless, popularity contest.
Unfortunately, all the evidence suggests the Tories don't have a true conservative agenda, hidden or otherwise. A lot of Canadian conservatives wish they did.
