A viable real conservative party would have the effect of forcing the CPC further to the right, giving up any notion it is nothing more than a Liberal-lite party.
A couple of weeks ago, CPC MP Maxime Bernier held a press conference hours before the party’s 2018 convention was to begin in Halifax. Bernier not only announced he was quitting the party but he was going to start his own.
While the Quebec MP was always a thorn in the side of the Conservative Party of Canada, the writing was on the wall in mid-August when he sent out a series of tweets. Bernier criticized Trudeau’s “cult of diversity” and “extreme multiculturalism.” And he made the politically incorrect statement people who do not accept Western values and have no intention of integrating into Canadian society should not be allowed to immigrate here. These are statements the CPC would never dare make. (Spencer Fernando, Aug. 12)
Bernier criticized Trudeau’s “cult of diversity” and “extreme multiculturalism”
Bernier also criticized Canada’s supply management, something favoured by both the Liberals and the CPC. While Bernier has always been opposed to supply management, the issue was moved to the forefront of the NAFTA negotiations, such as they are, between Canada and the U.S. Supply management ensures high tariffs on dairy products, something vehemently opposed by Donald Trump.
And the MP made it clear he does not much care for political correctness.
Immediate panic set in among many conservatives across the country. The standard refrain was a split on the right will automatically lead to another four years of Justin Trudeau. End of story. We’re finished. These conservatives are modern day Canadian settlers who will gladly settle for any leader who is not Justin Trudeau. Conservative principles not important.
We’ve seen this reaction before in Ontario. When Patrick Brown stepped down as leader of the provincial PC party six months before the election it was game over. Four more years of Kathleen Wynne. After the leadership race began these same conservatives cried if Christine Elliott did not beat Doug Ford it would be four more years of Kathleen Wynne. Ford won a majority and it is hard to believe these same conservatives have any major complaints of what the new premier has done so far.
After Donald Trump won the presidency, some Canadians hoped a Trump-like leader would emerge in Canada. The naysayers cried Trump’s brand of populism will never fly in Canada. Yet Doug Ford won a majority government in Ontario. While Ford toned down his rhetoric from his Toronto City Council days and quickly denied he was like Trump, the reality is politically speaking, he and his late brother Rob were Trump before Trump was Trump.
Bernier’s message, especially against political correctness and the excessive attention paid to diversity
Bernier’s message, especially against political correctness and the excessive attention paid to diversity is a populist message that has potential in Canada.
Bernier made a statement on social media Sunday to allay fears the result of what he is doing will automatically result in four more years of a Trudeau government. He gave three reasons why that outcome is not necessarily so. He stated, quite correctly, the split has already occurred. The reality is if there was no large dissatisfaction with the CPC, Bernier’s leaving the party to start his own would have been a one day story and a humorous one at that.
Bernier’s second reason is the most intriguing. He says his support will not just come from dissatisfied Tory voters but from supporters of the other parties as well. If he can stick to populism, this will prove correct. What is more interesting is, as Bernier points out, 35% of eligible Canadians do not vote. Reasons usually given by people who do not vote is “they’re all the same.” If these people can be given something different such as there is too much political correctness and emphasis placed upon “diversity is our strength,” some non-voters will be encouraged to go to the polls.
Bernier’s third reason for supporting a new party is those Canadians who believe in true conservative principles should not let the chance to have a party that supports them pass them by. People should not give up their true beliefs for a leader that is “not as bad as Trudeau.” (Maxime Bernier Facebook, Sept. 2)
Assuming Bernier manages to get his party off the ground and runs a viable slate of candidates in next year’s election, will this new party be able to win? Probably not. But that is not a reason it should not be started.
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The federal NDP under new leader Jagmeet Singh is currently tanking. A recent poll put the party’s support at 8%. To put this into perspective, more Canadians believe Elvis is still alive than say they support the socialist party. But at one time, the NDP did have influence.
The Liberal Party of Canada, not to mention the country, changed dramatically after Trudeau came to power. The main priorities of the Liberals are fighting Islamophobia, open borders and destroying our history in a quest to make Canada a post-national state. But this was not always the case. The old Liberals used to put great emphasis on all the social programs that made Canada what it was pre-2015.
It is an open secret within the Liberal Party the party never had a major policy idea in its history. The numerous social programs the party used to brag about all began with the CCF and its successor NDP. When the Liberals saw they were popular they simply watered these ideas down to make them more popular with their non-socialist supporters. The CCF/NDP have had a great deal of influence on Canada’s social makeup without ever having held power federally.
A viable real conservative party would have the effect of forcing the CPC further to the right, giving up any notion it is nothing more than a Liberal-lite party.
It’s a lot of work but relatively easy to begin a new political party. But it is an uphill battle to make that party viable enough to hold any sway in an election. It is all the more difficult to accomplish this feat in 13 months. But for those who truly believe in conservative principles, it is certainly worth a try.
A couple of weeks ago, CPC MP Maxime Bernier held a press conference hours before the party’s 2018 convention was to begin in Halifax. Bernier not only announced he was quitting the party but he was going to start his own.
While the Quebec MP was always a thorn in the side of the Conservative Party of Canada, the writing was on the wall in mid-August when he sent out a series of tweets. Bernier criticized Trudeau’s “cult of diversity” and “extreme multiculturalism.” And he made the politically incorrect statement people who do not accept Western values and have no intention of integrating into Canadian society should not be allowed to immigrate here. These are statements the CPC would never dare make. (Spencer Fernando, Aug. 12)
