My Endorsement of Stephane Dion Recap
This week, the Liberals will choose their next leader and hopefully the next prime-minister. Unfortunately since I lived in Vancouver at the time and was unsure of where I would land my job, I did not stand as a delegate, although I voted in the DSM. I was thinking of joining the Laurier club to get free observer status, but joining the club was too expensive. Since the DSM my opinion of Stephane Dion has only improved and I am even more convinced he is the best choice for the leader. Before saying why I think he is the best choice, I will look at his opponents.
Michael Ignatieff: He is smart person and has some good ideas, but he is clearly still in academic mode, not political mode. His gaffe proneness could be fatal in a campaign as well as I don't think the fact he has lived outside of Canada for 30 years will go over well and having no political experience is generally not a good thing. I will vote for him if he wins and possibly even campaign for him, but I feel our chances of beating Harper are not very good.
Bob Rae: He is the best debater amongst the bunch and if anyone could deliver a knock out punch against Harper it is Rae. I don't have a problem with many of his policies although after seeing the damage Glen Clark did to BC, I have developed a strong NDP phobia including those who were once NDPers. I see choosing Bob Rae as a roll of the dice. If he can make the election about Stephen Harper he can win, but if it is about Rae I still worry about his record in Ontario. While most polls say it is not an issue, I am concerned that 5 weeks of being barraged with negative attack ads reminding people of the high taxes, deficits, and Rae Days could change things just as in 2004, re-emphasizing Harper's hidden agenda over and over again did. It might not work, but I am not willing to take that risk. If he wins I certainly won't vote Tory, but how active I will be in the next election really depends on his platform and the team surrounding him. Here I plan to take a wait and see approach should he win.
Gerard Kennedy: He is without doubt my second choice and if I were a delegate and Dion were defeated on an earlier ballot, I would go over to him. He is youthful and has a strong grassroots appeal that can re-energize the Liberal party. His popularity as education minister in Ontario and roots in the West make him the best candidate to gain seats in both those regions. But his biggest liability is his weak French and lack of support in Quebec. Without gaining seats in Quebec, it will be a major handicap and make winning the next election that much tougher. While it is possible to do, I believe we need someone who can gain seats in every region so if we falter in one we have something to fall back on. He has a bright future in the party and will someday be ready to be leader, but now is not the best time.
Stephane Dion: This now brings me to why I believe Stephane Dion should be the next Liberal leader and next prime-minister of Canada. Stephane Dion has the most experience of all the candidates at the federal level and no matter what some say, experience matters. Running a five week campaign is no easy task and doing it at the federal level is very different than at the provincial level. Stephane Dion has proven he has what it takes to succeed in a five week campaign. Stephane Dion is a leader willing to tackle the challenges we face. After a nail biter in the 1995 Quebec referendum, Dion introduced the Clarity Act to ensure never again would the separtists try and take Quebec out of Canada through an ambiguous question. Everybody said it would blow up in his face, but Stephane Dion ignored their criticisms and stuck to his guns and he succeeded. With the environment which is a pressing issue and one where the Tories are vulnerable, I believe Dion can succeed here. He is a uniter, which is absolutely essential if we wish to win the next election. Unlike Ignatieff or Rae, almost all Liberals I've spoken to like Dion even if they are not supporting them. We cannot afford to have Liberals sitting out the next election because they don't like the leader and with Dion, there will be few of them. He is even liked by many NDP and Conservative voters and has the ability to draw votes from BOTH parties, not just one. Now some may point out a few weakenesses, which I will address here. Some say Stephane Dion's English is too weak. In reality he simply has a strong accent, but his English is better than Chretien's so if it didn't hurt Chretien, it certainly won't hurt Dion. Some say we cannot afford to have another leader from Quebec. I agree it is never good to focus on one region, but I don't not see Dion as a highly regionalistic candidate. In fact I see him as someone who understands all of Canada well and the fact he supporters from coast to coast shows this. I am proud to say I supported Stephane Dion at the DSM and I hope all Liberal delegates even if he is not their first choice will consider giving him a second look. In summary I look forward to seeing Stephane Dion become Canada's next prime-minister.
Michael Ignatieff: He is smart person and has some good ideas, but he is clearly still in academic mode, not political mode. His gaffe proneness could be fatal in a campaign as well as I don't think the fact he has lived outside of Canada for 30 years will go over well and having no political experience is generally not a good thing. I will vote for him if he wins and possibly even campaign for him, but I feel our chances of beating Harper are not very good.
Bob Rae: He is the best debater amongst the bunch and if anyone could deliver a knock out punch against Harper it is Rae. I don't have a problem with many of his policies although after seeing the damage Glen Clark did to BC, I have developed a strong NDP phobia including those who were once NDPers. I see choosing Bob Rae as a roll of the dice. If he can make the election about Stephen Harper he can win, but if it is about Rae I still worry about his record in Ontario. While most polls say it is not an issue, I am concerned that 5 weeks of being barraged with negative attack ads reminding people of the high taxes, deficits, and Rae Days could change things just as in 2004, re-emphasizing Harper's hidden agenda over and over again did. It might not work, but I am not willing to take that risk. If he wins I certainly won't vote Tory, but how active I will be in the next election really depends on his platform and the team surrounding him. Here I plan to take a wait and see approach should he win.
Gerard Kennedy: He is without doubt my second choice and if I were a delegate and Dion were defeated on an earlier ballot, I would go over to him. He is youthful and has a strong grassroots appeal that can re-energize the Liberal party. His popularity as education minister in Ontario and roots in the West make him the best candidate to gain seats in both those regions. But his biggest liability is his weak French and lack of support in Quebec. Without gaining seats in Quebec, it will be a major handicap and make winning the next election that much tougher. While it is possible to do, I believe we need someone who can gain seats in every region so if we falter in one we have something to fall back on. He has a bright future in the party and will someday be ready to be leader, but now is not the best time.
Stephane Dion: This now brings me to why I believe Stephane Dion should be the next Liberal leader and next prime-minister of Canada. Stephane Dion has the most experience of all the candidates at the federal level and no matter what some say, experience matters. Running a five week campaign is no easy task and doing it at the federal level is very different than at the provincial level. Stephane Dion has proven he has what it takes to succeed in a five week campaign. Stephane Dion is a leader willing to tackle the challenges we face. After a nail biter in the 1995 Quebec referendum, Dion introduced the Clarity Act to ensure never again would the separtists try and take Quebec out of Canada through an ambiguous question. Everybody said it would blow up in his face, but Stephane Dion ignored their criticisms and stuck to his guns and he succeeded. With the environment which is a pressing issue and one where the Tories are vulnerable, I believe Dion can succeed here. He is a uniter, which is absolutely essential if we wish to win the next election. Unlike Ignatieff or Rae, almost all Liberals I've spoken to like Dion even if they are not supporting them. We cannot afford to have Liberals sitting out the next election because they don't like the leader and with Dion, there will be few of them. He is even liked by many NDP and Conservative voters and has the ability to draw votes from BOTH parties, not just one. Now some may point out a few weakenesses, which I will address here. Some say Stephane Dion's English is too weak. In reality he simply has a strong accent, but his English is better than Chretien's so if it didn't hurt Chretien, it certainly won't hurt Dion. Some say we cannot afford to have another leader from Quebec. I agree it is never good to focus on one region, but I don't not see Dion as a highly regionalistic candidate. In fact I see him as someone who understands all of Canada well and the fact he supporters from coast to coast shows this. I am proud to say I supported Stephane Dion at the DSM and I hope all Liberal delegates even if he is not their first choice will consider giving him a second look. In summary I look forward to seeing Stephane Dion become Canada's next prime-minister.
posted by Monkey Loves to Fight at 5:20 PM
3 Comments:
I am also a in Vancouver(could not take the time off or had the finances to get to Monteal)and I endorse and have supported Stephne Dion from the start.
I am very grateful for the lipblog and all of the bloggers as it give me another perspective(s) of what is going on at the convention.
Thank you to all of you bloggers, I believe that by adding this technogoly to the mix is what we need now, as I do have to rely only the main media to follow the convention. I will be looking for that party in Vancouver when the final balot is cast and counted.
Thank you, from one who is now
twice the age of that first computor I purchased 25 years ago, (for those who remember the Atari 520 which had a modem speed of turtle in snowstorm)
Good to hear you also endorse Stephane Dion. Anyways how's the snow. I wonder how many had their flights delayed. Luckily that will be gone in the next few days.
the snow is a foot or more deep in most areas. It's pretty slushy and soft.
Post a Comment
<< Home