When Stockwell Day was the leader of the Alliance he got painted as a religious right zealot by the Liberals and the press ate it up.
When Stephen Harper took over leadership of the Alliance and eventually the Conservative Party of Canada he was painted as “Scary” Stephen Harper with his Hidden Agenda by the Liberals and the press.
When Stephane Dion became leader of the Liberal Party of Canada he was painted as the incompetent professor who was the environment minister but let emissions rise by the Conservatives and somewhat by the press.
When Michael Ignatieff took over the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada, he was painted as an “Americano” who was out of the country for 3 decades and came back to be Prime Minister. He was just a visitor. This is what the Conservative advertisements told us.
So if you were the Liberals and you wanted to avoid having your leader painted for two years with Conservative advertising on some negative issue and you needed a reprieve for…oh let’s say 18 months…so your new leader could rebrand himself with the press, would it not be prudent to buy that time somehow?
Would appointing him “interim leader” and then changing your rules before convention to let him run for the official leadership be a wise thing to do? I think it would.
So my advice to the Conservative Party. Dip into that war chest you just built up with Convention attendee fees and start painting Bob Rae as Buffalo Bob. Start telling the Canadian public how his term was so bad that the NDP didn’t win a single seat in Ontario in 1993.
Because if the Liberal Party pulls a fast one and puts him in as leader in 18 months, it may be too late to brand him if he has branded himself.
I’m just sayin…
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If the Conservatives have to run ads about Rae then they need a head shake. His tenure as premier of Ontario will be remembered for decades. Reminds me of the prairie farmer who used to stand on the bald prairie and shake his fist at heaven and damn the railway for doing him wrong. Somehow I feel the people of Ontario have long memories. Cheers.
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Since Bob is from the NDP that used to crusade for the poor and oppressed, I have been wondering when he will demand that the AdScam Liberals come forward to tell us Tax payers where the missing $140’000’000.00 is .
Dion stayed mute on the issue along with Paul Martin, maybe the Liberals need to learn from this defeat that they are NOT the natural Governing Party of canada and that they can pi$$ away OUR money for their Political gains.
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It would make more sense to run a few ads reminding voters what the NDP stand for.And just what kind of leader Jack Layton is.Or is that John Layton.Is he still living in public housing.??Oh right, we will give him Stornway for awhile.And just because he gets massages at 2 AM with the full consent of his wife,and is found naked in bed by the police,when they raided the joint,does not make Jack a man unworthy of leading his new group of vacationing Quebec ministers.Oh,you say they are all back from vacation now.Do they know where Parliament is??I heard some one say this is a fine mess you got me into Ollie.Maybe Jack can use that line now.
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Since the Liberal Party of Canada has a hard time paying for the leadership convention from 3 years age I would be willing to bet that since they are now the third party in the House of Commons that their money has dried up somewhat,add in the $2.00 vote subsidy being killed I bet they will have to appoint Boob Rae as Permanent leader because they will not be able to afford another convention.
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“…. in 18 months, it may be too late to brand him if he has branded himself.”
Very true, OS, but in Buffalo Bob’s case – he would have to be superman with horseshoes up his ass to undo the brand he established in Ontario. Take your pick – personally, I like PHOTO RADAR BOB – turning Ontario highways into cash machines.
By all means – have the ads in the can – but no more attack ads from the CPC please. Canada is tired of politics. We want good governance, prosperity, and some circus fun – for which we can rely on the “opposition” parties.
I want to see Harper and Rae face off in the House because I know Bob is smooooth. But he’s past his prime and PMSH is absolutely at his peak.
Michael St. Paul’s