Dion resigns but will remain as leader for now (Canada's Liberal Party Leader)

The Toronto Star ^ | Oct 20, 2008 03:04 PM | Bruce Campion-Smith

[fanfan]

Darn.

[balk]

Wish he would stay on. I thought he wasn’t a quitter?

[goldstategop]

I LOVE it! Stephane Dion vowed never to quit but after the hammering the Liberals took in the election last week, it was obvious his fate was sealed. Like John Turner, he's now a footnote in Canadian history. And the shrunken and demoralized Liberals will not only have to find a new leader, they have a big rebuilding job ahead of them.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Mikey_1962]

Dion is a “Runaway”?

[fanfan]

Not to mention the refunding job ahead of them.

;-)

[fanfan]

I wish he would stay too.

[caveat emptor]

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

That’s a pathetic Gallic shrug. Nobody could do the shrug like Pierre Trudeau. When Trudeau shrugged, his total contempt for the “masses” was obvious. Dion seems to be pleading: “Why me? What did I do? It’s not my fault”. Trudeau made it clear that he didn’t care what his critics thought — Dion makes it clear that he cares too much.

[fanfan]

It’s sad, you know.

He was such a patsy for the power brokers.

The Liberal Party of Canada used him as a caretaker, so the big powers could come back in, when the electorate calmed down.

They didn’t know the internet would put their lies to truth, so right now there isn’t much of a Liberal party to save.

Watch though, in the next few months, for someone backed by Maurice Strong, and Soros.

[ari-freedom]

the Liberals are in a bad spot. Replacing Dion with someone else won’t make a difference. the problem is, they have no base. If you are on the left, you’ll be excited by NDP or BQ, not Liberal. The Liberals are the boring, practical, left of center party and are being attrited.
On the other hand, Harper’s Conservatives united the moderates with the conservative base and that is the way to go.

[goldstategop]

The problem is the Liberals are to the left of much of Canada but particularly Ontario voters. If they cannot win outside of Toronto and the Maritimes, they're doomed to be in perpetual opposition. They have to find their way back to the center. Not an easy thing to do when they're competing with the NDP and the Bloc for the same voters they once had. And the Liberal brand name is losing much of its potent magic for Canadians.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Clive]

-

[goldstategop]

The Liberals have to be the bland and boring centrist party that delivers balanced budgets and good governments. They can't do that if they espouse wackadoo leftist ideas like the carbon tax. In short, they have to appeal to Western Canada. House Of Commons seats will shift West after the 2011 Census and most of them will go to Alberta. And if they can't find a way to be competitive in the West, no amount of wins in Ontario and Quebec will bring them back into power.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Eva]

"They can't do that if they espouse wackadoo leftist ideas like the carbon tax."

It doesn't seem to matter in the US.Obama's Carbon Ultimatum

[Clive]

"The problem is the Liberals are to the left of much of Canada but particularly Ontario voters. If they cannot win outside of Toronto and the Maritimes, they're doomed to be in perpetual opposition"

Let's not get cocky.

While we are patting ourselves on the back, the Liberal back room Sherpas could be busy recruiting somebody competent like Frank McKenna to take the helm and steer the party back into the main channel.

[ari-freedom]

well they will keep the Conservatives on their toes, which is a good thing. Everyone wishes conservatives had a majority but majorities tend to overreach or slack off, like Bush and Hastert. It is better to move up the slow and steady way than win in one big election only to lose everything a few years later.

[ari-freedom]

the left and the Quebecois won’t go for him

[fanfan]

The problem is

Shhh.

It's not a problem.

;-)

[fanfan]

Good observation.