The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
This Is Leadership? Two interesting leadership races are in their final stages Ð the Alberta PC contest with the first vote this Saturday and the federal Liberal leadership convention next week. Would you rather be Premier in the oil-rich province or leader of Canada's Liberals? Most people would probably pick the former, as Alberta has more money in its Heritage Fund than the entire annual budget of Saskatchewan or Manitoba. It also has the lowest taxes in the country, including no sales tax. Alberta's overheated economy has problems Ð housing, traffic, lack of workers Ð but it's still a good province to be head of, especially if you are a Conservative. The Alberta Tories have a one person, one vote system of electing leaders in which any resident over 16 can buy a $5 membership and vote in their own constituency for whomever they please. The system was brought in to be more democratic and to avoid the delegate manipulation problems so evident in the Liberal race. However, in this contest everybody is in the act. Candidates have spent their time selling memberships, as have organizations, unions, and shockingly even rival political parties, as the stakes are high as you are voting for a premier. If no one gets a majority this Saturday, there will be a runoff election as there was in 1992 when "King Ralph" Klein was elected. Look for Calgary's Jim Dinning, who has most of the Tory Caucus supporting him, to at least be in the final. Of course more excitement is being generated across the country (at least among Liberals) by the eight running for the federal Liberal leadership. They have been at it for months, and the delegates have been selected and are anxiously awaiting the Montreal convention. As in most leadership races, delegate selection and election are fraught with problems, with outcries of fraud in many camps, especially those of Michael Ignatieff, Bob Rae, and the Chretien-like Joe Volpe. There are four possibles and four impossibles before the first vote. Volpe, Martha Hall Findlay, Ken Dryden and Scott Brison have no hope of winning but can act as spoilers. Volpe, whose campaign has been the most corrupt, is only staying in the race to try to spoil things for Ignatieff. Ex-Tory Brison, Atlantic Canada's only candidate, has made little impact and is expected to throw his support to Ignatieff. Dryden's hockey hero status has gained him little, as he can't speak French and even has trouble with English. Findlay has run a good campaign but has gained precious few delegates. The four possibles have many long-time Liberals shaking their heads in disbelief. The frontrunner, supposed super intellect Ignatieff, has spent 30 years out of the country and has been a Liberal for less than a year. He has a habit of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time Ð a sort of foot-in-mouth disease Ð and has been attacked as being too conservative. He has voiced strong support for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, causing people like Lloyd Axworthy to throw their support behind Rae. Ignatieff may have trouble getting a lot of third and fourth ballot support. Remember, he was parachuted into a safe Toronto riding over the objections of the local Liberals and is considered to be the heir apparent by the party's backroom big money boys. Many consider Rae, another instant Liberal, to be a strange candidate. Generally considered the worst premier in the history of Ontario, and also a former NDP MP, Rae is all over the map in policies. By the way, a poll this summer showed that 43 per cent of Ontario voters would never vote for him, and he certainly wasn't the choice of the other 57 per cent! The other two possibles are Montreal's Stephane Dion, who has a wealth of Liberal cabinet minister experience but has trouble speaking English, and former Ontario cabinet minister Gerard Kennedy, who can't speak French. In a TV interview, Kennedy came across as a sincere and reasonable individual who wants to see change in the party. He is mired in third place, tied with Dion, but could come up the middle depending on the vote splits; however, he would go nowhere in Quebec. The Liberal Party has had a history of mainly picking winners as leader Ð note St. Laurent, Pearson, Trudeau, and Chretien. They did have a couple of bad choices with Turner and Martin but are hoping this choice will be a good one. Time will tell. Roger's Right Corner runs Wednesdays.
