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.
Commentary by Jonathon Naylor Barring a miracle the likes of which have not been seen since Biblical times, Niki Ashton was never going to triumph at the NDP leadership contest over the weekend. But just like fictional boxer Rocky Balboa did in his first and last movies, Ashton has actually won while losing. The Churchill MP can take solace in the fact that she has greatly boosted her national profile and set the stage for inevitable future runs at the party's top job. In a recent piece in the influential Toronto Star, left-leaning columnist Carol Goar practically gushed over the 29-year-old multilingual politician. 'Brightest light' Writing in Canada's most widely read newspaper, Goar sought fit to label Ashton 'the brightest light in the NDP leadership race.' 'She is smart, feisty, knowledgeable about a wide range of topics and capable of holding her own with more seasoned politicians,' she wrote. Moreover, Goar opined, Ashton has that rare Laytonian ability to connect with the five million Canadian voters who are under the age of 30. The columnist called it 'unfortunate' that Ashton was 'relegated to the role of precocious child' in the race and written off by journalists who told Canadians remarkably little about the MP. See 'Maj...' on pg. 6 Continued from pg. 1 It's true. Major media outlets were rarely bothered to report on Ashton at any depth. Unfortunately, that's how it goes for long-shots in a crowded field. Not only was Ashton not going to lead Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition, she was, with all due respect, simply not ready for the task. To believe anything else is a colossal stretch. As educated and popular as she may be, Ashton is still far too green for the all-important job for which she was applying. Not yet 30, Ashton must still learn some of life's lessons. That was evident last year when she thought that having documentarian Michael Moore attack Vale would miraculously reverse the nickel miner's smelter closure plans in Thompson. Ashton is also, relatively speaking, politically unseasoned. She has been an MP for less than four years and was for some reason shut out of the NDP shadow cabinet. Only Ashton knows for sure, but it's safe to say she viewed her leadership campaign as part of her political growth, not a force that would topple better-funded and better-known rivals. Yet moving forward, this experience should serve her well as our voice in Parliament. Whatever her motivation, she is to be commended for putting forth a solid effort and shedding light on the issues near and dear to her. Hurt her? At the same time, however, one must wonder whether Ashton's leadership bid actually hurt her where it really counts: here in the Churchill riding. Would Ashton still have voted to maintain the long-gun registry (and its records), after voting against it, if it mattered little what the NDP's Quebec base thought of her? Would she be so openly touting the decriminalization of soft drugs if she did not have to broaden her appeal within a party often seen by big-city pot proponents as their best hope for reform? Churchill, it is fair to say, is more centrist when contrasted with many other NDP ridings across the country. That's why over the last decade we have had two NDP MPs oppose the long-gun registry and one support the traditional definition of marriage. I'm not say either of those positions is correct or incorrect, but the simple fact is you would never see a New Democrat in Quebec or downtown Toronto dare take such stances. If Ashton does indeed seek the party leadership again, she will have to continue walking a political tightrope: appealing to a far-left base without alienating her own constituents.
