At least the man shows no fear. In fact, Mulcair’s comments show that he has decided to exploit regional tensions in Canada, as the resource-rich West increasingly takes Ontario’s place as the nation’s economic engine.
Not surprisingly, the NDP leader’s position has generated the usual round of tut-tutting, hand-wringing, and keyboard-pounding from pundits across the nation. And I would agree that Mulcair is ignoring some inconvenient truths as he searches for scapegoats — starting with the fact that Canada’s manufacturing sector seems to be rebounding quite nicely.
Still, the man’s onto something here.
By staking out territory far to the left of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Mulcair has managed — within the space of two short months or so — to render the Liberals as irrelevant as the middle ground they have traditionally occupied in Canadian politics.
This may change once the former “natural governing party” picks a new leader, but don’t hold your breath. The federal Grits have demonstrated little capacity for renewal since the good old days when the little guy from Shawinigan was throttling protesters and running the nation on a strategy that was all about hard-ball politics and hard-boiled practicality — with the odd principle thrown into the mix to confuse us.
Say what you like about Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the man governs Canada on the basis of a set of beliefs that his actions demonstrate more clearly than his words reveal. And in his “show, don’t tell” government, the first principle is Canadian self-reliance.
This explains the government’s bid to reform Employment Insurance in a way that weeds out “repeat offenders” — often seasonal workers who go on the dole annually. It is also consistent with Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s comment this week that there’s no such thing as a bad job. The underlying EI and Flaherty messages are the same: “Look after yourself, people.”
A similar message is being transmitted to the provinces. Flaherty’s proposal to transfer per capita funding to the provinces for health care — regardless of the age of their population — is a case in point. Nova Scotia, with its older, sicker, costlier population, is being asked to look after its own and fend for itself in doing so.
In case you missed it, then, Mr. Harper will not be stepping up on behalf of national standards of care, or equitable access to medical services for all Canadians. This is one trumpet the prime minister won’t blow.
With social programs tucked firmly into provincial jurisdiction, Harper and his ministers are free to celebrate Canada’s resource economy. So Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver is speeding up the environmental review process for new projects; opening up the Arctic to energy exploration, as the government announced this week; and offering zero apologies to critics of Canada’s approach to climate change and economic growth.
This is exactly where Mulcair decided to step into the breach, by attacking rapid resource development that he says is inflationary and destructive of other sectors of the economy.
Now, Mulcair’s intervention was not handled with great finesse, and I don’t get the political calculation that seems to make an enemy of the West.
At the same time, though, Harper has left lots of room for a political opponent who promotes balanced growth of the economy; celebrates Canada’s social safety network; and doesn’t leave the fate of all workers to the glories of a free-market economy or the cost of a one-way ticket to Fort McMurray.
If I’ve got him right, Mulcair recognizes he’s in a war for Canadian values, not in a skirmish over the oilsands. This should make for some sharp, clear, divisive debate in the years leading up to the next election.
For my money, then, Thomas Mulcair’s decision to stand on Canada’s traditional left-of-centre high ground — rather than slide around in the murky, muddy centre — should make Canadian politics worth the price of admission for the next few years.
Original Article
Source: the chronicle herald
Author: JIM MEEK
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