What will you do?
Since the May election, the Liberal Party seems to have gone through each of the quintessential 5 stages of grief. We’ve experienced denial of our new third-party status; anger at our leaders; bargaining for time to change; depression in the face of disappointing results; and finally, acceptance. It’s appropriate that Bob Rae told Vancouver Sun that he felt like he was half... Read More
VOTE: Senate Reform?
It’s summer in Ottawa, and the temperature is heating up on an unlikely issue – senate reform. Stephen Harper’s Conservatives have begun a campaign to bring incremental reform to Canada’s upper house: reforms billed as non-constitutional, and non-controversial. But are they? A number of different points of view have emerged. Let’s look at the... Read More
Get Off The Bench!
There is a palpable level of frustration among the members of the Liberal Party right now. I hear it in every conversation I have with my politically active friends. Even the non-Liberals can see that we aren’t what we used to be or even what we claimed to be a month ago. Canadians think we’ve lost our way as a party. It’s right there in the election results, if you don’t... Read More
What Keeps You Involved?
This past weekend, over 2000 delegates from across Canada took part in a telephone conference put on by the Liberal Party of Canada. Held in the wake of a shattering defeat, this “Extraordinary General Meeting” was remarkable for its positivity, and the number of people who were devoted enough to the Liberal Party of Canada to give up their Saturday afternoon to be part... Read More
Live: 2011 Extraordinary General Meeting
Hi Folks, I’m live blogging the 2011 Extraordinary General Meeting of the Liberal Party of Canada (LISTEN LIVE HERE) from my hotel room in downtown Vancouver. On the docket are two amendments to our constitution and five sub-amendments that will determine the timelines for Liberal renewal. Extraordinary it’s called, and extraordinary it is. For the first time, the Liberal... Read More
Why Are You a Liberal?
In the wake of the last federal election, a small group of Liberals met in a dark downtown Edmonton pub to discuss where we stood. It had been a heart-wrenching defeat that we had experienced, and we met to begin to discuss what future – if any – liberalism had in this country. There were charts, there were fierce words, there was beer, and there were ideas. There were... Read More
Sure, But What Have We Done To You Lately?
As a Liberal in Alberta I’ve become well accustomed to the litany of complaints thrown at our Party. I’ve taken abuse about the NEP, the GST, and the sponsorship scandal. And as a Liberal, I know my talking points. How the NEP was agreed to by then Premier Lougheed and how it was world oil prices – not any policy from Ottawa – that caused the collapse of... Read More
“We Have To Be A National Party Again”
On Saturday, May 28th, Mark Holland addressed the delegates to the 2011 Alberta Liberal Party Convention and Special General Meeting with remarks that described his vision for rebuilding the Liberal Party of Canada. Mark spoke of the need to change what we do, to be an open organization, and for the Liberal Party of Canada to cede no ground – to strive to be competitive in... Read More
LPC Extraordinary Convention
Decisions that will affect the future of the Liberal Party of Canada are in your hands. The June 18, 2011 extraordinary convention will be held by teleconference and will allow delegates to debate and vote on amendments to the Constitution that would delay the Leadership Vote and delay the next biennial convention to January 13-15, 2012 – an important step in our rebuilding process. If... Read More
How the Liberals might yet be saved
The goal of the Liberal Party of Canada today should be to build the most modern and inclusive political organization in the country, one that inspires young Canadians to vote. The election results provide the party with the opportunity. The unanswered question is whether Liberals have the will to seize the chance not just for a renewal, but a re-invention. In government political... Read More
