This was passed on by a reader who is a member of Sean Godfrey’s election group on Facebook. Godfrey was the Liberal candidate for Oshawa and apparently sent this message to his group after the election. (emphasis is that of my correspondent)
A few thoughts on how the Liberals must face some inconvenient truths
To members of Sean Godfrey for Oshawa
Sean GodfreyOctober 26 at 12:12am
A few thoughts on how the Liberals must face some inconvenient truths… if we are to become a relevant political force in 21st century Canada.
1) A Liberal Party Leader:
We need to pick a leader who can work with others, who can listen, will respect their opinions but who also has charisma, intelligence and can communicate ideas well. He or she must be likeable in the public’s eyes, a good salesman and a great communicator – to get the message across to the public.2) The Machine:
Here, the Liberals have their greatest lessons to learn, from of all people, the Conservatives.
This is the 21st century. So, let’s start to use 21st century techniques and every possible modern media tool to maximal advantage.
We need to include the internet, TV marketing, telephone marketing, focus groups and professional PR firms to create…a successful brand.
We must build a successful brand from both top down… and bottom up.
The message to the public must, of course, be exceptionally good from the central leadership; but the creation and execution of political momentum must be at both riding and national level.According to the Toronto Star last week, only 36,000 individuals across Canada contributed last year to the Liberals.
The Conservatives had five times that number of contributors, and as a result had a national database of identified Conservatives to approach, not just for money, but for votes, taking signs, recruiting volunteers and grassroots organization.
They also outgunned us by five times in terms of money raised from individual donations. We must learn how to play the ‘new’ game.
We need to create that kind of database and those kinds of numbers of supporters consistently across this country, from year to year, and not just hope we can gain enough national support in an Election period.
The Conservatives also targeted specific groups such as middle class married women very successfully, in terms of policy and propaganda. For the Conservatives, each riding had thousands of identified supporters from the national database who could then be plugged into each local campaign.3) Each Liberal riding must become a fully functioning cell of political action:
during writ but also between writs, more importantly. The Liberal Party needs to wake up to the simple fact that if each riding association were to become a supported hotbed of local political activity, then the Liberal brand would resonate in every riding across the country with the electorate in every Election.
Right now, Liberal riding associations – especially in un-held ridings – are aimless, impoverished and have no true political activity, except by accident.
The Liberals centrally spent no concerted effort, time or money going after un-held ridings, and ignored their issues in strategy and policy approaches.
No wonder almost no ridings were taken back and several “stronghold” ridings were lost.The Liberals have believed arrogantly, for too long, that just showing up to an Election should be sufficient to win.
We need to take serious stock: the Liberals have lost the confidence of this nation.
We simply don’t resonate with enough people anymore in this country.
4) Political structure:
Currently, we have an archaic and seemingly inept structure in place, in terms of central, regional and local organizations, when it comes to effective political activity.
LPCO is my local provincial example. It acheives very little effective political activity that I can determine. Since I was a candidate, if it’s not apparent to me that they are doing anything in terms of political action, then it’s even more embarrassing to consider just how ineffective they really must be… as far as stimulating the general public to turn to the Liberals.There seem to be more people interested in holding titular positions in these organizations than there are people actually orchestrating political action… and engaging the public to become Liberals or to hear the Liberal message.
During the Election period, I must have received hundreds of emails from the central Party and LPCO extolling the virtues of the Liberal campaign …but absolutely nothing was being done to communicate these messages effectively to the electorate. Very little of any real use was forthcoming either to candidates in un-held ridings in terms of help or assistance, except very outdated ideas and techniques, such as forcing candidates to buy a useless riding package which contained, amongst other things, dozens of posters of Mr Dion.
The tools provided, if they could be called that, were old fashioned, ineffective and a waste of valuable resouces and money.
Strategic targeting of specific ridings in a more intelligent ‘hands on’ fashion is what’s required.
What’s also required is an understanding of modern political warfare and the tools that are required. The Liberal Party doesn’t appear to understand, in terms of its own regional and central organizations, how to wage the war, riding by riding.Fascinatingly, as soon as the Election was over, I received not one email, message or telephone call from LPCO or the central Party apparatus to thank me for the time, effort, money and sacrifices that I, and so many others, had undertaken on their behalf as Liberal candidates. We took the fall for the Liberal Party’s ineptitude, poor organization and a badly communicated, misguided central Party message that simply lost us thousands of Liberal voters in every riding across the country.
When I close my eyes at night, the lasting memory of our canvassing during the campaign is the recurring refrain heard too often to count at the doorsteps, ” I can’t vote Liberal this time, your leader is terrible…and I hate the carbon tax!”
To not even acknowledge the candidates and their loyal volunteers who slogged their guts out for the cause and who were mown down like cannon fodder in the Election debacle, is just insulting to so many who were brave enough to hoist the Liberal banner high and demonstrates a shocking lack of intelligence and empathy when applied to team building.
Many candidates are shell shocked by what happened, many are openly angry and will never run again for the Liberals, because of how let down they feel because of their regional and central Party’s indifference and ineptitude.
5) We cannot afford another divisive and expensive leadership struggle:
This needs to be put very quickly behind us, if any momentum can be created – especially since there is a very good chance we will face another election within the next few years.
Surely we don’t want to return to Parliament, again afraid to challenge the increasingly swaggering Conservatives because we cannot afford to fight another election and know internally we are still divided?
Enough is enough.
It’s time to learn some hard lessons and get back into the game we need to win.If we really want to win, we must first learn from our mistakes of how we lost.
If we fail to learn from our mistakes, we are certain to repeat them.
Leadership contenders please note this last point.So, it seems clear that in very short order, we must have a much briefer, affordable and much more sensible leadership convention.
Liberals cannot wait until May, with Mr. Dion hanging painfully on to be further ridiculed by the Conservatives, at will, in Parliament.
All that achieves is further Conservative brainwashing of the Electorate that the Liberals cannot get their act together and shouldn’t be trusted as being credible.
The Liberals should view choosing a new leader as our first and immediately vital PR exercise in regaining public confidence in the Liberal brand.
This can and should really be done before Christmas, if we are to have any real chance of unifying support initially within the Liberals and then, much more importantly, within the general electorate.The Tories planned their election two years ahead. We are already behind the clock – given that the most likely election time line is just two years away.
6) Cooperation and unity:
Now more than ever, the team of key Liberals must realize that they must work together, if we are to succeed.
We have absolutely brilliant, talented, capable people in place within the Liberals. But, we have not learned to play as a unified team.
Place each person at their strongest positions, cover each other’s areas of weakness, and move as one smooth and coherent force.
The public are desperate for the Liberals to rise from the ashes and deliver something worth believing in, again.7) The ‘Kingston’ effect:
It is absolutely necessary to take the brightest and the best in this Party and sequester them until they thrash out both a winning team approach and an effective policy strategy that the electorate will get behind in droves.That policy strategy must be clear, easy to grasp and resonate with this 21st century electorate.
Remember, we have one huge advantage over the Conservatives: we are the good guys!We actually believe in human rights, social progress, democracy and freedom of speech, equality and fairness.
The public know that…and they want to see those principles front and centre, so they can willingly back the Liberal brand again.The team approach is critical, but of course, we need a captain – who must lead by example and must have the loyalty of all those who play on the team.
Or we shall simply repeat what we just all painfully witnessed – and lose not only the next Election, but the permanent confidence of the people of this nation.Sean Godfrey.
Unrepentant Liberal
Stephen Taylor is a scientist, political analyst and a blogger. Taylor writes here regularly and is the founder of bloggingtories.ca. Taylor has contributed to Macleans, CTV, talk radio and has been a featured speaker on new media at numerous events including the Western Standard Cruise and the Forum for Public Policy. In December 2008, Taylor organized Rally for Canada, a series of rallies held coast-to-coast to protest the proposed coalition government.
October 31st, 2008 at 12:58 pm
In Margaret Trudeau's book she also said that, although she worked very hard in the election (and that is true), and that some even consider that she contributed to the Liberal's success, no one from the party thanked her for her efforts. I hope the Conservatives understand that a bit of gratitude for effort expended is greatly appreciated by those who work hard.
October 31st, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Watching a couple of the so-called “leaders” in the Liberal Party of Canada, can't be a pretty sight for the members.
Bob Rae – A communist who nearly ruined Ontario.
Ignatieff – Another academic who is always trying to save the country from itself. Do the Liberals really want another academic leader??
Martha Hall-Findley – A woman of conviction, but her experience is lacking in a big way. The intricacies of government cannot be understood from a few months in parliament.
Gerard Kennedy – This is the man who gave Dion the leadership of the party. I'm pretty sure that he will never get the support from the Liberals to run the party. Too many hate him for that.
David McGuinty – No way on earth the country would vote a McGuinty in as PM while watching what his brother is doing in Ontario. Wasn't he one of the authors of the GreenShift, as well?
Ujjal Dosanjh – He barely held onto his seat, and it is going back for another recount. Also, another NDP leader of a province. Communism/socialism runs deep.
Well, there is the front runners….not a great list. There is one ma, however, that can give them some hope in my opinion. Leblanc….He is experienced, fresh ideas, more central, fluent in both languages, and consistent. However, I doubt that the “old boys club” in the LPC will ever allow someone that isn't part of heir inner circle, to have that power.
Ultimately, the only man who can save them, is Manley. I wonder how Iggy and Rae would like it if he jumped in the race…lol. Not so good, is my bet.
Just a few of my trhoughts….and I think Harper will win the next election as well….
October 31st, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Even in this introspective message the Liberals show their inherent arrogance. So the Libs are good and thus Conservatives are evil. ONLY Libs believe in freedom of speech, democracy, human rights, etc. The Libs just don't get it.
October 31st, 2008 at 1:46 pm
It must be hard to see the truth. I just wonder if there is anyone listening.
Does someone JUST see this about their party while in the middle of an election?
That is what confuses me. Are they just staying with the sinking ship because they ALL THINK THAT THEY ARE THE CAPTAIN?……and know best.
October 31st, 2008 at 1:57 pm
There is probably a lot of good advice in there. However,a couple of things bother me about all of this.The first stems from those candidates that genuinely did not support the Greenshift but tried to flog it anyways. This is one reason I dislike politicians.Godfrey may not have been one of those but imagine a politician coming to your door and talking about the positives of the Carbon tax when he/she himself believes it to be a load of nonsense.
The other issue is more directed at Godfrey himself. He recognizes on the one hand that Liberals have been arrogant. But later argues that the Conservatives are not “the good guys” then implies that Conservatives don't believe in “human rights, social progress, democracy and freedom of speech, equality and fairness.”. And then by insisting that the public knows this Godfrey proves outright that he is just as arrogant as his party. They are a good match. If Godfrey and others like him truely believe that only the Libs. care and that Lib values are Canadian values exclusively, they will find themselves after the next election “shell shocked and angry” yet again.
October 31st, 2008 at 2:46 pm
YOUR Halloween costume, Stephen? What are you going as? Happy Halloween!
You almost have to feel sorry for the Liberals–that is, the Liberal “nobodies” who ran in the election, as opposed to the Liberal “overlords” in the party elite–Rae, Ignatieff, et al. and the backroom boys. The more I read of what Mr. Godfrey had to say, the more I thought, “Well, yeah. This is the Liberal arrogance that's been around ever since Pierre Elliott Trudeau got hold of the reins of power in the late '60s.”
Mr. Godfrey's comments “To not even acknowledge the candidates and their loyal volunteers … demonstrates a shocking lack of intelligence and empathy when applied to team building.” and “Many candidates are shell shocked … [and] openly angry … because of their regional and central Party’s indifference and ineptitude” sum up what many of us have known about the LPC for decades: If you're “a nobody,” just a run-of-the-mill average Canadian, the Liberals will hang you out to dry. They are power hungry and they chew up and spit out anybody whose ideas and values don't mesh with theirs–happily using their buds in the MSM.
I'm surprised that many of their candidates didn't pick up on the Liberals' indifference and had thought that they'd be supported and backed with relevant resources. That's not the way the Liberal Party seems to work. And there's definitely going to have to be some MAJOR changes in the LPC thinking if there's going to be a turnaround in their political fortunes.
(It might also be a good idea if they depend less on their cheerleaders in the media and more on attention paid to and support of their grassroots and the “nobodies” willing to run in their elections.)
October 31st, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Mr. Godfrey forgot that little promise about the Liberal Party paying back the millions they stole from the Canadian taxpayer.
Until they make some type of effort any strategy for renewal is useless.
October 31st, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Liberals believe that Conservatives do not believe in human rights? And who is brainwashed?
October 31st, 2008 at 6:57 pm
To insinuate that non-Liberals are the “bad guys” just because we don't hold their points of view to heart is absolutely disgusting.
And normal for Liberal members apparently…
October 31st, 2008 at 8:02 pm
The Liberal party may have past the point of no return. The Liberal party may be a spent political force in Canada based on it's dismal future. The Liberal party may finally self-destruct if they select Ignatieff of Rae as their next leader.
I doubt LeBlanc has the charisma, management or leadership ability to rebuild the Liberal party. The Liberal party is still split between the Chretienites and Martinites, and that internal conflict will never resolve itself without a wholesale purging of the party and starting all over again.
Blow up the Liberals …???!!!!
November 1st, 2008 at 7:43 am
The Conservatives know how to raise money from the public because they've always had to do so. They never enjoyed a financial holiday where they simply ran on public money that was pilfered from taxpayers.
November 1st, 2008 at 10:12 am
Liberals need to worry less about how to get elected and a lot more on how to become electable.
Stopping the characterization of one's peers as brainwashing propagandists would be a great start.
November 1st, 2008 at 11:06 am
Unrepentant Liberal should heed these words:
Ezekiel 18:23-31 (NIV) ” … Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit.”
November 1st, 2008 at 12:37 pm
Gabby – God sure knows best. Thank you for that.
November 1st, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Observant – the PC party had the same problem so it did the sensible thing – it folded into the CPC, eventually. We got rid of the old baggage and moved forward with new blood. The Libs, unfortunately, do not seem capable of admitting fault or defeat and therein lies the party's problem which, for us, is a very good thing. If Harper keeps on course, building our country back from the disaster wrought by the Libs, he'll continue to grow in popularity. I just wish he'd be a little more vocal.
November 1st, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Bocanut:
You are so right….the Liberals think that Canadians have forgotten about the $40 Million of stolen taxpayers dollars that is still missing from Adscam. Until this money is found, charges laid, and the Liberal Party gets rid of ever last one of the old Libranos, they won't have a hope in hell of forming government.
November 2nd, 2008 at 4:34 am
Mr. Godfrey is sounds like a really concerned Liberal with all the answers. He may be just the one they've been looking for. A bit of ego, an overtone of arrogance with the underlying attitude Liberals have some divine right to rule.
He lost all credibility asserting the Conservatives will “ridicule” them in Parliament and “brainwash” the electorate against the Liberals. Well hello! This is exactly what the Liberals have done for decades, it's their modus operandi to a tee. 'Been around long enough to witness the sneering and jeering and “ridicule” of decent people like Preston Manning and Stockwell Day at the hands of Liberals and their media buddies. If we're looking for advice on dirty tricks, lies and innuendo we know where to find it, the Liberals of the past two decades wrote the book.
They got so carried away with these tactics , turned on themselves, attacking each other, perpetuating the Martin Chretien divide and have come close to sinking their own ship.
Interesting times ahead for the Liberals. There's no simplistic solution, the rot was a long time festering.
November 2nd, 2008 at 11:14 pm
The leading Liberal leadership contenders lack character – they are yesterday's old news – white, secular academics from downtown Toronto. This is the best that they can do – where are all those ethnics that are so embraced by the party? Why don't they shake things up a little – I recommend Danny William. At least he has some genuine emotion and fire. He woul make an inspired choice. Im sure he could be persuaded to become a Liberal since they have very moveable goal posts on policies and philosophy. On that money raising thing – Liberals just love someone else to do the heavy lifting – if they really believed in the party they would donate money – at least people who support the Greens, NDP, and Conservatives will give cold hard cash. All you get from the downtown Libs is airy pronouncements and lectures – like that translates into money.
November 3rd, 2008 at 4:27 am
Let's face it. The Liberals' policies are all wrong for a new century. They're stuck back in the '60s through the '80s, in an extremely prosperous time, partly because of all of us Boomers. Babies create jobs.
Then, the Liberals brought in liberal abortion laws, then NO abortion law, and encouraged very little innovation or rugged individualism. They offered the government teat to an awful lot of Canadians and encouraged us to drink liberally–please, pardon the rather bad pun.
By getting Canadians to look at big government as the solution to all of our problems, they made sure that their coffers were full–and we all know the kinds of initiatives they encouraged and rewarded: the lib-left, brave-new-world ones.
They're living in the past. Most Canadians have moved on, because we have to live in the real world. We have to balance our budgets and bank accounts, which are not given a boost by other people's hard-earned cash (aka taxes) whenever we run out of funds. PMSH and the CPC get it.
The Liberals don't.
If they're going to have a future, they'd better start to get it.
November 4th, 2008 at 5:58 am
Wow he really had me believing that some Liberals “get it” He lost me on the Kingston effect where he pronounced the Liberal's greatest advantage over the Conservatives is that they are the good guys.
Another example of the arrogance that has taken the Liberals out of the living room of many Canadians. By proclaiming “We believe in human rights, social progress, democracy and freedom of speech, equality and fairness” is he not contradicting his own statements? Is there something equal about Liberal's perceived dominance as the only party that can defend these plaudible notions? Isn't is just possible that a conervative or a Dipper or even a Bloquiste can actually believe in these things?
Until they get that they are not the only party that cares they are cooked because the scare tactics that worked so well for Chretien are yesterday's game. In short time the villification will turn as the other parties take over this territory and use their own spin to show that the Lib's are elitiists who don't understand Joe lunchbucket types.
Look at the elitists in charge of the party now, Bob Rae, Ignatieff, Dion et al. Who in the party stands up for the middle class? There is barely room in the party for good guys like Manley and God Forbid I say it. David Orchard.
At least these two examples actually have actually met everyday Canadians and not in the pretend walks around Ottawa that Chretien lamented about.
These two are examples of people who might actually connect to the the 33 million plus Canadians who are not card carrying Libs.
Look at the other parties Jack Layton whether or not he was born with the silver spoon in his mouth can make it look like he knows how to sit at a kitchen table.
Gilles Duceppe can identify with the average Quebecker as one of our own who will fight Ottawa for everything they can get.
Stephen Harper is plausible as a hockey dad done good.
The liberals have none of this connection with the electorate. Surely more than half of the vote last election was simply perennial Liberal support that knows nothing better. it begs the question how drunk were the other 50% of Liberal voters?
November 6th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
Approve
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