Month: February 2013

Justin Trudeau:

I’m not going to be putting forward a comprehensive platform over the course of this leadership. And that’s because the Liberal party has gotten far too much in the habit of generating a platform by the leader and some very smart people around them, that they then turn to Liberals across the country and say ‘now go and sell this door to door.’
 
This leadership is the beginning of a platform-development process, not the end of it. And what we do around connecting and drawing in ideas from around the country, not just from Liberal circles, but from Canadians who are looking for a better option, right across the country, will be the big work we have to do over the coming months and even years leading up to 2015.

“A leadership race is no time to discuss important issues.” Justin Trudeau takes the Kim Campbell approach.

— Stephen Taylor (@stephen_taylor) February 13, 2013

Marc Garneau has responded to Trudeau’s lack of policy vision.

Finally! But the critique is in text form which makes it difficult for Conservatives to create ads.

In a blog post titled “Leadership means taking a stand”, Garneau’s main criticism of Justin Trudeau is that he lacks policy direction and that saying that you’ll fill in the blanks after winning the leadership just isn’t good enough.

“Justin believes telling Canadians we need a ‘bold’ plan and a ‘clear vision’ without defining either is good enough. He speaks in vague generalities, and on his two key priorities – the middle-class and youth – he has presented no direction.”

“[Selecting Trudeau as leader would be] like asking Canadians to buy a new car without first test-driving it.

We must know what we are voting for, not just who we are voting for.”

Bob Rae has responded to the tension between the two by saying,

“Politics is a lot more like hockey than it is like ballet.”

Justin Trudeau will be good for the coffers of the Liberal Party, but either Marc Garneau or Martha Hall-Findlay would be good for its soul. Liberals perceive that their party’s main problem is that it keeps losing. True, but if they look at the cause, it’s that the party has no serious policy foundation.