dion, dion and dion ...

Dion's blunder will cost the Libs
The Suburban 2007-04-18

Green Party leader Elizabeth May is no fool. As far as many Liberals are concerned, that’s more than you can say for Liberal Party leader Stéphane Dion.

Many are utterly aghast at Dion’s latest tactical blunder that will help practically everybody except the Liberal Party.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper stands to benefit the most.

While the hysterical Kyoto Chicken Little vote will be divided among the Liberals, the Greens, the NDP and the Bloc, voters who want a rational and reasonable approach to the environment will vote Conservative.

The bickering on the left will be breathtaking. Watch for the NDP to point out the little-known fact that Elizabeth May is anti-abortion. She has spoken out against women’s “frivolous” decision to terminate a pregnancy.

May also took her sweet time before turfing Vancouver-area Green candidate Kevin Potvin who described the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center as “beautiful.”

The Greens will undoubtedly get more media coverage thanks to Dion’s dumb deal, but like Lucy Ricardo, May will have a lot of “’splainin’” to do.

Environmental activists will wonder why she is supporting Dion, whose record on reducing greenhouse gases was worse than that of the United States under George W. Bush. These same activists will remember that greenhouse gases increased and air quality went down while Dion was minister of the environment.

The real bickering, however, is taking place inside the Liberal party where — guess what — the leadership race is back on.

Dion’s deal with May, where he said he would not run a Liberal candidate against May in the next federal election in exchange for her not running a Green candidate against the Liberal leader, was described as “colossally stupid.”

This subtle comment didn’t come from the Tories or the NDP. It came from a senior Liberal.

There is every indication that the Liberal leadership race is picking up where it left off when Dion stunned everyone by winning.

Michael Ignatieff and Bob Rae, who are the two top contenders, are lying low but you can bet your solar panels that their supporters are preparing to ditch Dion.

The only reason they’re not pulling the rug out from under him immediately is because they’re worried about an imminent election.

A recent poll that went almost unnoticed shows the Conservatives slightly ahead of the Bloc in Quebec. If that’s not enough to egg on the Tories, I don’t know what is.

Voters may come to the sensible conclusion that if it’s better not to run a Liberal in Central Nova, perhaps it’s better not to run Liberals in other ridings as well.

With this deal, Dion has admitted that the Liberal record on the environment is so fragile that they need the endorsement of a fringe party that does not have a single seat anywhere in the country.

Dion is the leader of a party often described as the natural governing party of Canada.

Thanks to him, the party has now been lowered to ignoring its own constitution to make a desperate deal with a party that isn’t taken seriously by more than 90 percent of the population.

Harper’s job is to beat the Liberals. Dion’s latest move may very well help Harper accomplish that goal.

Dion, however, still has a bright future. My mother is convinced he should return to the teaching profession.

“I am sure his students really miss him,” she says.

The Tommy Schnurmacher Show is heard weekdays nine a.m. to noon on CJAD 800 Radio. His e-mail address is tommys@vdn.ca.