Unreformed

In the wake of the Green's acceptance of an MP deemed unfit for office by the Libs in an effort to elbow their way into leaders' debates, one of the main talking points from Green backers (see the comments at pogge has been that even if the move reeks of cynical political calculation, it's a necessary response to an unfair electoral system. While I fully agree that the current system needs fixing, though, it's worth noting that the new talking point only serves as a reminder of how empty the Greens' last major publicity stunt proved to be.

Here's my commentary from the aftermath of the Red Green deal - at a time when the Greens claimed to have secured a commitment from Stephane Dion to work with them toward electoral reform, even as Dion's words and actions suggested otherwise:

(T)here's plenty of reason to be skeptical about Dion's personal interest in electoral reform. And today's announcement doesn't do anything to suggest that the Greens have managed to change that fact.

Which isn't to say that today's announcement can't be the start of a genuine sea change. But the next necessary step is for Dion to prove to Canadians that he actually values the possibility of electoral reform - by speaking out about it personally, making sure it receives prominent placement in the Libs' next party platform, and taking on the inertia within his party head-on. And if that doesn't happen, then today's words can only be seen an attempt to fool the Greens' base, rather than the first step toward anything positive.

Well, we now have a year and a half worth of evidence as to what the supposed agreement about electoral reform was worth. So can anybody remember the numerous times when Dion has followed up on what May claimed to be an important area of agreement by making electoral reform a top priority and inspiring his followers to support the cause? Me neither.

Now, if May actually believed she'd won some meaningful commitment from Dion on electoral reform, she would seem to have ample reason to call him out for failing to live up to the deal. But there too, there's been nothing but the sound of crickets chirping.

Yet having already been misled into thinking May had won some ground in pushing for a more fair electoral system, her supporters are now using May's failure as justification for her abandoning the Greens' supposed commitment to ethics in politics.

Once again, May's presence has only served to reinforce the problems with politics as usual rather than to provide any break from them. Which offers yet another reason why voters looking for a change from the same old cynical politics won't get it from E-Me and her home for wayward MPs.