Having raised what I see as significant issues for Thomas Mulcair's NDP leadership campaign, I'll take a moment to contrast those against the trumped-up story that's become the latest shiny object to catch the media's attention in the race.
Simply put, we don't trust Con spin or leaks generally because we know them to be politically motivated and often easily disproven. And it's not hard to see the incentive involved in attacks on Mulcair - not merely to stop him from winning the leadership as suggested by Lawrence Martin, but to cultivate negative sentiment about him within the NDP to give the party a tougher path ahead regardless of what happens in the leadership campaign.
No matter what one's take on the leadership race, that's a result well worth avoiding. So let's make sure the rest of the leadership campaign focuses on how best to get the NDP working together - and not waste time echoing outside efforts to push us apart.
<span>FIGHT</span>
ReplyDeleteThe website "KnowMulcair.Ca" is an obvious creation of the Topp campaign. The site never addresses Mulcair's actual policy positions. Instead it poses illogical questions (why didn't you resign sooner?) & assumes guilt-by-association (you took donations from __!!). It hopes readers are free enough to read the accusations...but busy enough to avoud clicking on the evidence.
A detailed example: Mulcair is accused of not financially supporting the NDP. But when you read the source-article, you see that it's not technically true (Mulcair donated to his NDP riding instead of the national body). And in a hilarious twist, Mulcair has apparently commited the same crime as his colleagues Charlie Angus, Tony Martin, Fin Donnelly, Linda Duncan, & Dennis Bevington.
It's intellectually demeaning. It's morally offensive. And NDP members should thank Brian Topp for doing it.
The NDP leader will not be facing Stephen Harper. He/She will be facing the combined Conservative & Liberal machines. Those machines won't wait until a public debate to unleash countles television, radio, & online campaigns to undermine the personal character of the NDP leader.
We only need to look at Stephan Dion & Michael Ignatieff to see the fruits of inaction. Accusations were hurled at them constantly. They chose to leave their personal defense in the hands of their partisan print/broadcast supporters ("oh, how unfair!", "we're better than this!", "patently untrue"). In the end, this second-hand defense strategy was rewarded with total political decimation.
We only need to look at Obama & Gingrich to see the fruits of forceful action. When Obama was acccused of worshipping at the altar of black nationalism...he passionately launched a broad historical defense of his association, bringing white audiences on-side. When Gingrich was accused of being a hypocritical swinger...his fiery defiance convinced fellow republicans that he was the victim of a nefarious plot.
It seems that Thomas Mulcair is content to employ the failed Liberal strategy. If he's not acting "above it all", he's outsourced his defense to campaign-staff & journalists.
To be fair, the sleep-inducers Dion & Ignatieff never had the skills required to defend themselves. Whereas Mulcair has every weapon resting on the tip of his tongue. He's able to give voice to raw emotion, he's witty, & he has a command of both official languages.
If Thomas Mulcair is to preserve his own career & even dignity, he needs to <span>LIVE UP TO HIS OWN REPUTATION</span>. If accusations of personal corruption & moral weakness do not induce the tough fire-breathing dragon to appear...then the Canadian people will find Mulcair guilty of everything he's being accused of.
It's intellectually demeaning. It's morally offensive. And NDP members should thank Brian Topp for doing it.
ReplyDeleteThe website "KnowMulcair.Ca" is an obvious creation of the Topp campaign. The site never addresses Mulcair's actual policy positions. Instead it poses illogical questions (why didn't you resign sooner?) & assumes guilt-by-association (you took donations from __!!). It hopes readers are free enough to read the accusations...but busy enough to avoid clicking on the evidence.
A detailed example: Mulcair is accused of not financially supporting the NDP. But when you read the source-article, you see that it's not technically true (Mulcair donated to his NDP riding instead of the national body). And in a hilarious twist, Mulcair has apparently commited the same crime as his colleagues Charlie Angus, Tony Martin, Fin Donnelly, Linda Duncan, & Dennis Bevington.
The NDP leader will not be facing Stephen Harper. He/She will be facing the combined Conservative & Liberal machines. Those machines won't wait until a public debate to unleash countles television, radio, & online campaigns to undermine the personal character of the NDP leader.
We only need to look at Stephan Dion & Michael Ignatieff to see the fruits of inaction. Accusations were hurled at them constantly. They chose to leave their personal defense in the hands of their partisan print/broadcast supporters ("oh, how unfair!", "we're better than this!", "patently untrue"). In the end, this second-hand defense strategy was rewarded with total political decimation.
We only need to look at Obama & Gingrich to see the fruits of forceful action. When Obama was acccused of worshipping at the altar of black nationalism...he passionately launched a broad historical defense of his association, bringing white audiences on-side. When Gingrich was accused of being a hypocritical swinger...his fiery defiance convinced fellow republicans that he was the victim of a nefarious plot.
It seems that Thomas Mulcair is content to employ the failed Liberal strategy. If he's not acting "above it all", he's outsourced his defense to campaign-staff & journalists.
To be fair, the sleep-inducers Dion & Ignatieff never had the skills required to defend themselves. Whereas Mulcair has every weapon resting on the tip of his tongue. He's able to give voice to raw emotion, he's witty, & he has a command of both official languages.
If Thomas Mulcair is to preserve his own career & even dignity, he needs to <span>LIVE UP TO HIS OWN REPUTATION</span>. If accusations of personal corruption & moral weakness do not induce the tough fire-breathing dragon to appear...then the Canadian people will find Mulcair guilty of everything he's being accused of.
Greg,
ReplyDeleteYour advice is wrong.
The NDP campaigns need to throw the kitchen-sink at Mulcair...now. I say that as one of his strongest supporters.
As my previous post explains, we're sending him out into an unfair world. If he can't defend himself now, when no one is looking...he won't survive the LPC & CPC attacks that will greet him when everyone is looking.
An added benefit is that once we're done accusing Mulcair of being a greedy, lying, sympathizer of Osama Bin Ladin...there won't be much ammo left for the LPC & CPC.
Have to strongly disagree on that one. It's precisely because we know what's coming next from the Cons that we need to evaluate Mulcair and the rest of our own candidates reasonably rather than echoing spin which only serves outside interests: anything we say that resonates as a criticism on behalf of other parties will show up as a fixture in future attack ads, while anything which serves to create a lasting internal rift by building mistrust between his supporters and other camps will undermine our own ability to fight back.
ReplyDeleteOf course, that's to be distinguished from the need to deal with genuine issues in the leadership campaign. But no, attacking for the sake of attacking isn't a productive plan for the leadership race.
Greg,
ReplyDeleteYou misunderstand. The idea is not to "attack for the sake of attacking".
The idea is to "attack for the sake of drawing out a decisive response".
Mulcair is surrounded by innuendo. Yet he chooses not the challenge it in a public manner. Instead, he opts to remain silent hoping it just disappears.
Unchallenged innuendo becomes the person who it is directed against. When human beings are unfamiliar with others, they let their imaginations run wild. The potential "bad" is given more weight than the true "good".
Silence, rather than being viewed as an act of nobility or honour, comes off as absolute guilt or unbelievable arrogance. Why won't this person respond? He must have something to hide. Who does he think he is? These are grave concerns to me.
If Mulcair is the "front-runner", then it's the NDP's responsibility to make sure he understands we don't want a Dion or Ignatieff. We want a strong candidate who can defend his own honour. The NDP can only do that by provoking him over & over until he gets it.
That theory relies on the assumption that Mulcair "chooses not (to) challenge it in a public manner" - which is simply wrong. Mulcair has made his side of the story about as clear and decisive as can be done for anybody who's willing to listen, and "Mulcair chose the NDP on principle" makes far more sense than "Mulcair chose the NDP because there was more money to be made as a longshot NDP candidate than a senior Con patronage appointment".
ReplyDeleteWhat Mulcair has chosen not to do is to let the Cons change the subject at will every time they raise the same implausible questions which have already been asked and answered. And I don't see any good to be done if Mulcair's fellow leadership candidates amplify the Cons' spin by (in your words) attacking his "honour".
Mulcair can't rely on past statements, back when he was some lowly critic in Canada's FOURTH party. You, me, and the insular press gallery have total recall when it comes to this stuff...but most people don't.
ReplyDeleteAs this race draws to a close, it's going to attract more curious on-lookers. They don't know the backstory. Right now, it's the Conservatives who are taking the initiative to create one. Everything old is new again.
As I've tried to explain in previous posts, Mulcair has to go "Obama/Gingrich" everytime his character is come into question. Right now, he's opting to go "Dion/Ignatieff".
The NDP members & campaigns would be doing him a huge favour taking the lead in these attacks. We can control the way the ammo is fired...thereby giving Mulcair the opportunity to "knock it out of the park" (to this new audience). By the time the Conservatives reach for said ammo, they'll find nothing but blanks.
So by the same logic, we should allow the Cons to set the terms of debate when there are "more curious on-lookers" in the next election campaign? I don't buy the "lowly critic in the fourth party" distinction since the same questions were raised and answered at the start of the leadership campaign - and I don't see why he should be expected to answer (and the other leadership contenders should be expected to parrot) the same questions yet again simply because the Cons have found it politically convenient to plant the story with reporters who weren't paying attention the previous times.
ReplyDeleteAs for Mulcair's ability to respond to outside attacks, I'd consider that literally the last possible doubt I'd have with him. Again, when he's faced previous smears (such as the citizenship question which served as the Cons' previous effort to control the direction of the leadership campaign), he's consistently tossed them aside in a matter of days. So I have no doubt he can handle himself when he needs to - but again don't see why we should be adding to the list of times when that's the case.
Whether we like it or not, the Conservatives will set the terms of the debate - by virtue of the resources at their disposal.
ReplyDeleteIt is wrong to believe, as you seem to do in the original blog-post, that the Conservatives are attempting to alter the NDP vote - they are not. They have already decided that Mulcair is going to win, and their aim is to plant the seeds of their future campaign against him.
Right now, they are content to simply infiltrate headlines. They'd like reporters to mention their juicy allegations alongside news of the leadership-vote & discussions of the future leader. Where Mulcair's name comes up, this allegation should lurk.
If this was all politics was, Mulcair could get away with his current strategy. Perhaps he could count on everyone clicking on Lawrence Martin's spirited takedown.
But after the leadership convention, the Conservatives will turn to a more personal means of communicating with the public: Television & Radio. No one will stand in-between them as they spread any allegation, insinuation, and defamation. The effect among the public will be what I've already described in previous comments.
It's a sad fact of life, the NDP does not have the resources to set the terms of the debate much less defend their own leader. At least not until the general election.
That's why it's imperative that Mulcair learns how to defend himself - in a more forthright manner. His remaining time in the leadership contest should be utilized to re-introduce the dragon who apparently fell asleep. If the other campaigns can help in the process...all the better.