The Trouble with Liberals

A friend said I could post this article of his, but asked to remain unknown:

The Trouble with Liberals: A Reflection

Political operatives from all sides can agree on one thing – D’Arcy McGee’s is the place to be on a Wednesday night in Ottawa. Weary, well-dressed, sharp-witted staffers and MPs alike congregate there with the ostensible goal of being social, although alcohol is on everyone’s minds and lips.

I went there earlier tonight. I finally did it! Seated at my table, was a member of Canada’s “natural governing party” – the Liberal Party. We began to chat. We began to argue. I drank beer.What began as a friendly chat over beer became much more. We discussed the high drama of a minority parliament, the dispositions of Martin and Harper, and the ideological underpinnings of the two major brokerage parties.

The Liberal said there were too many divisions in the Conservative Party. Supposed red-tories were being sidelined by social conservatives, and the fault lines were too apparent for the Conservative Party to ever be a truly national alternative.

I did not disagree with my Liberal friend completely. There are diverging opinions in the Conservative Party, but what mattered was our ability to accept conflicting viewpoints, and to allow free votes on issues of moral conscience. I made the argument that we were a party of social conservatives, for whom morality was an important part of the political discourse. A party of democratic conservatives wanting to reform national institutions and make the ordinary voter relevant again. A party of fiscal conservatives who want better management of taxpayer dollars and tax relief for a country that desperately needs it. And red conservatives for whom social justice and compassion are important.

The discussion, up to that point, had gone well. I was making progress. But I could not shut my mouth. The final point I made was that there is no more ideologically fragmented party in Canada, and arguably, in North America, than the Liberal Party of Canada. Scott Brison, the fiscally conservative East Coaster, sits near Ujjal Dosanjh, the former socialist Premier of British Columbia. And also in the mix is Paul Martin’s chief lieutenant in Quebec, Jean Lapierre, one of the founder’s of the Bloc Quebecois. Once a separatist, always a separatist.

But I offended my good Liberal friend. The fact that I, as a Conservative, and therefore someone who is obviously un-Canadian, dared to challenge the Liberals on their own internal divisions, seemed sacrilegious. She quickly admonished me that I was wrong. Her party was the Party of Canada, in tune with Canadians. I was supposed to accept it, and not question it. After all, this party has most often been in power throughout the history of the country, and my claims were silly. As for the divisions in the party – they were not divisions. They were the “lifeblood of the party” and resulted in consensus around common goals. But my Liberal friend could not answer what those goals were.

The goals, of course, are winning. Seeking power, attaining power, and maintaining power at all costs. It is easy to see why Liberals have fewer arguments over policy, since after all, never let ideas get in the way of holding power.

Hearing this tirade only reinforced my faith in Canadian Conservatism. A principled, united, and effective alternative to a Party that believes governing is the birthright of silver-spooned Liberals.

A wise Conservative mentor of mine once said of Liberals “We have principles, and if you do not like them, we have other principles.” I could not have said it better myself.