Time for a new centrist party in Canada?

With Iffy taking a hard left turn, maybe it's time to shake things up a bit... maybe it's time for a new federal Party.

I know, it's just crazy talk, but hear me out on this one... there are a whole lot of socially conservative Liberals who are being systematically pushed out of their own party. Just look at the recent vote on abortion, and Iffy's new orders to vote in favour of keeping the Gun Registry. There are Liberals who know full well that they're going to lose their seats on these two issues alone. I've even been hearing rumblings from supposedly "safe" Liberal seats that their MP's are at risk over their votes in these recent fiascoes.

But I also know full well that there are a few "progressives" who are still with us over here in the Conservative Party of Canada, who have never quite fully integrated within the new Party. Also various activists too, who whine and complain about our positions on various issues, but who hold their nose and vote for us when it comes time at the ballot box.

So, what's the solution? Perhaps it's time for a few of the "Red Tories" and the "Blue Grits" to start talking... perhaps it's time for a new truly "centrist" voice on the political landscape.

Quite frankly, there will probably never be a better time than this to shake up the political landscape in Canada. The creation of a small "centrist" coalition, founded by a core of existing MP's, from both the Liberals and the Conservatives, could shake things up fairly dramatically. They could become the "independents" of the Canadian political landscape, the group to which the other main parties would have to make significant overtures in order to form a Government.

Stop and think about it for a minute, in all seriousness. The Conservatives have no natural allies from which to form a coalition. Likewise neither do the Liberals, due to all the animosity that exists between them and the NDP. The formation of a core centrist "rump", if you will, would allow Canadians to raise their voices on the issues and say "We want something somewhere between both of you guys", which is what I believe a significant amount of Canadians are saying these days.

Of course, I'm not advocating for the formation of a new Party who should make the PMO their goal. What I'm talking about is the formation of a group of MP's who are better able to reflect the views of their constituents, by allowing them to place themselves somewhere ideologically between the two major parties, and allowing them to negotiate on issues between themselves and the other two major parties, thereby allowing them hold some of the cards when it comes time to decide who gets to form the Government after an election.

Yes, it would introduce a degree of uncertainty in our system... but in reality, no more so than currently exists, as I think we're set for a series of minority Parliaments for a number of years to come. I just think that now would be an ideal time for such an initiative to fly, even if it's just a short lived endeavour that lasts only for the next few election cycles. And I think it's something that has a genuine chance to work right now, with the current polarization that's going on within the mainline parties, and the rump of MP's on both sides of the isle that fall somewhere in the middle of all this. I can name off about a dozen MP's who fall into that category, lower profile MP's who could make their mark on the Canadian political system for years to come by pursing such an idea.

My two cents on things. Of course, for the record, I'm not planning on giving up my CPC membership anytime soon... though I certainly would have to give any such new group an honest listen before casting my ballot...