Canadian United Right looking likelier

[number six]

http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20031026.wtory1026/BNStory/National/

It looked for a while like the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservatives might not take off, but as the PC have allowed membership applications to continue into November, it's pretty reasonable to assume that the much larger, much more right wing Alliance will swamp the PC's with new members. It's a poor end for a once-mighty party. The big mistake on the Alliance part is that they think they are uniting the right. They're not. The right is already united. It's the Canadian Alliance. The PC party is basically a liberal party (in the Canadian sense). I don't think we need worry too much about being swamped by a conservative wave in Canada yet. The PC is going to lose a lot of people over this.

[number six]

1. correction

sorry, the PC's are going to lose a lot of people over this. And me a supposed writer, too!

[glarius]

2. I agree with you

The P.C.s don't seem to realize that joining with right wingers is not the answer to their gaining support again...They have never gotten back what they lost when we booted them all out, except for 2 members of parliament after Mulroney's hated reign....They have him to thank for their present predicament....And now Harper and the Alliance are trying to push their right wing agenda...which will never go over in Canada...I don't know how the Torries can get back, but it certainly isn't by joining with the Canadian Alliance....I always think of our federal Liberals as a little left of center (used to be more left) and the Torries are a little right of center...I agree it's kind of sad what has happened to them....I hope they make it back....

[MrPrax]

3. Fulfils the Manning Wet Dream of the 80s

They're not interested in 'merging' with the PCs.
If they wanted to MERGE with them, they could have simply been more popular and 'merged' that way at the ballot box...
They are good little free marketeers...the PC is the competition. They want to ELIMINATE them

Preston's little dream...
The biggest losers will be the NDP ultimately...no room for a third party with such a polarized landscape

[Spazito]

4. Because the Alliance members will overwhelm the PC members...

the policies that will be put forth by the "new" conservative party will reflect the same ideas that have kept the Alliance a regional and not national party. The baggage that the Alliance has will carry over, imo.

[JohnyCanuck]

5. I'll be interested in seeing how David Orchard responds

If the plan to unify the PCs and the alliance goes ahead.

Just and FYI for any US DUers who might be interested. David Orchard was a recent candidate for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada even though he espouses many positions which traditional conservatives find hard to swallow (even in Canada). For example, he is against NAFTA and regards it as a sellout of Canada negotiated and signed onto by the former Progressive Conservative party leader, Brian Mulroney, when he was PM. Orchard believes that the ruling Liberal Party is mistaken in its commitment to keep supporting NAFTA and free trade and is concerned that it will lead to the economic integration of Canada with the US (already well under way) and a consequent negative impact on Canada's ability to forumlate it's own social policies. He is for much of the same type of social spending that many Canadian conservatives would consider more appropriate in the Liberal Party of Canada." He has infact been accused of being a left-wing plant, his only reason for joining the PC party and running for the leadership being to cause dissension in the PC ranks.

In spite of his "liberal" attitudes he played an important role in getting the current PC leader, Peter McKay, elected during the recent PC party convention, bringing his delegates and votes over to McKay in return for a written commitment from McKay that McKay would not support any future moves to unite the PCs with the far-right, Western Canada based Alliance Party. However, as posted above McKay has apparently betrayed his commitment to Orchard and has now agreed to support a move to unite the more centrist PC party with the far-right (almost wing nut) Alliance party

There's much speculation that this drive to "unite the right" in Canada is being sponsored by Toronto "Bay Street" (Bay St. = Canada's Wall St.)lawyers and businessmen who are hoping that with only a single Conservative party instead of the current two parties (PC and Alliance), the right would have a better chance of breaking the lock the Liberal party appears to have on power.

From www.davidorchard.com

David Orchard's vision of a sovereign and prosperous Canada is resonating with a growing number of Canadians across the country.

The Progressive Conservative Party has a rich heritage. Conservative governments built the transcontinental Canadian Pacific Railway and established the Bank of Canada, the Canadian Wheat Board and the CBC. For over a hundred years, under leaders such as John A. Macdonald, Robert Borden and John Diefenbaker, Conservatives defended Canada's sovereignty against the Liberal's idea of merging our country with our southern neighbour.

Today our Party must return to those deep and honourable roots: this is the vision that will be the key to our victory and to Canada's survival as a prosperous and sovereign nation.


From an article A Blatant Swindle by David Orchard posted at his web site.

On or before Dec. 12, 2003, the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada will vote on whether to cease to exist.

The party created by John A. Macdonald and George-Étienne Cartier in 1854, that founded Canada, flung a railroad across it, negotiated the entry of the west into Confederation, gave us the second national railway, gave women the vote, bequeathed us the Bank of Canada, the CBC and the Canadian Wheat Board, that gave aboriginal Canadians the right to vote, the only party that has ever defeated the Liberals, is being asked to vote to extinguish itself, to scrap its constitution and wait shivering by the altar.

Uniting the right, we are told, is the key to effectively challenge the Liberals. But is it?

One of the reasons for the Liberal party's success is its ability to straddle the centre of the political spectrum. The Progressive Conservative party has been most successful when it has done the same.

http://www.davidorchard.com/online/2do-index.html

On Edit. Can't link directly to the article. It's about a quarter way down from the top of the page at www.davidorchard.com

[number six]

6. If this comes off...

Where does Orchard go?. He's not going to the Liberals. Who will he bring with him? 20-25% of the party is in his camp, or so I've heard.

[Spazito]

7. It is my understanding that there could be a court case pending...

regarding the use of the name "Conservative" in the "new" party. From what legal experts are saying, the new party may not be able to use their new name. I have to laugh, maybe they should just call it the "NO NAME" party.

[glarius]

8. And yet Mulroney still has the nerve to stick his head up &get involved

again.....He's the main reason for the fall of the P.C.s....Every time I think of him I picture him and Mila in Quebec with Reagan and Nancy...on that stage singing "When Irish eyes are smiling!"....:puke:

[LeftistGorilla]

9. Good...

my pops would vote PC but would never vote Alliance....I suspect this will make the right wing even weaker then it already is in Canada...