The Martlet

Sometimes it’s more comforting to live in the past than acknowledge the painful truth of the present.

Gone are the days of single party rule in Canada. Our political landscape has splintered into numerous factions and only the tired old men left in the Liberal and Conservative camps cling to memories of majority-rule glory.

For example, Michael Ignatieff recently claimed that his once-proud Liberals are a “big red tent” coalition party that is based in reality, while the others are shackled to ideology. He might be right, but claiming the Liberal party represents Canada’s only progressive, responsible party that can form government belies a loose grasp of the facts on the ground.

The numbers don’t lie. The painful truth of the present is that, for the past four years, the Canadian public has provided a steady, simple message to politicians: we’re just not that into you. Two-thirds of Canadians routinely reject either the Liberals or the Conservatives. The New Democrats rarely get the nod from more than one in five of us; the Greens, one in 10.

Responding to questions about whether his party would consider forming a coalition government, Ignatieff claimed that his Liberals are the coalition. What about the nearly 40 per cent of Canadians that identify as NDP, Green or Bloc? Ignatieff contends that those voters realize their parties can’t form a government, and should consider coming into his “big red tent” to defeat the Harper Conservatives. Pretending that the next election will have voters flocking to any one party is fanciful at best and deluded at worst.

It’s time for Ignatieff to face facts. He has progressive Canadians across the country expecting him to unseat Prime Minister Stephen Harper, but they won’t get behind him if he keeps claiming his party can do it alone. Ignatieff needs to stop pretending his party speaks for enough Canadians to earn government, let alone a stable majority. He needs to begin laying the groundwork for a coalition now by framing all issues in terms of the common goals the Liberals share with all parties.

Ignatieff is fortunate to be the Leader of the Official Opposition in a political environment where the Conservative government has nowhere else to find support. It won’t come from the voters Harper has alienated by turning the political process even more toxic. Harper won’t find support among women, educated Canadians or minorities, all of whom he’s attacked at every conceivable turn. No, the next election should be Ignatieff’s to lose. All he needs to do is ditch his belief that his party will be granted the exclusive right to govern.

Leadership is the ability to forge consensus and promote common cause among people with divergent interests. The young people who can decide Canada’s next election understand this. Canada’s current generation is connected, plugged-in and well-versed in team-play, co-operation and collaboration—not the every-person-for-themselves mentality that the Conservatives thrive on.

If Ignatieff thinks he’s so in touch with the young people of today, he should understand that youth would connect with a leader openly talking about issues that matter to them, like coalition-building and working across party lines. They would value his willingness to risk his political future on a strong stand against the Conservative anti-coalition fear campaign.

A real leader must stand in front of the crowd, urging greater understanding and imagination. If Ignatieff can’t even defend a coalition, even as an idea that has acute relevance to the reality of Canada’s fractious political landscape, how can Canadians expect him to defend public healthcare, arctic sovereignty or the necessity of an independent Canadian foreign policy?

Ignatieff’s deaf ear to what voters are really saying smacks of someone who is either afraid to stand up to a bully, or unwilling to openly acknowledge his naked desire to be the next Harper—an old-school Prime Minister who answers to no other party in parliament and no other authority than a dwindling number of people on election day.