Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Quebec BQ vs Conservatives

Canada Tories win endorsement, surge in Quebec The endorsement today by formely Liberal La Presse, is as stunning as the Globe and Mail endorsement the other day. Like the Globe editorial it is not so much an endorsement of Harper or the Conservatives as much as a rejection of the tired old out of touch Liberals. It's a turf the Liberals editorial. Time for a change though as they say Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

The Conservatives are now the qausi Federalist/quasi Nationalist party to beat in Quebec.
Why quasi Nationalist you ask, well the Nationalist ADQ has endorsed them. The ADQ is of course right wing, pro privatization of everything standing and pro tax cuts. The ADQ is the Conservative party in Quebec.

Harpers capitulation to the BQ program of Fiscal Imbalance and recognizing Quebec's right to attend international meetings as a Province, something Alberta already does along with having its own embassies, err Provincial offices, abroad, puts the Conservatives squarely in the old Mulroney camp of supporting soft nationalism in Quebec.

Remember Mulroney's Conservatives was an alliance with Quebec nationalists, and endorsed by Rene Levesque and the PQ. His key Quebec cabinet minister Lucien Bouchard went on to found the BQ and then on to become the PQ leader and Premier. Bouchard is now is talking about the need for Quebec to dismantle its social democratic state in favour of a privatized one.

The Liberals are trailing behind the Conservatives in Quebec. In the homeland. Their Trudeau Federalism has never been about Canada it has always been about opposing Quebec Nationalism. The Bankruptcy of Liberal Federalism

But the NDP are making gains in popular voter intention in Quebec as well. They represent a Left Wing alternative to the BQ.

They are having their best showing in Quebec EVER, despite the flip flop Layton made over the Clarity Act early on. His appeal to get Quebec to sign the Constitution has even been picked up by Harper lately. It is the first time the NDP has had a Leader from Quebec. And that is what wins votes there.

While Harper is not from Quebec he has learned the Mulroney lesson well, and his candidates are well known Quebecois, Lieutants All.

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