Now Elizabeth May Thinks the NDP Should Roll Over For Her
The NDPs job, according to Elizabeth May, is to defeat Stephen Harper – period. Thus, they should join forces with the Greens to eliminate Stephen Harper’s Conservative government:
I have people coming over and saying, ‘I’m going to vote Green because I think the NDP is more interested in eliminating the Liberal party than in restoring to power a government that actually cares about issues I care about.’ My advice to (NDP Leader Jack) Layton which is open and really in the spirit of co-operation — rethink the policy of constantly denigrating the Greens and acting hostile towards us.
Which makes you wonder, what is it about politics that Elizabeth May doesn’t get? Let me guess what this co-operation would look like – the NDP wouldn’t run a candidate in Central Nova, the Green’s don’t run in Toronto-Danforth and maybe Trinity-Spadina. Because the best way to eliminate Stephen Harper is to elect Elizabeth May. (Of course, Toronto-Danforth and Trinity-Spadina are pretty safe NDP seats, so what’s in it for Jack Layton?)
Back when May made her deal with Stephane Dion, I made the following comment:
If Elizabeth May is only interested in knocking off Conservatives, if she doesn’t want to unseat a Liberal or New Democrat, what’s the point of the Green Party? Why doesn’t she just join one of those two parties?
It still stands. It is not the NDP that is in the way of the Greens unseating the Conservatives, and it’s a Jacobian Piece of Impertinence to suggest it is, it is the Greens syphoning votes away from the Liberals and NDP. And don’t tell me, as May suggests, that the Green Party “draws (support) from all the traditional parties.” If you’re reason for being is that “we cannot afford more than one term of this (Stephen Harper’s Conservative) government,” you aren’t going to draw support from the Conservative party.
If defeating Stephen Harper is your only reason for being, Elizabeth May, fold up the Green Party and stop syphoning votes from the parties that could defeat them.
One last thing. May talks about a positive campaign:
I believe that if we have an election that focuses on issues and not spin and attack ads, the voters will exercise their wisdom.
But isn’t the following, by nature, negative?
Not just specific trades in different ridings, but an effort to be more collaborative so that we can figure out — in a first-past-the-post system — can we work together to ensure that (Prime Minister Stephen) Harper enjoys a one-term period as prime minister.
We cannot afford more than one term of this government.
If all you want is to defeat the other guy, that is the very definition of negative campaigning. But that is not really what Elizabeth May wants: Elizabeth May wants a seat for herself, regardless of the costs to everyone else.
Elizabeth May has so far in the little time that she has been the leader of the Green Party demonstrated herself as a very poor strategist. She has clearly not thought things through in the political decisions that she has made and has succeeded in alienating many members of her own party. Its pathetic when her only option now is to beg for help from the NDP.
”If defeating Stephen Harper is your only reason for being, Elizabeth May, fold up the Green Party and stop syphoning votes from the parties that could defeat them.”
Exactly.
Running a ‘stop Harper’ campaign chases votes away from the Greens.
Dippers and Greens are the parties that should be joining forces.
Jack needs to drive home the point that May’s goal is to become the Liberal rump,
instead of having a voice in Parliament,
May is striving to be no more than an echo.
And that’s not good enough.
Advantage Dippers,
they already have seats in Parliament, and can advance the Green platform.
All jack has to do is launch a campaign that is focused on all Canadians,
get off the plight of special interest groups (for a short while).
Focus on a parallel to the Greens platform, the issues that are appealing to Green voters.
(which just happens to be very similar to the NDP, not the Liberals)
ex: on the environment, peace keeping, and NAFTA.
“The Job of …..”
“blahblah blah … defeat Stephen Harper…”
Hmmm … apparently civics is not a topic of relevance for today’s elected representatives….
Oh wait a minute!
LMAO…they can’t afford more then 1 term of Stephen Harper because he’ll expose just how pathetic the other parties really are. Harpers Conservatives will have accomplished more in a single term as a minority gov’t then 35 years of Liebral rule could do and the NDP (No Damn Plan) party or the tree hugging Green’s will never hold real power if a majority gov’t is elected based on issues.
How many people actually realize or know that renewable fuels from Corn and Grain actually have just as large an impact on green house gases as Oil and Coal… you need to grow it after all, and that means both fertilizers and machinery to plant, fertilize, and harvist it…and then you need to turn it into a usable fuel… not to mention there’s the matter of cutting into our own food supply to feed the biofuel engines vs. people…
What May, Dion, and Layton are all afraid of is if Harper doesn’t use attack ads and I believe all party’s will eventually, after asking all party’s to run purely on track records alone, then it will be a resounding Conservative majority next election in fall 2009 and Dion, Layton, and May will all be kicked to the curb of irrelavancy…
I am almost tempted to believe that a great many Conservatives joined the Green Party to ensure Elizabeth May was elected leader.
Unfortunately, I meet people who act equally stupid without any external prompting on a daily basis to know this couldn’t be true, the Greens are exactly what you see……