Wednesday, November 10, 2010

What's wrong with New Democrats?

I almost choked on my coffee when I read that Dale Lovick was calling for Carole James to be dumped as NDP leader.
What is wrong with this party?
Lovick is on the NDP riding association executive in Nanaimo-North Cowichan. He told Michael Smyth of The Province that the executive recently passed a motion calling on James to step down while a leadership contest takes place.
This from a cabinet minister who stayed loyal, at least publicly, to Glen Clark until the bitter end.
Lovick never called for Clark’s resignation or expressed doubts about the NDP government’s direction.
Now he thinks James should go.
His credentials aren’t great. Lovick was part of an NDP team - a cabinet minister - who ran the party into the ground. People saw the government as dishonest and incompetent and loathed the New Democrats. Lovick and company’s legacy was the NDP’s 2001 election performance - 22 per cent of the vote and two seats.
Today, a recent poll puts the New Democrats at 47 per cent, enough to win a big majority. James doesn’t great approval ratings, but she’s by far people’s first choice.
And Lovick and others are calling for a leadership change.
It’s good NDP riding associations feel free to express their opinions. It’s bad that they seem so foolish.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

The polls are not that relevant nthis far out. People are polling against something. That person who embodied that something is now gone. As soon as a credible alternative emerges from the Liberals, those polling numbers will tighten up.

The NDP wins when the centre right is split. The only benefit in keeping Ms. James around would be in encouraging the Conservatives to make a go of it. If a strong NDP leader replaces James (whomever that person is) then the free enterprise voters will see the real threat and coalesce around whomever the Liberals put forward.

The NDP can increase their chances by having a solid platform. Doesn't have to be costed. Just something that reasonates with voters and is repeated over and over from now until 2013. Tight, disciplined and hope the right explodes.

Anonymous said...

I agree Paul, the NDP can't seem to resist devouring itself even as it sits on the brink of forming the next government.

Carole James may not have the flashiest personality, she may not give the most rabble-rousing speeches but she seems like a decent, trust-worthy person. We need that for a change.

I've voted NDP all my life and frankly, this has me at the end of my rope. If this turns into a protracted battle that plays out in public they've lost my vote. I'm that pissed off.

Anonymous said...

Proof positive! when push comes to shove, all the corporate media hates the thought of an ndp govt.paul included, thats why at the last election and every single election ever held in bc the corporate media endorses the ndp`s opponent. and having that limp dishrag ,two time loser Quota queen run for the ndp, all but guarantees a liberal victory.

Ed Seedhouse said...

Even if the NDP needs a new leader (which I seriously doubt), now is exactly the wrong time to be doing it, or even talking about it.

Any change of leadership should come after we know who we'll be running against. I remember the early 1980's when the NDP selected the right leader to beat Bill Bennet, and then Bill left, and VanderZalm came in.

Why would we want to do that again?

Anonymous said...

Paul, you left out the fact that Lovick was a mediocre cabinet minister.

James brought the NDP back from the disaster you describe and Lovick abetted.

Last election James and the NDP got the second or third highest percentage of the vote in its history, the highest in 25 years. Now she leads the polls by 2 to 1 and an astonishing 46% on Vancouver Island (I checked the Angus Reid poll).

Only a bunch of fools would mess with that.

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately the honest and competent Carol James doesn't resonate with voters.

Now that Gordon Campbell will be replaced as the Liberal leader, it is very likely her polling numbers will drop significantly.

Anonymous said...

Enough with the myth that James was responsible for the revival of the party. Joy MacPhail/Jenny Kwan carried the ball long enough for those on the left to have their anger at the NDP displaced by anger over the tax cut/services slash and burn of the BC Liberal first term. Think of 2005 as a reestablishment of the usual voter distribution between left and right. James had nothing to do with that and had her team been a little more organized, could have even won.

2009 was a case of hold your nose and hold the course during a time of economic uncertainty that hadn't bitten deep enough for people to want a dramatic change. And alot of NDP'ers simply stayed home. When the free enterprisers are motivated to support one party and you have 30-40% turn outs, you know who will be disproportionately represented in the vote.

Think about it. Without Vanderzalm we wouldn't even be talking about the HST. Without the HST Campbell would have rolled into a fourth term, especially if the economy improved in the lead up to 2013.

Why? Because there's nothing about the BCNDP itself right now that is going to get the average person motivated to get off the couch and think that voting will make a difference --to say nothing of encouraging others, or volunteering, or donating money, etc.

You've either got to have a charismatic leader or a compelling vision. The BCNDP right now has neither.

DPL said...

Anon 9.38 has some very good points, and I agree with him or her.

James blew the last election with the help of her so called advisers. Membership is down, contributions are down and she just floats along waiting for her elevation to the premier status. No doubt many members feel that's the wrong way to get there. But if the decide among themselves to keep or drop her, well that's BC politics

Christopher Jones said...

At least Lovick had the decency to out himself, unlike anonymous above who sounds like a Bill Tielman parrot and an insider.

"Without Vanderzalm we wouldn't even be talking about the HST." What a load of crap. Vanderzalm saw an opportunity to capitalize on massive discontent in order to continue his rehabilitation from being BC's worst Premier ever. He did not galvanize discontent. But thanks Bill. You and Zalm do look so cute together.

Anonymous said...

Lovick admitted accepting a monthly stipend from the NCHS for years, no questions asked. He should be thankful he was never prosecuted - the Liberals canned the inquiry when they took office in 2001 - and simply keep cashing those MLA pension cheques.

Anonymous said...

I became a NDP card carrying member during Carole's 1st run. Even then I wasn't alll that enthusiastic over her but I am faithful to the NDP. I phone banked and did the office work in Squamish during that time.
IMHP, she doesn't really bring enthusiasm to the party because there isn't any "in your face" huffing and puffing (at this time which we need).
I will always vote NDP whomever is head but I do need something more from her.
The NDP is in the lead but only because of liberals deconstructing and we need a new leader that will enthuse us - not just because of the liberals imploding.
BevinBC

Anonymous said...

We go back a bit longer than 9:32. when returning to BC in 1972( prior to that time I was in the military and actually voting NDP was pretty hard on a security rating) we started voting NDP and have done so ever since. And like 9:32 we weren't exactly enamored with Carole James, even though she was our MLA. She upset me greatly when I tried to get her to light a fire under the medical system that was so slow in getting tests and eventually a operation. She took a number of months to finally write to tell me she wasn't my advocate. Only time she actually sent any notice of what she was doing in and around the riding. The two of us came very close that day to simply not vote, but a restructure of riding gave us another MLA, who actually talks to the peasants. Same party , totally different approach to things. The woman simply ignores her constituents unless of course, when the party is asking for money. She is possibly a nice person but!! Way back when, everyone one with much of a rank takes a course on Leadership . The quote on the blackboard said" Leadership is an intangible art" I can still remember that from the 1964. She has not in my view shown that art. Shape up or ship out James, you have overstayed your time as boss MLA for the NDP.
some of the riding associations have every right to ask for a vote on her leading the caucus. If the majority figure she is the one , so be it. But to try to ignore the concerns is simply not the way a true leader does things in our view. sign me,as not happy

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