NDP Leadership - Round 9

Howard wrote:

knownothing wrote:

Don also gave a tougher interview to Brian Topp and he opened up with asking him why he was leaked a story that Topp was the "frontrunner" 1! day after Layton's death.

Oh yeah, and Topp's answer: "Journalists will do what they do"

http://watch.ctv.ca/news/#clip530760

To me that exchange is already one of the iconic ones of Topp's candidacy. His answer was not reassuring.

It was reassuring to me that something fishy is going on

Topp's annoucement was a good media hit for his campaign, especially since Broadbent was there and so clearly supportive.

On a personal note, I generally don't think insider candidates represent the interests of average citizens very well and I hope the overall campaign is idea focused. 

The move to draft Niki Ashton appeals to me on a number of levels though.  I'd probably support her if she runs.

It will certainly be interesting to watch where the caucus goes as this develops, esp. those from Quebec. 

If Mulcair announces with 40 or 50 Quebec MPs and even a smattering of others from across the country behind him, that's going to make Boivin look a little paltry by comparison.

It also will tend to convey the message to the membership: vote for me or piss off Quebec. Mulcair has already played this card once on the rules (I wont run if the rules are not to my liking). It will be interesting to see if such an implicit threat is repeated. It certainly could back fire especially given that the electorate will be predominantly from the ROC. 

On the other hand isn't the most important question here how is this person going to sell in Quebec? The province (like most) does tend to vote as a bloc and if the NDP becomes Quebec's federal party for a generation, you would think the party would have to win a federal election sooner or later. 

Is there any argument that Topp (or Nash or Julian etc) are better bets in Quebec than Mulcair? Do any of the rest of them put in play enuf seats elsewhere in the country to justify the risk that we would be taking in Quebec? 

Also: does anyone know how the voting is going to be conducted? Is it one ballot with preferences, Transferable Vote style, or is it sequential on line balloting in real time, with last place dropping off. The latter would be more exciting and leaves open dramatic floor movements with real impact on the results so I am hoping for that.  

A friend who saw Power and Politics today said Brian Topp spent about half the time talking about Israel/Palestine.

As if the Conservatives are going to use support for Palestinian statehood against anyone in a national campaign.  This actually seems like a pretty savvy move by Topp, especially in gaining a strong position against Mulclair.  I'd prefer a leader that resonated in Quebec but Mulclair has been pretty despicable so far on this issue.

Boom Boom wrote:

Topp is pretty clear on his support for the two state solution, but was also very quick to distance himself from Hamas and from those that fire rockets into populated areas. He feels Canada should - along with the rest of the world - vote in favour of a Palestinian state at the UN (I'm not sure I got the exact wording correct). He clearly is light years ahead of Mulcair on the subject of Israel / Palestine. He may be ahead of the Canadian population as well, which is why the Conservatives have a vested interest in recording everything Topp says on the subject.

Yes, agree with him or not, Topp's comments on Power & Politics were quite substantive. Shockingly so by modern political standards.

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You know, it will be interesting to see at the end of this thing how much this whole process has been influenced by the mass media.

There has been much written about tensions between Mulcair and Layton's inner circle. I have yet to see anything that indicates anything but a close personal relation between Jack and Tom. In fact:

 http://www2.canada.com/story.html?id=5292522&p=2

Calgary-Nose Hill MP Diane Ablonczy recalled Monday that she congratulated Layton in the House of Commons following the spring election, at which point he credited his Quebec lieutenant Thomas Mulcair for the large electoral gains.

"Those who meet with political success can easily forget about the team that made it all possible. Jack was wise and generous enough to share the credit," Ablonczy said in an e-mail.

Robin Sears said on Power Play that Peter Julian would run to represent the left and the left coast

"Robin Sears said on Power Play that Peter Julian would run to represent the left and the left coast."

That's good to hear.  He and Nash are the two best choices of those being discussed, IMO.

Doug wrote:

Which is why someone who's a completely new face might not be such a great idea. The NDP may not have the resources to define a new leader before the Conservatives do.

Do you think someone as smart as Topp has learned nothing from watching the past number of years unfold?

We should not be like the Liberals running around in fear of what could be done to them. We need to stick to our own path, but have a well-thought-out response volley ready and waiting.

The attacks have begun:

"Topp is a union boss and has deep union ties," they say in a memo to MPs and party faithful. "How could Brian Topp speak on behalf of all Canadians, when he is so tied to big union special interests...

"Topp is not just the candidate of union bosses but also NDP insiders," the Tories say, noting that he worked for former Saskatchewan premier Roy Romanow, former left-wing Toronto mayor David Miller and former NDP leader Audrey McLaughlin.

And if that does make Tories shake in their boots, the party back-roomers add that "Brian Topp is most notable for being NDP Leader's hand-picked negotiator in the coalition talks with the separatist Bloc Québécois ... Brian Topp will do anything - including forming a wreckless [sic] coalition with separatists - in order to gain power."

Topp responds on Twitter:

briantopp Brian Topp  To my PMO friends: I guess I worry you -- thanks for the compliment this morning!

(h/t Aaron Wherry, Macleans.ca)

Rebecca West wrote:

I dunno ... I wouldn't support anyone on the basis of who the Harperites choose to attack or ignore.  I also don't give a rat's ass about anything the MSM might say.

Well said.

josh wrote:

Yeah, apparently with the aid of NDP higher ups, they've managed to narrow the leading contenders to someone who only became a member of the party a few years ago and someone without experience running for elective office.

Rebecca West wrote:

I also don't give a rat's ass about anything the MSM might say.

The mainstream media are doing their best to not only dictate to us who the frontrunners are for the leadership, but are also trying to create a fake division within the party for their own entertainment, to create a story.

They're just as slimey as the Liberals and Conservatives.

If Topp decides to run for the nomination in Toronto-Danforth, I wonder what the the Greek community there would make of his cheerful article(s) about the Greek austerity regime? The BBC reports that people in Greece feel like they are being "sacrificed for Europe," and large majorities (according to polling) support defaulting on the country's debt. Topp's article(s) are an interesting commentary given his own experience (and articles about) overseeing the austerity regime of the Romanow administration in Saskatchewan, when rural hospitals/clinics and schools were shut down. Way to go Ed Broadbent.

Quote:

Potential New Democratic Party leadership candidate Thomas Mulcair continued to play it cagey over the possibility of running but says he's building a team to do in Canada what the NDP accomplished in Quebec.

And neither he nor some members of the Quebec caucus who seem to be leaning toward backing him appeared overly discouraged that the first candidate out of the gate, Brian Topp, has bagged the support of the highly respected former NDP leader Ed Broadbent. The decision forced Topp to relinquish his presidential duties.

Arriving for a meeting of the Quebec wing of the party, Mulcair was all smiles as he walked down the staircase surrounded by a number of MPs. His officials later said the throng around him was a coincidence.

Mulcair did not answer reporter's questions — sticking to a statement indicating he's still working and reflecting on a possible run.

But he again hinted strongly that the party would be making a mistake in not picking him given what was accomplished in the May 2 federal election which sent 59 Quebec MPs to the House of Commons.

"Jack Layton got us to a level that we've never seen before in the history of the NDP," Mulcair said. "I've been with him for the past five years, shoulder to shoulder, building that momentum here in Quebec.

"My only goal is to make sure we keep what we've already built and that we bring more people into the NDP for the future working across Canada.

"To do that, I want to build a team. That's the process I'm involved with right now. Coming to that sort of decision is an exercise which involves talking to people across Canada."

"I'm encouraged because I've received hundreds of letters and emails and phone calls from people across Canada asking me to consider running for the leadership.

"That's flattering but we have to build a team first and that's the process we're involved in right now."

http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Mulcair+remains+leadership/5395087/s...

If we think about how the Conservatives would frame potential NDP leaders, would they be able to get away with trying to frame Romeo Saganash? Certainly many people would think it's time Canada elected an Aboriginal PM, and any attacks by the Conservatives could cause the Aboriginal communities to be more active in politics, and suddenly several safe Conservative seats out West aren't so safe any more.

Hunky_Monkey wrote:

I don't want to elect a Michael Dukakis as leader.

Though it would help in Toronto-Danforth.

I don't know how other NDP members are feeling but I am starting to resent the feeling that we're being manipulated by the party brass? If I am not alone then I think there will be a backlash against this possible 'coronation' of Topp. It has a similar feel to it as when the Liberal brass went to Harvard to court Michael Ignatieff, and we know how that turned out.....

In my mind there are some excellent possibilities for future leader, people with proven electoral success and experience in front of the camera and in the House of Commons. I just hope that Ed's (rather premature in my opinion) endorsement and the weight of the backroom brass don't deter people like Paul Dewar and Peggy Nash from running - we need them in the race.

No disrespect intended to Ed (though to be honest, I am wary of his cozying up to the Liberals in recent years), but his appearance at Topp's side reminded me of Parizeau at Duceppe's and Chretien at Ignatieff's in the dying days of the election. Which is to say, it seemed a gesture out of the past. It won't mean nearly as much today as it did when Ed endorsed Jack.

Presuming she doesn't run herself, it will mean something to me if and when Libby Davies endorses a candidate.

update from rdi: at a short press conference in quebec city, mulcair just said that he's gauging support, organizing endorsements, assembling a canada-wide team, and that he has the support of "a large majority of the quebec caucus".  boom!  says it'll be a matter of weeks before he announces, though one doesn't imagine that it'll be very many weeks, given topp's current cross-canada tour.

in other news, topp held a press conference at the vancouver convention center rolling out endorsements from john horgan, dawn black (blech!) and a rookie.  also, from joy macphail.  more backroom type stuff here, i guess, calling in favors and that.  really interesting how this is shaping up.

Yep Michelle Mungall, MLA for Creston Nelson (sp) is backing Topp. Saw it on her facebook page. Maybe Topp is making his way through the provinces to pick up more support. He had to announce early because of early rumours and his NDP presidency. 

Topp shouldn't be running. We need him in the backroom - unless of course he can return to the position of party president if he loses his bid to become leader. But he's apparently running in the Toronto-Danforth by-election...I'm just hoping he can replaced with someone equally as smart and savy.

I hope there are many candidates for the leadership, I can't wait and am hoping that Libby Davies, Romeo Saganash and Peter Julian declare their candidacies soon. But Topp? Too green, too much of a backroom strategist, and the media/Cons/Libs will have a field day, trying to define and slime him, ie "arrogant entitled elitist blah blah"

I take seriously the point/quip: this is not an entry level position. [Even if its beginning to sound trite.]

On the other hand....

The NDP now has a profile it didnt have before. In some sense, its ready for the new leader to step in.

Any contender has to prove they have what it takes. ANYbody has to prove that.

Its going to take more to prove for someone like Topp who does not already have the proven track record in public. But for that matter, Mulcair has to prove a different one than the one he already has. And just about anyone else has to prove they can more impact than they have had to date.

But the NDP's new profile gives them the opportunity to do that.

And if Brain Topp or anyone else can take that opportunity and show they have what it takes for the public stage- what you see is what you vote for, or do not vote for.

Political savvy and organizational leadership capability are a little more nebulous. But the contendors can show what they have, and we can judge. No one has already shown they have what is required. And if anything, within the party, Brian has shown he has that, more than have the other likely contenders.