New Endorsements

Nixon loves Rae! Former Ontario Liberal leader Bob Nixon, that is, not the guy pictured above.

Gerard Kennedy has the support of 24 Ontario Liberal MPPs.

Maurizio Bevilacqua finally gets some press.

Wake Up!

Sorry we haven't posted for a few days, we fell asleep during the Moncton Liberal leadership debate and just woke up.

Sounds like Liberals across the country are in the same doldrums. The Star says Liberals are exhausted and frustrated.

"This isn't an unusual problem for the Liberals. They always tune out the grassroots until they are out of power and need them," said Ottawa consultant Jamie Deacey, who co-chaired Paul Martin's leadership campaign in 2002/03. "What makes it so egregious this time is the problem on the other side of the aisle — Stephen Harper."

Meanwhile, the Globe reports on the abysmal performance of Liberal MPs. They seem to be a dispirited, disinterested bunch who are letting Harper have his way in the Commons. Brutal.

Some of the Young Turks in caucus -- the enthusiastic, newly elected Liberals -- have muttered about interim leader Bill Graham's performance and his lack of passion during the daily Question Period.

Mr. Graham is well liked, but he is a lame duck, admitting in meetings that he cannot make decisions that could tie the hands of the future leader, a senior Liberal said.

The frustration also has MPs feuding among themselves. Recently, behind the curtains in the House of Commons, one Liberal MP accused a colleague of laziness.

Gee, maybe Tobin should have run for the leadership. We hear his next gig is examining municipal pet bylaws in Lethbridge.

Brison Going Back to Hali?

Phone lines are buzzing between Ottawa and Nova Scotia today with word that federal Liberal leadership candidate Scott Brison may drop out of the race and enter the campaign to be the next Liberal leader in Nova Scotia.

Current Liberal leader Francis Mackenzie, who did not win his own seat in the recent vote, is not expected to make it to the party's first caucus meeting next week, despite, or perhaps because of, some bizarre trial balloons about a coalition government with the Opposition NDP.

Brison seems to enjoy leadership campaigns. The provincial leadership in Nova Scotia would be his third.

One question to Scott: R U Happy?

Liberals Suck - Sun

Apparently, every single candidate in the Liberal leadership campaign sucks. That's the conclusion of a carefully researched, thoughtfully written editorial in the Edmonton Sun.

You know, the Sun. The newspaper for people who don't read. Oh, and Myron Thompson too. Yabba dabba do.

Read the piece for yourself. As always in the Sun, it won't take long and no words are more than two syllables, so, you know, your finger won't get tired.

Of course, with Iggy raising the specter of a new NEP through some ill-defined carbon tax, the Western antipathy could be expected. Way to shoot yourself in the foot Iggy.

Anyone But Iggy?

The nascent Anyone-But-Iggy meme got a boost from John "Ibby" Ibbitison in the Globe. He says:

"Michael Ignatieff is the one to beat, and the way to beat him is by tarring him as an American conservative who would hijack the Liberal Party. The question is: Who, if anyone, could do that?"

Who indeed?

With no clear alternative available, the only hope for preventing an Ignatieff victory may be an anyone-but-Iggy contract, in which several candidates agree in advance to support whomever among their number does best in the early ballots at the convention. Such coalitions rarely succeed.

During Saturday's debate, not one candidate was prepared to celebrate and defend the legacies of Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin. The Liberal Party appears to be ashamed of its own past, or at least of the past five years. It's a dangerous thing for a political party to feel ashamed of itself.

Surprisingly well said. Candidates take note. We can't wear the hairshirt forever and there is much to be proud of.

The Bob Rae caucus support bandwagon continues to roll with the power of an out of control freight train. No fewer than three, yes three, MPs are supportingg the Liberal arriviste.

The Tories and the NDP push forward new campaign financing rules to muck up the Liberal leadership campaign. That's not playing nice.

Farewell to Nova Scotia.

Debatable Results

The first Liberal leadership campaign debate, held Saturday in Winnipeg, failed to produce any knockout punches but it was clear to all who watched that other candidates view Michael Ignatieff as the frontrunner. They took several tough shots at the Professor including:

Liberals don't want [Stephen] Harper Lite - Bob Rae

and

made in Washington and Republican - Joe Volpe

"I'm flattered by all the attention," Mr. Ignatieff joked in an interview yesterday, although he seemed exasperated by some of the criticism. "They're entitled to any characterization of me that they want. I have a profoundly Liberal approach, and a profoundly Canadian one."

The increasing animosity suggests the battle is, finally, truly joined.

The not-at-all tiresome Chantal Hebert slammed Ignatieff's performance.

Having set the bar at a certain level, Ignatieff then spent the afternoon failing to reach it.

She also went after Ken Dryden, saying:

Ken Dryden's performance confirmed that he can articulate complex ideas, but only in English. Since John Crosbie in 1983, no serious candidate has bid for the leadership of a major national party on the basis of so little knowledge of the other official language. As opposed to Crosbie, Dryden also lacks a gift for repartee in either language.

Birds of a feather (i.e. failed socialist premiers) flock together. Former BC New Democratic Premier Ujjal Dosanjh, and current Liberal defence critic, is throwing his support behind Bob Rae. This doubles Rae's caucus support.

Iggy Ready to Rumble

Presumed frontrunner in the Liberal leadership campaign Michael Ignatieff took some pointed shots at poor old Joe Volpe.

“I think any candidate for the leadership of this party has to safeguard not only his or her reputation but the reputation of the party,” Ignatieff said in a telephone interview from Winnipeg.

“And there is no way to avoid the fact that Mr. Volpe’s campaign difficulties have caused reputational damage to a party that I’m sure he loves as much as I do. Mr. Volpe must draw his own conclusions.”

Geez, Volpe is toast already. What's to be gained by this unseemly piling on? Or is Ignatieff trying to prove he has the stones to play in the big leagues?

Can the Liberal party re-invent itself? Should it?

Linda Diebel takes a thoughtful look at what is needed to turn the party around after the Martin "government" debacle.

Bob Rae Will Save the Poor

Liberal arriviste Bob Rae unveiled his platform in Toronto yesterday.

His priorities include focusing on education, spearheading a research and innovation strategy, replacing or refurbishing roads, bridges, sewers and other infrastructure projects, and lowering income taxes for those who most need relief.

Innovative stuff to be sure...Yawn.

Acknowledging the heavy baggage he carries from his disastrous turn as premier of Ontario, Rae said: "I've had high points. I've had low points," he said. "I'm not afraid to say I've learned from experience. I'm not afraid to say that I'm smarter today than I was 20 years ago."

Rae also rebuffed suggestions his campaign is faltering.

"It's not a sprint. It's a marathon. It's a long race," he said.

The fallout from the Volpe fundraising mini-scandal continues. His campaign was rocked by the loss of Liberal MP and personal friend Sukh Dhaliwal.

Dhaliwal, a crucial link to the Indo-Canadian community that plays a major role in Liberal leadership campaigns, said his B.C. constituents don't support his continued involvement in Volpe's bid.

Over at Maclean's, home of last week's news next week, the Jazz man weighs in with his thoughts on Volpegate. Yawn.

It's Not Funny Anymore

Joe Volpe's fundraising foibles have underscored a weakness in the Liberal leadership race. And yes, it's all about the Benjamins.

While Joe has become a punchline, and his campaign is likely in a permanent death spiral, other candidates are fairing poorly when it comes to raising the mothers milk of politics. A quick review of money raised:

Bob Rae: $0
Gerard Kennedy: $0
Scott Brison: $0
Martha Hall Findlay: $0
Ken Dryden: $5,000
Carolyn Bennett: $5,300
Michael Ignatieff: $17,200
Stephane Dion: $17,500
Maurizio Bevilacqua: $26,650

Excluding Volpe's cash, candidates haven't raised enough combined for a decent downpayment on a 1 bedroom condo in Toronto. Most candidates have received "bridge financing" from deep-pocketed friends (or, in Bob Rae's case, his brother), exposing candidates and the party to more allegations of buying influence.

Most people say it takes a least a $1-million to run a reasonable national leadership campaign. While candidates are only now becoming "official candidates" (i.e. donations eligible for a tax receipts), clearly the new finance rules are having an impact. So when will the real fundraising begin in earnest?

Wilson-mania set to begin? Reserve your seat on the bandwagon now.

Joe Gives It Up

Joe Volpe has returned the money generated by his surprisingly effective youth campaign. In an interview that was nasty, brutish and short, Volpe spokesperson Corey Hobbs said:

"All donations were in compliance with the law and there were no rules broken here."

"But after statements Mr. Volpe made last night, it was determined that five donations will be returned."

Volpe told CTV's Canada AM on Thursday that he spoke to mother of those children whose donations came into question.

"They're kind of embarrassed about the controversy. "They had made the decision for very positive reasons and someone has turned it into something very negative," he said.

"I gave them an indication that while I appreciated their support, the fact of the matter is that we wanted to set a higher standard than other people were accustomed to, and we were going to return the monies."

A mock web site created a stir yesterday. The youthforvolpe.ca site asked very young Liberals the following:

"Want to support Joe, but don't know if you can? Talk to your parents, you might have already done your part."

Sadly, the Volpe campaign didn't see the humour in the site and had it yanked by CIRA. But the more interesting question is who is behind the site?

The free-spirited Chantal Hebert dedicates 736 words to the obvious. The Liberal leadership campaign is giving Harper a free ride. Nice insight. Stay tuned for her exclusive story tomorrow - sunshine makes the darkness go away.

Should Joe Go?

The Joe Volpe campaign donations story has legs. The Globe is reporting that Joe took in the maximum possible contribution possible from two eleven year old boys. But perhaps Joe's just that compelling to the next generation?

Good ole James Travers at the Star says Volpe should drop out of the Liberal leadership race.

It's wrong to deny Volpe the benefit of the doubt.

But combined with - again unproven - charges from fellow Liberals that his supporters used an ethnic group to seize control of a riding association, the Apotex allegations are damaging enough to argue that Volpe would be doing the party an enormous favour by stepping aside.

Curiously, Travers seems to think that this move would unleash the full power of the Carolyn Bennett campaign juggernaut.

Finally, MPs and Senators will have their chance to "vent" about the performance of the Liberal war room in the last campaign. A special session was called Liberal caucus chair Raymond Bonin, MP for the Northern Ontario riding of Nickel Belt. He sent a rather injudicious email to caucus saying:

"Former War Room Staff will be in the 'Lions Pit' to address the difficulties faced during the last campaign. This is your chance to 'vent' at what transpired during the election.

Sound more like a Salem witch trial than a truth and reconciliationon committee.

But the last line of the story is the best:

Mr. Herle declined to comment on the meeting, but said he was not invited.

Good times.