Well, this will likely be my last post on the subject of John Tory. My campaign to encourage him to pursue another career has obviously failed, and Ontario will have to live with the consequences (H/T FemaleConvoter in comments from previous post.) From now on, I will only point out failures of the McGuinty government, but I won’t directly comment on the leadership issues within the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party.
The Liberals are already making political hay and they sure don’t need any more fodder:
…But Liberals in Scott’s riding, which includes Lindsay, are already sharpening their knives.
“Taxpayers should not be on the hook for Laurie and John to play musical chairs,” said local Liberal riding association president Paul Hough, noting a by-election could cost up to $500,000.
“Our community should not be used by the Conservatives as a doormat, and taxpayers should definitely not have to pay for this.”
I suppose my ultimate fear is that Ontario voters might accidentally elect another disastrous NDP government (remember Bob Rae?) due to disgust with the McGuinty government, and the disenchantment of conservative supporters who either stay home or end up voting for a fringe party.
However, one ironic note in the Star article is a veteran party activist being quoted as saying that Tory was like a “political eunuch without a seat.” I found that rather amusing considering the following comment from a Tory supporter who made this observation yesterday:
Tory will win a by-election up here handily, & hats off to Scott if she does it, for being the only one of 25 with the cojones to do the right thing.
“The right thing” would not have been enabling the further demise of a party and province through a virtual virility transplant operation.
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Update: Andrew S teele – Thrashing in the tar pond.
The Liberal Bag – “Mr. Toronto” to run in…an East-Central Ontarian riding that doesn’t come within two ridings of the GTA:
...Oh, and let the record show that by displacing a female MPP in order to cling to his job, John Tory will bring the female PC caucus down to 6, or less then a quarter of the PC caucus. As a point of comparison, the Liberal cabinet has 8 female members in the cabinet, not including backbenchers...
Now there’s an angle I hadn’t thought of…
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Friday Update: H/T to FemaleConvoter in comments for this one – Tory finds seat as turbulent times continue:
…However, just as Mr. Tory was finalizing that event, a group calling itself “Concerned Conservatives of Ontario” released a poll showing nearly 70 per cent of respondents do not believe Mr. Tory can beat the governing Liberals.
“A lot of people say the same thing. He’s a nice guy, but he may not necessarily be the right guy,” said Walter Pamic, an electrical contractor from Kanata and a spokesman for the upstart group…”
What do we have to do to get through to you, John?
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Another great article via Hodge from a previous post – John Tory’s political life saver (Christina Blizzard – Sun):
As a long-time observer of the kind of blood-on-the-floor politics that’s happening here, I have helpful hints for Tory.
- There is no such thing as a safe Tory seat. Don’t take HKLB for granted.
- Unless you are prepared to quit politics for good if you lose — run there in 2011. If you insist on running in Toronto in the next election, you will end up spending all your time trying to win that riding and not enough time in the rest of the province.
- Tory’s supporters applaud his management style. He’s a consensus-builder. That’s also the greatest criticism from his detractors. Nice is not an attractive attribute in political leaders. Dictators rule. What the party leader says goes. No more Mr. Nice Guy.
- Until now, it’s been all about Tory. Once he gets a seat, he can focus his caucus on the real issues. Make that issue the economy. With the NDP embroiled in their own leadership campaign, Dalton McGuinty’s Liberals have been getting a free ride. Meanwhile, the economy is tanking. Ironic, isn’t it, that everything Tory predicted about the economy in the last election is now coming true. Yet faith-based school funding was the only issue anyone cared about.
- Instead of infighting with a self-absorbed caucus, Tory should be hammering away on job losses, on manufacturing, on the auto sector. He should be questioning why teachers making $98,000 a year are threatening job action.
- Kick-start your caucus. Please. Sure, there are one or two bright lights, but for the most part, they are a complacent bunch.
- Hire some hard-edged political types to give you advice. You may have to go back to the Mike Harris years to find the people you need. Politics is a rough and tumble game, so bring some people with sharp elbows on board. The Harrisites may not have been genteel, tea-party types, but they had a lot of political savvy. That’s what Tory lacks. More importantly, having asked for the advice, Tory must listen to it.
Finally, a tip for all the behind-the-scenes manipulators: Once Tory has a seat, get behind him. Preferably not with a knife in your hand. Like it or not, the leader is the leader. If he loses, you all lose.
While I don’t agree with everything Blizzard suggests, I do think that the best advice is reaching out to the Harris-ites and really listening.
Listening is not one of John Tory’s strong suits. He needs to work on that. Listening involves really hearing what the other person is saying – not just planning your next rebuttal.
And John, if you’re reading this, please contact me. I will support you if I think you are truly ready to listen.
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The comments are worth checking out on this Globe story.
