Incoming! The good ship BC Liberal Party has sprung some big leaks - and I am pleased to share them with my readers.
Below you will find an internal memo issued October 15 from BC Liberal Party Campaign Director Mike McDonald - one of Premier Christy Clark's three Chiefs of Staff in the past year - outlining their upcoming convention, dissing bad polls - "Again I say: 'Polls schmolls! And I was a pollster!' - and cheering on Clark and her crew.
One thing highlighted in the memo presumably sent to constituency presidents and other key party insiders is a keynote speech by Don Guy "one of the top political strategists in Canada" - but Guy's recent failures are not.
Guy served as outgoing Ontario Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty's Chief of Staff until 2007 and was Liberal Campaign Director four times - 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 and is still described as the "godfather of Queen's Park".
The Ontario Liberals thought enough of his abilities to pay him $12,500 a month through the election period last year.
Toronto Star writer Linda Diebel described Guy this way:
"Don Guy is a political strategist who speaks softly, is seldom seen and carries the political world’s equivalent of a shoulder-fired missile.
He’s the mystery man of politics, mythologized at 46 and described as scary smart, intimidating, inscrutable, and not to be crossed."
But presumably Guy was advising McGuinty or had some influence when the premier began his "get tough on public sector unions" strategy.
Certainly it was Guy who spoke at an April party convention this year to explain how a new coalition without union support could win the next provincial election after only achieving a minority in 2011.
That mis-step cost them the Kitchener-Waterloo by-election win that would have given them a majority in Queen's Park - instead the NDP took the seat and McGuinty took a walk last week.
Ironically, the Working Families Coalition of unions, particularly teachers, nurses and building trades members, that helped McGuinty stay in power for three elections in Ontario with major attack advertising campaigns against the Conservative Party.
Missing from McDonald's missive is that Guy is on contract to the BC Liberal Party for election planning. Hopefully they haven't been paying too much for his advice to date given their standing in the polls - or maybe they aren't taking it!
Also not mentioned: that Guy has been requested to be a witness at an Ontario legislative committee hearing into the Liberals' controversial cancellation of two gas power plants, a decision estimated to cost taxpayers at least $230 million.
Here is the full Mike McDonald memo - click on the images for a larger version:
25 comments:
Not enlarged and not readable.
The BC Liberals are living in their own world anyway.
Click on each page and it will enlarge and be readable!
It may be a browser-specific thing, Bill, because the pages don't enlarge in Firefox or Internet Explorer on my Windows machine.
It may be a browser-specific thing, Bill, because the pages don't enlarge in Firefox.
Hope springs eternal. And I can't expand the pages either, so anon and I agree on that one
Some folks can't seem to get the enlarged version either way - I can email it but can't change this post.
Hey Bill T..
I confirm what you said/posted..
Cmon folks, who doesn`t keep a magnifying glass nearby.
Personally speaking, I need the magnifying glass to look for intelligence and integrity in certain blogger`s posts..
And no, I am not referring to Bill Tieleman or The Straight Goods.
Cheers Eyes Wide Open
You wait and see - Harper ad men will come to the rescue - unfortunately.
Was able to read it quite clearly (Sorry not telling how, it's quite easy, DPL is on his own on this one).
Not much to read. Donny Van Dyke a star candidate in past BC Liberal campaigns goes on to renew. This is news?
Pt. Grey has around 20 people wasting money and time on the Clown-vention. Fort Langley (Rich Coleman) has a same size group. Yawwn.
This is just a pep 'em up to the blindly loyal.
Using come back from behing sports analogies. Geezus, did McDonald even manage with a huge effort a C-
in Creative Writing?
Dissing polls? Would McDonald say the same thing if the BC Liberals were 48 and the NDP 31?
I've read tons of these things, and this one written on October 16th, the twenty third in the series isn't all that inspiring.
No wonder many right wingers have just decided in regards to the BC Liberals, to just let it go, and let the NDP become government.
Interesting Bill, but not a breaking news item.
I've deleted the things, as they aren't worth keeping.
But if the left wingers get excited about this bland Update, well, knock yourselves out.
I've read NDP policy that is far more interesting to read than this thing
Also not mentioned: Alberta uses eVoting.
Just saying... not meaning to imply nothing... just an interesting factoid.
All parties have these types on the payroll. Not a surprise that the tone is optimistic. I expect that is the initial attitude in any lifeboat.
What is interesting is not the content of this update but the fact that it was leaked. As I recall, there was a regular flow of inside correspondence and memos in the dying last months of the NDP government back in late 2000 and early 2001. Dying gasps?
Anon Oct 24 3:37
If one is going to use a stupid
chain of words such as "just saying" get your facts right first.
Some Alberta municipalities were using VOTEX at the civic level.
It does not exist at the provincial level.
Just an interesting factoid on an off the topic topic.
@ Anon Oct 2 8:31
The tParty is coming to BC and I want to make sure I understand their language... so practice.
Anon Oct 25 3:28:
The tParty isn't coming to BC, so wouldn't waste the time on something that isn't going to exist.
Spend time learning the language of New Democrats.
We'll have to get used to them running the province again.
@ Anon Oct 25 7:14
"The tParty isn't coming to BC"
You're right. I misspoke.
The Tea Party is here already, and they're in Whistler this weekend.
B.S. There's a big difference between the jokers in the BC Liberal Party and the clowns that run the Tea Party.
The Tea Party is far worse for conservatives than anything the BC Liberals could come up with.
So if the BC Liberals are the Tea Party, what does that make the NDP?
(it would not make then Democrats as in Obama It would make then equivalent to something in the U.S. far more left wing.)
Stupid comparison.
Some folks must be running out of things to talk about associated with the BC Liberal love in. The Libs want the Conservatives back in the fold, but are not there yet, and not that likely to get there as Cummins has a pretty strong hold on his members
Christy Clark: My vision is simple and clear: I want British Columbia to be the economic engine of Canada.
My friend: good thing the engine is getting changed next spring the present one has a cracked head
Bwah, ha, ha, ha......
I liked Dix's comeback to "Free Enterprise Friday"--Theoretical Marxist Thursday.
Not all provincial Libs are Tbillies, but many are. Coleman is one.VanDongen is another. Not because of the ideology, but because of their lack of a vision outside of their own pocketbook. American tbillies are programmed to follow others theology with a hint of God.
So where does that place the NDP tBillies? They are programmed to follow what Dix tells them or what Jim Sinclair wants the part to do when it comes to labour, simply because most NDP MLAs would never say No to union "requests".
One only has to see the list of endorsements that Dix received during his leadership.
Dix got lots of endorsements from more than labour union directors, and won handily. He will be a very good Premier and have a good caucus working with him.
If you INVITE serial failure Stockwell Day to your convention - you are a Tea Party.
So having serial failure Stockwell Day to a convention means you are a Tea Party.
Sure.
So where does that place the NDP with Bob Skelly? The Orange Kool-aid Party?
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