Conservatives Focused On Quebec

The Hill Times has a story, outlining the prospective hopes of the Conservatives in Quebec. Talk of 50 Tory seats in the next election is probably unrealistic, but the mere fact that Conservatives can dare to entertain such dominance is remarkable, given the recent climate. Liberals scoff at the optimism, while Conservatives show a singular focus to make a majority a reality:

Following their breakthrough in the Jan. 23 election which brought them 10 seats in Quebec, the Conservatives are already drawing up a new strategy that they hope could help them win a majority government the next time Canadians go to the polls.

"The ultimate goal is to have each constituency to raise enough money on itself to be able to finance its own campaign and not have to look to the central party," said Quebec Conservative Sen. David Angus (Alma, Que.) chairman emeritus of the Conservative Fund, the financial arm of the Conservative Party and chairman of the Finance Committee for Quebec.

The Conservatives smell blood:

With support for the Conservatives continuing to rise in Quebec, Sen. Nolin said Mr. Coulombe is now working on a riding-by-riding analysis of election results, down to the polling station, in order to develop a new strategic plan in the coming months.

In the Montreal riding of Papineau, Sen. Nolin noted that there was only a 50 per cent turnout in the last election in allophone neighborhoods, while francophone areas of the riding, once a Liberal stronghold, saw a 75 per cent voter turnout. Former Liberal foreign affairs minister Pierre Pettigrew, lost the riding to Bloc Quebecois candidate Vivian Barbot. Sen. Nolin said the Conservatives are hoping to find explanations for all those trends in eaneighborhoodood.

"To be able to give ourselves an efficient strategic plan, we will need to understand the nature of the electorate in each riding."

Sen. Nolin, a seasoned political operator, said Transport Minister, Lawrence Cannon (Pontiac, Que.), also the political minister for Quebec, will play a key role in drafting the strategy.

The Prime Minister illustrates the central priority through his prominent meetings with Charest, where a deep alliance is solidified. In concert, the party apparatus devises a clear strategy immediately following the election. The troops on the ground work to build the base and infastructure. Liberals can scoff all they want, but there is no question they are losing the battle for Quebec.

The stain of centralism, at the expense of constitutional domain is solidified, while the Conservatives offer the slick notion of "renewed" federalism, with a premium on provincial jurisdiction. Harper approaches federalism like a Premier, without the messy nationalism that so often pre-occupies the Liberals. A noble notion, but lacking the attractive appearance of narrow self interest.

As discussed earlier, Harper views every decision through the lens of electability. In his recent interview with Maclean's, he admitted that the first question he asks himself is, how will this measure be received? Principle is replaced by expediency and the dangers of this philosophy are obvious. The Conservatives have made it plain, they will do whatever it takes to win over Quebec, nevermind the consequence. The nature of our federalism, demands a federal leader act within an adversarial framework. The provinces act in the best interest of their region, while the feds protect the notion of the whole. It is imperative that the P.M reacts as a check to balance regionalism. The Harper Conservatives are wasting their energy on expanding their support, instead of demonstrating the foresight required in our federal system.