Is the alt-right destroying Canadian conservatism?

Editor:

The media spectacle of the Conservative leadership forum at the Manning Conference Centre, was a story akin to the patients taking over the asylum?

It’s true. Preston Manning was not shy in inviting Bush-era Republican neoconservatives to attend conservative pow-wows here in Canada. This time, the invitation to American-style altright populism, came with a warning against, “intemperate and ill-considered remarks by those who hold personal positions deeply felt, but in fits of carelessness or zealousness, say things that discredit the family.”

In other words, come in, be nice and don’t scare moderate voters.

By Manning’s calculations, within this alt-right populist demographic laid the needed pool of voters big enough to beat Trudeau.

However, Manning thinks he can control them with appeals to their better nature; to put aside their particular goals and with a one for all camaraderie, work toward national victory. But, will they play nice? Did they ever play nice?

The obvious bent of convention’s agenda and policy sessions towards discussion and debate on alt-right populist topics was so noticeable, to almost dominate the conference and that’s worrisome.

Unfortunately, the populist trend is proving attractive to our more ambitious leadership candidates, who have abandoned broad-based policy positions to attract voters; instead drilling down to troll for votes among the single-issue fringe demographics. Their taste for populist tactics will likely transform Canadian conservatism into a Canadianized version of American republicanism.

To be certain, Reform conservativism is closer to American republicanism than traditional Canadian conservatism. Reform’s birth, came about in response to the Liberal National Energy Program, (NEP); when Alberta refused to share its oil wealth with the rest of Canada.

Manning, grew up in Alberta politics and according to his biography, entered it strongly inÁuenced by his evangelical upbringing and “felt moved,” to give voice to simmering dissent about the NEP by anti-centralist, free trading contintentalists, who would became the Reform party.

Western Reform-style conservatism is particularly susceptible to inÁuences of a burgeoning alt-right. According to several polls, there is an uncomfortable growth of xenophobic anti-immigration sentiment, within a small camp of older white Canadian conservatives, not found within other groups of Canadian voters? But, it’s stubborn persistence can infect other demographics.

Allowing this Áedgling Canadian alt-right voice political legitimacy, the Conservative party braintrust thinks they can control these single-issue malcontents and anti-establishment wingnuts.

The leading candidate at the end of the conference was billionaire Kevin O’Leary, who bragged “My rolodex is bigger than Trudeau’s or Morneau’s” and was cheered; while Michael Chong’s revenue-neutral carbon tax was booed.

What is conservativism becoming? We watch daily how Trump’s alt-right populist team, pulls, stretches, distorts and discards American political principals and traditions, turning the once Grand Old Republican Party into a Trumpian celebrity-fuelled party with a mixed bag of single-issue populists, malcontents and anti-establishment zealots with Trump as their pied piper? Is the Conservative Party of Canada headed in the same direction?

Do we hear a death knell for Canada’s Empire Loyalist tradition of conservatism? The Loyalists

saw American republicanism and its reliance on popular sovereignty as a genuine threat to the liberties enshrined in the British form of constitutional monarchy.

The Crown, within our parliamentary system mitigates perils found in the America republican system. In Canada, the bestows upon the majority party in the elected House of Commons the right to form government. And if, for example, we got a crazy-rogue prime minister, who lost support of the majority in the House, that majority can appeal to the Crown to dismiss him or her.

A frothy mix of right-wing populism and conservatism becomes a neo-fascism. Fiscal responsibility, family values and strong defence are core conservative values. But wanting to tear down the established order and hang elites on the Parliament lawns is not Canadian conservatism. That is altright anti-establishment zealotry, which is forcing its way into Canada’s Conservative Party.

Rona Ambrose was stabilizing force in the party’s early post-election days, when the party lost it main tent pole, Stephen Harper. Now after the Manning conference, the Conservative Party of Canada appears lost in rapturous alt-right populism and its naked pursuit of power. God help us. Jon Peter Christoff, West Kelowna