Turn down the Trump: It’s time to focus on our own politics
As mesmerizing as it is to follow President Donald Trump’s daily — or hourly — antics, Canadians and British Columbians need to focus on what’s happening here.
In May, voters will choose a new B.C. government and members of the federal Conservative party will choose a new leader to challenge Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
And while it may be comforting that The Economist and others believe that Canada and British Columbia are shining beacons of light and hope, the truth is that everything is not OK, and voters know it.
Population growth and highly visible wealth in Vancouver have masked some stark and troubling issues. Economic growth is stagnant. The B.C. Liberals promised jobs and revenue from LNG development that never materialized, and may never.
There are festering social problems, not the least of which is a housing crisis. Illicit drugs are killing users at an unprecedented rate.
Ninety-one per cent of seniors’ residential homes fail to meet the ministry guidelines for care. Privatization of foster care is only one of the many reasons that people like Alex Gervais have suffered excruciating maltreatment.
Public schools have suffered from 14 years of underfunding that is only now being corrected after the Supreme Court of Canada has ordered it.
The B.C. Liberals may be unpopular, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t in a position to win or even increase their majority.
Why? One needs only to look south. Premier Christy Clark is a populist in a party unbound by any firm ideology beyond supporting capitalism. Her campaign will fuel fears of free-spending socialists. Her appeal — like Trump’s — will be to disaffected suburban and rural voters who distrust urban elites and are frightened about what the future holds for them and their children.
New Democrat John Horgan lacks Clark’s sparkle. Worse, his party is untethered from its historical roots. Its political calculus has been to secure votes in urban areas among intellectuals, professionals and environmentalists — Trump’s “elites.”
Its base now resides amid the condo towers sipping litres of lattes sold by underemployed university graduates. Despite a heartfelt wish for a carbonfree future, its leaders (Alberta Premier Rachel Notley included) have yet to produce a credible plan for replacing those wellpaid resource jobs.
Opposition to resource developments including pipelines has alienated the NDP’s traditional support among blue-collar workers and skilled tradespeople whose middle-class wages depend on resource jobs.
Similar tensions between urban elites and the rural and suburban working class are both exposed and exploited in the Conservative leadership race, which has some easy parallels to the Republican presidential contest.
The field of 14 contenders includes a reality TV celebrity, several anti-abortionists, a couple of nativists opposed to immigration, an opponent of same-sex marriage, an environmentalist, an international financier, a venture capitalist and a libertarian.
Given the wide range of views and values, the leadership race could potentially destroy the uneasy alliance Stephen Harper maintained between alt-right Reform party stalwarts and former Progressive Conservatives. And, depending on the choice, it could cause a fissure between West and East or even Quebec and the rest of Canada if the leader isn’t bilingual.
But what is most stunning and consistent with the Republican race is the vitriol within the Conservatives’ political family. While it hasn’t shown up on stage at the debates yet, it’s easily found in the comments on Kellie Leitch’s Facebook page. (Leitch has promised to use a values test to screen refugees and immigrants.)
Who the Conservatives choose matters because its leader will be the leader of the official Opposi- tion and a potential prime minister. Pay the $15 for a Conservative membership and you could have a say.
Come May in British Columbia, all it takes to have a say is to ensure that you’re on the voters’ list and that you show up.
We live in an open — if imperfect — democracy. Unlike Americans, our differences are often less obvious because we tend to value consensus so much that at times it stifles debate.
But this is not a time for keeping quiet or being distracted by another country’s politics. We have challenges enough here — an aging population, immigration and, yes, even greater economic pressures because of Trump’s America First policies.
Finding solutions requires engaged citizens unwilling to leave it to demagogues to determine what our country becomes.
Come May in British Columbia, all it takes to have a say is to ensure that you’re on the voters’ list and that you show up.