The Conservatives need to be more libertarian

More “Progressive Conservative” than “Reform”

Canadian political parties have an interesting dynamic against each other. Small dips or bumps in the popular vote can mean massive changes in the house. Because of this, our parties need to have a somewhat broad appeal.

What this means is that a Conservative party that touts banning abortion and gay marriage has no place in Canada. It would be extremely difficult to even give such a party minority government, and I’m sure that, “I’d just prefer lower taxes” describes a huge base of Conservative voters.

Unlike the Americans, our political conservatives don’t get up on stage together and talk about who hates abortion/women the most.

Stephen Harper understood this, and made sure that none of this hard-right social conservatism made much headway in the party. The Conservatives should take this a step further and inch towards libertarianism if they hope to attract younger voters. The Conservatives in 2011 were the party of economic competency. The party of 2015 was one of xenophobia and niqab-nonsense, a huge turn-off to potential young voters and a large immigrant base.

For this reason I look towards Maxime Bernier, an MP from Quebec. His attitude towards marijuana would put him in line with NDP and Liberal policies. In an interview with the CBC, he said that he was for legalization, depending on how it’s done. Bernier has also said he would end subsidies for big business, which would be a shock to Canadians used to Harper-style conservatism.

Among other potential options for the Conservatives would be Kellie Leitch, an Ontario MP and former cabinet minister for labour and the status of women. She’s also an orthopedic surgeon, but opposed to the legalization of marijuana.

Bernier and Leitch are the only two who have actually filled out the paperwork and put up their deposit. There are plenty of other people who have expressed interest, most notably Kevin O’Leary and Peter MacKay. Some are saying that O’Leary is like the “Trump of Canada” for offering to invest $1-million in Alberta if Rachel Notley resigns, being a reality television personality, and for admitting that he was inspired by The Donald.

When we look at polls, both O’Leary and Mackay rank the highest. MacKay, who already has party leadership experience with the now-defunct Progressive Conservative party, and considerable cabinet experience, is being eyed by many as a potential successor. However, MacKay didn’t run in the 2015 election, and he now sits behind a desk at Baker & McKenzie, a law firm in Toronto. In an interview with The Globe and Mail, Mackay says that he hasn’t “ruled out” a leadership bid.

Many columnist have described MacKay as a “red Tory,” which makes sense given his past time with the PCs. This can be seen in some of his social positions. “I wasn’t the engineer, let’s say, of things like niqab legislation,” he said to The Globe and Mail.

At the moment, I hope that MacKay or Bernier win the leadership bid, as both would likely nudge the party a little to the left. And while it’s a stretch to suggest he’s “Trump-like,” O’Leary wouldn’t be as good as someone with actual experience passing laws.