Return of the Economynator
You can’t blame Bob Rae for pining for the past. His historical claim to fame, as Ontario’s Economynator, is being relentlessly supplanted by the McGuinty Wrecking Crew. By the time McGuinty is mercifully relieved of duty, Rae’s exploits will be a distant memory, buried under the economic wreckage left by the Liberals. His attempts to revive the federal “coalition” idea, are a last gasp at reviving his own political agendas.
Recall that Bob Rae has learned nothing from his short, errant hold on the reins of the province. His “agenda for people”, and his attempts to “buy our way out of the recession”, have survived in his mind in spite of the sudden, unexpected intrusion of a debt wall. Ontario was brought back from the brink, only because of the mechanisms of debt and risk, not because he saw any error in his ways. He is likely still proud of having given away the farm with double digit wage increases to all public servants, in his first budget.
There may be more to Rae’s efforts to revive the coalition, than what the eye can see. Iggy’s leadership appears headed for the rocks, and the Liberal’s single tool for retaining power – the ability to buy your vote – remains out of reach. Hence, it is not impossible that Liberals will re-evaluate their leadership decision, and default to Bob Rae. At that point Layton can be made to co-operate if he is made part of a plot to bring a socialist government by stealth, to the helm of the country. All that is needed then, is to usurp power through a new coalition. While Liberals only believe in whatever wins votes, Rae is not a liberal, he is a socialist, and would be an attractive ally to an otherwise directionless NDP.
While Conservative party warnings about the coalition are facile, reference to the dangers of bringing socialists to the helm at a time like this, (at any time) can only be ignored at our great peril. The return of the Economynator might appear to be a gift to the Conservatives, but the danger of a left coalition has always been a threat to the future of the Conservative party. It gains power only because the left is divided. Rae has the credentials to bridge the divide, and to bring in a new era of economic disasters.