Romeo LeBlanc provides Ignatieff some guidance

Warren Kinsella has a tribute post to his friend and mentor, Romeo LeBlanc. There is a quote in it that will help the Liberals defeat the government much more effectively than brinkmanship on any particular issue of the day (My emphasis in bold).

When the debate appeared to have run its course, LeBlanc held up two fingers. “Two things,” he said, arching his eyebrows. “First, we cannot be seen to be manipulating all of this. Canadians are very mad at the Tories, and we cannot risk them getting mad at us, too. They do not want to see us taking political advantage of this situation. Secondly, we need to remind them – without it looking like we are reminding them – that these Tory ads are un-Canadian. We need to take them to a place, a room, where they look around, and say: ‘I don’t like where I am.’ Do you understand what I am saying?”

I do your excellency. Pinning our hopes for the defeat of the Conservatives on a particular policy such as EI reform leaves us open to being outflanked when the policy is neutralized by Harper making a meaningless announcement. We need to find a way to let people know how much of an ogre Harper is, how he wants to destroy Canada and how he is ruining us in the eyes of the world. That will inspire Canadians to come out and vote when the time comes. And voter turnout is the key to victory.

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