Darrell Dexter is the latest poster boy for New Democrats across Canada.Nova Scotia's first NDP premier is the quintessential middle-of-the-road politician. No screaming lefty here. He is the kind of pragmatist federal NDP Leader Jack Layton dreams of being.
In fact, the 51-year-old Dexter, who won a majority government on June 9, calls himself a conservative progressive.
Layton gets downright giddy whenever he's around Dexter, whose name he couldn't drop enough at the NDP's recent national convention in Halifax.
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"It is not an exclusive group of people. It is a modern broad-based political party that needs to reach out to people and bring them in. I have in my cabinet, as well as in my caucus, people who were very active in other political parties."
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"The party under Dexter has become fairly mainstream and even small-C conservative on fiscal matters. In a sense, he really inherited the mantle of (former Progressive Conservative premier) John Hamm," Bickerton says.
The conundrum for the NDP can be phrased thusly:
"For what will it profit a party if it gains a few seats and keeps a tyrant in power? Or what will a party give in exchange for his soul? (Vigilance: 8-25-2009)
By purposefully moving to the centre in an attempt to assuage Layton's ego, NDP supporters are doing more than being Harper's useful idiots, they are actively striving to keep Harper in power to no real gain for the principles the party used to stand for. Moving to the centre is a much more tangible support for Harper than any number of bogus confidence votes. For the ego of their leader and the love for the ghost of their party, the NDP supporters are bringing about that which they want the least.
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I find it so odd that federal NDP supporters fawn over Dexter, when he's essentially rejected their approach. You can spin it all day long, but the bottomline is this guy reads like a Liberal. He moved the party away from the Layton like ideology and he won, strangely that means praise and pride from Layton. It's all in a name I suppose...
If someone wins they must be a Liberal right Steve? Never mind his commitment to the environment, or tax breaks to students and those who just get out of university right? Yah if they promise to govern well they must be a Liberal. Here is a news flash for you NS has the Liberal party and they suck.
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