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Bob Rae took your questions on the Liberal leadership race

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 9:51 AM EDT 05/10/06

Liberal leadership candidate took questions. ...Read the full article

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  1. Back by popular request....Shawn Bull from Canada writes: MR. Rae stated, 'Canada's voice has gone missing under this Prime Minister, in Canada and abroad'. How? Anybody can make an accusation but can you add any supporting evidence to back up your claim? Since taking over for the wheel-spinning Liberals Harper has finally given Canada a voice after 13 years of nothingness. Afghanistan, UN visit, current Francophone summit, new environmental policies, honouring the 5 priorities and solving the softwood lumber deal are all evidence to my opinion.
  2. Trevor Mangion from Toronto, Canada writes: Well Shawn, that accusation proves that he is a full fledged Liberal. Regardless, there's no arguing Mr. Rae is in the top tier of candidates. That the leader of the most incompetent government in the history of Ontario, when he led the New Democrats, has this much of a chance to win, tells me one of three things. One, unlikeliest of the three, is that there is a lack of quality candidates in this race. That is false. Two, Liberal members are just that stupid, which wouldn't surprise me, seeing what party they represent, or three, they have a death wish, and never want to form government ever again. Ontarians, while themselves not the brightest of the bunch, will never elect a Bob Rae led Liberal Party federally. Mr. Harper and Mr. Layton will make damn sure of that. The business community will make sure of that as well.
  3. Not the Alliance from In my opinion, the Harper Gov't is Incompetent, Canada writes: Trevor Mangion post 2 states: 'Ontarians, while themselves not the brightest of the bunch, will never elect a Bob Rae led Liberal Party federally. Mr. Harper and Mr. Layton will make damn sure of that. The business community will make sure of that as well. ' You know what's funny about this statement? Well a couple of things. first - the fact that you're from Ontario - which in your case specifically, proves your first observation. The second funny thing is the notion that Harper is well respected in the business community. He is respected in the sense that he is leader of a party that has adopted the name of a party that what was once a pro-business party. He is respected in the sense that he is PM, and therefore deserving of the respect that comes with the office. But from a personal/professional persepective he is viewed as somewhat of a joke. BTW, so is his Finance Minister, Joe Flaherty. On Bay street, Rae is actually better known through his legal and board work.
  4. Filipe Almeida from Viseu, writes: Ignoring the self deprecation from comments #1 and #2... <> This is very interesting. Let's see. Afghanistan was a mission the Liberals started. The UN summit is an annual event attended by the Prime Ministers and government leaders of all nations ever single year, the Francophone summit is nothing new, (held and attended once every two years including (Moncton '99 and Quebec City '87). The new environmental policies that Harper must have put forward while I was looking the other way included leaving Kyoto and if anything... diminishing Canada's 'voice'. The Softwood lumber deal with its debatable merits, was an election campaign promise delivered home by a former liberal, and the 'five priorities' outlines what is quite possibly the most narrow minded government agenda in Canada's history. If Harper is anything at all, he is the embodiment of Conservative grievance over Trudeau's National Energy Plan. As for Bob Rae, sure his premiership in Ontario was a failure, but the work he has done since then is quite remarkable. His views reflect the policies Liberals have employed to make Canada the great country it is. I would be feel very comfortable with Rae as the Leader of Liberal Party.
  5. Hugh Andrew from Ottawa, writes: Like many Ontarians, I will never get over the massive damage Bob Rae did to the Ontario government. While I accept that reality has moderated his NDP views and potentially could contribute as a member of the Liberal left, never would I want him to be Prime Minister or Premier of a Province.
  6. Peter Simms from Canada writes: Compare Rae's interview with Ignatieff's and gain a complete understanding of how I view this race. Ignatieff says environment is a major concern and has eight programs ready to be implemented. Rae says environment is a major concern, addresses the challenges, and says we have to lower carbon in atmosphere. SUPER. I'm going to have Rae run my company. His detailed plan of make more money, make less costs, is sure to champion the industry. A professional talker at best. Hasn't changed one bit from his debacle in Ontario.
  7. Mud Hut from Ajax, Canada writes: Hold on to your wallets: Bob Rae's back and gunning for power. It's going to be an expensive ride for all of us. Maybe he'll propose that we 'spend our way out of terrorism' as kind of a throwback to his time as premier of Ontario when he announced that we would 'spend our way out of the recession': yeah that makes sense, we're broke, jobs are scarce, the economy is in the tank, so let's run up our debt on the government credit card.
  8. K. B. from Canada writes: #4, as long as your comfortable with him remaining solely the Leader of the Liberal Party. I always say that anyone can win (the Liberals thought Harper never had a chance of unseating their guy, and here we are), but I just don't see Mr. Rae ever attaining the Rt. Hon. title. #3, you announce yourself as a total idiot by claiming that Bob Rae is more respected on Bay Street than Jim Flaherty. Give your head a shake! And I must say, I think it's rich for Bob Rae to say that he 'showed' Frank Miller and Joe Clark. In the 1985 Ontario election, the NDP was poised to do well and win at least opposition status. But they got outflanked by Peterson, ended in the same spot (3rd), and then Peterson used Rae and his party as a launchpad for his big 1987 majority. In 1979, again, the NDP went from a situation where it could have influence, to one where it couldn't (Trudeau's 1980 majority). I fail to see how either of these equate to a 'win' for Bob Rae or his party at the time.
  9. Sticks and Stones ... from Canada writes: For me it would be a very tough choice between Rae and Ignatieff. Rae's changing parties does not bother me in the least -- I too have changed party loyalties over the years depending on where I saw my liberalism best reflected. It happens. Not unlike those former 'Progressive' Conservatives who may have had trouble finding a good fit for their values and beliefs after the take-over of the PCC by the CPC. I also lived in Ontario during the Rae government. I remember at the time feeling how unlucky to form a new governemnt just when the economy was taking a wild turn downward. I for one was glad he tried to cushion the blow for people, at very obvious political cost. I would not be unhappy if he won the leadership. Both men appear to have what it takes - vision, values, courage to address real problems, a strong sense of what Canada means, respect for the Constitution/ Charter, and a commitment to untiing the country and securing a hopeful and prosperous future. At this point, I feel Ignatieff has the stronger personality and therefore likely an edge in ability to inspre and motivate those who will be open to their liberal/ Liberal message. I also like and admire Ken Dryden - an intelligent and deeply caring man. I don't know, though, if he could handle the political wolves at the door the same way he could block pucks at the net.
  10. K. B. from Canada writes: #9, you're having a laugh. 'I remember at the time feeling how unlucky to form a new governemnt just when the economy was taking a wild turn downward.' Hmm, that's why the recession was deeper and longer in Ontario than any other jurisdiction in North America? See the G & M's Neil Reynolds' take in 'Don't forget what Rae's mistakes did to Ontario' here: http://tinyurl.com/zotkk I'm sorry, anyway you cut it, Bob Rae, by his actions in government, ACTIVELY made the recession worse than it otherwise would've been, and ACTIVELY prolonged it through his legislation. There's not much you can do about recessions, just aim to do no more harm. Rae did the opposite.
  11. Diana J from Calgary, Canada writes: Hey Bob Ontario couldn't afford you therefore Canada certainly can not...take off the liberal camouflage..you are a money wasting NDP flunky!
  12. mary atkinson from ottawa, Canada writes: Mr Ignatief has promised to plunge us into another acrimonious round of Constitutional wrangling in order to give Quebec "Nation" status. We have learned from experience how divisive that can be. Mr Ignatief has never held public office and he knows the Country on an intellectual basis only. He has done no public service and he has only theory to support his foreign and economic policies. On the other hand Mr Rae has extensive political experience and has a considerable resume of public service. His unfortunate experience as Premier of Ontario had more to do with the times and the whole national economic and political situation than the man. I believe that if he had been the leader of a Liberal or a PC government instead of a neophite NDP his tenure would have merely been a blip on the political radar screen. We Ontarians have a tendency to overestimate our political IQ and we forget that Toronto is not the centre of the universe. We also misunderstand the demographic and economic shift of power to the west and the differences in political philosophies across the country. The rest of the country is more socially conscious than the industrial complex of Ontario and more federalist than the parochial nationalism of Quebec. Most Canadians are less impressed by the academic achievements of our politicians than by their life experiences and less impressed with promises than pragmatism. If the Liberal Party is ever to dig itself out of the morass of perceived corruption, inefficiency and inordinate concentration on the politics of Quebec it will require a leader who has paid his dues and not a rookie Canadian with zero real experience outside of the academic world or the total incomprehension of the Canadian psyche. For obvious reasons neither Mr Dion nor Mr Kennedy can win Quebec. Real life experience is an incredible teacher and I'm sure that Mr Rae, a graduate of the school of hard knocks, has learned his lessons well.

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