Political spin is an interesting phenomenon. Apparently, no matter what happens there’s some positive aspect that can be mined out of it to offer to voters.
Just a few months ago MLA John van Dongen’s leaving the ruling Liberals for the upstart Conservatives was hailed as a breakthrough for the ambitious Tories and gave them a voice in the Legislature.
It was also a great opportunity to revisit a few of the Liberals’ bigger mistakes, the BC Rail and B.C. Place fiasco, and offer van Dongen and Tory leader John Cummins as a viable free-enterprise alternative to the ruling party.
Fast forward from March to last weekend and suddenly losing van Dongen is OK with the Conservatives and a beleaguered Cummins is carrying on as leader, despite the fact that 28 per cent of the delegates at last weekend’s convention wanted a review. That is, they wanted to see what their options were, other than Cummins of course.
The party also lost Jon Martin to the Liberals on Friday, and he had just run in the Chilliwack-Hope byelection in April as a Conservative.
To say it was not a good week for the Conservatives is a huge understatement, no matter what their leader and his followers may say.
In fact the Liberals, who are still struggling themselves to gain any kind of traction, can certainly point to the trials and tribulations of the struggling Conservatives as reason enough to proclaim that the Tories aren’t a viable option to the governing party.
Meanwhile the NDP continue to lead the polls while watching from the sidelines, enjoying the view from the left side as the right side keeps tripping over itself.
—The Morning Star
