Emerson's Switch

February 13, 2006

Emerson's Arrogance

I've received several critical emails and other jabs simply because of one sentence in an article that was interpreted as mildly positive towards David Emerson. That article began by saying that Emerson has taken cynicism about politics to a new level and also noted damage that Emerson's switch might have done to restoring confidence in the political process. Nevertheless, feelings amongst many are so intense that little tolerance is granted for any word that may be interpreted as being soft on Emerson.

David Emerson has managed to unite people of all political stripes in outrage over his betrayal. There is no other instance in Canadian history of a politician switching parties so close to the closing date of an election. Emerson has attempted to compare his situation to Alliance and Conservative defectors who switched to the Liberals, but he doesn't seem to understand that they at least had the lame excuse of basing their decision on how issues were handled. Emerson's decision can be justified by little other than the lust for power, and in doing so he has demeaned the political process and the worth of most members of Parliament, backbenchers and members of the Opposition.

Apologists for Emerson speak of him being above politics and of what he can do for British Columbia. It is hard to believe that anyone who has held senior public and private sector positions can be so naive as to not understand that most voters vote for the party of their choice. As Emerson bleeds from his political wounds, it becomes increasingly unclear whether he can deliver anything for British Columbia. The question will be how many pieces of silver it takes to justify the damage he did. He continues to dig himself into a deeper hole with his attacks on his critics, dismissing them as partisan, and not showing any understanding of why voters are upset. Can this be the same person on whom Canada depends for dealing with the US on a key trade issue?

Emerson has become a liability for Stephen Harper. Ontario Conservative MP Garth Turner has shown the kind of courage the public wants to see with his personal blog that has urged Emerson to resign and stand for re-election. Other Conservatives are equally upset as they fear that the Emerson matter will make the promised "Accountability Act" appear as fluff compared to the reality of political hypocrisy.

In the election campaign, Mr. Harper seized the agenda; he got his worst vulnerabilities behind him by dealing with them in the early days of the campaign. Maybe he hopes that the Emerson affair will also get behind him, but he is fooling himself if he thinks it will go away. He has disappointed Conservative-Alliance-Reformers who have toiled in Opposition for more than a decade and now feel debased.

Premier Gordon Campbell and Vancouver Mayor Sam Sullivan have expressed support for Emerson. Can it be long before they pay a price for that support?

February 6, 2006

Emerson's Switch

David Emerson has taken cynicism about politics to a new level. It is bad enough when someone who is elected jumps parties without resigning and running in a by-election, but Emerson is not only skipping that step (as he skipped a nomination race when he first ran), but he didn't wait so much as a single day to observe how the Harper government would govern. Emerson maintains that he was approached by John Reynolds immediately after the election, but one has to wonder whether the thought of switching sides crossed his mind during the campaign. On election night television cameras caught him, in a slip of the tongue, referring to a future majority Conservative government, quickly corrected to Liberal for that night's crowd.

Keith Baldrey speculated on Global's noon news that Emerson may not run again, and that he could be put in charge of the 2010 games. That would be a demotion for Emerson relative to the power he enjoys in his expanded portfolio. He is much more likely to want to continue to play a major role in an eventual majority government.

Running as a Liberal in Vancouver Kingsway, David Emerson won 20,062 out of 46,442 votes that were cast on January 23rd. His closest opponent, the NDP's Ian Waddell, won 15,470 while the Conservative, Kanman Wong, finished third with 8,679. When questioned about Emerson, Prime Minister Harper said that it is important to him to have representation from the city of Vancouver. If he is going to keep that representation, Emerson will have to find another seat for the next election. There are only five seats in the city. The seat where the Conservatives would probably stand the best chance in a 2007 election is Vancouver South, currently occupied by Ujjal Dosanjh who won 20,991 votes while the Conservative, Tarkok Sablok, came second with 11,856. The Liberals won by almost 12,000 votes in Vancouver Quadra, and they were more than 13,000 votes ahead of the Conservatives in Vancouver Centre. It's no wonder that Dosanjh was particularly agitated when interviewed shortly after the announcement about Emerson's change in parties.

Apart from the damage that Emerson's switch might have done to restoring confidence in the political process, in the short term it may be best for British Columbia. Emerson has the ear of Premier Campbell and he should be able to deliver much needed funding for overruns facing the 2010 games, transportation projects and port improvements. There will no doubt be bitterness in his new BC Conservative caucus from those who were passed over, but few think that the unknowns could deliver what is expected of Emerson.