Paging Peter Kent!

It was disappointing to log on to the Blogging Tories this morning and not find a single word about today's column by the Globe and Mail's Jeffrey Simpson.

Even a quick check of some of my preferred righty ranters came up dry. I was hoping for an outpouring of outrage and e-spittle over Simpson's attack on federal Conservative leader Stephen Harper's media strategy, or lack of it. Seems the Cons like to blame so-called ''media bias'' when the problem actually lies elsewhere.

It's hard to make the case looking at the media as a whole. Of course, there are powerful media outlets that are defiantly left-of-centre such as The Toronto Star, and others, such as the CBC, that just don't publicly admit their leftish leanings.

But there are more papers tilting to the right, starting with The National Post, admittedly a fading influence except in its own mind, and most of the Asper-owned CanWest papers. A reading of Globe columnists and editorial writers would lead very few to describe the paper as leftish. The Sun newspapers editorially read much like the Conservative Party at prayer.

CBC Radio, politically speaking, is not so much leftish as the voice of every aggrieved interest group in Canada. When private radio bothers to provide commentary, it's almost wall-to-wall right-wing. And the big, private television networks are hardly bastions of socialism, liberalism or anything terribly progressive.

(He left out Maclean's, which many now see as tilting to the right.)

Posits Simpson, the trouble with the Tories is that -- and these are my words -- they have no policy, no program, no platform, no nothing with which to lure reporters into the tent.

It seldom occurs to the Conservatives that the media just might cover them more, and sympathetically too, if they had something new to say. "News" means something "new," and, by that definition, month after month of harping on "corruption" and "scandal" and such monumental, Canada-shaping issues as expense accounts doesn't cut it.

Most journalists gave up trying to see Mr. Harper months ago. He's barricaded himself behind a wall of media resentments, and he's hired unapproachable and sometimes unpleasant staff to reinforce the wall. It's a self-defeating strategy.

Of course, these guys can't seem to shoot straight no matter what. I mean, who can forget this?

Comments

[Aaron]

It's Harper's Lego hair - remember how the media pounced on Manning's new do?

One appearance on Queer Eye for the Conservative Guy and Harper's PM.

[Mark Stewart]

pretty basic common sense stuff coming from Simpson...stuff is not rocket science....nevertheless there are too few making these observations in the national media, so hats off to Simpson

[Dana]

In one of G&M's Comments sections regarding Harper's urging of Martin to talk to Bush I posted this observation about Harper. I was typing fast and the thought just came out but I think it's actually a salient point about him, if I do say so myself.

"Why does Harper insist the Prime Minister of Canada do something that Harper himself knows full well would be nothing but a fruitless gesture?

Because Harper's entire political career is built on the making of fruitless gestures. It's all the man knows how to do.

Martin on the other hand, while himself not immune to the allure of the fruitless gesture, at least knows that fruitless gestures change nothing.

Harper, so far, has had nothing but success with them."

He really hasn't done much except study, head up an advocacy group or political party. He makes speeches and statements, writes papers (all of which I think are missing from his NCC days). Gestures. No record of achievement in business or academia (other than as a student). No earlier record of community involvement, didn't bring about the building of a neighbourhood park for example. It's all gestural. Nothing's concrete, nothing that can be pointed to and say, "See! He made *that*."

I bumped into him yesterday in the domestic terminal of Vancouver International. I'd just gotten an ice tea from a vending machine and was walking back toward the gate where ma femme was expected momentarily and there he was walking toward me all alone, no handler anywhere in sight, head down, hands deep in suit pants pockets.

As we passed I said, very quietly, "How's life?". He obviously had heard a voice but not the words. He said, equally quietly, little shy smile, "Hi. How are ya?" And we went our ways.

I thought afterwards about all the things I might have, should have, could have said.

I'm glad I kept it that simple and civil.

He looked a little downtrodden and preoccupied and not at all politician like. Not like the last fed I bumped into in YVR years ago, Brian Tobin. Car salesman grin, hearty high five and high o silverfish, away.

I thought later about it that if I'm appalled at the lack of civility in Q Period the least I can do is not emulate it.

[Ivan Prokopchuk]

Aw, c'mon. Harper does have a personality.
And he can be funny on 22 minutes and the
Farce.
Westerners are a lot like Chinese.Wonderfully talented, they turn inscrutable when embarrassed for the stupidity of some interloper who breaks a convention without knowing it and being proud of same.
Like drunken City TV reporters?

[katie]

Dana wrote:

"He really hasn't done much except study, head up an advocacy group or political party. He makes speeches and statements, writes papers (all of which I think are missing from his NCC days). Gestures. No record of achievement in business or academia (other than as a student). No earlier record of community involvement, didn't bring about the building of a neighbourhood park for example. It's all gestural. Nothing's concrete, nothing that can be pointed to and say, "See! He made *that*."

You've just described all the criteria needed for the perfect Bush appointment. As Harper walks through airports with his head down we had better keep ours up!

[pw]

Why is it nobody gets it. It isn't Harper alone. I think Harper can blame his fate on three people, George Bush, Ralph Klein and Mike Harris.

People see every day what right wing government is and they don't like it. Has anyone forgot that the Tories wanted us in Iraq. The right wing controls the U.S. and it's becoming a financial basket case. It isn't Harper as much as the failed policies of the Right that are dragging him down.

Ralph Klein shooting his mouth off every day about HIS oil probably doesn't help (Hey Ralph we don't want your money, just fund your Health Care system and stop telling us that Global Warming is just dinosaur farts.)

sorry for the rant.

[Huge Seagull]

You can read the Simpson column (and all G&M columnists going back a couple of weeks) if you go through Google:

http://news.google.ca/news?scoring=d&q=%22Jeffrey+Simpson%22