Clyde Sanger is author of a dozen books, an international journalist, and former Canadian correspondent for The Economist. He worked for forty years as a journalist in Britain, Africa, and North America. He has served as director of communications with the North-South Institute and as an adjunct professor of journalism at Carleton University.
Never say "never", Mr Mulcair.
by Clyde Sanger
In his first CBC interview after being elected leader of the New Democrats, Thomas Mulcair flatly ruled out working with the Liberals in the next election. "It's absolutely not in the cards," he told Peter Mansbridge. "In order to win the next election, our party must reach beyond its traditional base and unite all progressive forces under the NDP's banner."
Here we go again! Prime Minister Stephen Harper will be delighted to have another three years of a divided opposition.
The reasons for Mulcair's vehemence are clear. Throughout the leadership campaign his main rival, Brian Topp, implied he was a Liberal in NDP clothes. Ed Broadbent bombarded him with sharp doubts about the direction he would take the party. And for two days at the convention, the other six candidates wove their speeches out of social-democratic yarn.