After I witnessed the excitement in America around the recent primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire, I started thinking about the state of Canadian politics and why we're so, well, boring. I was hanging out with Rob when Barack Obama delivered his speech after a landslide win in the Iowa primary. Rob was literally moved to tears by Obama's (admittedly) very rousing and passionate tone. Feeling empathetic but not entirely invested in Obama's speech, I gave Rob a squeeze while I sat and wished for a little more excitement and charisma in politics north of the border.
Of course, most of the recent excitement in the United States is a function of the political climate: if I spent the last eight years watching my country being driven into the ground (both domestically and internationally) and a rousing new political figure came along to offer a new beginning, I'd probably cry too. We're fortunate up here in that we haven't spent the last eight years digging deep into a rut. But it seems there's something more that makes Canadian politics very boring as of late.
Over three years of minority governments may be to blame, offering little in the way of substantial policy changes. The few bold, fresh ideas like the Kelowna Accord and a national child care program got squashed in the change in government after the 2006 election. Same-sex marriage, while worth celebrating, was more a legal inevitability than a result of political action. Don't forget the consistent political stall and indecision over climate change in Canada. Indeed, the most exciting political discourse in Canada in the last few years has been due to light scandal and mismanagement (first sponsorship, now Mulroney). My enthusiasm is limited: I'd almost rather see such scandal shoved under the rug Chrétien-style than see it on the news every night. I admit that Quebecers probably have a different opinion.
At the same time, minority governments can be really exciting. The deal-making among the Liberals and the opposition parties in attempts to prop up Martin's ill-fated government in 2005 was certainly exciting. Belinda Stronach crossed the floor and broke Peter MacKay's heart to join the Liberals as a cabinet minister ... that was pure gold! Where did all the excitement go?
Part of the problem lies with our current political leaders, most notably Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He governs with his hands firmly on the throats of his caucus and nothing is communicated outside of government and the public service without the scrutiny and stamp of approval of the Prime Minister's Office. The usual quips and missteps that you'd expect from his relatively inexperienced cabinet are invisible and he has a general disdain for the Canadian media, which makes his government thoroughly boring. C'mon, I bet Stockwell Day has something exciting to say!
The opposition doesn't get off any easier. Stéphane Dion and his Liberals look like a bunch of wet noodles after abstaining from confidence votes last year, Jack Layton's NDP has all but disappeared off the political map after acting as the broker of power in the Martin minority government, while the Bloc Québecois has been quietly milking Harper's asymmetric federalism for all it can get.
I'm also reminded of Allan Gregg's excellent piece, Desperately Seeking Ideas, in an old issue of Walrus Magazine. Gregg takes the position that polls have become the "authoritative source for defining good and bad politics" and tend to discourage bold new ideas:
In the view of many Canadians, political parties ... seem to have devolved from dynamic entities spawning innovations like medicare, deux nations, and the Just Society, into politically paralyzed stewards of the status quo. Polling, my chosen profession, now strikes me as a primary cause of the decline.
Gregg may have something here, but I'm not sure we've been sunk by the polls just yet. After all, poll-happy America is mobilizing and turning out in droves to contribute to the change in leadership. Let's just hope it doesn't take a situation like America is in to spur interesting discussion in Canadian politics.
So, as we start off 2008 with a new budget looming and a somewhat likely federal election, I'm hoping that this year is a little more exciting than last. If not, I suppose we'll have the 2008 U.S. presidential race to keep us entertained.
(As a side note, Saturday's Globe and Mail gives a nice, short biographical bit on Barack Obama while an entry on Walrus Blogs talks about the appeal of Obama and the excitement around his win in Iowa.)
