When, and who, made former BC Liberal leader Gordon Wilson the spokesperson for the BC Conservative Party?

WOW … today in the Georgia Straight I read that; “Former B.C. Liberal leader Gordon Wilson has bad news for John Cummins”

Former BC Liberal Leader & NDP
Cabinet Minister Gordon Wilson

According to Wilson, there is agitation in influential business circles to ditch Cummins as the BC Conservative top honcho, and replace him with someone like Stockwell Day. “If voices that are currently rumbling on Howe Street have their way, Cummins will be gone and the Conservatives will have a new leader with a big bankroll,” Wilson told the Georgia Straight in a phone interview.

Many of us, that are small ‘c’ conservatives, were greatly disappointed to see a man who espoused Reform / Conservative values, seemingly totally betray them, with his full support of Christy Clark and the BC Liberal Party.

I have no idea where Gordon Wilson is getting his information, but I find it hard – very hard – to believe that rank and file members of the BC Conservative Party would follow the leadership of Stockwell Day of any party me may possibly lead.

For those who may have forgotten … here are just some of the words Stockwell Day spoke, and said, just a year and a half ago:  

Only in British Columbia would former Conservative stalwart Stockwell Day work for the Liberals

Whatever the party name, Day has vowed to "volunteer" for the party and help them defeat the New Democrats in the next election.  As an interesting aside, Day will be supporting the B.C. Liberals against his former colleague in the House of Commons — John Cummins.

Day backs B.C. Liberals

In an interview airing Saturday on CBC Radio's The House, Day said he will campaign for Premier Christy Clark's party … Day called Clark a "smart and engaging person"

Stockwell Day backing BC Liberal by-election candidates

"There are positive reasons to support the BC Liberal government. The fact is that a vote for the BC Conservatives will only serve to elect the NDP," said Day.

Can there be any credibility to what Gordon Wilson has said?  With all due respect, I think not.  Rumors and speculation feed the news media frenzy – and that is all this is.

I’m Alan Forseth in Kamloops, with the thoughts of on conservative.


FOLLOW-UP since this morning:
Are the rumors of a Stockwell Day BC Conservative Party takeover ... and the undermining of John Cummins ... an attempt by some BC Liberal power brokers working to undermine the party?   I know it sounds like a conspiracy theory, but I'm starting to smell a rat.

What I see in those headlines is shifting values, shifting beliefs, and shifting principles.

“bc liberals, christy clark, shift to right”

Type those words into your nearest Google Search Engine, and immediately you will get a number of media releases and story titles pop up. 

If you weren’t already aware, here’s one thing you should know.  With the search engines -- like Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc -- things don’t just ‘pop up’ without there being the written word.  And for there to be the written word, there has to be change, or a spark of something different, being talked about and discussed.

BC Premier Clark, with Prime Minister Stephen Harper

For example, the Globe and Mail on January 15th had a story headlined, “Clark flirtation with the right predictable, dangerous”.

A couple days earlier a story came out in the Vancouver Sun; “Hockey game helps Clark punctuate a right-wing shift”

Three days ago the Globe and Mail had another story that came up using the same search ingredients … “For BC's Liberal Premier, Harper conservatism the key to success”

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Here’s another one, this time from Yahoo News Canada … “Stephen Harper helps BC's Christy Clark appear more conservative”

What I see in those headlines is shifting values, shifting beliefs, and shifting principles.  I have to say, given that; I would find it a bit disconcerting to be a member of the BC Liberal Party right now.  After all how would you know, from one week to the next, what direction the party is taking?

When the BC Liberals emerged from the political desert, led by Gordon Wilson, they seemed to have a tilt to the lift of the political spectrum.  When Gordon Campbell ousted Wilson from the leadership of the party, the Liberals took a swing in the other direction, and for several years became what many would consider to be a fiscally conservative party and government.

THIS WEEK … in BC Politics

This week’s wrap up of the political news begins with a story that appeared in Thursday’s Globe and Mail entitled … "Patrick Kinsella is the ultimate Mr. Fixit".    

For those not aware, this is the same man with direct and long ties to the BC Liberal Party ... and the sale of BC Rail.

Other past headlines about Mr. Kinsella included --- "Hiring of Kinsella was bad optics, BC Rail trial hears" --- "Kinsella trumpeted insider status to BC Rail, court hears" --- and --- "Court orders some Kinsella records released, but restricts access to others"

The Mr. Fixit story begins with the following paragraph:

“ … Patrick Kinsella, the quintessential insider in B.C. politics, arranged for representatives of a mining company based in Pemberton to meet on Dec. 1 with Premier Christy Clark and Energy Minister Rich Coleman …”

Now, here are some of the other stories that made political news in BC this past week …

Liberals under heavy pressure in two formerly safe Fraser Valley ridings

… both Adrian Dix’s NDP and John Cummins’ Conservatives have already declared their candidates for the ridings of Port-Moody Coquitlam and Chilliwack-Hope, the Liberals have yet to name their line-up for the contests …

Liberal backstabbing and intrigue in Vancouver Quilchena … and Vancouver Point Grey

Yesterday (March 15^th) former BC Premier Gordon Campbell resigned his Vancouver Point Grey seat, in the BC Legislature, after nearly two decades of service.

In a release to the media, Gordon Campbell stated, “It has been an honour to serve the people of British Columbia as an MLA, as the leader of the Opposition, and as premier.”

"There are few things more rewarding than serving in public life and I feel fortunate to have had such an opportunity to do so for nearly three decades in a province and a city that I love."

In 1994 Gordon Campbell originally won the Vancouver Quilchena riding in a by-election (with nearly 68% of the vote) after Art Cowie resigned for him in November of 1993. Thus begins a tale in intrigue, and backstabbing, that continues today.

About George Abbott ... about Mike de Jong …

George Abbott is a BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. He represents the riding of Shuswap, which he has held since 1996. He was re-elected three times in 2001, 2005, and most recently on May 12, 2009.

Since taking office in 1996, George Abbott has held five cabinet posts spanning a number of significant portfolios.  Most recently, he was appointed Minister of Education and Deputy House Leader on October 25, 2010.

What has George Abbott had to say:

·         The BC Liberal government is in the "ditch of public opinion" and needs time to regain the trust of voters before calling another election, leadership candidate George Abbott says.  "I frankly think that the B.C. Liberal party and the B.C. Liberal government is, at this point, at a pretty low point in the ditch of public opinion," he said.