Poilievre’s real ‘hidden’ agenda?

OAKVILLE, ONT.—When Liberals accuse Conservatives of harbouring a “hidden agenda,” they might be right about the “hidden” part, but they’re wrong about the agenda. What do I mean by that? Well, when Liberals bring up the “hidden agenda” idea, they’re usually trying to imply the Conservatives are hiding some sort of scary, right-wing, populist plan designed to turn Canada into an evangelical Christian theocracy, or a militaristic fascist police state, or an oil-pipeline-riddled dumping ground for toxic pollutants. Once the Conservatives take power, the Liberals warn, this frightening agenda will be unleashed on an unsuspecting public. Probably the most classic example of this tactic occurred in the 2006 federal election when the Liberals produced a TV ad suggesting the Conservatives were secretly planning to deploy “soldiers in our streets.” And, yes, former Conservative leaders Stephen Harper, Andrew Scheer, and Erin O’Toole were all accused of hiding right-wing agendas. This is why it’s no surprise that the Liberals are playing the “hidden agenda” card against current Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre. Indeed, recently in the House, Government House Leader Karina Gould declared, “The only people that are afraid, Mr. Speaker, are the Conservative MPs, because they know the longer this House sits, the more their hidden agenda is exposed, and the more Canadians don’t want to vote for them.” Mind you, it’s understandable as to why the Liberals consistently use this particular strategy. First, it’s a good way to scare Liberal Party supporters into voting on election day, and second, it's a good way to scare their donors into contributing money. After all, hate and fear are the two most powerful motivating emotions in politics. By the way, the current Conservative version of the “hidden agenda” ploy is to accuse the Liberals of pushing a radical “woke” agenda, since that’s a good way to scare and anger their base. Anyway, getting back to my point, I’d argue that, despite all the Liberal fearmongering, the Conservatives actually don’t have a scary, right-wing, hidden agenda—or if they do have one, it’s hidden so well, no one will ever find it. To see what I mean, just consider former prime minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative government. Even though Harper was a one-time libertarian-conservative activist, his government—at least when it came to fiscal and economic issues—was pretty much wishy-washy and middle-of-the-road. If anything, Harper’s lack of an actual right-wing, hidden agenda likely disappointed many rock-ribbed conservatives in his base. And this brings me to what I think is the Conservative Party’s real hidden agenda. Whenever they come to power, the Conservatives don’t—as the Liberals like to contend—suddenly lurch to the right. Instead, they steadily move to the centre. In other words, Conservatives talk like conservatives while in opposition, but govern like liberals when they’re in power. This happens because, once they win power, Conservative leaders typically surround themselves with what I like to call “power people," political consultants and advisers who will gladly jettison any and all conservative principles in the name of power politics. Will this happen to Poilievre should he attain power? Well, I wouldn’t rule it out. Interestingly, for instance, former Conservative strategist Ken Boessenkool recently predicted that Poilievre won’t scrap the carbon tax, as he promises to do. Noted Boessenkool, “There’s a huge gap between what Conservatives say, and what Conservatives do ... Jason Kenney ran on ‘axe the tax,’ and he beefed up the industrial carbon price in Alberta.” So, my message is basically this: it’s not liberals who should worry about a hidden Conservative agenda. It’s conservatives. Gerry Nicholls is a communications consultant. The Hill Times

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Poilievre’s real ‘hidden’ agenda?

Conservatives talk like conservatives while in opposition, but govern like liberals when they’re in power.

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