Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Pat Martin and the Death of the NDP

Winnipeg Centre NDP MP Pat Martin is right when he suggests that the New Democrats risk becoming a fringe party unless they see an electoral breakthrough in the next election. But, he's right for all the wrong reasons.

Martin is likely the most right-wing NDP MP and would prefer that the party adopt the centrist Third Way approach of Manitoba's Gary Doer. Some of use believe the party would be better served by heading sharply in the opposite direction.

What drove Martin to make these comments? Is he looking for a reason to cross the floor? Is he hoping to become a cabinet minister in a future Liberal-NDP coalition government? Is he gauging support for the idea of a merger? Or is he just sticking it to Layton?

1 comment:

Idealistic Pragmatist said...

Winnipeg Centre NDP MP Pat Martin is right when he suggests that the New Democrats risk becoming a fringe party unless they see an electoral breakthrough in the next election.

Oh, don't be silly. If the NDP didn't disappear when it lost official party status in the 1990s, it's certainly not going to fade into the woodwork by not getting more than 17% of the vote in the next election. Internationally speaking, 17% is actually pretty damn good--lots of European parties would kill for that kind of vote percentage.

And if Pat Martin really wants a cabinet position in a Liberal-NDP coalition government, he'd better be a lot nicer to Jack--'cause it's Jack who'd be deciding who got the prize positions.