Ha! Canada's Conservative leader Stephen Harper is getting noticed south of the border! According to
an editorial by the Cato Institute's Patrick Basham in the Washington Times:
"Free-market economist Stephen Harper, leader of the opposition Conservative Party, is pro-free trade, pro-Iraq war, anti-Kyoto, and socially conservative. Move over Tony Blair: If elected, Mr. Harper will quickly become Mr. Bush's new best friend internationally and the poster boy for his ideal foreign leader."
The editorial goes on to say this: "A Harper victory may prove to be the exception to the international rule--a rare foreign event that manages to put a smile on President George W. Bush's face."
You might think Mr. Harper would be thrilled to have grabbed ink across the border, but he's not exactly overjoyed. As a politician, he obviously wants to straddle both sides of the issue, as he said in his letter to the Washington Times: "While I certainly consider myself to be a friend of the United States, I am afraid this greatly oversimplifies my positions." Among other things. Harper's letter is the second one down on the aforelinked article.
If more of the conservative media picks up on this and if American conservatives thus praise him too much, Harper's Conservative Party could suffer in the January 23 elections. Imagine Ann Coulter and Sean Hannity (and even, dare I dream, George W. Bush,) lauding Stephen Harper as Canada's great white hope, and imagine what that would do to Conservative turnout up north! Well, it might bring Albertans to the polls in droves, but as to the other nine provinces, the Liberals and New Democrats would see a clean sweep! Not that I'd suggest mentioning to too many Canadians that Harper would be viewed down here as a friend to Bush... no, I'd never do that. Well... maybe I would, yeah.
So spread the word. As a Canadian Liberal I know said: Canada would thank you for it.