What I look for in a politician (inspired by the SNC-Lavalin Scandal)

[OneSeventeen]

In wake of the SNC-Lavalin scandal, I wanted to get some of my thoughts out on what motives and personalities should qualify and disqualify someone to run for political office.  

 

Disqualified Types

 

Justin Trudeau / George W. Bush Types – People who feel the need to match the achievements of their fathers (and mothers in other cases). The government is not the stage for you to work out your personal inadequacies. Just because your Dad did it doesn’t mean you can do it too, especially if you clearly didn’t learn anything from him. Please get over the fact that your parents accomplished greater things than you somewhere else. 

 

Doug and Robb Ford Types – People who are so coddled by their wealth and privileged that they go all their lives piggybacking off the achievements of their father. Both guys are college dropouts who then went on to work for the company their father established and then went into politics. No other company would give these guys the same managerial/executive opportunities with their resume. Their father was an MPP, hence why some of the Progressive Conservative party apparatus was available to them and proceeded to help prop them up. Other than the age and citizenship requirements being met, absolutely nothing qualifies these guys to hold political office. 

 

Mitt Romney / Howard Schultz Types – People who have reached the highest pinnacle of career success and are bored with life. Politics is not a retirement hobby. We are not the lab rats for your ideological experiments. This one applies more to Mitt Romney now (and JFK’s dad back in the day), people who run to be the first. Wanting to be the first Mormon, Catholic, female or whatever non-white and non-male category. This is not a reason to run. 

 

Qualified Types 

 

Elizabeth Warren Types – People who see flaws in the system and have substantives fixes on hand. Warren was the architect of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau which has returned $11.8 billion to consumers who have been victimized by illegal practices. The financial service sector in the USA is basically the wild west. Warren had a long academic history observing it and advocating for change. 

 

I know it’s not all cut and dry. But I am noticing more and more that politics is the stage where the elite try and preserve themselves. They may throw us a bone every now and then to mask that. But it’s just that a bone. Not meat and potatoes. I am extremely suspicious of any politician who comes from wealth. They will never need a government that expands healthcare and education, the essential tools that empowers all of us to do better because they can afford private care and private education. Some of them, especially in the Conservative party, take their inherited status as merit over the rest of us. 

 

Sorry for being so angry. Thoughts and comments appreciated.  

[Duodenum]

Unfortunately flash appeals more to voters over actual substance. 

 

Warren is about as anti-establishment, anti-corruption as they come yet if she runs against a blubbering idiot who can only talk about being anti-corruption but gladly participates in it himself, she'll probably lose or win with the slightest of margins. 

 

Warren would actually work to fix a lot of the corruption going on so the Russian trolls, GOP, Fox News, and others will work overtime to discredit her. 

[OneSeventeen]

25 minutes ago, Duodenum said:

Unfortunately flash appeals more to voters over actual substance. 

 

Warren is about as anti-establishment, anti-corruption as they come yet if she runs against a blubbering idiot who can only talk about being anti-corruption but gladly participates in it himself, she'll probably lose or win with the slightest of margins. 

 

Warren would actually work to fix a lot of the corruption going on so the Russian trolls, GOP, Fox News, and others will work overtime to discredit her. 

The news media is likely going to kill Warren's chances by belabouring this whole Native American thing. The news media in my mind just engages in slightly more sophisticated scandal and sensationalism compared to TMZ. 

 

I really hope she can rise above it.

 

5 minutes ago, chilliwiggins said:

Warren wasn't even close to Ron Paul, now that was your guy if you like her types, but they will never ever get in.

I was a fan of Ron Paul's as well. Especially his foreign policy and drug policy. But his domestic policy is basically laissez faire economics which in my opinion would result in American execrating toward's Bioshock's rapture. 

[DADDYROCK]

The most unethical people own the MEDIA and apparently people with sociopathic tendencies run for office, this explains alot.

 

I might add there are a FEW people in politics who actually want to be helpful to people and society in general,but without proportional representation we will be very short on these types of politicians AND CORPORATE OWNED MEDIA AND THERE AGENDAS is not helping whatsoever.

 

They had to bring in some corrupt company and there machines to do the P.R. count here in B.C. so it just sounds a little fishy to me.

[Tre Mac]

Honesty and accountability. 

[Ryan Strome]

1 hour ago, DADDYROCK said:

The most unethical people own the MEDIA and apparently people with sociopathic tendencies run for office, this explains alot.

 

I might add there are a FEW people in politics who actually want to be helpful to people and society in general,but without proportional representation we will be very short on these types of politicians AND CORPORATE OWNED MEDIA AND THERE AGENDAS is not helping whatsoever.

 

They had to bring in some corrupt company and there machines to do the P.R. count here in B.C. so it just sounds a little fishy to me.

i think they all have the idea of wanting to help but once they make government they see how easy it is to help themselves financially and like they say money is the root of all evil.

 

 

[Ryan Strome]

14 minutes ago, Tre Mac said:

Honesty and accountability. 

Two words said often in politics but never adhered to.

[Gnarcore]

23 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

i think they all have the idea of wanting to help but once they make government they see how easy it is to help themselves financially and like they say money is the root of all evil.

 

 

'Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. '  - Lord Acton  

[kingofsurrey]

Politics is just like advanced post secondary education in North America.....

 

A way for the rich elite to maintain their priviledged  / wealthy  status in society.

[Ryan Strome]

6 minutes ago, Gnarcore said:

'Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. '  - Lord Acton  

And a majority government in Canada is absolute power.

[Gnarcore]

1 minute ago, Ryan Strome said:

And a majority government in Canada is absolute power.

I am all for proportional rep and the parties being forced to work together and every ones' views better represented. Are there draw backs? Of course but very rarely does a majority work out well in the past 30 years.  Harper with a minority was great...with a majority his worst tendencies showed.... like gutting our prison system to try and emulate a failed model in the US.  Those Martin years were decent...a few of Chretien maybe? But even then Quebec special treatment and scandal was rife. At least he kept us out of Iraq. I was too young to really appreciate what was going on under the old PC's and Mulrooney. 
 

Alberta's prov government has sold them out and somehow caused a debt on what should have been a guaranteed resource (even through boom and bust) and don't get me started on BC's libs under Crusty Clark.  

[Ryan Strome]

14 minutes ago, Gnarcore said:

I am all for proportional rep and the parties being forced to work together and every ones' views better represented. Are there draw backs? Of course but very rarely does a majority work out well in the past 30 years.  Harper with a minority was great...with a majority his worst tendencies showed.... like gutting our prison system to try and emulate a failed model in the US.  Those Martin years were decent...a few of Chretien maybe? But even then Quebec special treatment and scandal was rife. At least he kept us out of Iraq. I was too young to really appreciate what was going on under the old PC's and Mulrooney. 
 

Alberta's prov government has sold them out and somehow caused a debt on what should have been a guaranteed resource (even through boom and bust) and don't get me started on BC's libs under Crusty Clark.  

I liked minority governments under Martin and Harper but of course both parties claim minorities are no good but as far as I can tell the Country has done very well under minority governments.

[Ryan Strome]

@Gnarcore an argument could be made that Lester Pearson is the greatest PM in Canadian history and he accomplished universal health care, our OWN flag and student loans all while having a minority government.

[Ryan Strome]

@Gnarcore I forgot to add the Canada pension plan to Pearsons resume under a minority government.

[JM_]

11 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

I liked minority governments under Martin and Harper but of course both parties claim minorities are no good but as far as I can tell the Country has done very well under minority governments.

I think you can count Martin under the 'honesty and accountability' label. He didn't have to hold the inquiry into the sponsorship scandal, but he did the right thing and got beat over the head with it by Harper. 

 

I'd agree Harpers best years were in a minority gov't. 

 

I don't care what a persons family did, if they are qualified and win then great. Whats more important is voter engagement. We seem to think, on a collective level, that we can sit back and not be involved in selecting candidates or for some even voting, and you're going to get a politician that does what you like or does the right thing. 

 

[Gnarcore]

11 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

@Gnarcore an argument could be made that Lester Pearson is the greatest PM in Canadian history and he accomplished universal health care, our OWN flag and student loans all while having a minority government.

No small feats there.  I'd have to concur. 

[Ryan Strome]

1 minute ago, Jimmy McGill said:

I think you can count Martin under the 'honesty and accountability' label. He didn't have to hold the inquiry into the sponsorship scandal, but he did the right thing and got beat over the head with it by Harper. 

 

I'd agree Harpers best years were in a minority gov't. 

 

I don't care what a persons family did, if they are qualified and win then great. Whats more important is voter engagement. We seem to think, on a collective level, that we can sit back and not be involved in selecting candidates or for some even voting, and you're going to get a politician that does what you like or does the right thing. 

 

I think you and I both agree on more voter engagement is needed. Our politicians almost know they can do what they want because of the lack of voter engagement.

 

FtR Martin likely would have been a great PM, true centre politician but Chretien and his supporters sunk Martin. 

 

His only knock was flying different flags to save money. Kind of a bad thing for a multi millionaire to do but compared to other pm's he is a saint.

 

The old guard under Chretien really hurt the liberal party as Martin had the the ability to steal lots of conservative votes.

 

But it's like @Gnarcore said absolute power, Chretien became drunk with power much like PET did. 

[Ryan Strome]

8 minutes ago, Gnarcore said:

No small feats there.  I'd have to concur. 

If you ever have the time or want to study Pearson you should. A veteran of WW1 he had the military and veterans and furious when he gave us our own flag. Now that flag is honoured and praised, tough decisions aren't easy decisions but very few people can see into the future like LP.

 

He won a nobel peace prize, he averted a major war by telling Britain and France to stfu. He told Charles Degal to get out of Canada after saying vive Quebec vive. He told him Canadians died to liberate your country and all Canadians are free. 

 

Honestly if you get the time study this guy. Oh and him and LBJ hated each other lol.

[JM_]

14 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

I think you and I both agree on more voter engagement is needed. Our politicians almost know they can do what they want because of the lack of voter engagement.

 

FtR Martin likely would have been a great PM, true centre politician but Chretien and his supporters sunk Martin. 

 

His only knock was flying different flags to save money. Kind of a bad thing for a multi millionaire to do but compared to other pm's he is a saint.

 

The old guard under Chretien really hurt the liberal party as Martin had the the ability to steal lots of conservative votes.

 

But it's like @Gnarcore said absolute power, Chretien became drunk with power much like PET did. 

standard practice in the shipping industry tho. 

 

Yeah I was pretty unimpressed with the way the Liberal old guard treated Martin. They then went on to provide quite a string of "leaders" 

 

I do think Mulroney deserves an honourable (?) mention here for holding elections on key issues and fighting hard for your position. The GST and free trade debates were epic. Now we just see trained seals on all sides of the house. 

 

 

 

[Gnarcore]

2 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

If you ever have the time or want to study Pearson you should. A veteran of WW1 he had the military and veterans and furious when he gave us our own flag. Now that flag is honoured and praised, tough decisions aren't easy decisions but very few people can see into the future like LP.

 

He won a nobel peace prize, he averted a major war by telling Britain and France to stfu. He told Charles Degal to get out of Canada after saying vive Quebec vive. He told him Canadians died to liberate your country and all Canadians are free. 

 

Honestly if you get the time study this guy. Oh and him and LBJ hated each other lol.

I have read about him but it's been years. I took Canadian political history in uni along with poly sci before going full business courses.   I definitely recall the LBJ stuff.  He took umbrage that Pearson critiqued Vietnam and US foreign policy while in the US. LBJ is a well known piece of $&!#.