Harper's rigid grip on government has started to cause problems

Harper's rigid grip on government has started to cause problems
Deirdre McMurdy, The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Monday, July 23, 2007
For someone who takes pride in keeping his political style consistent, simple and controlled, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has made a small deviation with potentially huge consequences.
Even as the PMO was spinning hard and blaming the media for overplaying the incident, perception had solidified into reality. On a visit to Latin America, Mr. Harper urged leaders there to consider Canada as a third option, a partner in trade and diplomacy that would allow them to side-step the U.S.
Expressions of "disappointment" from American representatives in Canada were fast and furious. And it's clear that after making considerable efforts to patch up the tattered relationship, Mr. Harper has now given the U.S. a reason to question his sincerity in future.
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Given past experience with snippy Canadian politicians, the Americans might be forgiven for wondering whether they can trust the Tories after all.
On the domestic front, that sort of anti-American nuance still tends to play pretty well -- but largely among voters who wouldn't dream of voting Conservative anyway.
So what gives?
The prospect of seven upcoming byelections at a time when the Tories are faltering in polls may well be exerting acute pressure. And taking shots at the Americans is a classic Hail Mary manoeuvre from the Canadian political play book.
It's also a perfect example of Mr. Harper's flawed strategy of putting himself at the centre of every single political decision and announcement made by "Canada's New Government."
That sort of centralized authority and tight control over caucus was probably a sound idea early on, when he was marshalling a gang of rookie MPs and cabinet ministers. After all, it's one of the personal tips shared with Mr. Harper by former prime minister Brian Mulroney, who learned that lesson the hard way.
But over time, that rigid grip hasn't loosened. And it has become a tactic that's clearly starting to cause problems on several fronts.
First, it's left the prime minister personally exposed to every controversy. He has no layers of sub-authority to blame if he hits a rock because he's made clear that he's the one driving the boat, and everyone else is just there to provide a bit of ballast.
It's even hard to blame the media when you've made such a public show of shutting them out at every turn.
The other undesirable side effect of the prime minister's death lock on power, is that it ultimately creates self-fulfilling circumstances.
By sending the message that he doesn't trust the judgment of his senior ministers to speak or act for themselves, he ensures that they remain weak and never grow into the jobs they've ostensibly been given.
As well, the prime minister's near-obsession with Quebec, coupled with his insistence on being front-and-centre for all major announcements, has had an ironic and potentially harmful effect: Unless things change dramatically between now and the next election, the only Tory familiar to most Quebec voters other than the PM himself is Industry Minister Maxime Bernier. The Tories' other Quebec ministers and MPs, such as Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon and JosEe Verner, minister for international co-operation, La Francophonie and official languages, are almost invisible.
All of this would be considerably less dire if the Conservatives were actually doing better in the polls.
But despite the fact the Liberals are in obvious disarray and provide tepid opposition -- and even the Green party is suffering some public growing pains -- the Tories still aren't getting the sort of traction they might rightfully expect at this point in their mandate.
Even after a summer of whistle-stopping across Canada, Mr. Harper has not significantly moved the dial with affluent Canadians, Quebecers or women.
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Whatever it may say about venal human nature, it seems that voters still want a leader who's likable. And however warm and humorous he may be on a personal level -- and by all accounts he can be -- it just isn't coming across.
Being an effective retail politician isn't everything, but it certainly doesn't hurt to have the common touch.
It's hard to recall a prime minister who had as cold an image as Mr. Harper. Even Pierre Trudeau's imperious demeanour was offset by a glamour and style that captivated Canadians.
Furthermore, instead of having the desired effect of reinforcing political "brand," stubbornly staying on message creates a robotic effect and leaves the Tories open to ridicule. The continued use of the tag line "Canada's New Government," for example, has become a joke 18 months later.
Political theorist Niccolo Machiavelli declared that for an effective leader, fear is always preferable to affection as a base for power. But we're not living in 13th-century Florence. And in a multi-platform, media-streaming world, the prime minister receives an unprecedented degree of scrutiny.
Certainly in Ottawa circles, affection is in limited supply these days. Mr. Harper has a reputation -- fair or otherwise -- for pettiness, vindictiveness and personalizing politics. That rap may not matter to the general electorate, but on the other hand, if you can't win over the inner circle, it's much harder to win over that outer circle.
And given that the outer circle includes some pretty miffed Americans these days, there's cold comfort in the fact that perceived personality is fate.
dmcmurdy@thecitizen.canwest.com