Thread by @bruce_arthur

Let's talk about Canada's Conservative Party for a second.

Here is a key point from a provocative thread from @MichelleRempel:

https://twitter.com/MichelleRempel/status/1011619642500997120

Here is the article that prompted her thread, from the great @ChantalHbert. To describe Chantal as partisan is pretty absurd, from anyone. But let's go on. thestar.com/opinion/star-c…

Here are some of the examples of what the Conservative Party leader has been tweeting out of late, some of which are cited in the piece. These tweets are still up. First, taxes.

https://twitter.com/AndrewScheer/status/1009859998002839552

It's an easily disproved claim. Adam, by the way: also not a partisan. (Note the source of the erroneous claim, by the way).

https://twitter.com/aradwanski/status/1009868213000310784

How about carbon taxes? That's been a big Tory issue, federally and provincially. The Tories are very opposed to carbon taxes. Forget the environmental argument for a second.

https://twitter.com/AndrewScheer/status/1009794566545760258

But those numbers are ... quite misleading! This is the guy whose analysis the big number was based on.

https://twitter.com/andrew_leach/status/1009236046452682752

Here is @acoyne: a conservative, not a partisan.

https://twitter.com/acoyne/status/1008879040428560384

Here is a less charitable interpretation, from an economist:

https://twitter.com/stephenfgordon/status/1009830611987648512

And, of course, there is this:

https://twitter.com/CPC_HQ/status/1011718487172001792

It's so dumb, and such a transparent lie, that it shouldn't last five seconds as an attack ad. The summer home is a government property, which like 24 Sussex is in need of maintenance as time passes.

https://twitter.com/DomStewart/status/1012024448512413698

I mean, they do have some standards.

https://twitter.com/kinsellawarren/status/1011292215312650240

It's straight-up lies on important issues. Corrected, and still up. All politicians lie. But this is a startlingly base new direction. Why?

https://twitter.com/acoyne/status/1011305661714448384

Well, one theory of the Rebel-esque turn could be The Rebel's actual influence? cbc.ca/news/politics/…

But it's not just Scheer. This thread by @Justin_Ling is nonpartisan and fair.

https://twitter.com/Justin_Ling/status/1012014977190973441

So where does this come from? The Tories were exhausted at the end of the Harper government. So they turned to barbaric practices tiplines, eliminate the longform census to undermine data gathering, and at the very end, this:

https://twitter.com/cselley/status/1011332461282897925

But now they're pushing further into fact-free populism, and into attacks on the media itself. So, that's not great.

https://twitter.com/acoyne/status/1006697143489343489

So, why? Best guess: they're polling their voters. From EKOS last year: Conservative voters are more open to populism. ekospolitics.com/index.php/2017…

From this year. 'Ordered', though poorly named, indicates "they were more likely to have a negative outlook on the economy and their future and also concerns about the diversity of the country." nationalobserver.com/2018/02/05/new…

Or maybe the Tories just read this? slate.com/articles/healt…

Or they saw how Rob Ford and then Doug Ford — and the Sun Media stable of political writers and editors — employed simple, falsehood-based panic populism. This isn't 100% persuasive, but it makes very good points. thewalrus.ca/weve-entered-a…

But there is a growing audience for it. So back to Coyne's desire for a principled, sensible, tolerant, adult Conservative party in Canada. Which would be good for us, as a country! This, I think, hits at the problem with that.

https://twitter.com/davidreevely/status/1006697420523233282

The key point here is this, I think: Politicians chase their voters, as much as the other way around. Canada isn't immune from the wave sweeping America, or parts of Europe. People here consume the global attacks on facts, too. The US is our favourite TV show, and always has been

Well, that and The Beachcombers.

Either way, I think this is where we're at. Which isn't good news for Canada.

https://twitter.com/aradwanski/status/1009871462851928066

Calrification! Leach's numbers are independent. The claim remains wholly misleading, though

As noted here

https://twitter.com/andrew_leach/status/1012373611129245696

One last thing: We need a principled, tolerant, intelligent and honest Conservative Party in Canada. The Liberals as the Natural Governing Party can be bad for them, and for us. Three strong political parties is what we should strive for.

Counterpoint!

https://twitter.com/pavo_burel/status/1012375885314338816

Meanwhile

https://twitter.com/Justin_Ling/status/1012378705019199488

Also: this is all true. There's a lot at stake, and some partisan games are frankly not helpful at the moment.

https://twitter.com/AaronWherry/status/1012381741519130624

Oh hey

https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1012440891422699520