The Past Speaks

I’m not convinced that the Tory attack ads on Michael Ignatieff are going to work. In fact, the ads appear to highlight things about Ignatieff that most voters will like. For instance, the ads denounced Ignatieff as “cosmopolitan”—I suspect that for most Canadians, being cosmopolitan is a very good thing. After all, Canadians are proud of multiculturalism, addicted to foreign travel, and strongly in favour of closer ties to the EU. (This is certaintly the majority view in Ontario, the battleground in the next election). Pointing out that Ignatieff speaks French with a Parisian accent will probably not cost the Liberals any votes in Quebec, as voters there are pretty tolerant of Anglophone politicians who mangle their language. In any event, Ignatieff is much more fluent in French than Harper, who speaks French clearly but with a decidedly Albertan accent. The Montenegrin domain name the Tories found for their anti-Ignatieff website is mildly amusing: Ignatieff.me .