Today's tonic: "The Leap: Alberta Conservative Lee Richardson on Why He’s Voting NDP"

Today's tonic: "The Leap: Alberta Conservative Lee Richardson on Why He’s Voting NDP"

"Policy: Why won’t you be voting for Danielle Smith? 

"Richardson: I am a Conservative, a Progressive Conservative in the Peter Lougheed tradition. Danielle is not a Conservative.

"Sadly, she is not the Danielle Smith I first knew and admired 30 years ago. She was President of the U of C campus Progressive Conservative Club and a hard-working Progressive Conservative volunteer in my ‘93 federal election campaign. She was then bright, thoughtful, and driven – always challenging herself to get over her fear of meeting people, something she’d have to do, to someday get elected herself.

"Over the intervening years, a clear vision or consistent political ideology or party loyalty would not impair that goal. As her political career ebbed and flowed, her self-professed libertarianism gave way to grievance politics and tactical populism. Danielle’s Tucker Carlson-inspired radio talk show provided the vehicle for the resurgence of her political following while stoking division, hate and fear in listeners, with negative rhetoric, culture wars, and conspiracy theories. The more provocative, outrageous, or extreme were the views expressed, the higher the ratings. Lost were the traditional Conservative values of integrity, ethics, respect for our institutions, authority, the rule of law, and the norms of a democratic society..."