The United Conservative Party members in attendance for Andrew Scheer’s speech to their provincial convention in Calgary last Friday were polite, but far from enthusiastic. They didn’t wave the Scheer signs they had been given around much. And when he didn’t stay to schmooze after his remarks, they weren’t all that upset.
Compare that the to roaring, rip-snorting reaction from the same crowd to Premier Jason Kenney’s speech the following day.
It’s not as if Scheer got no cheers. The strongest response came to his zinger that “Division isn’t the result of Justin Trudeau’s plan. Division IS Justin Trudeau’s plan.”
But more than a few delegates wondered where that passion had been during the campaign.
If Andrew Scheer can’t even whip up some excitement among Alberta conservatives, who can he enthuse?
The ho-hum response in the ballroom of the Westin Calgary Airport was proof Scheer didn’t win Alberta – bedrock, deep-blue Alberta – in October’s federal election. Sure, Albertans cast 1.4 million votes for the federal Tories and 33 of the 34 MPs they sent to Ottawa were Tories. But that’s because they wanted to make absolutely, 100% sure Justin Trudeau and the Liberals didn’t win.
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See Also:
(2) Andrew Scheer’s personal numbers suggest he was part of the problem in October
(4) Conservative party: Here’s a lesson on branding
(5) Tory frustration with Scheer ‘not just an elephant in the room’: former Harper campaign boss
