Garth Turner Speaks Out

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Garth Turner has been told by Tory head honchos that 'he'll be blocked from running as a Conservative in any riding'. So he held a press conference on Tuesday to say you can't fire me, I quit and tore up his Tory party membership. Maybe he should have realized just a tad earlier than this that the arrogance of his now former fellow party members has been present all along. Better late than never, I suppose. You have to wonder though, why he received letters from three Tories telling him that the gig was up. Sounds like a bit of bullying to me.

Turner said he wants to force politicians to be accountable to voters and stick to their promises. He said he has the support of “more than a handful” of Conservative MPs.

Canada should have politicians that are willing to go against the party line and be more unpredictable because under the current system, MPs are forced follow the party line or else face consequences and aren’t permitted to think critically about issues, he said.

He said he’ll seek equal treatment for independent MPs in the House of Commons, which could be a positive step toward a system where more politicians with different perspectives are allowed to speak up.

To that end, Turner has launched a new site: Promises Kept, which is currently under construction. Good luck with that! Expecting politicians to keep their promises is about as naive as believing the moon is made of cheese. I do agree with Turner, however, when he exalts placing the wishes of his constituents over bowing down to party loyalty. Politicians are supposed to do what's best for the country, not their party or the corporate lobbyists who happen to buy them expensive lunches. Democracy is so corrupted by powermongers that it's a wonder they get anything done for us little people anymore. We deserve better and if independent voices can help make that happen, we'll all be better off.

Update: CTV has the video of Turner's press conference.