Dismay Voiced by Firebrands Who Helped Put Harper in Power

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Dismay Voiced by Firebrands Who Helped Put Harper in Power

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Reform party stalwarts wonder what happened to ideals of their populist revolt.

By Jeremy J. Nuttall, Today, TheTyee.ca

In March of 1996, Ken Epp, the Reform Party MP from Elk Island, Alberta, stood in the House of Commons. It was the seventh anniversary, he said, of "a most significant event in Canadian history" -- the election of his party's first MP.

"It was on this date in 1989," he declared, "that the citizens of Beaver River decided there was an alternative to the politics of cynical pragmatism, of winning at all costs, of special interests and backroom deals choking out the national interest.

"They voted for someone to speak for them, not to them; for a platform of fiscal responsibility and deficit reduction; for democratic reforms to make members of Parliament accountable to their constituents; for fairness and common sense in government.

"Yes, seven years ago today the residents of Beaver River used the opportunity of a by-election to send a clear message to Ottawa. They elected the first Reformer to the House of Commons and thereby set off an avalanche of democratic and fiscal reform which cannot be stopped."

Nearly 20 years later, some original members of the Reform Party say that avalanche has been stopped cold by the party that grew from and absorbed the Reformers -- the Conservatives led by Stephen Harper.

The Tyee spoke with a number of former staunch members of the Reform Party now looking toward the federal election slated for fall. They all felt the Harper government had moved away from important principles that originally fired their aspirations. Some criticized the Tories for scandals and damage control tactics. Others resented the Harper government grabbing more control over citizens' private lives rather than shrinking the reach and power of government. One decried the smothering of politics at the grassroots level. Another slammed the twisting of religious messages for political aims.

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