Carbon tax and leadership

Two interesting stories came out today.

First, a Harris-Decima poll reveals that Canadians find Stéphane Dion weak and uninspiring, but still find him more likable that Stephen Harper.

Then, a Globe and Mail article indicated that the Liberals were seriously leaning towards embracing a carbon-tax and putting it at the centre of their platform.

Well, in my mind, it's all very clear: they HAVE to go with a carbon tax.

Leaving aside the fact that it's unquestionably the right thing to do, a carbon-tax would finally give Dion something to fight for. If we look at recent polls, the two vices that Stéphane Dion is most often accused of are weakness and inability to communicate. But interestingly enough, before he became Liberal leader, his English was perfectly acceptable and he certainly wasn't thought of as weak.

That's because he hasn't had anything to fight for. Since January 2006, he's been acting as Leader of the opposition and spending all of his time attacking the government. Visibly, he hasn't done the greatest job.

But attacking the government has never been Stéphane Dion's strong suit. He's always been fighting for a vision. First it was national unity which led him to pass the Clarity Act and almost single handedly provoque Lucien Bouchard's frustrated exit from Politics. Then it was uniting the environment and economy, an issue which he championed in Cabinet under Martin and then as a Liberal Leadership candidate.

Dion'a strengths are honesty, sincerity, and true command of the issues. They were evident in the past, but are now being overshadowed by accusations of weakness, indecisiveness, and lack of vision. A carbon tax could be the magic pill that puts Dion's problems behind him and gives his strengths a chance to express themselves. It won't be an easy sell, especially when the Harper spin machine gets going, but he's got to have a better shot at selling a carbon tax that framing the Conservatives as an "evil right wind ideological government". And if polls are to be trusted, here's an interesting fact: Harris-Decima concluded last week that 61% of Canadians support a carbon-tax. So clearly, there's potential.