What's this: Stephen Harper, media darling? It couldn’t be.
Okay, so maybe media darling is a little strong.
Don’t look now, but the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada is gaining media credibility as this listless election campaign finally clicks into second gear.
Harper is no longer being written off as Mike Harris with superior hair spray and a turtleneck.
Call it the benefit of no expectations.
Many voters and the small-L Liberal media based in Ontario had written Harper off after the 2004 campaign as a drowning man, being pulled below the waves by the anchor of Alliance and Reform policies that go against the grain in the country’s key racially diverse, multicultural swing province.
Half-way through this round, simply by not being bad, Harper is gaining momentum. Most of the mid-campaign media evaluations were positive, if not effusive, about his effort.
Give the Conservatives credit for making regular policy statements first, and putting the Grits on the defensive for most of this campaign.
They’re doing well despite their disastrous TV-ad campaign that features a young woman ventriloquist who makes Harper move his lips.
The leader looks like he’s reached the obvious conclusion that this is the last roundup and he’d better get on his horse and ride.
So, something is happening here but can we figure out what it is?
Is this actually a change of heart by Canadians willing to give the Tories the benefit of the doubt or is it just the usual mid-campaign opportunity that oh-so-fair-minded Canadians give to alternative viewpoints before they shrug their shoulders and decide that the Liberals are the least of all political evils?
Either way, Stephen Harper and the Conservatives now have the opportunity to win this election.