Welcome to Tory-Talk
I wish I could say that this surprises me.
Next time you're listening to your favourite radio phone-in show, those pro-Conservative opinions you hear from callers might not be as spontaneous as they sound.
Some of those apparently ad-libbed musings are actually being choreographed at the Conservative Party of Canada's national headquarters.
The governing party has produced talking points for grassroots supporters on a variety of issues, feeding them lines on everything from climate change to child care.
. . .
A Liberal party spokesman says it's a new extreme for a government that has already placed an unprecedented gag order on its elected members, political staff, and civil servants.
In one famous incident during the last election campaign a Conservative MP was stuffed into a restaurant kitchen by a Stephen Harper staffer when approached by the media.
That strict discipline has survived their two years in government: requests to speak publicly are routinely vetted by the Prime Minister's Office, scores of MPs will recite identical sound bites on any given topic, and the government often allows only one person to make public utterances on a given issue.
Far be it for their supporters to start thinking for themselves, or their MP's to actually say what they think. Only Dear Leader Harper can be trusted to say anything. Everyone else must march in lockstep.
