NDP Leadership Debate Fails to Impress: French Edition

What do I think of the NDP French leadership debate?  Unfortunately not much. Most of the candidates do not speak French very well outside of Thomas Mulcair and Brian Topp. Martin Singh's French was laughably bad to the point where I could not understand what he was saying


Most questions and answers were vague and vaporous, one question however, was interesting to me: Why did the Quebecois vote for the NDP in the last federal election. The answers were meek:


Paul Dewar - They voted for Jack Layton, against the war in Afghanistan and a green economy.


Niki Ashton - Climate change, gay rights and foreign policy.


Peggy Nash - NDP values and replacing Stephen Harper


Nathan Cullen - The Sherbrooke declaration and Harper being a royalist.


Martin Singh - Job creation, the environment and improving quality of life.


Thomas Mulcaire - They voted for Jack layton, maintain the ratio of seats in the house, protect french rights and getting rid of asbestos exports.


Brian Topp - A new government replacing Harper


None of these answers are completely honest, the only reason Quebec voted NDP in May 2011 was because of Jack Layton's charisma and a protest vote against establishment politics. I.E bloc Quebecois and Liberals. Support for the party is already declining rapidly in the province.


On the subject of merging or forming a partnership with the Federal Liberal party, again, only Nathan Cullen supports this, therefore he is the only candidate I support in this lot. The only way to beat The Conservative Party come 2015 will either be a centre left partnership or a major conservative blunder that sticks in the consciousnesses of Canadians and only that will bring us back to a minority government.


It is clear to me that the NDP has a long way to go to counter the Conservative Party of Canada.


cartoon source - Aislin