Stephen Harper is not a stupid man.
He doesn’t act without reason.
So why is he picking a fight with the Ottawa media corps?
Last week, he ramped up the feud by declaring the media biased against his government.
Two dozen reporters abandoned his news conference rather than abide by his rules, which stipulated he got to cherry pick who asked the questions.
Now, he’ll rely on media in the hinterlands to relay his message.
Perhaps he’s simply a control freak, determined to bring the national media to heel.
Or, maybe, he simply wanted to blunt another critic of his government.
By declaring the national media biased, he’s established doubt in the electorate.
That is, he’s craftily undermined the credibility of the national media.
Now, any negative report about his government is simply the ravings of a bunch of Liberal hacks.
His move puts the media on the defensive.
Now, there’s a good chance they will temper their reportage of his government — fearing they’ll be seen as Liberal toadies.
Even if they do go hard, Harper will taint critical reports as the products of a bunch of Liberal-friendly media, and hence suspect.
With the Liberal opposition in freefall, that clears the field.
Harper has, essentially, neutralized all opponents.
He’s a control freak determined to take Canada as far right as possible.
And he’s well on his way.
Because, as we said earlier, he is not stupid. (RM)