I, too, got pretty much the same response as Kady to my query, submitted via an online form, when I asked who was behind Republicans for Ignatieff. On Sunday we both get on e-mail from "The Colonel" behind the site. I've put the version I got below. (I don't think there's much difference between, the responder has a bit more at the top here, saying his group is small but growing, but the other stuff is pretty similar to Kady's)
Now, when I first saw Republicans for Ignatieff, I strongly suspected that the Conservative Party of Canada was unofficially behind it and/or responsible for it. I based that hunch on the fact some Conservative operatives have been known to do some stuff like this before; when do they stuff like this it tends to be a little more sophisticated; and, most of all, the point of the site fits right into the narrative currently being pushed about Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff, warning Canadians that he is "Just Visiting".
The group has a "press release" scheduled for tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. and this week, it says at the site, "Republicans for Ignatieff will be making the case - using Michael's own words - for targeted assassinations and coercive interrogations." Now that can't be for real, can it?
I used to think it wasn't for real but I'm less inclinded to think so after reading the e-mail reply from The Colonel behind the site. Tell me what you think and, more importantly, if you were a politics reporter, what do you do with this? Thoughts on tracking down the real people behind this?
From: semperficolonel@aol.com
Date: Sun, 12 Jul 2009 09:00:01 -0500
To: dakin@canwest.com
Subject: Republicans For IgnatieffThanks for your e-mail and interest in the site.
I should tell you right off the top that I am not a media savvy individual nor do I crave media attention for myself. This is not about me it's about Michael Ignatieff. Our group is small (but growing) and members live in both the United States and Canada.
The site is what it is: a modest attempt to show why Republicans want Michael Ignatieff to become Prime Minister of Canada.
We've received several thousand unique visitors - more than we imagined.
Speaking for myself, I can tell you:
- I live in the United States.
- Everyone, except my Mother, calls me The Colonel.
- I am deeply invested in foreign affairs.
- I believe energy security is the single biggest foreign affairs challenge facing America.
- I first discovered Michael Ignatieff when I picked up a copy of Blood and Belonging in 1994.
- Although I don't agree with everything Michael Ignatieff stands for, particularly on social policy, I strongly support him on energy security and the war on terror, the two issues that matter most to me.
I suspect this is the case for most other Republican supporters of Michael Ignatieff.
- I also admire Ignatieff for his willingness to admit hard truths that many Canadians are unwilling to accept, particularly the strategic importance of the tar sands, the need for coercive interrogation as a tool in the war on terror, and the irrelevance of Canadian foreign policy under the Chretien and Martin administrations. In challenging the conventional wisdom of his own party, he reminds me a great deal of Tony Blair who took on the trade unions and the peace movement and re-invented the British Labour Party, culminating of course in his courageous support of President Bush in Iraq.
At this point, we have not, as a group, decided on an official spokesperson.
Over time, we hope to inform, educate and recruit more people to join us in backing Michael Ignatieff.
Thanks again for your interest.
The Colonel
semperficolonel@aol.com
