Liberals don't need to turn Green

The signatories of a letter seeking to draft Mike Schreiner, leader of the Ontario Green Party, as the next leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, are seriously out of step with grassroots Liberals.

Rank and file Liberals believe the party lost its way in recent years by veering too far left, trying to "out NDP the NDP."

Now these senior Liberals want to turn the party over to the Green Party leader, a worthy individual to be sure, but by installing him as Liberal Leader would amount to a single-issue takeover of the party.

Instead, most Liberals want the party to return to its former role of being the socially progressive and fiscally responsible party of the centre.

The person who best encapsulates this desire is Mitzie Hunter, currently the Deputy Leader and experienced in government as Minister of Education and Associate Minister of Finance and who also embodies the aspirations of women and new Canadians.

Moreover, I have personally witnessed her meeting with small groups of people in rural Ontario winning over hearts and minds by speaking, not like a politician, but directly and honestly from the heart.

This is exactly the kind of activity the next Liberal Leader will need to do to lead the Liberals out of the wilderness.

The solution for Liberals is not a saviour from outside the party but a proven leader who is already known and doing the hard work necessary to earn the trust of voters.