Conservatives Fall Into Liberal Media Trap Again, Playing Defense Instead Of Offense
By Spencer Fernando, Exclusive to the National Citizens Coalition

With the recent comments by Conservative leadership contender Derek Sloan, many Conservatives once again fell into a now-familiar trap.
They let the Liberals and the media define the terms of the debate.
They played within the bounds of that debate.
They used the same terminology as the Liberals and the media.
They fought with each other publicly.
They seemed more in line with elite media opinion, as opposed to their own party base.
And they ended up making no progress, simultaneously angering many of their own supporters, while not winning over anyone new.
The key problem is that the Conservatives are now so accustomed to playing defense, that it is now often their default setting.
When the Liberals and the media get outraged enough, the party seems to be unable to resist the pressure to ‘say the right thing,’ which often means engaging in a circular firing squad that only makes the party look disorganized, chaotic, and not ready to lead.
Consider the contrast between Trudeau’s blackface debacle, and the Sloan remarks.
Despite how big a deal Trudeau’s blackface hypocrisy was, the Liberals remained united, almost all stuck entirely on message, and refused to fight each other publicly. If any tough discussions happened, they happened behind the scenes, rather than for media consumption.
The Liberals also effectively (from a purely strategic perspective) pivoted back onto offense, refocusing attention on Scheer who they had been relentlessly demonizing.
Of course, the Liberals got a big help from the establishment media, yet that again shows why the Conservatives can’t afford to play defense.
Conservatives will never get the benefit of the doubt. They will never get credit for ‘saying the right thing.’
The media is simply made up of people who – with some exceptions – are left-leaning and don’t like the idea of Conservatives in general. They will always be biased.
The way to deal with this then becomes obvious.