One of the best things about social media is that it’s a forum for politicians to continue goading each other during the off-season when the legislature isn’t sitting.
They only get a scant few months to go face to face during sessions. But through the miracle of Twitter, they can keep the argument going long after the house adjourns. Through the weekends and late into the night as well, for that matter.
Nanaimo-Cowichan NDP MLA Doug Routley has been leading the charge lately.
He’s taken the requisite number of digs at the B.C. Liberal government, of course. The day before Christmas Eve, he noted: “Balanced #bcpoli budget? Nope,jst anthr lie. Robbed $1bil from BCHydro,despite losses,forcing BCHydro in2mor debt&higher rate incrses.” (Those aren’t typos, it’s just compressed writing.)
The same day, there was this plaintive question: “Have the BCLiberals ever told a single truth? I can make a long list of their lies, but seriously, can anyone point to a single truth?”
The intriguing thing about his Twitter feed lately, however, is his focus on Oak Bay-Gordon Head Green party MLA Andrew Weaver.
Routley is listed as the deputy critic of forestry and community services, but in social-media world, he’s more a watchdog on Weaver.
Last month, Weaver was quoted after the Site C dam announcement as saying hydroelectric qualifies as green power.
Routley tweeted: “Gosh, amazing how @AJWVictoriaBC can leap ovr principles w a singl bound.”
After Weaver tweeted a news story about the Pope going Green, Routley responded with: “That’s (g)reen, not (G)reen...2go (G)reen by ur standard, he wld have 2 dclare hmslf as truthfully being jewish :)”
It was obviously meant as a joke, albeit a laboured one. But when he tried to explain the joke was based on Weaver’s perceived hypocrisy, Weaver responded: “I’m beginning to think u r the only 1 who understands ur tweets Doug.”
Routley shot back: “Only u apparently knew what u meant when u ran as a progressive.”
The dogfight is viewed by some as further proof the NDP are worried about the Greens. But some of it just stems from personal differences. Routley said he was talking to a dignitary last year in the hallway and Weaver interrupted him with an objection to something he said in a speech. He viewed that as rude, and the argument was on. Weaver said he just pointed out Routley was wrong on some facts.
After Weaver started a petition to cut MSP premiums, Routley launched: “Mor hypocrisy frm Weaver.Votes4 2Lib bdgts w phony balance on back of fee incrses incl MSP&now calls4abolishmnt ofMSP prems.”
Just So You Know: Routley’s weekend on Twitter was inadvertently revealing. He sent a tweet Saturday to NDP Leader John Horgan’s chief of staff, John Heaney, with an intriguing partial reference that’s open to interpretation. He mentioned a ferry worker as “my guy. We can plant anything we need to through him. He does a lot of mudline research and also creates memes.”
He also noted some of the ferry workers’ memes (generally, graphic concepts designed to be spread easily) are actually Routley’s, but “not what I necessarily wanted to own.”
There’s an indication he thought the message was being sent privately. It was deleted from his feed soon after.
But it sparked some speculation about what’s being planted, what are the ideas Routley wanted spread without being seen to own, and most exciting of all — what is “mudline research”?
Routley said he meant it as research to counter what he views as erroneous attacks on NDP hypocrisy by (guess who?) Weaver.
Horgan shrugged off the spat, noting Twitter is a “sensitive beast” but backing Routley, who’s “his own man.”
Weaver produced some examples from the “mudline” on Monday, a bunch of posters from Facebook featuring his face and text attacking his stands on various issues.
No doubt B.C. Liberal social-media savants are engaged in some fascinating behind-the-scenes manoeuvres as well. But you don’t normally see it referred to in public.
The legislature resumes Feb. 10, so they can get back to face-to-face arguments.
