NDP leader Wab Kinew says he'll focus on health care, jobs in 2018 following challenges and victories of 2017
'I really am having a lot of fun' says Kinew after 1st months as leader of Manitoba's official Opposition
There are not many political leaders who start their careers under quite the barrage of scrutiny and criticism that Wab Kinew did.
But as the last days of 2017 go by, Kinew is now months past a successful NDP leadership campaign and sits in the office of the leader of the Opposition.
"I really am having a lot of fun," Kinew said during a year-end interview with CBC News.
Perhaps that fun is helping him relax in the job a bit — his skill as a debater in question period is growing, his poise with the media is improving and his party is seizing on opportunities to criticize the Progressive Conservative government, from unease about changes to health care to gaffes made by Premier Brian Pallister.
Even the NDP's financial fortunes are slowly improving.
That's not to say Kinew has left behind the allegations brought up during the NDP leadership race that he assaulted a former partner. He knows that — especially when the worlds of politics, media and entertainment are full of stories of men abusing women.
"I recognize this is a very important conversation that is happening in our society right now. And it has been a challenge for me and I don't think I've always been successful at knowing when it is time for me to listen, as opposed to … just address things head on," Kinew said.
His political opponent, Premier Brian Pallister, recently felt the backlash against comments he made at a state of the province address, during which he thanked the chair of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce for "dressing up" and wearing high heels.
Kinew won't shy away from criticizing Pallister for remarks many thought were sexist, despite lingering doubts about his own past or comments he made or rapped about as a musician.
"I understand people perceive me as a certain way based on the way I've been covered in the media, but I have come up in my working career in respectful environments and I think I have a pretty decent awareness of what the standards and norms are today," Kinew said.
"We have to create space for people to become better people."
Yet asked if he attended any event connected to the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women in late November, he couldn't recall.
Kinew said he has been going to many events celebrating gender equity and the LGBT community, and said he constantly works to prove he has moved beyond sexist comments he made in the past.
"I've done my best to always apologize for them directly and specifically, and also to take ownership of them and finally, to learn from them."
He said his personal stance on gender issues is reflected in his party's commitment to achieve parity between men and women in its caucus — not just among candidates for office but in elected members of the legislature.
It's a task he accepts will be challenging but is a goal the party has identified as critical.
Taking the party to the next stage
Though many may not have been happy with the answers he's given, Kinew hasn't backed away from questions from the media about his past behaviour — but it is clear he'd rather talk about where he wants to take his party and where he thinks the current Tory government is failing.
Knocked down during the 2016 election from a 35-seat governing majority to 14 seats in the legislature (now 13, after MLA Mohinder Saran was kicked out of the NDP caucus), and burdened with a party fresh from internal revolt, Kinew refused to be baited about the past, focusing instead on a glass more than half full.
"It's a party that over the past five decades has basically governed for three of those decades. So there is a lot of success in this party — a lot of wisdom in this party."
The 35-year-old rookie politician (who turns 36 on New Year's Eve) smiles broadly when asked where he fits on the political spectrum — is he a Gary Doer centrist or an Ed Schreyer firebrand? — and attributes part of his political thinking to his demography.
"I think I am like a lot of millennials — and I am barely barely a millennial, and I am very aware of that — but I think like a lot of millennials, I don't identify along the political spectrum like previous generations have."
Character, personality and issues that are personal to people are where Kinew said he draws at least some of his political thinking. On some issues, such as balancing the budget — a must, he says — he sees himself as a centrist. On the environment he considers himself more activist, identifying climate change as something that must be tackled aggressively.
Internet neutrality? Keep government and corporate control off the web. "I'm almost libertarian on that one," said Kinew.
But he said his motives are guided by compassion and duty.
Health, jobs vie as biggest concerns
Kinew says health care will continue to be the issue No. 1 in the coming year, but followed closely by "issue 1-B," jobs.
The newish NDP leader sees technological advances in sectors such as agriculture, trucking and manufacturing as a looming danger to Manitoba.
"Coming down the pipe are self-driving vehicles, self-driving semis, automation on manufacturing floors and artificial intelligence. Potentially that could put tens of thousands of people out of work, unless we have a plan to keep [them] working," Kinew said.
Fighting poverty, he said, is critical, but having a job is "more than a paycheque, it provides meaning and purpose and dignity."
Racist comments come with political engagement
And on the subject of dignity and respect, while he may face his share of criticism for misogynistic or homophobic comments he's made in his past, Kinew — who is Anishinaabe — is no stranger to being on the receiving end of nasty slurs.
He admits his entrance to politics has brought racist attacks.
He wouldn't share the nature of the slurs or where they came from, choosing to take another path to fighting back.
"Nobody wants to hear me feel sorry for myself. And so I take it in stride, and I know the work that I have to do is to connect with people and bring their concerns forward. The project I am working on here isn't about me — it's about the people of Manitoba, about the issues that affect them, about their health care, about their jobs, about their kids."
After 17 years of NDP governments, many in the province look at vast debt and deficits, health-care wait times and a Manitoba Hydro bleeding red ink as legacies of the New Democrats, so there is work to do.
It took former premier Gary Doer a decade in opposition to return the party to power.
This past year saw only the first few months of Wab Kinew's efforts to do the same — a gig he says so far, he's relishing.
"I enjoy this job more than anything else I've done to date," Kinew said — adding he hopes to restore a sense of "fun" for Manitobans in their province.
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