Horgan wins big-time with Site C

Let no one kid themselves for one Prince George minute about the B.C. NDP government’s decision announced Monday to proceed with the completion of the Site C hydroelectric dam. Premier John Horgan can argue as much as he wants that his government made a tough choice based on the facts and what is good for British Columbians, both now and into the future.

Finishing Site C was a cold political decision, nothing more or less.

If Horgan thought he had the political capital to do so, he would have loved to gas the vanity project of Christy Clark and the B.C. Liberals.

If area First Nations had been unanimously opposed to the project, instead of hopelessly divided, with both sides promising legal challenges no matter what the eventual decision, he likely would have shut Site C down. If the B.C. Utilities Commission had provided more reasons against finishing the dam and/or had been more critical of the project, he likely would have shut it down.

If less money and time had already been spent on construction, he likely would have shut it down.

Instead, faced with a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t choice, what to do came down to politics and the political costs of pulling the plug on Site C were simply too high.

Horgan would have spent the entire next provincial election campaign, regardless of whether that’s in three months or three years, fending off the next leader of the B.C. Liberals about Site C, about being in cahoots with the Green Party, about how the NDP will always be “the party of no” and about the extravagant waste of spending billions of dollars to end a public infrastructure project that had already spent billions to this point.

If Horgan had trouble keeping his cool be- fore, imagine him blowing up at a televised leaders debate during the next election when the Liberal leader would say: “I have a question for John Horgan but I want a real answer so I’m going to ask Andrew Weaver, instead, since he’s the actual person in charge.”

But don’t feel too bad for the premier.

This wasn’t really a choice between a bad decision and a worse one.

A political cost benefit analysis shows significant upside for the B.C. NDP by sticking with Site C.

First, Horgan separates himself from Weaver, who has already flipflopped on Site C, first being for the project and then changing his mind.

Second, Horgan eliminates a potentiallylethal Liberal criticism of his leadership ability.

Third, the B.C. NDP reminds its longtime union and working class base that it supports good paying jobs for infrastructure development, once the concerns of First Nations and the environment have been accommodated as much as possible.

Fourth, the NDP can still kick up a fuss over the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion project because that’s dirty Alberta oil, not clean B.C. hydroelectricity.

Lastly, Horgan asserts full control of the party from the Leap Manifesto lunatics and other malcontents who put principle over both people and pragmatism.

Faced with so much political upside, Horgan stands to gain in a big way, both within his own party but also with voters wary about his ability to manage the province’s finances. That’s the final kicker, of course. Despite its many significant problems, particularly the mounting construction costs, finishing Site C is ultimately the responsible choice.

Just don’t be surprised when Horgan makes political hay out of his decision all the way into the next election.

— Editor-in-chief Neil Godbout

(Faced) with a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t choice, what to do came down to politics and the political costs of pulling the plug on Site C were simply too high.