N.B. Premier Bernard Lord won't seek leadership of merged party: sources

FREDERICTON (CP) - New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord has decided not to seek the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada, sources said Tuesday.

Officials in the premier's office said Lord thought about the opportunity over the holidays, but has decided against a run. A statement to that effect was expected to be issued from his office later in the day.

Lord was under intense pressure from high-profile Conservatives across the country to contest the leadership of the newly merged party.

http://www.canada.com/news/national/story.html?id=1E5869B8-097A-4E79-8EB4-F40E535C60BF

This makes it much more likely for Stephen Harper to win leadership of the Conservative Party, and then lead them to disaster at the election. To quote the great US commentator Nelson Muntz 'Haw Haw!'

I think Bernard Lord as leader would have been disastrous to the Alliance base in the West, which is really all the new party can hope to hold on to. I don't see Lord as having great national appeal, or being able to distinguish his policies from Martin so as to persuade people to vote for him.

Still, a Harper takeover of the Conservatives is another piece of the puzzle for NDP success. The stars are aligning. :)

The very assets that allow Harper to shore up support in Southern Alberta, will repulse voters in droves outside of the CA heartland. Harper is a dour uncharismatic ideologue who will not convert swing voters to his cause.
Harper's ascendance means that the fix is in, this is merely a Reform takeover of the PC's. This would mean that all former PC seats are now in play, in fact, I would be surprised if the new CPC did not lose most of them. I think that the 2000 election represented an Alliance high tide, and I expect to see them fall back from the 25.7% they got then in the face of a right-of-centre Liberal party and a resurgent NDP. A Harper win means a lot of Alliance seats will be up for grabs.

leaving a tremendous opening on the centre-left, which could reap big rewards for the NDP in seat-rich Ontario and British Columbia. Layton is both savvy enough to know how to exploit the opportunity, and able to command the media's spotlight.

Fifty seats and official opposition is no pipedream.

He would be their best bet...fresh faced little punk!