Was Eves strategy of pressing McGuinty for “yes or no” answers effective?
DOCHERTY: Somewhat, but the questions he wanted “yes or no” answers to were so lopsided that no one really expected an answer. Are you going to take billions of dollars from Ontarians? Are you against SARS relief? This was obviously a strategy that the Conservatives had worked on, but it was only going to work if McGuinty bit. He didn’t. WANAGAS: For the most part, no. The gambit kept allowing Hampton to jump into the fray with his contention that there’s really not a whole lot of difference between the Tories and the Liberals on basic economic policy. McGuinty would invariably respond by holding up planks in the Grit platform and admonishing voters to “choose change.” 7. Is McGuinty’s performance likely to shore up his lead in the polls? DOCHERTY: He is unlikely to gain support. Some people may be turned off by the performance of all three leaders, with interjections outweighing actual debate. But at most, this might cause some people to stay home as opposed to switch their votes. WAN
