Common Sense Revolution At 20

This week marks the Twentieth anniversary of the first election of Mike Harris, as Premier of Ontario. Here are a few words that I wrote about the former Premier a couple of years ago and the common-sense that he brought into the province.

then leader of the Ontario PC’s Mike Harris decided to adopt a clearly conservative contrasting vision; not only a distinct way how the government was run but the approach to government entirely. This agenda for the overhaul of Ontario’s government was aptly named the Commonsense Revolution. Admittedly, the word revolution conjures up images that would easily seem to be an anathema to conservatism; nevertheless, the plan itself outlined clear-cut conservative principles that included lower taxes, work fare, and reduced overall expenses in government.
Indeed, Premier Mike Harris was one of the truly trans leaders; he cut taxes, and diminished the size and scope of government, as well as reducing deficits. In addition, by bringing in certain initiatives, like standardized testing for teachers.