Federal politics have been transformed by the rapid decline of the Canadian economy and Michael Ignatieff''s emergence as the leader of the Liberal party. But when it comes to policy matters, how different is Ignatieff from Stephen Harper?

In this book Denis Smith examines Michael Ignatieff ''s track record in the US and the UK, as a thinker and public intellectual. In this new edition, Denis Smith adds three substantial chapters examining Ignatieff''s actions in the past two years as a leading member of the Liberal opposition. He tracks Ignatieff ''s actions during the days when the Liberal-NDP coalition emerged to challenge the Harper Tories. And he takes his account through to Ignatieff''s decision to support the Harper government and its January 2009 budget.

Smith offers his answer to the question Canadians need to ask: is Ignatieff an alternative to Stephen Harper? Or his ideological clone?