Lawrence Martin predicts Harper will hang up his hatIn a column published in yesterday's Globe and Mail, Lawrence Martin is predicting that Stephen Harper will call it a political career in 2009.Martin lists seven essential reasons why he believes that Harper will do this:1. By resigning as leader, Harper would be one of few Conservative leaders -- among the few, Robert Stanfield and (naturally) John A MacDonald -- to leave the Conservative party in good condition, cementing his legacy within the party2. With Barack Obama being elected in the United States, the global mood seems to be shifting away from conservative governance.3. Stephen Harper lacks a final big goal to pursue. Having "tightened the screws" on government (in Tom Flanaghan's words), Harper has nothing concrete left that he...
Canadians have the right to debate abortion, no matter how terrified the pro-abortion lobby may beDespite numerous efforts by the pro-abortion lobby -- and by politicians too afraid to stand up to them -- it seems there are still MPs on Parliament Hill who want to debate the issue of abortion.And Joyce Aurthur of the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada doesn't like it.For her own part, Aurthur blames it on the Conservative party. Most of the Conservative party's MPs, she insists are "publicly anti-choice" (buy which she actually means anti-abortion)."It's something that the Conservative party is out of touch with because Canadians don't want to go back to the abortion debate," Arthur insists. "People are happy with the status quo. It's working well."But what she must mean by that is that...
David Bulger oversimplifies Canadian law in regards to residenceAmong those looking for further excuse -- any further excuse -- to complain about Stephen Harper's recently-appointed Senators, University of Prince Edward Island law professor David Bulger seems to think he's hit a home run.Mike Duffy's appointment to the Senate, he insists, is unconstitutional.Bulger insists that Mike Duffy resides in Ottawa, not Prince Edward Island."What it comes down to is: does he have to be a resident in the province at the time when he’s appointed? Some of us, and I am one of them, would argue yes," Bulger insists.Bulger goes on to claim that the Elections act is the only piece of legislation in Canada that defines an individual's residence. "It states if you work in one place and you live in...
A matter of considerable controversy for the last couple of weeks, Stephen Harper announced his appointments to the Senate today.While some may not be willing to admit to it, Harper's appointments weren't the partisan landslide that many of them were expecting.It would be disingenuous to pretend that partisan considerations didn't enter Harper's appointments at all. Defeated MP Fabian Manning, former MP Suzanne Fortin-Duplessis, former New Brunswick MLA Percy Mockler, Tory organizer Michael MacDonald, and fundraiser Irving Gerstein seem to round out the most blatantly partisan of the appointments.Certainly, many will point to retired broadcaster Mike Duffy as similarily partisan. Yet they will conveniently ignore that Duffy has spent his career being accused of partisanship from both...
…Another Conservative principle gets thrown under the bus.
Stephen Harper has officially appointed Thomas Cromwell of the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court, bypassing a parliamentary hearing process the prime minister has championed to more openly scrutinize nominees.
I’d ask how many of his principles Harper has thrown away but I think it would be easier to ask how many of his principles Harper still holds.
By the way, with this move, the Senate appointments and rumours that the CBC’s funding will be slashed by $200 million does it appear to anyone else that Harper is preparing for a showdown with the opposition rather than preparing to work with......
Incompetence.
The federal government sold the site of the notorious former Prison for Women in Kingston for $2.88 million, even though its tax-assessed value was much higher, at $5.25 million…
“This (example) would indicate that the Conservatives weren’t competent in selling assets during the good times, so we certainly couldn’t expect them to be competent now, during the tough times,” said Liberal finance critic Scott......
Lawrence Martin thinks former ADQ leader could claim a Red Chamber seatWith Stephen Harper set to fill 18 vacant Senate seats, a great deal of musing on who, exactly, Harper will appoint.In today's Globe and Mail, Lawrence Martin has made an interesting suggestion. Among other such conservative luminaries as Mike Harris and Kim Campbell, Harper may appoint the recently-resigned leader of the Action Democratique du Quebec, Mario Dumont:"The leader of Quebec's conservative party, the Action Démocratique du Québec, has just stepped down. Mr. Harper needs allies from Quebec, and Mr. Dumont knows the terrain. The PM might even elevate him to a cabinet perch."At face value, it seems like a worthwhile move.After Dumont's ascension to the role of Opposition Leader in Quebec's National Assembly,...
What is the status of David Crutcher's Conservative party leadership?When the Liberal party and the NDP recently decided to form a coalition government with the support of the Bloc Quebecois they had to have imagined it would be hard to distance themselves from the implications that move would have for national unity.With western separatism becoming a vogue topic once again -- and western separatists becoming much more active -- perhaps it's only natural that some of those in the pro-Coalition crowd would seek to thumb their nose at such implications by trying to uncover associations between the Conservative party and western separatists.At Boquets of Gray Buckets has uncovered what he portrays as some fairly damning alleged associations between western separatists and the Conservative...
Harper to appoint 18 SenatorsWith his government still facing the prospect of defeat early next year -- even if those prospects seem to be narrowing -- Stephen Harper is moving to fill 18 empty chairs in the Senate before Christmas.The argument being raised within Conservative circles is that this is necessary in order to prevent the Liberal/NDP/Bloc Coalition from stacking the Senate should it stay its plotted course and defeat the government.That may well be true. Allowing the Coalition to appoint its own lackeys to the Senate -- including Green Party leader Elizabeth May -- could only serve to tilt the balance of power in the Senate on what, considering the tenure of most Senators, could prove to be a permanent basis.But Canadians shouldn't forget that Stephen Harper has long promised...
The leaders and supporters of the Coalition of the Willing will never admit it, but Stephen Harper is right.A Coalition government involving a separatist party will not -- and can never be -- a legitimate government. Especially not at a time of economic upheaval.It's time to put the spin and the dishonesty aside. If they go ahead with this Coalition government, Stephane Dion and Jack Layton will not be putting the country first: they will be putting their own partisan interests ahead of Canada's interests.It cannot be...
I’m hearing very serious rumours that Conservative MP Michael Chong could cross the floor and join the Liberals as early as......
A nice discovery by Elizabeth Thompson.
Click on image to......
The apparent rise of a coalition government teaches us about more than the dishonesty of those involvedDepending upon who you ask -- and how honest they're being with themselves and others -- Canada is on the brink of experiencing something that falls anywhere in the range of an orderly exchange of power and a political junta.The most fervent supporters of the Conservative party, naturally, are insisting upon the latter. The most fervent supporters of the Liberal party, the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois are insisting upon the former.The truth falls somewhere closer in the middle. Though distasteful, the displacement of Stephen Harper's Conservative government with a Liberal/NDP/Bloc coalition is actually perfectly legal.But this transition of power is anything but orderly. The coalition is...
Harper's chickens set to come home to roostThere's a saying in life, as in politics: be careful how you treat people on your way up, because you'll meet them again on your way down.That is something that Stephen Harper should keep in mind today, as Cumberland-Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley MP Bill Casey has announced he will vote no-confidence in the government on its economic update a week from today."At this time of economic crisis, Stephen Harper has failed Canadians as prime minister," Casey announced. "Rather than providing leadership and a badly needed economic stimulus package, Mr. Harper and his finance minister, Jim Flaherty, opted instead to play partisan politics and, for some reason, attack unions and women’s rights."While coming off as little more than typical fickle...
GOODBYE via My Blahg December 1st, 2008 at 22:42
...
I have two questions about this.
Layton held a telephone-conference meeting with his caucus Saturday morning that was recorded by a Conservative member. According to the audio tape, Layton appears to take credit for the possibility of a coalition.
Will we get to hear this tape if it exists? If it does exist, how and why did a Conservative member record an NDP caucus teleconference call?
Update: CTV’s Barney Fife to the rescue. Good gawd, how does this hack still have a......
Liberal/NDP coalition talks are all about the BenjaminsWith the federal government having speculated that they will end a $30 million program subsidizing Canada's political parties to the tune of $1.97 per vote, Canada's opposition parties immediately started crowing.The Liberals and NDP announced would defeat the government and attempt to form a coalition government. Many conservative commentators are calling it a coup d'etat. The National Post's Kelly McParkland has even called the arrangement a junta.Of course, matters were very different just days ago when Parliament passed the throne speech despite the lack of an economic stimulus package in the government's prescribed program.Then the government talks about cutting the subsidies received by each political party -- including itself....
Kiss Quebec goodbye, Steve.
Parti Québécois Leader Pauline Marois, putting her spin on the chaos in the capital, said the crisis in Ottawa demonstrated the need for a sovereigntist majority because only the PQ would stand up to a federal government that doesn’t respect Quebec values.
She also attacked the Prime Minister for scheduling the confidence vote on the same day Quebeckers go to the polls.
“It’s completely disrespectful of Prime Minister Stephen Harper,” Ms. Marois said.
And the next swipe at the Stephen Harper pinata goes to the Premier of…stay......
Prorogue.
I’m at the Parliamentary Press Gallery dinner right now and a quiet rumour among a small number of of the gathered people here is that Prime Minister Stephen Harper may prorogue Parliament until the new year…
UPDATE: 45 minutes later, the rumour has made it to the podium and was just announced to a surprised room.
The Conservatives must be totally shell shocked if they’re raising the spectre of this desperate gamble so early in the......
If this is about electoral strategy, then this is wrongA recent move by the federal government to stop the flow of federal subsidies -- at a rate of $1.95 per vote received -- was bound to attract the outrage of Canada's opposition parties.Even the staunchest supporters of the Conservative party have sufficient cause to wonder whether or not this is a strategic move on Harper's part.Those who have subscribed to the notion of Prime Minister Stephen Harper as a power-mongering ideologue for whom winning a majority government is all-important, this makes sense. For those who see Harper as a principled conservative looking for a way to prevent unncessary spending during a time of economic crisis may be impelled to see the move as more of a symbolic move, akin to cutting the bonuses and...
Conservatives to cut party subsidies in economic updateAs the country seemingly prepares to face down a recession-driven deficit, news reports indicate that the government may be set to cut the subsidies granted to Canadian political parties.The subsides account for $30 million a year. But they account for a disproportionate amount of each party's total revenues.At a rate of $1.95 per vote received, these subsidies would pay out $10 million to the Conservative party, $7.7 million to the Liberal party, $4.9 million to the NDP, $2.6 million to the Bloc Quebecois and $1.8 million to the seatless Green party.The subsidies account for 37% of Conservative party revenues, 63% of the Liberal party's revenues, 57% for the NDP, 86% for the Bloc Quebecois and 65% for the Green party.For their own...
Government needs to make up its mind on Afghanistan, then tell the Canadian peopleIf one were to believe the election-time and immediate post-election talk of the governing Conservative party, Canada will be withdrawing troops from Afghanistan.If one were to believe the party, not even the election of the pro-Afghan war Barack Obama as American president won't change that.Yet in the immediate wake of a conference between the defense ministers of NATO countries engaged in Afghanistan, Peter MacKay seems to be humming a distinctly different tune on the conflict."There are many ways in which we can make contributions beyond 2011," MacKay recently mused. "What we've said is the current combat mission, the current configuration, will end in 2011. That's a firm date, confirmed by Parliament and...
The handout:
The Alberta government announced Wednesday it will offer resource companies starting new projects on or after Jan. 1 a reduced royalty rate in the short term to encourage new drilling in the province…
Stelmach announced $1.8 billion in royalty savings over five years for new oil and natural gas wells that are within 1,000 and 3,500 metres in depth and started between 2009 and 2013.
The handoutee:
Oil and gas extractors: Third straight double-digit increase
Oil and gas extractors earned $11.2 billion in operating profits, up 15.1%, as firms benefited from crude oil prices, which reached notable levels in the first part of the quarter. Since then, firms have indicated a potential for slower activity in light of retreating prices and tighter credit......
Could the Canadian position on Afghanistan soften if it does?When one considers the emerging phenomenon of "Conservatives for Obama", Peter MacKay's presence among this intriguing clique should be considered far short of surprising.On numerous issues, MacKay has proven to be among the most progressive of his former Progresive Conservative colleagues.Defense Minister MacKay is the most recent Conservative to greet Barack Obama's election to the Presidency with a great deal of optimism. In MacKay's specific case, he's optimistic that Obama's election will lead to a breakthrough in Afghanistan."It's fair to say the road out of Iraq leads through that, shall we say, that arc of instability; it will go through Afghanistan with specific concentration, we hope, on Kandahar province," MacKay...
Stephen Harper in an interview with the CBC’s Evan Solomon shortly after the 2004 election.
Harper: We’ll support the government on issues if it’s essential to the country but our primary responsibility is not to prop up the government, our responsibility is to provide an opposition and an alternative government for Parliament and for Canadians. What the government has to do, if it wants to govern for any length of time, is it must appeal primarily to the third parties in the House of Commons to get them to support it.
Solomon: Would you describe this government’s position because of its lack of consultation as precarious?
Harper: I’d describe it more as arrogant. And I think the real problem that we’re facing already is that the government...
From the Conservative policy proposals.
RESOLUTION P-6
10. Electoral Reform
i) A Conservative Government will consider changes to electoral systems, including proportional representation, the single transferable ballot, fixed election dates, and the use of referendums.
ii) In reviewing options for electoral reform, a Conservative Government will not endorse any new electoral system that will weaken the link between Members of Parliament and their constituents, that will create unmanageably large ridings, or that will strengthen the control of the party machinery over individual Members of Parliament. A national referendum will be held prior to implementing any electoral reform proposal.
Proposed by: Brandon Souris and Toronto Centre and Charleswood - St. James – Assiniboia
i) A...
No time like the present to shed the Bush millstoneIf ideology were everything in politics, one wouldn't expect Canada's governing Conservative party to be very excited about the prospect of working with US President-elect Barack Obama.Yet, John Ivison points out in a National Post Full Comment post, Canada's new Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lawrence Cannon, is looking forward to working with Obama with a sense of cautious optimism.Of the issues prompting caution upon Cannon is that of NAFTA, which Obama suggested he wanted to renegotiate in order to include labour and environmental standards. “I think at the outset we have to indicate that NAFTA has been beneficial to all trading partners. Sure, we acknowledge there are some irritants - that’s quite normal - but, as we’ve done in...
Could this have anything to do with this?Some times, the conclusion of a big election can put a few things in perspective.For example, Michael Byers seems to have had a change of heart regarding the United States. Byers, who typically doesn't like Americans very much, suddenly seems to think that Prime Minister Stephen Harper should re-connect with the United States.A week ago today, the Saskatoon Star Phoenix reported on an address Byers delivered at the Canada Trade Summit in Saskatoon."On a formal level, Mr Obama needs to receive an invitation to Ottawa ASAP, and also an expressed willingness on the part of Mr. Harper to travel to Washington, again on a formal level, as soon as possible," Byers remarked. "I would want to see Canadian diplomats reaching out to members of Mr Obama's team...