What's going on in Harper's government?

Raitt refuses to apologize for calling cancer sexy
Tory minister drops f-bomb aimed at Toronto

Are we seeing the beginning of the disintegration of Canada's minority Conservative government?

Ignatieff flexes muscles

We are putting this government on probation," Ignatieff said. "This budget does not include one word about accountability.

The Liberals are going to support the Tory budget, but at a cost, as new Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff asks for an amendment to the budget. It's likely the Tory's will give in to this. All this positioning means Harper gets to play Prime Minister for a while longer, while Ignatieff builds stature.

So what's the federal budget going to look like?

My bet is the budget will be as conciliatory as Prime Minister Harper can bear to make it, and I'm predicting the government won't fall. The Liberals will regroup under Ignatieff and will use the next year to make points and rally support.

What's your prediction?

For the record....

Harper appears open to working with Bloc in 2004 CBC interview
...just because we're going to hear a month of Conservative attack ads about the 'separatist coalition'.

Prorogued

And so Parliament is prorogued. The pundits started using that word a few days ago, just like they knew what they were talking about, but what a strange archaic word it is at the heart of some of the most interesting politics we've seen in some time in this country. When I heard it, I thought, are they talking about pierogies? I love pierogies. Then I thought, no, they're talking about a pirogue, that curious flat-bottomed swamp boat one poles on the bayou, when gathering crawfish from crawfish traps, or hunting nutria or alligators.

So, what was the GG to do?

I was listening to talk radio on the way home this afternoon and I heard John Moore express his displeasure at the bunch of our federal leaders on CFRB. He referred to them as a jerk (Harper), a dufus, a blowhard and a separatist, and suggested none of them were the right choice to lead the country. He may be right. Harper has to go, but maybe patience until the Liberals find a leader who isn't a third rate politician is better?

I think the opposition formed a coalition because Harper was trying to bankrupt them, not because of the economy. At the same time, I'd rather see a centre-left approach guide us through these rough economic times. I expect Harper will consult with the opposition and come up with a budget which meets their concerns on a broad range of key concerns and show enough goodwill (even if it is disingenuous) that he will govern for a while longer. If the budget is defeated, the coalition runs the risk that Harper will convince the GG to force an election rather than turn over power to the coalition, and then what would a Liberal party with no leader do?

What a fascinating mess. Harper may have saved his bacon in the shorter term, but he may have alienated Quebec. If he continues with his "separatist coalition" attack ads, he might alienate voters elsewhere as well, because nobody like to be treated like they're stupid.

How do you want the whole business to go down?

Huh? A Separatist Coalition?

I tuned in the tv news a few minutes ago, to see a montage of clips of Conservative MPs in the House, referring to the Liberal/NDP "coalition", backed by the Bloc, as "The Separatist Coalition", as if the Opposition parties are trying to take power for the purpose of breaking up the country. They're not giving the public much credit, are they, particularly in light of the news which has emerged that the Conservatives themselves tried to work a similar political tactic not so very long ago? I guess it's not a "separatist" coalition if it fails.

I think a coalition will be difficult and awkward, but it is certainly playing by the rules. I don't have any sympathy for Mr. Harper or his Chief of Staff Mr. Giorno or any of that bunch. Harper's in trouble and he brought it on himself. It was fun watching how fast they backpedaled when they realized the Opposition was awake and organized. The GG is back in the country and we'll find out what Harper will do tonight. The guy on the news as I write says Harper will ask to prorogue parliament. Let's see what the GG does.

Uncharted Waters

What an interesting and possibly historic turn of events in our federal politics today. Imagine a coalition government sending Harper packing? I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall as the opposition parties actually started to see the possibility in front of them, and come to agreements many Canadians would never have thought possible.

So what do you think? Do you want to see it happen? Is it healthy for the country? Can a coalition help stabilize the economy? Is it good riddance for an arrogant Prime Minister?

Liberal leadership - Kennedy out

I heard today Gerard Kennedy won't chase the Liberal party leadership. Frank McKenna has said he'll pass and so has John Manly. Martha Hall Findlay has also announced she's sitting it out. Denis Coderre is not going for it either. Bob Rae is in. I haven't heard if Michael Ignatieff has made an announcement, but I'm betting he's in. Will this be a two person race?

The wolves are out already...that didn't take long

Mr. Volpe is the first to call for Dion's resignation.

Disappointment

Well, here we are with another Conservative minority government in Canada. As disappointed as I am by this, I can't say I'm very surprised. I suppose many people bought into the very negative portrait the barrage of Conservative attack ads painted of Mr. Dion, and while he faired better in the debate than many expected, his lack of charisma and his poor English didn't help him out.

I'm disappointed that Elizabeth May did not win the seat she was competing for. I think she demonstrated in the debate that her presence in parliament would have been healthy for the country.

Voter turnout was only 59%. I wonder if that is the lowest ever? Are you surprised at the low turnout? I welcome comments from anyone out there who didn't vote. Why didn't you bother? Did you feel that your opinion didn't matter? Do you think the politicians are all the same? Quite a number of years ago, I foolishly decided not to bother to vote in a provincial election. A good friend of mine took me to task on this, and our conversation (translate: slightly drunken arguement) still resonates with me. I've voted in every election since.

Advice for the day

Check out the sign on the Tuffy-mobile today!

Liberal supporters targeted by vandals

'I'm just sick to my stomach about this,' a shaken Bennett told the Toronto Star last night. She spent the day visiting the vandals' victims. 'It is so upsetting. I've spent my life encouraging people to get involved in the democratic process and now it would appear they are targeted for doing so.'

The Toronto Star reports that vandals cut the brake lines on at least 10 cars at the homes of people with Liberal election signs on their lawns. It's happening in the riding of St. Pauls in Toronto's Bathurst and Eglinton area. The Liberal candidate is the incumbent, Carolyn Bennett.

Carolyn Bennett's Blog

I feel very fortunate live in a country where speaking out, engaging in healthy debate, and showing support for ideas and people you believe in, has been a reasonable and safe thing to do. This is not the first time I've seen election vandalism. During the last municipal election in Toronto, many signs promoting a candidate in my ward were damaged. This is, however, the first time I've heard of a nastier kind of vandalism in one of our elections-vandalism which threatens the safety of supporters of a particular candidate.

What would you do if you lived in that riding and you had a Liberal sign on your property? Would you bow to the intimidation and remove the sign to protect your safety, or would you keep the sign up, or even ask for a bigger sign to show your defiance? It may be easier to answer that question from a safe distance than it would be in the shoes of someone whose brake lines were cut overnight.

I don't have any experience with Carolyn Bennett beyond reading the biography posted on her website, but I hope the constituents of the St. Paul's riding rally their support behind this candidate and show that they will not be intimidated. Hopefully the police will track down the criminal or criminals who have been cutting brake lines before somebody gets seriously hurt.

A possibility?

I read the following quote from Green Party leader Elizabeth May after returning from a sunrise bike ride with Tuffy P:
"I'd rather have no Green seats and Stephen Harper lose, than a full caucus that stares across the floor at Stephen Harper as prime minister because his policies are too dangerous."

Wouldn't it be interesting if Elizabeth May were to broker a Liberal-NDP coalition to run a Harper-free Canadian government? After the debate, in which everybody took aim at Harper, I wonder if it might be a possibility. It would also be very interesting to see her win her seat, ousting Peter McKay in the process.

Meantime, I hope Canadians take a close look at their home ridings, and vote for the candidate most likely to beat the Conservative.

The Debate

I enjoyed watching the Canadian federal party leaders debate last night. Somebody told me that most bars in Toronto were showing the American VP debate or the baseball game. Too bad. It was a good opportunity for Canadians to gain some understanding of where the parties stand. It was also an opportunity for Canadians to take a closer look at Mr. Dion, who has been the subject of a pretty nasty smear job on Harper TV commercials.

The surprise of the evening was Elizabeth May, the Green Party leader. I thought she came across as smart, articulate, and well-researched. I enjoyed her comment about Harper's so-called environmental work. She complimented him on what he's done with National Parks, then added, "Everything else is a fraud". Har!

The debate really pitted everyone against Harper, and that is pretty much as it should be in my books.

Does it matter that Harper gave a plagarized speech in 2003?

Speech writer resigns from campaign after Liberals reveal much of a 2003 speech on Iraq by Harper was cribbed from then Australian prime minister John Howard

Yes it matters. Don't blame the speech-writer. Politicians are responsible for their words.

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion also condemned the copied speech, saying Mr. Harper should be “expelled” from his party.

That would be good, but I don't think he's going to just walk away.

Did I tell you I'm all voted up?

Since we moved during an election here in Canada, our names showed up on the voters list in our old riding. We wanted to vote in our new riding, and to do this we had to go to an Elections Canada office in our area. They have rented some space not far from our place and put a dinky little sandwich sign by the road. Inside, I saw a handwritten sign saying reception, with a woman sitting on the other side of a window, wearing a t-shirt with the word love on it, reading a book.

I explained I've moved, and she called somebody who came down to look after me. I asked if there was any way I could vote right away, so I wouldn't have to spend any more time than necessary dealing with my duty to vote. It turned out that yes, I could vote by special ballot. I had to fill out a form, and then was taken to a room which appeared to be a disused kitchen. Beside the sink, there was a ballot awaiting me, along with a list of candidates in my riding. I had to print the name of the candidate I wanted to vote for on a little slip of paper, put that into an envelope, seal it, put it into another envelope, seal it, sign it, date it then tick off a box that said I signed and dated it... then I walked back over to the next room with my ballot and handed to the friendly Elections Canada person, who put it into the ballot box for me, saying, "you're now watching me put it into the ballot box". Then I had to promise to not vote again, and voila, I'm all voted up.

I've already done my part to try to heave Mr. Harper from office.

Harper's sad commentary on the arts in Canada

Prime Minister Harper said in Saskatoon, "I think when ordinary working people come home, turn on the TV and see a gala of a bunch of people - you know, at a rich gala all subsidized by taxpayers claiming their subsidies aren't high enough when they know those subsidies have actually gone up - I'm not sure that's something that resonates with ordinary people"

PM should recognize value of culture: McGuinty
Layton vows to restore arts funding
Dion blasts Harper's arts censorship
Artists should be landlords not tenants

I've been a painter for my whole adult life. I've had a day job for the entire time. That's how I fund Anchovy World Headquarters. I've had the privilege to call many of Canada's most creative and insightful artists my friends. I don't know any rich artists. The artists I know who try to make a go of it without day jobs hardly scrape by.

It saddens me deeply that Mr. Harper and the Conservatives don't see the value of the arts in our country.

Please vote for anyone but the Conservatives in the upcoming federal election.

Tory candidate bows out

Chris Reid was in no danger of beating his opponent Bob Rae in the upcoming federal election. However, when his blog, Political Thoughts from a Gay Conservative, surfaced, he pulled out of the race altogether.

Earlier yesterday, Tory spokesperson Deirdra McCracken said Reid resigned because he couldn't commit to serving four years in government. But the Liberals insisted it was due to controversial comments in his blog, which included musings on women, gays, native protesters and hate-speech laws.

full Toronto Star story here.

The Tories might have been better off to come out and say, hey we didn't realize this character held these views and when we found out about it, we dumped him. However, they've been doing a lot of apologizing lately.

Too bad Mr. Reid couldn't commit to four years in office.

Meanwhile, a B.C. NDP candidate apologized for stripping naked in front of minors at an environmental retreat 12 years ago.

He admited to a serious error in judgement but apparently noted that nothing else inappropriate occurred.

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If there are any other apologies to be made before we go to the polls in October, let's get them on the table now.

I keep hearing that the Tories are gaining momentum and pulling away from the competition. Yet, I hardly know anyone who will admit to supporting them.

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Just out of curiosity, how many of you support the Conservatives? It's OK, you can tell Mister Anchovy. There won't be any repercussions. Honest. I may try to convince you of the error of your ways, that's all.

Minister forced to apologize over Listeria jokes

"This is like a death by a thousand cuts. Or should I say cold cuts," Ritz quipped after fretting about the political dangers of the crisis.

And when told during the conference call about a new death in Prince Edward Island, Ritz remarked: "Please tell me it's Wayne Easter."

Easter, the Liberal MP for the P.E.I. riding of Malpeque, is his party's critic shadowing Ritz's Agriculture Department.

read the article here

There's been a lot of apologizing in the Harper camp lately, no?

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Let me say that I don't see Mister Anchovy's as a political blog. I'm not covering the election. I don't belong to any political party. I do however, weigh in from time to time when I simply can't resist comment.

I'm getting very worried that those Harper characters are going to win the upcoming election. There is a possibility that they might even gain a majority government. They have mostly run a do-nothing government over the past couple years, working in a minority situation. Now we see Mr. Harper trotted out in nice sweaters trying to convince us that he is a moderate. My father used to say, "Son, people are like horses. If you want to know what they'll do, read the Racing Form". I am very afraid that with a majority government, Harper and his gang will slide far to the right before you can blink.

I say, look over your choices carefully and vote for anyone but the Conservative candidate in your riding.

What's going on with the Conservative Party of Canada

Last election, they campaigned on an anti-corruption platform. Check this out. Apparently, the Tories had an elaborate scheme to exceed election spending limits by over a million dollars. This involved sending money to candidates who turned it around and sent it back to the party.

From the CBC: "According to the documents, Elections Canada alleges the Conservatives overspent on election ads by disguising national ads as local expenses in an elaborate plan that involved the participation of 67 candidates — including four cabinet ministers."

If the allegations are true, the Prime Minister should resign and we should have an election at the earliest opportunity.