Monday, December 12, 2011

Majority gov't checkpoint...

When the Conservatives won their majority this Spring (as one of few bloggers who predicted it), I didn't predict the speed at which they would introduce long-awaited legislation.  Without looking anything up, here's a quick checkpoint summary of such bills that I can remember.

  1. - Eliminated the long-gun registry
  2. - Eliminate the Canadian Wheat Board
  3. - Not renewing commitment to the Kyoto Protocol
  4. - Ask over 70 departments to present 5% and 10% reductions in their budgets
  5. - Not hiring replacements for retiring bureaucrats
  6. - Requiring faces to not be covered during citizenship oath
  7. - Passed the omnibus crime bill
  8. - Changed name of military back to "Royal" prefix

I'm sure there's more as these are the popular ones, but you are free to add more in the comments. Like I said, I'm amazed at what's been done and undone in just under half a year of a parliamentary session. 


Also note a recent Abacus poll which has the Conservatives at 40% and another poll showing that 65% of Canadians believe we are on the right track.  Despite Liberals and Dippers crying afoul that the gov't is stripping Canada of its identity, I would argue that we're actually getting it back from the Pearson-Trudeau-Chretien liberalism and these measures above certainly appeal to conservatives and libertarians alike.

Considering that an election is 3.5 years away, the NDP are mired in a leadership race, the Liberals have an interim leader, and the Bloc are an after-thought, the timing to bring in all this legislation early is a smart move by Harper.

7 comments:

Sixth Estate said...

I can't imagine how the surveillance bill, the anti-veil policy, or the repeated invocations of closure in Parliament appeal to libertarians. At least not libertarians of my ilk. Leaving aside the veil one, which they probably don't like either, rushing laws through Parliament, extending police surveillance powers, and further centralizing power in the Prime Minister's Office sound like the sort of things I'd expect from Chretien or Trueau.

Anonymous said...

Sixth Estate. You bitch and complain about PM Harper doing what Chretien and Trudeau did on a regular basis, but where were you when they were doing it?? You seem to have a problem
understanding the meaning of "MAJORITYGovernment.

Rob C

Anonymous said...

Yes of course he does - What do you expect from the liberal mindset?
Just keeping up with the times is a real effort, you stay abreast or fall behind.
Give it up, 3 more years plus of Conservative majorities.
Finally, I'm login it.
Life is good.

dmorris said...

As a conservative who predicted a minority government,and who's SO happy to admit I WAS WRONG, I couldn't be more impressed with the Harper government,for all the reasons you posted above.

We endured thirteen years of Liberal government,10 of it majority,and we did so without the hysteria erupting from the Lib/Dips and MSM that's occurring now.

We saw some of the most corrupt actions ever by a government anywhere in the civilized world,the list too long to post here,REAL corruption, not the make believe and petty issues being shrieked by the MSM daily.

NOW, we have a Conservative majority,and Harper is following through on his promises,and scandals,to the horror of the Left.

BUT,can anyone really compare a few helicopter rides to Adscam, strippergate, Alfonso Gagliano, missing billion from HRDC,golf courses,etc.,etc.?

Anonymous said...

Sounds like liberal Sixth Estate is worried about surveillance, search and seizure and all that other liberal bogus stuff they all worry about! Something to hide there Sixth? Maybe you could go hide yourself or your family behind a vial/burqa just like Brian David Mitchell did with his victims! Oh maybe his civil rights were violated! His victims rights sure were!

Anonymous said...

My hunch is that fresh off a solid mandate, the Conservatives are going through with their most "controversial" legislation to appeal to the base. After this first year of majority mandate, they'll probably cool off a little bit and focus on "nicer" more "moderate" policies to keep the centrists in their fold.

Sixth Estate said...

Well first of all, I was about two when Trudeau repatriated the Constitution. I think I get a pass on that.

As for Chretien... If I was Harper, I would want to say a bit more about myself than that I was doing the same things Chretien did.

As for the "if you don't have anything to hide, you don't need to worry about surveillance" tack, once again, I would think the response "I am a libertarian" should be enough answer to that.