Tobin or not Tobin, is that the question? Well, the answer is apparently ... "not Tobin".
So now the question is, who's left in the "race"?
The answer? Everyone and no one.
But what is becoming clear is that the three big heirs (Manley, McKenna, Tobin) don't want the job of opposition leader, and I'm not talking about the official opposition to the gov't.
Regarding Lib leadership contenders... this is hilarious.
Hmmm, no mention of Stephane Dion. He sounds like a hockey player though, doesn't he?
"Nombre vingt-neuf ... STEPHAAAAANE DIIIIOOOOONNNNNN!"
Holy cow! Did a search on Google for "Video Professor Jack Layton" and there were tonnes of sites. Found an excellent side-by-side comparison between the two. Hat tip here.
What's uncanny is that not only do they look alike, but their sales-pitch is basically the same. So is Jack Layton using the Video Professor's sales antics?
I'm wondering if the NDP have a money back guarantee. Then again, the NDP don't really like given you your money back do they? But if not, and Jack truly wants to emulate the VidProf, he'll have to approve Harper's budget!
"...hop off the bus Gus, don't need to discuss much..."
After reading this, I applaud Jack for coming out. It's a smart move for attention, being there's no Liberal opposition right now (except perhaps some from Bling Bling Belinda), but if Jack thinks he's going to block the popular GST reduction that helps even the poorest, he's dreaming.
But didn't he say just the other day that he can work with Harper and last week he was unsure?
If Jack thinks he's got the same clout with Harper as he did with Martin, he's dreaming.
Remember how much attention Jack received when the Liberal gov't fell in November '05? With less than 20 seats, it appeared the NDP were the ones to sink the ship. Harper let Jack take the spotlight, so the blame wouldn't be put all on the Conservative opposition.
With the Liberals in limbo, they have no intention of bringing the gov't down. I shouldn't even have to mention this anymore. No one should. Luckily the Conservative priorities are palatable.
But it's a good move though Jack, taking the spotlight again on this one. Because if you don't vote for the budget with the GST reduction, guess who the blame will be put on?
Don't you just love all the attention that the Liberal leadership race has attracted and how the media is paying little attention to Stephen Harper, who will be sworn in as Canada's Prime Minister on Monday?
I think it's great because the Liberals are beginning to lack a credible potential leader (except perhaps Stephane Dion).
I think it sucks because I wonder how many Canadians actually know who Stephen Harper is and whether they know he's the new guy in town and how well he has already handled the transition to gov't that has already made Paul Martin's stint as PM a spec of dust.
Hehe ... Stephen vs. Stephane.
The Liberals have a lot more thinkin' to do...
Oh Franky!
With John Manley and Frank McKenna out of the race, what does this mean?
Although Frank was ahead in every Liberal leaderhsip poll so far, it means that he, like John, is going to wait even longer.
Who would want to lead a party that's $35 million in debt and divided to the nuts. Let someone else pick up the pieces, then move in.
And how much different is McKenna from Harper? They even have the same haircut!
So you're probably thinking that I'm a too big of a Harper booster. I assure you that I'll be objective, but even many Liberals admire him, his intellect, and yes, even his personality.
In witnessing Stephen Harper's rise to 24 Sussex over the past 5 years has been like watching Kasparov play chess--always several moves ahead.
Just think about what he started with--a broken Canadian Alliance party. He ignored the distractions and united everyone. "The Canadian Alliance is strong and the Canadian Alliance is here to stay."
I'll never forget that because I knew he was lying. I knew he knew the only way to defeat the "naturally governing" Liberals was to forge the Progressive Conservatives and Reform back together.
Heck, I even laid out a timeline of how this could all happen, and I even said the new party should just be called "Conservative". Harper met that timeline. Obviously he didn't take my advice directly, but I was amazed how everything fell into place.
Months after the Canadian Alliance convention in Edmonton, the P.C.s had their convention here too. I thought, "Of all the cities, they pick the same one? Symbolic?" I remember meeting Peter Mackay in his hospitality suite at the Westin drinking some Nova Scotian microbrew. You're probably thinking what the heck I was doing there? Well, I was posing as a Tory and just walked up to his room. I talked to him for a bit regarding his leadership ambitions and he was obvious, not in his words, but his tone.
I got the feeling that there was something more to all of this, but didn't go much further than that.
After Mackay promised David Orchard not to merge with Harper on a napkin, I realized Mackay was a lot like Harper--in ignoring the distractors. They both knew everyone hated the Liberals more than than they disagreed on minor issues and that a merger was the best thing.
But Mackay was forthright, not seeming to jump right into bed with Harper. It was a difficult negotiation, with Belinda Stronach in the middle of it (speaking of being in bed). The last issue being how the leader is chosen: Reform's one member one vote (OMOV) or the Tory belief that all ridings are equal. They chose the latter, which I agreed with, because that's how the House of Commons is setup.
After that all happened, I met Peter again at a Rahim Jaffer event prior to the 2004 election. I said, "Peter, it took a lot of courage to do what you did." He said, "I did what I thought was the best thing for the country." He's right. And now look where we are!
So I wonder if Harper knew well ahead of time that Peter Mackay was a willing participant in the merger?
It's those chess moves that also show how well the recent Conservative platform resonates with ordinary Canadians.
Even Liberals like it. They tried to trash it during the campaign but could only come up with beer and popcorn. That was the best argument. All Jack Layton and the NDP could say was that Harper is out of touch, without getting specific. They all tried to label Harper as something he's not. While many Canadians got scared again at the last minute and jumped back to the Liberals, it just wasn't enough because Harper's policies were centrist with a touch of conservative libertarianism.
And that is why Harper will be able to pass a lot of things in the House over this year, with the NDP, and heck, even the Liberals. Because if they don't, and cause an election over an issue that most Canadians agree with, then you may see a merger on the left, and just like in the U.S., the natural governing party will be the Conservatives.
While the provincial premiers, city mayors, lobbyists line up asking for this and that and that and this, oh wait ... it's just money ... here's what I want to see:
1. Harper's Accountability Package passed. It's awesome and it's his first priority. As he said, if he can't pass this then it's going to be difficult to govern. The Bloc and NDP will support it and it will really hurt the Liberals.
2. Cut my damn taxes. I'm a single middle class guy trying to pay down debts. My taxes are WAY too high and cost more than my food, shelter, and clothing each month. What do I get in return? So cutting the GST? It's a good start. Raise the personal exemption $1000, cut the lower and middle income tax brackets in half. I know that'll be impossible to do, but an extra $100-200 a month would really help me invest more. As well, one parent can stay at home. But next should be income splitting. THAT my friends would really help families, and kids, lower stress, so less health care use, and benefit society, and the country.
3. Senate Senate Senate. While this is a minority gov't, people want to see some progress here. If Harper appointed some elected Senators, that will kick things off. B.C. Senator Gerry St. Germain wants to take it further and make the provinces more equal. Yeah, well duh, that's really the point. Canada is so far behind democratically, we're still stuck in 1905. Wow, that's like 102 years dude?
4. Defense. Our military personel are the best trained in the world. We have the best fighter pilots, snipers, and special forces. But our equipment is unsafe and out of date. It's embarrassing. I mean, really embarrassing. We need to restore the pride Canada had after WWI and II. All those vets aren't going to be around much longer. Then where's the pride?
5. Kyoto. Scrap this useless pile of crap "protocol" .. er.. . read "Paul Martin's buddy, Maurice Strong's attempt at an international socialist scheme". Hmmm..... didn't think Rick Mercer could sell me on a "free guide". Canada does need a plan for smog and pollution, but CO2? Don't buy into it folks, and naturally occurring global warming is actually a good thing. Why? You can grow more food. Anyway.. I'll save that for another rant.
6. Provincial Powers. Why is it okay for our Senate to be stuck in 1905, but the original provincial powers have been trumped with national socialism (oh wait, isn't that also called... we won't go there.. in Canada, in our streets...)? There is WAAAY too much departmental overlap between the feds and the provs. Harper wants to trim the cabinet fat, cap spending to inflation, and let the provs have more say in the country. This is already very refreshing and for a country this large, like the U.S., regional respect will be good for federalism, hurt the separatists, and everyone can sit and relax in their prov borders and not worry about trying to get a piece of the perverbial federal surplus.
That's it for now. It's actually quite a lot, but doable.
You gotta read this...
http://canadafreepress.com/2005/cover102205m.htm
They're all in on it.
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