Style vs. substance - Does Dion have either?
With only days until the election, the Liberal spin-meisters and media are working in overdrive mode . They don’t want you to see the lack of clothing on their Emperor Dion because they want to get back into power so badly. Desperate to cover up some inconvenient truths, they are now spuriously attacking the Tories with all the hypocritical vehemence they can muster.
Kinsella is already comparing last night’s airing of Dion’s CTV interview meltdown with Jean Chretien’s facial paralysis, but I think that is quite a disingenuous strategy. Chretien’s personal handicap did not affect his razor-sharp understanding and comprehension of anything that was thrown at him. He was able to think on his feet. That is a vital quality in a successful leader.
Funny though how the Liberals had no trouble calling Harper ‘fat’ before he lost so much weight. And they gleefully refer to his ‘cold, steely eyes’ and other nonsense. As Professor John MacKinnon sarcastically notes in today’s Post, perhaps Harper should consider surgery to try to change this apparent physical deformity.
Oh yeah. And according to the Liberal Press, Harper has an empathy deficit. Is this a character flaw? If so, is it fair to attack?
What exactly are the allowable parameters whereby we may make knowledgeable assessments of our future Prime Ministers? Must we run it all by a Human Rights Commission first?
In my opinion, a good leader listens to those around him, and is open to new ideas. He is flexible when it is prudent to do so. But Stephane Dion has stated time and time again that under no circumstances will he postpone the implementation of the carbon tax if he becomes Prime Minister of Canada. This totally contradicts the messaging from Ignatieff and Rae.
This is not a simple problem of ‘not being able to hear’ or an inability to comprehend a question in one’s second language. It is evidence of a fundamental disinterest in being a ‘team player’. This man has a vision for Canada, and nothing is going to stop him. Nothing. Not even the input of his ‘Dream Team’.
Greg Weston nailed it in this morning’s Sun:
…Sure, the Dion on the podium today is far better rehearsed than the peevish professor of a month ago.
But all the best speechwriters, image consultants and English coaches do not a national leader make.
Off script, Dion is still the same brainiac mouthful he always he was.
For instance, reporters asked him yesterday to respond to a report that the Harper government has been massively understating the cost of Canada’s participation in the Afghanistan war.
Under a Dion government, he said in part, "Canadians will know exactly where we are and which way does the mismanagement by whom."
Perhaps nothing speaks to Dion’s readiness to be prime minister more than his stubborn refusal to reconsider implementing the Liberal party’s centrepiece "Green Shift" carbon tax, regardless of economic conditions which aren’t exactly perfect at the moment.
This suggests he is either recklessly bullheaded, dangerously naive or totally insincere.
Earlier this week, Michael Ignatieff told the editorial board of La Presse the Liberals won’t abandon the carbon tax because "Dion has based his career on it … but details could be changed."
Yesterday, Iggy issued a clarification saying "we are in complete agreement with our leader."
So you see, it’s not about a personal handicap or physical deformity at all.
It’s about competence. Stephane Dion is the epitome of the Peter Principle.
Stephane Dion - A loyal Canadian, an adequate politician, but not Prime Minister material.
I’ll take those steely, blue eyes anyday.
* * * *
Update : And since Raphael doesn’t allow comments anymore, I’ll just have to use my blog to respond to this post - Bzzzt. Sorry Gilles. You Missed The Point: Very well said, Raph. The only thing I would add is that Duceppe is a lot smarter than you give him credit for. He gets it. However, he deliberately allowing himself to appear to be this obtuse for his own partisan purposes. He is also hoping that Quebecers will only see the event through his narrow interpretation and not think for themselves.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:13 am
The fact that the liberal media are now turning the blame to Stephen Harper after all the crap they have piled on him is absolutely unbelievable. I can understand the Liberals doing it - they have to.
I really hope that Canadians see through it.
I hope that later today, Jo, you are going to do a post about Traitor Lizzie May - I saw her train ad last night where she talks about the deficit of democracy in this country and how she wants to bring back democracy, how she believes that all the lies that come out of government are not good for the country and that people just tie themselves up like stuffed sausages and present themselves to the Canadian people (I thought the stuffed sausage was a bit much considering who was saying it, but then I have a few “stuffed sausages” around my middle too).
What she had done is thumb her nose at every candidate and every supporter - I hope they are livid enough to not vote for the Liberals out of spite and choose either the Tories or the NDP - the only two parties that have run straight forward campaigns.
It is clear that, all this time, the Hidden Agenda was being put into the wrong color box.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:14 am
Dion will be live on cbc shortly.
From G&M (Jeffrey Simpson) There’s a shift in the dion narrative,but ‘turned things around?’
“Remember too,how early in the campaign Mr.Dion went around deploring the Conservative attack ads and negativity.He would take the high road,Mr.Dion declared,and not engage in ‘low-blow’politics.Has anyone seen the Liberal ads recently,the ones using old clips of Mr.Harper and tying him to Pres.George Bush?So much for the high road.
Jo,I left a heads-up on some good columns at prev.post
October 10th, 2008 at 8:18 am
On another note - given that Weston brought out that answer to Afganistan - I wonder how many other “flubs” have been glossed over and hidden from us.
Remember back in 2006 when Bob Fife was boiling mad because they had gone into the secret meeting about the costing of the platform and the Tories had made some errors in the math. Remember how Bob Fife brought that out for all the world to see.
Weston’s comment proves that the press does not give Dion the same scrutiny.
Or - maybe they realize that they have talked him up so much that he could actually win and then they would have it on their heads.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:25 am
Thanks for the tips, AG and Sammy.
Busy day ahead, but I’ll try to fit that in at some point.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:39 am
It is clear that, all this time, the Hidden Agenda was being put into the wrong color box.
AG, if you or anyone else come across any links regarding whether or not Dion offered May a cabinet post or position in his government, could you please pass them on? Thanks.
I’ve heard various reporters including Mansbridge pose the question to Dion, and I have not yet heard him categorically deny it.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:40 am
Just watched Dion on cbc…and now,Julie and Heather are trying to make excuses,and ‘explain’ what Dion actually said.
Dion said in interview: Harpers reaction shows he has no class,he is willing to go so low to win….and Julie and Heather willing spin it the same way!Dion is blaming ctv..’they had an agreement’ and he doesn’t know the reason they did this!
Interview with Dion is up at cbc
October 10th, 2008 at 8:45 am
Check out David Asper’s column in todays National Post, ‘Effie Stephie, Silly Gilly, and Jacky Jack’ are 3 chicken littles who cynically tell Canadians the sky is falling for short term political gain.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:46 am
I think Elizabeth May will be lucky to get a seat in parliament without thinking about a cabinet post just yet.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:46 am
I wish I could approach work and life the way Dion and the Liberals do. I would love to say: I have a plan, its a really good plan, 5 point plan, so when you ask me to do the dishes or clean the house realize I have a plan and its a really good plan.
Dion is a noob and with only a plan to get a plan instead of really acting upon things. Harper showed time and time again that he does not only have a plan but is acting on that plan. Canada is a strong position. Job numbers up, banks rated as the strongest in the world, and Canada rated as strongest in G7. Canada needs this type of strong leadership. Please please fellow Canadians don’t let bogus Liberal plans and empty promises sway your vote.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:48 am
A PC attack ad during an election is not at all comparable to Harper responding to Dion’s confusion.
Harper responded to, he did not create the situtation.
Canadians know the difference.
CTV unapologetically exposes Dion, and then paints PMSH as the bad guy for reacting…??? Good thing Moore didn’t bite!
If the media keeps this alive, more and more people will see Dion, unscripted. That’s a good thing.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:53 am
If the media keeps this alive, more and more people will see Dion, unscripted. That’s a good thing.
Exactly. Isn’t that what Kinsella refers to as ‘earned media’? You don’t have to pay for it and it doesn’t have to be accounted for in the campaign expenses.
October 10th, 2008 at 8:57 am
Predictable spin from CBC. Sammy did you notice that Dion said that the CBC lets him do clips over and over. And then wonders why CTV will not treat him the same? Wow this is very scary what Liberals are promoting as Prime MInister of Canada.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:13 am
The other thing Kinsella says in his books are that the worst thing a leader or candidate can do is make excuses or try to talk themselves out of an error, WHICH, is exactly what Dion’s doing on CBC, with the help of the Olsen twins.
Taking Kinsella’s advice would have worked better I think than blaming media or playing the physical impairment card. That just made Dion’s case and those who tried to sell it sound desperate.
However, this video aside. Dion’s got one HUGE credibility problem with misleading Canadians re: his Green Shift tax, and Iggy disagreeing with him and his approach. This spells a party still divided and the puffin’s still pooping.
Can’t tag Harper with the cost of Afghanistan either, because it was Dion’s gov’t which sent us there AND John Manley who in his recommendations said that we needed to better supply and protect our troops and that added investment in that area was necessary. Harper said clearly yesterday that he really didn’t know the cost of the war and that’s why he appointed someone to look into it - to essentially fix the accounting mess, which has dogged the former Liberal gov’t into other departments too. Let’s not forget that.
Now the Liberals hopes to save Dion hang on another puppet master today - Jean Chretien.
I’m out of here for the weekend.
Keep at it folks
October 10th, 2008 at 9:15 am
The PM and all the Tory candidates should simply say Canadian’s should watch the video and make their own decisions.
Tke the high ground like James Moore did while getting Canadian’s to focus on the video and Dion’s pathetic reaction.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:15 am
He did not know the answer to the question and resorted to grade school theatrics to cover up and buy time.
He’s been calling Harper out for a week now and has accused him of being a liar and insensitive to the plight of Canadians and of driving the economy into the ground.
No mention of the PM’s Masters Degree in Economics.
The question was a simple one and he didn’t know how to answer it because he’s a professor of Political Science and not an Economist.
All he had to say was “Steve, I’m not an Economist.”
Oh, wait….
NeilD
October 10th, 2008 at 9:25 am
For any Libs trolling here,just a simple question: Why,if Dion has such a ‘hearing problem’ can he respond to journalist’s questions in media scrums…and lately they have been pretty noisy…yet,sitting in (I assume because they are taping live) a very quiet studio,he is now using this excuse?
October 10th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Listen to Dion trying to explain his gaffe.
He said, it has happened to you when you start over.
How many times has the cbc allowed him to start over.
Two greens have pulled out in Quebec. Guess they want May in the Senate.
Trying to pass this off as a failure to understand the question, like many immigrants and francophone have a problem understanding English is ridiculous. They are not running to be PM and will never have to make major decisions. Also missing is the fact the majority of cdns can’t understand Dion in English.
Trying to pass this off as not understanding when he would have been PM what he would have done is stupid.
I think this gaffe is up there with Beer and Popcorn.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:39 am
If you watch the video again. Dion himself proves it’s not a hearing problem.
Firstly, he starts answering the question and talking about his 30 day plan - at this point I’m thinking he understood the question fine.
He gets a strange look on his face and then it looks like he’s wondering if he said the right thing or not.
Later Dion says on the third take “I’m slow to understand your question.” In his own words.
He also laughs about it, and so do the folks in the room with him, some of who I’m assuming were his Liberal crew?
Someone above said it best when they said that the more the CBC, CTV and the Don Martin’s of this charade bloster a guy unqualified to lead the country, the more it reflects on them, and the more it’s out in the public domaine.
Harper’s been saying all along this election is about choice. The choice voters make is between he or Dion as PM(oh, and don’t you just love the media spin on that?? PM must be worried because he said PM Dion - give me a break - Liberals are at the bottom of the barrel folks.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:43 am
Head over to Liblogs for the ‘cover your a**’ offensive!From Bigcitylib:’Fat Boy goes whoring for his Order of Canada’..and 2 guesses who he’s referring to!
This could backfire big time for the Libs…Mike doesn’t take too kindly to being played for a fool,and if these Liberals keep attacking him,Mike may go on the offensive.How many times has Mike done the same thing to PMSH and the Cons..just brought to the fore stuff going on in the campaign that was certainly NOT in the Cons favor,yet,I have never seen outrage directed at him by Cons bloggers..for the most part,if the Cons/PMSH screwed up,Cons bloggers are usually out front questioning stupid decisions.Kate at SDA in particular.that’s the difference,the Libs blame anyone and everyone else for their problems and in the most vile and aggressive way,a true Cons.takes the heat and asks’how do we fix this?’
October 10th, 2008 at 9:45 am
ooops also - I would like to add that I’d like to set the record straight.
I would like the leader of my country to master the English language. What Mr. Dion has is a language deficiency - the Liberals knew it when they elected him their leader, but we need a leader that can converse and think quickly in English as well as French.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:49 am
ok, ok - Mr. Dion’s experience as a professor, in my mind would make him able to understand the different texts of questions. After all as a professor he would have set up exam questions himself would he not? In French to be sure, but, I really think he had trouble with the word “hypothetical” if he had understood that one word I think he would have done fine.
Some like Cherniak are suggesting the moderator should have asked a better question. I’m thinking that the moderator shouldn’t have to. As PM Dion would be faced with moderators who wouldn’t give him three or four chances to ask a question.
ok…..now I’m done…..sorry I’m pissed this morning.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:49 am
This is a highly educated man who normally shows a good understanding of English though he has trouble speaking it. There is no reasonable excuse for not understanding a straigtforward, though hypothetical, question that HE WAS ASKED 3 TIMES! Even after an aid went in and explained it to him, he could still not answer it. The only one to blame for that is Dion.
Spin it how you want, it was reasonable for CTV to ultimately decide to air the false start videos. We are trying to make an important decision on who should lead this country in some potentially difficult times. I for one want to know for sure that my Prime Minister can answer a fairly straightforward question, in English, that might be asked by a foreign leader, let alone a journalist.
BTW, editorial endorsements for PM Harper in the G&M and the Vancouver Sun among other papers today.
October 10th, 2008 at 9:58 am
“ok…..now I’m done…..sorry I’m pissed this morning”
So am I - after all the negative press the media have given Stephen Harper - “he doesn’t care”, “he’s done nothing” the fact that they are somehow portraying this as a Tory problem rather than a liberal problem really speaks to their biases. I really am incredulous that they are being so blatant and it pisses me off as well. The spin being put out by our supposedly impartial media is irresponsible as people try to make up their minds who to actually vote for as leader of our country.
October 10th, 2008 at 10:01 am
Another good post from Norman Spector at G&M:Dion video and journalism ethics
BTW,have any of you here tried to access the McLeans post of last eve’Mike Duffy is despicable’…it seems to have disappeared!
October 10th, 2008 at 10:04 am
Sammy - maybe Mike had his lawyer give a little call over that smear.
October 10th, 2008 at 10:24 am
All the print, online, radio and tv media taking calls from average Canadian’s on the gaffe I have heard, it’s about 80/20 that in fact this is a very big deal and shows a major flaw in Dion’s ability to be PM.
Too make things even better, I just managed to get AC/DC tickets. Looks like a wonderful day all around.
October 10th, 2008 at 11:45 am
How to deal with unclear, confusing, or ambiguous Questions should be covered in Candidate 101. Dion tried to apply the method. However, Journalism 101 should include asking somebody who is critical of a position what their alternative is. This is where Dion failed. He can not come up with an alternative to what Harper has done. That the Liberals have no alternative to Harper’s actions should be no surprise to anyone. Dion’s 30 day plan is just a plan to get a plan. The Conservatives should just ignore Dion’s gaff and run a series of ads this weekend featuring the IMF’s glowing report on the Canadian banking system and it’s positive outlook on the Canadian economy compared to the other G7 nations. Promote this as the result of the proactive solutions implemented in last fall’s mini budget and February’s main budget.
O/T Did you get my email?
October 10th, 2008 at 11:52 am
to answer the question…
no to both
October 10th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Craig Oliver:this is blowing up sky-high!
Take heart my friends..from the rolling poll on cbc just now:
Women voters: Cons.UP, Libs.DOWN, NDP, WAY DOWN..sorry,not fast enough to get exact #’s
Male voters: Cons,at 36% up
Libs at 26% down
NDP at 18% down
Urban voters:Cons. at 32% up
Libs at 26% down
NDP at 18% down
October 10th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
The Toronto Star has a poll asking if it was “fair” for the CTV to release this video. I note they never asked if it was “fair” to release all those old videos showing the Tories in a negative light. Funny that?
October 10th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Oh by the way - so far the “that’s not fair” crowd are winning - you might want to pay a visit over there.
October 10th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
Whenever I post on Liblogs I’m told I’m stupid, ignorant, dumb, an ass#$%@, etc.
The thing is, I understood the question. So what does that make Dion
October 10th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
I have a dailey subscription to the National Post and I love this paper. I have been thinking of decline of the comments by Don Martin. I just phoned the National Post to register a complaint against Don Martin. I think the National Post needs to know Canadians won’t stand for these kind of attacks on our Prime Minister any more!!!
October 10th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Where is Julie Vandusen running for the Libs in this election..it is absolutely appalling how she has been shilling for Dion this a.m.
BTW,Kate wheeler just said,that newest ekos poll just jumped and shows Cons.within 3 SEATS of a MAJORITY!
October 10th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
New Nanos out: CP-33%, Lib-27%
October 10th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
http://www.nikonthenumbers.com/topics/show/108
October 10th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
So, it’s been a full twenty four hours since Dion was asked about what he would do for the economy that Harper hasn’t done.
Why don’t any of the reporters ask if he’s had a chance to absorb the question and then ask it again?
I’d be interested in hearing the answer.
NeilD
October 10th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
OK, so according to Liberal voters and that jerk at Macleans, we should have pity on him and vote for him. Being worthy of pity does not a leader make. We need strength and competence, not “come on, I feel sorry for him, he’s a nice guy.”
How can anyone seriously think this man is PM material? You think the stock markets are bad now? Watch them tank like hell if/when Dion and Obama win the elections. You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.
October 10th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
Just got back from shaking Stephen Harper’s hand. Will have to catch up a bit here and then I’ll have a new post up.
October 10th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
Judging by my “Liberal riding” friends, the LPC is in big trouble here. The Green Shift will be the end of Dion’s campaign, and the loss of mutual fund value, due to his hysterical rantings about the economy, will just give justification for voting against him.
Had he recanted the GS early, it would have at least been a Liberal minority, but instead it’s John Tory-time all over again, for the Libs.
October 10th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Yes Joanne…some of us are jealous.Did you mention your blog?
October 10th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
And don’t forget to remind your Liberal buddies…if Harper only wins a improved minority, Dion continues to lead the Liberal Party, all the way into the next election.
That might wise up a few of them.
October 11th, 2008 at 4:57 am
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