Blue Like You

Archive for the ‘Dion's done like dinner’ Category

While Canadians worry about their jobs, pensions and investments, the Liberal party turns it’s attention to a much more important issue: How do we dump Dion?

…Should the country be propelled into an election, Dion is still legally the Liberal leader until his successor is elected. However, few Liberal MPs are likely to want to fight another election under Dion and could put pressure on him to resign.

Moreover, both the Bloc and NDP have signalled that they wouldn’t take part in a coalition if it meant installing Dion as prime minister.

Hence, Liberal MPs have begun privately exploring whether there is some way to speed up Dion’s departure. Senior strategists with both the Rae and Ignatieff camps said that their teams are not involved in trying to accelerate the leadership contest…

Because the opposition parties are entitled to their entitlements.

And if that means taking down a re-elected Conservative Government with an increased mandate, so be it.  All in the name of democracy, of course.

Oh, and get ready for an increase to that $1.95 per vote subsidy, Canada. You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

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Update: Welcome, Jack’s Newswatch readers!

Upperdate: This story is changing so fast it’s hard to keep up. The latest seems to be that the Government is now backing down on the proposed funding changes .

At 10:14 this morning, the Globe reported that the Ghosts of Entitlements Past are brokering a coalition.

11: 45 am - Gov’t ‘moving forward’ with thorny fiscal update - CTV.

Stephen Taylor - The Trap is Set.

ChuckerCanuk had some similar thoughts this morning.

1:20 pm CTV update :

…Earlier Friday, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said the fiscal update is a cautious and responsible approach to the economy during an uncertain financial period — and the onus is on the opposition to support it.

The plan also predicts Ottawa would post a small surplus of about $100 million this year.

"We’ve put forward our financial plan in a time of economic slowdown, at a time when many Canadians are losing their jobs and we’re asking the politicians, the public servants and the political parties to take a haircut, to be part of the restraint that we need in the Canadian economy now and we hope they will do that," Flaherty told Canada AM.

"That is the government’s plan. If the bill is defeated, the government is defeated."

Flaherty said the opposition parties should exercise some "sober second thought" before voting down the bill and toppling the government.

He said the government was elected by the Canadian people and given a mandate to run the economy. He also cautioned the parties against "feathering their own nest" at a time when many Canadians do not have the job security that politicians enjoy…

Please don’t forget to vote at the polls page.

Christie Blatchford’s column in today’s Globe is HILARIOUS! An absolute must-read - With the election circus over, I’ll now say my piece.

I highly recommend that you read the whole column, but if you don’t have time, here are some samples:

…I was ready to put a bullet in my head after the first five of Mr. Layton’s sweater jokes. Yes, Mr. Harper tried to soften up his stiff image by donning the odd V-neck. Why do you think Mr. Layton appeared usually in jacket and tie? It wasn’t to preach to his converted, but to broaden his appeal. Same sort of reason, I assume, Mr. Harper wore the sweater now and then.

I was astonished that Stéphane Dion seemed, at one point, to seriously believe he might have a chance at winning; he must have been having the Toronto Star translated for him ….

…When what - astonishingly - ensued was less a discussion of Mr. Dion’s ability to lead a nation that is still predominantly English-speaking and more one about the merits of the question the interviewer had asked and then a subsequent argument over how broadcasters should ask their questions, and what was good journalism and what wasn’t, I was beside myself and suspect my friend imploded.

The editor-in-chief of the Star, J. Fred Kuntz (like many in the newspaper business, Mr. Kuntz has acquired as he has risen through the ranks an initial I don’t remember him having before) actually wrote a column about the journalism part of it. J. Fred concluded that the whole schmozzle was the fault of the interviewer, not the interviewee….

[Star link provided by blog administrator. Actually, Kuntz is the partner of an extended family member. Needless to say, politics are verboten at family functions.]

…It was when the financial meltdown began that someone - I think it was Mr. Dion but it could have been Mr. Layton - said something like, "Mr. Harper doesn’t care ; it’s the job of the prime minister to care," that I nearly lost my lunch. I didn’t want a PM who went about the land, caring with moist eyes. I wanted a PM who leads. I think I got one, too. …

Well done, Christie.

A little levity for my Post-election Letdown Therapy Group.

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Update: Also worth a read, although I don’t agree with everything he says - Stephen Harper’s coming majority: Jim Meek.

Sunday Update: L. Ian MacDonald - Dion like dinner.   Hey! That’s my line!

Knowing how the knives are all out for Stephane Dion now, why did the Liberal Party try to foist him onto trusting Canadians during the election?

If they realized that he was that out of touch with reality, why didn’t they have the greater interests of Canada at heart and say so then?

Why the charade of feigned solidarity until the mask finally came off? (And even afterwards?)

Can we ever trust the Liberal Party of Canada again?

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Related links: Even Dion Loyalists got fed up with his refusal to take advice - Don Martin: (Ottawa Citizen)

…Chatting with Mr. Dion loyalists now is to hear a remarkable transformation from a group who believed only months ago that their leader’s sincerity and green scheme would prevail over the Conservatives under Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Several told me this week they became disillusioned when Mr. Dion wrapped himself in a campaign silo, seeking bone-headed counsel in his own intellectual superiority to the exclusion of all others. ..

The Leadership that never was - Stephen LeDrew (Post)

Hamilton Spectator - Dion ready to announce exit plans:

…Karygiannis said many Liberals found it difficult to repeatedly abstain from Commons votes that would have toppled the minority Conservative government because Dion was not ready for a campaign.

“I don’t think he really got a grasp of the party. I mean, you just don’t tell members `don’t vote and sit on your hands and don’t vote.’ We did that what, 43 times?” Karygiannis said…

1. What exactly was the deal between Stephane Dion and Elizabeth May? (And why didn’t Dion deny the rumours?) Check this out.

2. Why was the alleged plagiarism by Stephane Dion largely ignored by the media?

3. Why was the alleged report by Liberal-hired ‘experts’ that the Cadman tape had indeed been altered not more widely available in MSM?

They’re dropping like flies, I tell ya - Devastated Dion set to quit*. (Star). (H/T National Newswatch)

Excellent. Does this mean he’s finally going to stop calling Stephen Harper a liar?

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Related: Who’s running for Liberal Leadership? (Star)

And as Alberta Ardvark points out, this shows how fickle the Star really is!

Boy, that love affair didn’t last long.

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UPPERDATE: It seems the Star* misspoke (link no longer available) - Dion weighing options, won’t step down today: CTV.

Yes!

You tink eet’s eezee to step down?

Friday Update: Dion ignored Green Shift warnings - Linda Diebel (Star)

Since Warren Kinsella appears to have abandoned his ‘Winners and Losers’ theme, I’ll have to take over.

Loser: Obviously the Liberals with their fall from 103 to 76 seats. City News says it is the "second-worst showing for the party in history - and the worst performance since 1867 in terms of the popular vote."

Ouch.

Most of the blame has to fall on Stephane Dion’s scrawny shoulders. He demonstrated time and time again that he was unwilling to listen to far wiser voices in his party. The Green Shift just wasn’t going to fly as an election platform. Stephane Dion’s fatal flaw is that he is too stubborn, too idealistic and lives in his own little Green world.

Winner: Stephen Harper and the CPC. Yes, they only received a minority mandate, but it was a strengthened one, with seat count of 143, up from the 127 at dissolution of the previous Parliament. Harper now has a virtual majority because no party wants another election right away. And yet, he is showing a willingness to confer with the other party leaders and try to find some common ground in order to move forward for Canadians.

However, there are a few things that the Conservative Party strategists could have done better. I believe it was Jean LaPierre who kept saying on MDL that they had no point-man in Quebec to handle the fallout from the [perceived] arts funding cuts and from that nonsense that Duceppe was going on about jailing 14 year-olds - as if a kid who stole a candy bar would do hard time.

I held off on a critique of the arts funding cuts until after the election. I understand that this is a delicate issue in Quebec. I’ve studied Quebec literature, and I know that a great deal of French-Canadian culture is derived from the stories both written and spoken that are passed on through the generations. If they had bothered to ask I would have suggested that is would be a mine-field that Duceppe would happily exploit - and that made him a winner in the eyes of his party.

Hopefully the CPC strategists have learned something for the future.

However on the whole I am quite pleased with the results.

Where would I classify Layton and May? Well Jack improved the NDP seat count, so I’m sure his job is secure.

If I were a Green Party member though, I’d be having second thoughts about Elizabeth May as a leader. She is showing herself to be a real loose cannon.

Danny Williams is a Loser. He may have achieved his goal in Newfoundland, but what will the real cost be to his province?

And via Bourque, we find that we’re all winners according to the Lung Association.

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Update: Winner - Gordon Campbell on MDL:

"…And candidly I think it’s time to recognize that we are one country. We are stronger when we’re all working together. We’re all working on behalf of Canadians, and there was just a Federal Election. A Prime Minister has been elected with a strong working minority government. It’s clear that people want us to get on with that. Certainly in British Columbia, Mike, I can tell you that Mr. Harper’s leadership sent a strong message that we wanted a majority government; that we didn’t quite get a majority largely I think as you pointed out because of the separatist party in Quebec, but I think now is the time to work on behalf of Canada and Canadians…"

Well done, Premier Campbell.

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ChuckerCanuk dishes out some tough love: Death of a Propagandist.

Thursday Update: Inside scoop here - Now inside stories can be told.

Stephen Harper gets right to work.

I know. I know. The election’s over. This was my parting shot.

Stephane Dion continues to dig himself in deeper.

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Sunday Update : Lorrie Goldstein - No Time for carbon bombing. This is required reading before voting on Tuesday!

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Related -  Darryl Wolk:

So this is what it’s come down to - In spite of everyone’s best efforts in the Liberal caucus, Stephane Dion continues to cling to his vision of the Green Shift, and its immediate implementation if he becomes PM.

Even Peter Mansbridge tried to pull him from the abyss, but Dion steadfastly clung to his dream.

Which makes me ask, if the whole Liberal appeal is the team, then who’s going to make the decisions?

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Note: Ironically, I started writing this post before MDL Prime Time tonight. The Liberals really do have a nightmare on their hands now.

The Nightmare gets worse - Globe endorses Harper and Tories! (H/T Sammy)

Well sort of, anyway. It’s the most back-handed compliment I’ve ever read. But we won’t look a gift-horse in the mouth, right?

So now that’s the Globe, The Post, The Record, The Economist…  Who else?

Globe - Dion fumbles CTV interview.

Jonathan Kay - Not Stephane Dion’s finest hour.

Check it out. H/T Sammy.

Prediction: Jack Layton will be moving into Stornoway.

Developing.

SDA’s on it!

Actually, this post says it all.

Update: It’s right at the top of the Blogging Tories site right now!

Stephen Taylor - …Liberal Campaign in Crisis Mode.

Now on National Newswatch and Bourque.

Rather quiet at Liblogs tonight though…