With all the exaggerated faux controversies that have been thrown at the governing Conservative Party here in Canada over the past 2 years, none of them have done any significant damage in public opinion. It has been one controversy after another for this entire mandate, but none of them seem to stick. Is it just a matter of the "chattering class" and "spin doctors" defusing real problems, or have the Liberals lost credibility with such manufactured hysteria as pig flu-gate, prorogue-gate, Guergis-gate, doorknob-gate, torture-gate, stimulus-gate, G20-gate, and whatever I'm forgetting?
I would like to ask the poll question; which of all the false controversies have cost the Liberals the most credibility? My top two are Bob Rae telling Canadians that they would die of the pig flu and it would be the government's fault (meanwhile H1N1 is and always was less lethal than normal flu), and the fuss over prorogation. Bob Rae prorogued 3 of 4 years as Premier, yet marched in the streets of Toronto to protest Stephen Harper doing it twice in 4 years. Iggy proclaimed that "Parliament is the sovereign" and must be "allowed to do its work", and then proceeded to be the 2nd most absent MP in the next session.
Which false controversy do you think cost the Libs the most credibility? I would like to launch the poll on Tuesday.
Wafer-gate for me as a Catholic. This offended many Catholics who consider this an important sacrament. PM Harper was maligned for doing what he should have with the host, let it slowly dissolve in his mouth, NOT chew it. I think it woke up a lot of Catholics who normally blindly support the Liberals, add Iggy wanting us to pay for foreign abortions, and you get Catholics starting to rethink their support of Liberals.
ReplyDeleteThe one about sending too many body bags up north to the Inuit and Indians in case there were too many deaths from flu.
ReplyDelete$55 Billion dollar deficit is scandalous. Conservatives can't manage a budget.
ReplyDeleteSenate elections. Harper appointed a record number of senators.
Proroging was not a scandal but it was political incompetency and fear by Harper. It was also a manipulation of the Parliamentary rules not seen before.
$2 billion for the G-8 and fake lake was a tragic waste of money. There is no way a responsible Conservative can spin it any other way. It was a waste of money.
There are lots of other Harper missteps but i think pointing out $57 billion in poor fiscal judgment is reason enough to turf these incompetents out.
Now, I know there will be a bunch of Con flamers that will say the Liberals would have spent more! The Liberal record is tronger than the Conservatives on balancing the budget. Never in Caqnadian history has a Conservative government balanced the books 8 years in a row. In fact, Harper and Mulroney are the biggest contributors to the national debt (even more than Trudeau).
Fiscal management is an epic fail by the conservatives.
The Coalition of Losers and their 'stimulus-gate' accusations of mismanagement and breaking rules and pumping money into Tory ridings hurt Iffy and Jack's crediability.
ReplyDeleteBecause the AG, Sheila Fraser gave the Harper govt a glowing report saying 'all the rules were followed'.
The Coalition losers look very foolish, and so does their media.
Anon at 8:05, if the Chretien and Martin governments hadn't raided the EI fund of $54 Billion to FAKE surplus' from 2001-2005,
we could have spent the same on stimulus and NOT had to go into deficit.
The suppposed reason for the spawning of the Coalition of Losers was because PMSH wouldn't spend enough on stimulus,
so you can thank the Liberals twice for our deficit!
Wilson, I have heard the Conservative excuse that the the liberal "made Harper do it" by going into deficit. You and I both know Harper does not get push around...especially by Liberals. This wwas a course of action picked by the decisive and polical genius, economist Harper. I giggle every time conservatives say Harper is tough on this or that and decisive and principled but, ohh, when it comes to the deficit it was those means opposition people that made Harper do it. Puhlease. Harper is no wimp and I am surprised cons are so quick to say he wimped out on balancing the books.
ReplyDeleteRaid the Ei fund? $54 billion? I like your inagination in inventing that whopper. Harper has never made nay revisions to the EI regime. Whatever you imagine was wrong with EI has not been fixed by Harper. Harper would fix it if he believed it needed it. Or would the deficit be even uglier if he was not "raiding" the EI too?
ReplyDeleteBottom line is that Liberals balanced the books for 8 years and Harper couldn't do it...even though he was handed a surplus.
The lack of vision or plan by the Liberals is evident. The reliance of scandals 24/7 to drive down support for the CPC is a reboot to the 1990's Chretien-Donolo style of politics. This time it did not work because of money. The Liberals ran out and can't afford to destroy the Conservative party or leader.
ReplyDeleteThe state funeral, Afghanistan H1N1, Olympic logos, 22 day sitting day delay have been used to destroy support for our military, government and the civil service.
The one moment that caused the opposition to lose any credibility was when they Lib/sep/dems or LSD party tried to oust the conservaties with a coalition that allowed the separatists to have a veto over government bills. This would have allowed the constitutional special status by stealth that PET chastized Mulroney over the Meech and Charlottetown Accords for.
ReplyDeleteAfter all the years of false bravado sermonizing Canada that the liberal party was the only federal party that would stand up to the forces that would tear this country apart, to then not only agree to put into a signed agreement a repudiation of those same contentions immediately proved beyond a doubt what the players of the two solitudes game have been doing for decades.
Until all the signatories to that agreement have left politics, the liberals will be forced to defend that odious record.
"It was also a manipulation of the Parliamentary rules not seen before"
ReplyDeleteI see someone watches way too much CBC. ARe you kidding me anony....do some research before you comment and make a fool of yourself.
Are you aware of HOW the Liberals balanced the books.
They downloaded some of their responsibilities onto the provices - chching - more money in their pockets.
They changed EI (even the name) which meant that they could use the money for general revenue =- cha ching - more money in their pockets.
They DIDN'T get rid of the GST as they promised - chaching - the money keeps piling up.
The list is long, anony. Do some research.
As for Iceman's question, I think the whole "fake lake" contraversy was one for the books. The 2 million dollar price tag was so over exaggerated and the clever photography to make it look massive was clearly done to fool people.
They have never come out and told the truth about it, who was partners in it and that it is a standard tourism setup done at trade shows all over the country.
I won't be releasing this poll on Tuesday, but it will be coming soon along with the Iggy Flop poll series.
ReplyDeleteAlberta Girl, you make me giggle. Thanks for the good chuckle. You're from Alberta, during the Chretien-Martin time, the Canadian budget was balanced. Ralph Klein was able to balance the Alberta budget. There was not suddenly some massive debt that exploded on the provincial books. These leaders were responsible, capable stewards of the economy. I guess Harper's $55 billion debt is because he "uploaded" provincial debt. Ummm...Harper is just playing good old fashioned pork barrell politics. He panders for votes with the taxpayers dollars (economic Action Plan signs galore!)
ReplyDeleteI guess your view would be that Harper has not offloaded new debt to the provinces and that the $55 billion deficit is good economic management. Good luck with that. Please send me what you are smoking...it must be really good.
http://business.highbeam.com/5274/article-1G1-21031955/surplus-surplus
ReplyDeleteAnony...read and learn just how Paul Martin acheived his "surplus" - on the backs of workers like me!
HAHAHAHA - you know how Ralph balanced Alberta's books huh, anony....he allowed business to prosper which resulted in more revenue, plus he cut the civil service!
ReplyDeleteAs far as Paul Martin...well he moved money here and here and called it a surplus.
AG, "...read and learn just how Paul Martin acheived his "surplus" - on the backs of workers like me!
ReplyDelete...which they call it 'eight year balance budget'
Now if the liberal had accomplish that eight year balance as they say they did then they was is any reason for PMSH to attend to the military in a great magnitude; nor would he have to tend to the Infrastructures; nor tend to education, health care, nor would province be left unattend, nor would he have to deal with the EI funds extra. None of these things would have been dealt with in such a way that resulted a deficit.
Can you imagine AG, all those millions of dollars going to their rightful places instead of the LPOC. Man, we may not have a deficit at all.
In other words the LPOC left us and the Conservative PM with as I call it a "structual deficit' meaning, we have to pay into what should have been done years ago while the liberals were in government.
CBC CTV G/M T/S. ETC are fully aware of the so call eight year balance empty budgets but chose not to tell canadians.
AG, if only you knew how much money the liberal gave to help pay down the National debt during their thirteen years in government-would shock you..
Absolutely Jen.... The media in this country have done a great disservice to Canadians by hiding the truth - people like Anony swallow it hook, line and sinker choosing to believe what the 2 minute sound byte tells him/her. That is what the media count on!
ReplyDeleteAs for Anony's comments about "pandering" for votes with the stimulus money, didn't the AG just come out and say there was NOTHING WRONG!
I remember many signs from the past when the liberals were in power doing EXACTLY the same thing. People want to know where the stimulus was spent, I think it was a wise use of dollars to put up signage so that people know that the Tories didn't give it to their friends in brown paper bags but spent it just as they said they would.
Pretty smart if you ask me. People like anony are just upset that voters will realize how much good the stimulus did and who is responsible.
Hot Air Balloon
ReplyDeleteA woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him,
"Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."
The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.
She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Conservative."
"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"
"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."
The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Liberal."
"I am,"! replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"
"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but, somehow, now it's my fault."
The conservatives are leaving us with a huge deficit but wait not so fast they want the government to extend the stimulus, to spend more on daycare childcare-you know, the usual items which they liberals, promise or shall I say plan to bring in since 1993, and still nothing yet.
ReplyDeleteOn one hand they opposition paries, and their corrupt medias chant "You (conservatives)are spending too much but are not spending enough-uh.
The conservatives are leaving us with a huge deficit
ReplyDeleteforgot to add the quotes and couple of words: "The conservatives are leaving us with a huge deficit" shout the opposition and media......
It all started with the Coalition of Loser. The government was going to cut the Bloc off at the knees, and the mentally retarded, self-serving, short-sighted, dim-witted, treasonous Liberal Party of Canada instead threatened to bring the government down ... by forming a coalition with the separatists!!! Only in Canada.
ReplyDeleteI stand corrected. Let me congratulate Mr. Harper and the Conservatives on incurring a $55 billion deficit. He did not balance the budget using tricks like those dirty Liberals. However, I am confused. At the end of this year, the next generation will have Mr. Harper's $55 billion debt to repay and nothing from the Liberals. I will tell them that Harper did it right and the dirty Liberals didn't.
ReplyDeleteYou guys are Orwellian.
Alberta girl, business prospered during the 90's and early 2000's in Canada. Harper has not been able to replicate Chretien/Martin's success with the economy. All this nonsense about raiding EI is silly. Harper reaps the same income from EI as the previosu government. It's just that Harper cannot spend within his limits. The sooner Harper is gone the sooner we can return to sensible budgets.
ReplyDeleteCurious anonymous, didn't Ignatieff demand a 30 billion dollar stimulus as a condition of him supporting the budget after he usurped Dion? The stimulus accounts for most of our deficit, and the Tories had not committed to stimulus spending until that demand was made.
ReplyDelete