Posts Tagged by conservatives
Opposition Goes After the Stalling
| 3/23/2010 | Posted by Patti under Canadian Politics |
Every now and again it becomes necessary for those elected to conduct the business of our democracy to be reminded of who they are supposed to represent. The people elect a Parliament who then forms a government and an official opposition based on which party received the most seats.
This seems like a pretty basic principle to know and to understand. The Prime Minister is subject to the will of Parliament, who is subject to the will of the people. When the Opposition parties voted on a motion back in December ordering the government to produce unredacted documents pertaining to the detainee issue, the response should have been pretty straightforward in adherence with the basic principle of Parliament.
The government has tried to throw a blanket claim of ‘national security’ around the affair and are refusing to release the documents. They didn’t even bother trying to go through the motions of trying to reach an agreement with the majority vote, they just stonewalled and then Harper prorogued the House.
Eventually the birds have to come home to roost and Parliament had to reconvene. Harper seemed to think that the December motion would be ignored, the Opposition rendered unable or unwilling to act. He’s wrong. Last Thursday the Liberals, followed by the NDP and the Bloc, rose to call on the Speaker of the House to rule on the motion. They have motions of their own which could lead to the Government being found in contempt of Parliament. (more…)
Playing Games With Democracy
| 3/18/2010 | Posted by Patti under Canadian Politics |
On Tuesday Parliament passed a motion which would ban the practise of MPs sending ’10 percenters” into ridings of other MPs. The motion was initiated by the Liberals and solidly opposed by the Conservatives. The final call on the motion will be made by the Board of Internal Economy, the secretive committee charged with controlling the spending on the Hill.
The government’s response to the motion is that they consider it to be ‘non-binding’. Excuse me? Is Parliament supposed to reflect the will of the people or doesn’t it? Who the blazes is paying those clowns than the people?
Parliament has spoken, therefore neither the government nor the internal board of economy should have any option but to comply. (more…)
Law & Order? — Maybe
| 3/10/2010 | Posted by Patti under Canadian News, Canadian Politics |
The optics on the Rahmm Jaffer decision yesterday is just plain bad.
A former Conservative federal member of parliament, married to a current Conservative Cabinet minister is charged last fall with impaired driving and possession of cocaine. He comes before a judge who was appointed by the current federal Finance Minister when he was the provincial Attorney General. He gets off with what amounts to a slap on the wrist by pleading guilty to a dangerous driving charge and receiving a $500 fine.
The Crown gave no explanation for the deal they struck other than saying they had no reasonable chance of conviction. For just about any other, average Canadian, blowing over on the breathalyser would result in a conviction. These days even blowing .05 results in an immediate license suspension which doesn’t even get you a day in court.
As for the cocaine possession charge, if he wasn’t in the possession of cocaine then why didn’t the Crown just exonerate him and admit the police’s error? Maybe because that would be just out and out lying instead of just deception. (more…)
Where Is the Recalibration?
| 3/4/2010 | Posted by Patti under Canadian Politics, Harper |
Well, I’ve read through the Throne Speech which was delivered yesterday. I’ve read some of the commentary which has appeared this morning in reaction to it. For the most part, they are echoing my thoughts as I read through the speech, where exactly is the recalibration? There was very little real focus or meat.
I had the sense that the speech came about from a brainstorming session around the Cabinet table on how many buttons could they find to press in a bid to make Canadians believe this government has a real sense of need and direction. The point form results was then handed over to speech writers to form into what was delivered yesterday.
I know the devil is in the details and Throne Speeches are not where one would expect to see details. Some will emerge today as the Budget is delivered. For the most part, speech repeated previous announcements and claims from the government.
Public Wage Freezes
It does say there will be a freeze on not only public service budgets but the wages of the Cabinet, Senators and MPs. That is really sharing in the hardship that 1.5million Canadians are going through, not to mention the millions of Canadians who find themselves under-employed as the result of jobs lost through business failures and jobs moved offshore. (more…)
Haiti Becomes Harper’s “Relief”
| 1/19/2010 | Posted by Patti under Canadian Politics |
Since I believe in giving credit where credit is due, Harper has responded decisively to the crisis in Haiti by sending our troops and resources into the area to assist with aid and security. He was able to do this in a timely manner, the first flights arrived in Haiti on Wednesday, because of one other task he undertook after coming to office. He moved to properly equip our Canadian Armed Force so they can get the job done. There is still work to do but much has been done.
In his more pragmatic, cunning moments since last Tuesday he must be breathing some huge sighs of relief. He was taking some serious heat from the public and the polls over his decision to shut down Parliament for the second time in a year. That must have been hard on him, after he and his minions pontificating that neither the Afghan detainee issue nor the proroguing of Parliament were even on Canadians radar. (more…)
Election on Hold — For Now
| 9/16/2009 | Posted by Patti under Canadian Politics |
After months of railing against the ‘separatists’ and ‘socialists’ bringing this country to rack and ruin by aligning with the Liberals to defeat the Conservatives, Harper is being saved from a non-confidence vote by those very same separatists & socialists. The NDP in particular (those dangerous socialists) have had a pretty easy ride in the last couple of governments by being able to vote against the government with impunity knowing the Liberals would likely end up giving grudging support to the government.
Ignatieff turned those tables around with his declaration that the Liberals would no longer support the government and in fact would bring the government down at the first opportunity. The declaration placed the Liberals back where they belonged, opposing the government instead of running scared while trying to look tough. Now Layton and/or Duceppe has to either step to the plate or we head into an election. That is the way it should be. (more…)
Ignatieff Hits the Ground Running?
| 5/7/2009 | Posted by Patti under Canadian Politics, economy |
Ignatieff was acclaimed as leader of the federal Liberals this past weekend and appears to have come out of the gate ready to run. During the convention along with moving the Liberals forward into a one vote, one member system, which most other parties use, he threw down a gauntlet to the Conservatives claiming he is willing to take the country to the polls if the government doesn’t change the IE program.
Every worker across this country contributes to IE while they are employed but only about 31% of those losing their jobs are able to collect. IE is meant to be bridge income while a person seeks a new job. In a recession like the one Canada is currently experiencing, jobs are increasingly scarce, the chances of a short gap between jobs becomes increasingly unlikely.
To qualify for IE workers have to have a minimum number of hours worked. This halts those who would rather draw ‘pogey’ than work from working briefly and then drawing IE. Currently the number of hours needed is varied across the country, there are some 54 different areas where the hours and even the amount of EI received varies. (more…)
Galloway Remains Barred From Canada – sort of
| 3/30/2009 | Posted by Patti under Canadian News, Canadian Politics |
A federal judge today denied the group representing George Galloway an injunction to allow him into Canada. Galloway, a British MP who is the sole MP for the Respect party (which he founded), was denied entry to Canada by the Canadian Border Service. He was to be in the country on an anti-war speaking tour.
The judge ruled:
“The admission of a foreign national to this country is a privilege determined by statute, regulation or otherwise, and not a matter of right,” Martineau wrote in his ruling. “In this respect Parliament has expressly given the CBSA officers legal authority to exclusively determine whether a foreign national who seeks to enter this country is admissible”
The group, Toronto Coalition to Stop the War, argued that Galloway’s exclusion was as the result of political interference and was an issue of free speech. The judge didn’t completely rule out the political interference by declined to directly express an opinion. A judicial review of the decision will take place. (more…)
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