What part of “you have idiots infecting your communications strategy” do they still not understand?
In offering rapid apologies, the Conservatives seem to be attempting to limit damage to the campaign and maintain control of the messages.
That’s a marked difference from Mr. Harper’s first and unsuccessful campaign in 2004, when Tory official Yaroslav Baran issued a news release suggesting that then-prime minister Paul Martin supported child pornography. The release was withdrawn, but Mr. Harper refused to apologize and the issue festered for days.
Mr. Baran was not suspended for that stunt and is now running the Conservatives’ Ottawa war room, where he was Sparrow’s supervisor and is in charge of the team that oversaw the website.
Good grief.
They don’t know their audience. They don’t know the tech side. And they don’t know when to keep their mouths shut.
What on earth are they still drawing paycheques for?
Update – “Fact Check”, in the comments writes;
“Your complaints of immaturity would be more believable IF YOU WEREN’T SOLICITING, AND I QUOTE, “LESS FOREST GUMP, MORE TEAM AMERICA” ON YOUR OWN FRIGGIN’ SITE! The rule is that if you go neg, it has to be believable, and your attack just ain’t believable.”
You know, if this comment hadn’t been posted from a Falun Gong associated IP address, the statement is dumb enough to raise suspicions that it originated in the war room itself.
Do they not understand the difference between an unaffiliated individual and a political party trying to make the case that they deserve majority control of Parliament?
That, in essence is the problem with notaleader.ca
It should not exist at all – it’s juvenile and ridiculous, it taints the brand and suggests that the first letter in CPOC is “clown”. It’s why you leave the “South Park” conservativism to the blogosphere. No one has to answer for us. We’re not running for office.
Meanwhile, how much have they spent on those ads aimed at reinventing the image of Stephen Harper?
testy
And people talk about a mole in the Liberal campaign.
Just saw on ctv,as Jaquiline was grilling Geoff Norquay,the soldier’s Dad said he has accepted the apology,and didn’t think Sparrow should be suspended.
That said,this was inexcusable,and I sent an e-mail to the Cons.party this am.I would just like them to NOT respond so quickly,to THINK,and remember,the msm is not your friend.
In their defence though, CTV has no ethics.
I mean, if the guy has firm ties to the Liberals and CTV trots him out as joe public, they’re being misleading (at best!)
Cindy Sheehen should never have been given a pass and this guy shouldn’t either.
Partisan is partisan.
It also has to do with the selective reporting by the so-called mainstream media. As an example, why hasn’t it reported this?
As translated from a story in Le Soleil. “The Liberal candidate in Quebec, Simon Bedard, persists and signs. This ex-radio host still believes that the Canadian military should have eliminated the Mohawks during the Oka crisis, as he had suggested 17 years ago on waves CJRP Quebec.”
Conservatives need to maintain a very high road – any silliness like this Puffingate (sigh, waiting for that coinage) will just make them look idiotic
It’s *maybe* funny if you’re five years old, but no need really to cement the 4 to 8 year old demographic
I hate being disappointed by them, and that comment about news release about Martin – imbecilic
Amatuer hour, who is Baran and why does he still work in the War Room and who is his boss?
This isnt about partisans stirring up trouble, this is about conservative supporters being unhappy and disgusted by the tactics.
Even if the Mr Davis was Dion’s chief of staff you leave it alone.
This is the kind of thing I would expect of some others….regardless of the practical effects have some grace!
And herein lies the fundamental difference between liberals and conservatives. When something stupid and juvenile is done within the Conservatives ranks, they are fired/suspended and apologies are made.
When something stupid and juvenile is done within the Liberals ranks, they are promoted within the CBC.
These childish tactics make me grind my teeth. Here we Conservatives have a real shot at a majority government and our guys can’t restrain their impulses to go for the cheap shot every time.
They just don’t get it!
Hugh Segal, where are you?
You are correct grok.
Conservatives are not all rocket scientists…we have living proof of that right here..but we do have a Prime Minister who is fighting 3 or four political left wing nut Political Parties AND their pandering media goofs.
Never, ever forget who the media works for – it is NOT the Canadian taxpayers or the Conservative Party of Canada.
Grow up Communications, PMSH cannot babysit you all the time!
It starts at the Communications Director and works its way down. Adult supervision would be highly appropriate.
In fairness to the Tories, why did Mr. Davis single out Stephen Harper for criticism for wanting to leave Afghanistan in 2011, as opposed to Stephan Dion who essentially supports the same policy? I’ve noticed that no one in the MSM has asked Dion if he now supports an extension of the mission beyond 2011 or a flexible pullout date.
Not only that, Harper had to fight tooth and nail to get Dion on side to support the mission as it stands.
I suspect that the Tory staffer was offering a suggestion as to why Davis’ criticism was so one-sided, which it was.
Problem is it sounds like he didnt get the information right….and, this is the important one, not all battles need to be fought. Once again even if he was Dions chief of staff you just leave it alone.
I sure hope this is the only person like this, and yes he should have been suspended to be an example to the others.
I am for elbows up politics, no issue. But pick your battles for crying out loud. When the inevitable fundraising call comes they’ll hear it.
>>”In fairness to the Tories, why did Mr. Davis single out Stephen Harper for criticism for wanting to leave Afghanistan in 2011.”
Um, maybe because Harper is the Prime Minister with the ability to keep us there or pull us back?
My question still stands unanswered. What exactly is Stephan Dion’s position on Canadian troops in Afghanistan? Does he now favor a “flexible” deadline in line with Mr. Davis’ wishes, or would he bring the troops home in 2011?
Dion may not be PM right now, but he is running for the position, and theoretically could be the PM in a few weeks, and would therefore be possessed of the “ability to keep us there or pull us back”.
It would be helpful if the brain-dead twits in the MSM would pose this question to Dion. I’d just like to know where he stands on this issue.
Just as bad as this is the fact that the Tories frequently trot Baran out on Mike Duffy Live (or used to, at any rate) to duke it out with the other parties’ “strategists.” It’s always embarrassing for the Tories. Baran is an absolute featherweight, and comes across as pretty weird to boot.
The only way the CPC can lose this election or not do as well as they should is if they shoot themselves. Already too much of that going on.
Oh how I miss Tom Flanagan.
Sparrow’s statement was factually accurate and fair game: the dead soldier’s parent was publicly politically active, connected to the Ignatief team, and tried to score political points with his son’s death, not the first time it has happened in Canada. It is he, not Sparrow, who is the bad guy here.
Sparrow can’t help it if certain people with axes to grind against the Conservatives, such as the media, partisan Liberals, and crypto-Liberal bloggers on the Blogging Tory blogroll, managed to blow this way out of proportion. Over half the Liberal caucus voted to bring the troops home, and this guy is attacking Conservatives? Doesn’t pass the smell test.
I see the facebook portion of notaleader.ca is making fun of certain Blogging Tories who aren’t hiding their antipathy toward the CPC. Good. I think it’s time bloggers like Kate McMillan stop freeloading off the Conservatives’ good name and GTFO the BT blogroll. You’re not fooling anyone, crypto.
I agree with Dennis.
I’m confused. The father of the fallen soldier said that if the mission is ended in 2011, regardless of conditions on the ground, then his son will have died in vain, as he put it. Dion essentially supports the mission ending in 2011 as well. And in fact, wanted it to end in 2009, until he agreed to 2011. So his son will NOT have died in vain if Dion becomes PM and pulls our troops out in 2011? Why is Harper being singled out when Dion essentially supports the same position?
Just more examples of MSM bias. It’s something different everyday. The “Hitler” comparison ignored, but the “puffin” incident reported; The Quebec Liberal candidate who made the “Oka” comments ignored, but today’s attack on Harper reported.
I guess MSM would argue that the “Oka” comment was made way back in 1990 and thus is not relevant. As opposed to the Tom Lukiwski’s comments, which were made in 1991, which was, well, just like yesterday I guess.
It’s like Harper and Dion are in a boxing match, with the MSM’s role supposed to be as referee, enforcing the rules equally. But instead they are holding one of Harper’s arms behind his back.
Disgusting!
“But pick your battles for crying out loud.”
If we could all follow this rule we would be a more focused society.
Although I am not condoning the war room blunder ,I am suprised how quickly the MSM plaster his name across screen. I am still waiting for CTV to Plaster wife of Mark Dunn across TV screen, when Gloria Galloway reports for Globe and Mail.
CTV is not reporting honestly when they hide Gloria Galloways connections to the Liberal Party.
The Globe and Mail says that the Conservative campaign has had some difficulties in the early days, as between the puffin thing and this business of accusing a bereaved father of being politically motivated.
Also, Harper’s statement that someone in their “warroom” made a mistake is clearly a case of very unhelpful wording.
You mean the notaleader.ca that I’ve never actually opened, because it’s so heavy with flash and other crap that I got bored and went elsewhere before it finished loading?
You mean that nugget of interweb shinything of juvenile brand-tainting genius?
Oh, and –
“I see the facebook portion of notaleader.ca is making fun of certain Blogging Tories”
You’re a little out of date.
“The requested URL /dionbook/ was not found on this server.”
“I got bored and went elsewhere before it finished loading?”
You just admitted you haven’t even seen the site that you criticized, genius. It’s a web application, not a website, and if 5% of the population can’t see it then it’s really not the big deal you’re making it out to be. Did you want it in braille too?
Your complaints of immaturity would be more believable IF YOU WEREN’T SOLICITING, AND I QUOTE, “LESS FOREST GUMP, MORE TEAM AMERICA” ON YOUR OWN FRIGGIN’ SITE! The rule is that if you go neg, it has to be believable, and your attack just ain’t believable.
Actually, is there any evidence that the caucus gets technology at all. Their last copyright bill, which thankfully died on the order paper, was a huge mistake. There is no reason the Conservatives should have been supporting it, and it seemed to show a lack of understanding of digital media and issues.
I see the facebook portion of notaleader.ca is making fun of certain Blogging Tories who aren’t hiding their antipathy toward the CPC. Good. I think it’s time bloggers like Kate McMillan stop freeloading off the Conservatives’ good name and GTFO the BT blogroll.
Fact Check;
Unlike your lib-left friends, some of us, on the conservative side, tend to put principle and sound practices ahead of “conforming to the group”. We’re not afraid to speak up, if those who are supposed to be representing us, screw up.
I can’t speak for Kate but I would assert that if the BT’s have a problem with that, that they can kindly go frig their hat.
Simon Bedard has resigned:
http://www.liberal.ca/story_14507_e.aspx
The above is from the Liberal’s website since it may not be reported in the MSM.
Sooooo now Davis is on Adler saying how sorry he feels for Sparrow and how Harper was wrong to fire him – sheesh – if Harper hadn’t fired him, Davis would have been saying he should have been fired.
Watch this come back to bite Harper as the press starts calling him a dictator boss – oh, forget that, they already call him that.
Harper is damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t, mistakes get made and the press is there to jump all over whatever decision he makes.
Anyone else notice the vast number of reports on Tory “problems” compared with unimportant things like Liberals comparing Harper to Hitler….The MSM in this country is a friggin joke.
Question:is it not hypocritical of ANY of the other parties to complain about the decision to bring the Troops home?Isn’t this exactly what the Bloc.Dippers,and the Libs all wanted? PMSH cannot win…if he hadn’t stated this clearly he’d be taking sh*t bombs for that.
I will agree the ctv,especially Wheeler,and that Jacquiline Mil-whatever.JM was disgusting today.
As his heroic son died at the beginning of March, Mr. Davis Sr. is not inadvertently involving himself in Canadian politics out of uncontrolled grief.
He knew it was political. He knew that Canada was in the midst of an election.
It would be of interest to know if Iggy has sent personal condolences to all of the parents of our fallen.
It’s fair to ask if he would have even been reported (thus leading to the foolish statement by the spokesmen) if he had been a grief stricken parent who approves of Harper’s handling of the Afghanistan war.
I totally disagree with the media’s Cindy Sheehan type handling of this issue.
I don’t disagree with Mr Davis’s complaint.
Why would Harper announce a withdrawal date?
What if the job isn’t done?
I’m a conservative, but this politically expedient announcement is an obvious grab at lefty voters.
Wrong is wrong.
Fact Check,
So what. Some things are third rails and you dont touch them….the father of a dead soldier is largely one of them. Harpers response, pre brain damaged move by Sparrow, was appropriate.
Whether it was true or not wasnt the point….what possible gain there was in pointing it out was so minimal when you put it against the risk of wrongly criticizing the parent of a dead soldier.
When in a hole stop digging. Sparrow blew it, if his boss knew he blew it. If you are either of them, or know either of them you better think twice about what you are doing. You can still lose this election. These both will end up being taught in PR 101 classes as examples of what NOT to do, with the PM’s apologies as examples of what to do when your frat boy war room drinks more beer than they are used to.
They need to learn that there are some battles you can win and some you can’t.
If the parent of a dead soldier criticizes the government. Don’t send an email detailing his ties to the Liberals to the MSM, you’ll just be accused of “partisanship”.
Instead send the info to a third-party like a friendly blogger who can put the info out there.
It’s called “risk management”.
I have to agree that the Tory campaign is allowing too many ill-disciplined, rank amateurish gaffes. Part of the art of war is knowing who your enemy is in the first place. And the msm is a liberal-dominated visceral enemy of the conservatives. Any Tory communications chief should thoroughly grasp this fact. And grasping this fact he/she should instinctively process all utterances through the prism of negative spin.
Pick one’s battles is also good advice. The voters aren’t stupid. They can recognize the other side’s cheap shots for what they are. They can be ignored. Finally, one isn’t going to win over all the voters, so one shouldn’t try. The tree-hugging, dread-locked, smelly enviro-loons aren’t going to vote conservative. There’s no point pandering to them. As for the drunken frat house crowd, who knows and who cares? They’ll vote, if at all, according to criteria which are probably unfathomable anyway. But an ill-advised attempt to appeal to them could sure piss off one’s conservative base and sway adversely a moderate thinking of voting conservative. Do the “generals” of the “war room” not grasp these simple basics?
The question remains, has the deathstar in Ottawa helped or hindered during this campaign so far?
Item: 6 am press conferences.
Item: Stupid web tricks that impress _no one_ and alienate most.
Item: Gung-Ho idiots with email access who’ve read one too many books by Kinsella.
I’d submit the communications team has been sequestered far too long, with too big a rope.
They’re children and it shows.
Doowleb,
True enough, as someone who supports our efforts in Afghanistan, Harper’s announcement of a firm withdrawal date disappointed me greatly. It was likely made for reasons of political expediency. But counterinsurgency campaigns take years to complete, and don’t work well with strict timetables.
That being said, the suspicious timing of Mr. Davis’ comments and the way that the MSM has run with them bring to mind some other manufactured scandals such as the Cadman affair and the Mulroney/Schreiber soap opera. The Davis controversy may be simply a case of the MSM working overtime to spin another smear on Stephen Harper.
As conservatives, we should stop hitting the panic button and consider whether or not someone (i.e. the MSM) is trying to play us like a fiddle.
Slightly off-topic and perhaps a double post:
Simon Bedard, a Liberal candidate, resigned about half an hour ago for suggesting the army should have been used to clean out the Mohawks at Oka(!)
Is this going to be reported? And how prominently?
I assume people at CPC headquarter read this site.
NOTE TO ABOVE CPC staffers: Childish personal attacks and toilet humor are an embarrassment to the party, and are harming its prospects.
It concerns me greatly that Dion at least has a central plank his platform (stupid though it is). Right now the CPC has no message as far as the media and greater mass of canadian citizenry are concerned.
WAKE UP!!!
Starting campaigning for your ideas, not against the other guy’s.
The other guy is not a threat unless you build him into one. Take the higher ground and convince Canadians that you are truly better than the Libs.
And by the way, right now the CPC is looking scared, while Dion looks like he has nothing to lose.
This is not going well.
Bart,
Your comment is actually quite closely related to this topic.
Bedard’s resignation has not yet been mentioned on either the CTV or CBC website. I’d be surprised if it gets mentioned at all.
If he was a candidate for the Tories, you could bet the farm it’d be plastered all over every media outlet in the land.
“Meanwhile, how much have they spent on those ads aimed at reinventing the image of Stephen Harper?”
Whether it holds or not, the Conservatives were polling over 40% after those ads ran. And I don’t think they were reinventing Harper’s image. That was previously done by the Liberal press.
Lori,
I think the Conservative message is quite clear – a steady hand in times of economic uncertainty. This is their strong suit and the number one election issue by far.
Regardless of how juvenile, I don’t think the election is going to be lost due to a bird dumping on Dion’s shoulder on a website.
I think the party could use some support from its base, rather than criticism, especially given the fact were in an election, no?
“Unlike your lib-left friends, some of us, on the conservative side, tend to put principle and sound practices ahead of “conforming to the group”. We’re not afraid to speak up, if those who are supposed to be representing us, screw up.
I can’t speak for Kate but I would assert that if the BT’s have a problem with that, that they can kindly go frig their hat.”
ROFL!!! Outstanding!!! Richard Evans, perfectly put. It AIN’T the Politburo, is it? I’ve emailed my MP twice already with my wee voice to explain my displeasure with their performance so far on this campaign. According to Fact Check, this would be disloyal, and frowned upon. Not on my watch!
Some of you need to be hit with a clue-bat. Media bias isn’t the topic. It’s a given. It’s a known quantity in the current environment and none of your whining is going to change it.
What is the topic, however, is how poorly the CPC is managing themselves in reference to that known quantity. Not only is the CPC providing bullets to their MSM opponents, they’re cleaning the guns and loading the clips for them.
Oh dear our dear Kate appears to have been’ turned’.
Is it possible??
Did the ‘liberal estalishment elite’ get to you Kate?? Now that the election is on, out from the weeds you slink to attack the CPC??
I mean I am dumbfounded..have you turned into CanadianBlueLemons?
Who’d a thunk it…who’d a thunk it..so-o-o depressing for Caanda
Irwin Daisy – the message is clear to us, those who are engaged in the process.
But more importantly, I do not believe it is getting through to the public, lost in the “gaffe-du-jour” festival we have had so far.
As best I can tell, most people think that the current CPC message is “Dion is a loser”. That’s not what the CPC stands for, nor how it will improve its national standing.
Further, what kind of friends to the CPC would we be if we did not point out an obvious problem in the hope that it could be corrected. Stephen Harper does not need “yes-men”. He needs outside perspective. Rallying behind a mistake is no favour.
Les than a year ago I saw John Tory totally self destruct in Ontario, for an election that was his to take, by creating a politically stupid policy and totally disregarding the shock that greeted that policy from his own supporters. I sent dozens of mail and FAXes to anyone that would listen at Ontario PC headquarters telling them what a mistake they were making, and not a one was acknowledged. Nor was the policy changed until far too late. John Tory will never get a second chance.
I do not want the same thing to happen here. I desperately want a CPC majority government.
Monty: “Oh dear our dear Kate appears to have been’ turned’.”
Oh for G*d’s sake.
Why wouldn’t Blogging Tories–any Tories, for that matter–be concerned about juvenile tactics being used by the Conservative war room when so much is at stake?
Showing concern and frustration isn’t an attack on the CPC. It’s an attack on some really stupid and retrograde tactics being used in the CPC communications department. Fair game.
Kate has not been “turned”.
Kate realizes that the fratboys best be cleaned out of the con war room sooner rather than later. We have expended our gaffe mulligans.
That said, I am annoyed how Lib eruptions go under-unreported. The Simon Bedard resignation of a little over an hour ago will be an excellent opportunity for Globe/CTV/Torstar/CBC to prove me wrong.
Be Cool Kate, it’s the first week. And frankly, I would bet that PM Harper is a 1000 times more upset then you.
The harder the MSM fights against the CPC and tries to smear them on every issue, the more devastated they are going to be on election night when the Tories get their majority and pulverize the Liberals into 3rd party position.
I’m especially looking forward to watching Peter Pansbridge on election night, I’m giving odds that he breaks into tears over the Liberal demise.
Is somebody suggesting that because Kate criticizes something in the CPC she is no longer a Conservative? Hey, this isn’t the NDP here where everyone has to toe the party line and march to the same drum beat. Don’t fall for the MSM partisan hype that lumps all conservatives into the evangelical, bible thumping, red neck, dumb hick, pistol packing, pigeon hole. I absolutely agree with Kate. The puffin thing was juvenile in the extreme. Someone in charge of elections strategy is either goofing it up big time or has sabotage on their mind. And if they want to win any seats at all in NS they had better inject some intelligence into this campaign. They choose a candidate for Halifax who has a criminal record so they had to get her to withdraw and they choose a candidate in Kings-Hants whose husband just the week before had slammed Harper in the Globe and Mail, calling him a dictator. Is that likely to attract any of the Conservatives who remain in this neck of the woods? We’ve said in the past that 75% the Conservatives around here must have moved to Alberta and perhaps it’s true but the few of us who remain would like a decent candidate to vote for win or lose.