Via David Akin;
I am deeply troubled by Mr. Ignatieff’s assertion that he may choose to overturn the democratic result of the federal election.
While I understand that the scenario spelled out by Mr. Ignatieff is within the conventions of our Parliamentary tradition, the last thing our country and our still fragile economic recovery need right now is a period of instability caused by a constitutional dispute over who should be the government.
Morever, Canada is poised to solidify its position as an economic leader in a world that needs the food security and the energy security we can provide. How can we take full advantage of this reality if we are distracted by interminable national political machinations and constitutional wrangling?
The party that wins the most seats on May 2 should be recognized as the government, period. If that were to be the Liberals, I would join with other Canadians in accepting this result and recognizing Mr. Ignatieff as our next Prime Minister. However, if the Conservatives win the most seats but come up short of a majority, I would expect Mr. Ignatieff and his party to accept that result.
The notion that Mr. Ignatieff may choose to not recognize the democratic result of the election and may try to seize power with the support of the other parties, including a party dedicated to the breakup of Canada, is offensive to me and I believe, to most fair-minded Canadians. Voters should choose the government, not separatist MPs.
Ironically, this election was caused by a confidence vote over “contempt for Parliament.” I can think of no greater contempt for Parliament or for Canadian voters than the spectre of a party leader refusing to recognize the democratic outcome of the election.
You’re right, bartinsky. It’s all about one-world government, before which stable Western democracies need to be destabilized — what we’re seeing with the Ombamanation’s “leadership” (sic) in the U.S. and, now, this possible takeover by the Left here in Canada — and to hell with democracy.
You’re right, big and deadly money is behind this, wielded by unscrupulous, evil, Godless, power-mongers.
Kyrie Eleison.
Saint Michael the Archangel,
defend us in this day of battle;
be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray:
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
One thing the Separatist Lib/NDP/Bloc Party left out of their analysis on the Constitutional Rights of Coalitions, is the Ancient Right of the Citizens to Petition the Crown directly. If somebody put this up on Facebook, to use the Lefts tactics. Or directly at the GG’s website or his 1-800 number and if enough Western Canadians said no way we will accept the Bloc controlling us through the Libs or NDP, directly to the GG I think he would have to listen to the people of Canada. Or face the worst Constitutional Crisis in the history of Canada. Here is his contacts. http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=325
Mr. Wall rised up…
All these parlimentary procedures that he’s now talking about were available to Iggy before the election call.
Iggy’s playing for a Conservative minority. If that’s the result , Iggy now has a $300 million, taxpayer funded , sword hanging over the GG. It’s extortion no matter what you call it. Iggy’s “serenity” is brought on by the arrogance that the GG won’t go for another $300 mil election and will toss Iggy the keys. I hope the GG see’s through all this
Good for Premier Wall!
The rest of you can only wish and no trade for Special Ed either.
RFB:
I am not sure I understand the point of your “But.” since there is a lot of similarity between your thoughts and mine with the exception of the treason part. Like it or not (and it would be very unfortunate if Governor General David Johnston made the wrong decision), the part of the 3 parties stopping Harper from forming government is quite legal. Being legal, it could hardly be treason – no matter how unethical it would be.
My point is that I think the Conservatives, and especially Mr. Harper, are handling this all wrong. Here is the message with which Harper should be pinning Ignatieff against the wall.
1) We concede the legality (but not the ethics) of a group of MPs voting non-confidence to defeat a minority government.
2) However, if you lower the standard of ethics, we will also play by the same rules. Having established these rules, you could hardly object to someone else playing by them.
3) We too will vote non-confidence against a Liberal/NDP coalition. We will easily defeat your government without you having the full support of the Bloc. We will attempt this repeatedly every chance we get until we get an election. The only way to avoid an election is to have the Bloc always vote confidence in your government.
4) What price are you willing to pay, Mr. Ignatieff, to guarantee that the Bloc always votes confidence in your government over the next, say, 18 months? How much will it cost Canada? At what point will you say no to Bloc demands? Do you really believe the Bloc is better for Canada than is the CPC?
Harper is too silent on this. The only way this can work is if the Bloc is 100% in 100% of the time. Full in – all the time.
I would like to think GG David Johnston knows how to analyze a situation. That is why I think a non-confidence vote means a second summer election.
There is also the idea of the “sober second thought” Conservative Senate being able to stall all Coalition bills until an election is called.
Mr. Harper and the conservative media should be all over point 4 above. Why are they silent?
Premier Wall has stepped up to the plate as he always does. He has probably offended the dwindling number of socialists in Sask., but that’s OK. Everything the premier does is offensive to that group of bitter, desperate fear-mongers.
For those subscribers to the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, stay tuned for the predictable column from Murray Mandryk where he will roundly criticize the premier. Mandryk’s lower lip has been dragging on the ground ever since the Sask Party spanked the NDP in the 2007 election. In fact, Mandryk’s antics were one of the main reasons why I cancelled my SP subscription 3 years ago.
Brad Wall could abolish the PST, discover and freely distribute a cure for cancer and lead the Roughriders to their 4th Grey Cup, all on the same day, and Mandryk would complain that the premier wasn’t doing anything to secure an NBA franchise for Moose Jaw.
I wouldn’t under estimate the effect of our Premier’s comments on this matter. He is very respected Canada wide and his comments will not go unnoticed.
Western Canadians, in particular, need to take heed.
There is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to be gained in Western Canada by voting either Liberal or NDP. I hope voters in Wascana will take heed.
Thank you Premier Wall and thank you Kate for all you do.
S
Mr. Weston, my point was that yes in the Westminister system, a minority government has to always seek the help of the Opposition. BUT never in history and never anywhere in the world has the Westminister system had to deal with a Provincial Separatist Party in the Federal House being given control over all of the rest of the country via 2 other Minority Parties. If it was the NDP and Libs alone fair enough. When they make whoopee with the Bloc, that is the Treason against the People of Canada. The GG had better beware. At dissolution the Libs had 4 MP’s west of London Ontario. The Bloc have 0 MP’s outside of Quebec. The NDP had a handful in Western Canada. They are playing with fire. On Rutherford on QR77 out of Calgary today, which is one of the top Talk Radio Shows in Western Canada. Albertans were already talking that no way no how, they will stand for the Bloc/Lib/NDP Separtists ruling Albertan’s. It is already underway. I think the backlash that is going to come out of Western Canada is going to be the Real Rise Up Canada….
One other point about the GG. He has to remember he is just another APPOINTED FLAKE. His Primary Role is to safeguard the people, in this case during an election when we have no sitting Government. If he makes the wrong call, and a majority of the Folks say it is the wrong call. Now you have a Real Constitutional Crisis. The Prime Minister, is only one of 11 Prime Ministers in Canada. Canada has 11 Parliaments, 11 Prime Ministers, and 11 Heads of State. The word Premier is merely French for Prime. Their is real power in what the Premier is saying and if more Premier’s say the same thing, the GG does have to listen, if he has any brains at all.
Those who continue to claim that such a coup would be legal in a parliamentary democracy, please provide examples of parties being rejected at the polls replacing the party with the most seats. Secondly, as others have pointed out forming such a coalition (you can call it whatever but it remains a coalition) with a provincial separatist party whose sole objective is the destruction of Canada, is treason.
As for the requirement for a minority government to accommodate the wishes of the opposition parties, that only works when the opposition parties have the best interest of the country in mind. The Liberals have made it very clear that their one and only objective is to seize power by any means, and they do this at their peril.
I know it’s a BS job, Kate, and you’d have to live in Ottawash,(mostly) but I’d support you as an MP even though you don’t live in Alberta and you’d be running to represent the riding you’re from in Saskatchewan.
Kate for MP!
(then we’d really have the inside skinny at SDA, yes we would)
My sympathies to Ralph Klein in the face of the challenges he is bravely facing. Can only wonder what he would say about how Alberta should respond to the potential for this “Troika Katastrophe”?
Withhold payments to the Feds at a minimum, back to visions of “freeze to death in the dark” for our eastern friends, etc. Agree Danielle Smith shouldn’t wait for Edwardo to wake from his lame duck somnambulant state to pre-emptively stake out what the Alberta position would be under a Wild Rose government.
Lot’s of good coverage on this again today on SUN TV. Go SUN!
I can tel you right now I would NOT follow ANY rgulation/law/interpretation enacted under such a bastardised scenario contemplated by our American PM in waiting.
A snowflakes chance in hell.
wnmc “Lets not forget the time honoured tradition of crossing the floor” I had thought of this also — or even a group sitting as independents. I would have thought at least some Liberals would prefer this to the potential chaos that would ensue (from Alberta and elsewhere)with the coalition as it is shaping up.
Any coalition that does not include the party with
the most seats should be summarily rejected by the Governor General, on the grounds that three bozo leaders who can’t stand each other during electioneering are suddenly able to be buddy buddy enough to run a government is simply a preposterous supposition.
Thankyou Brad Wall for succinctly and powerfully stating the truth. Brad Weston and RFB both very good arguments.
The bottom line is follow the money. Where is the Liberal party getting all the money for their campaign?
I do not know if you remember, yet one of the first things Harper did when he became PM was to visit the troops overseas in Afghanistan. This was not only a moral boost for the troops, but also for Canadians. I think he should do it again.
If for no other reason than to thank the troops for their sacrifice before the “Coalition of the Damned” gut the defence budget like LIEberals before. Sure the Cons made mistakes with the returning troops, yet on the whole the Cons have done more to give pride back to them. The Cons were the only party that defended the troops against acquisitions of torture of prisoners – which was going on before the Cons got into power – in Afghanistan. [That is how the trem Talaban Jack got his reputation. Also the LIEberal constantly giving troops a bad name.]
It would not be a photo opportunity, as I see it; it would be a thank you from Canadians who still honour their sacrifices. Then he should promise that he would take their concerns to Parliament and pass bills that really help the veterans – they should be treated like heroes, not like they are now [and apologise for their mistreatment when they got home by Veteran Affairs.]
Just a thought.
I’m beginning to wonder if all that Tides Foundation money that the Liberals are burning through isn’t putting Count Ziffy MIA too much front and centre.
Of course the other question is, will Elections Canada ever call the Liberals for burning through all that Tides Foundation money?
Perhaps having been exposed to so many “covert” conspiracies over the years…across the globe….I am suspicious.
Why would the opposition defeat a sitting government when all indicators(polls) show the results of an election would be the current statis quo….and has for many, many months?
This is not a recipe for electoral success.
Unless they have real reason to believe the polls are bogus or they have a hidden ace(quisling)….
One scenario not mentioned is what if covertly these troika conspirators have already consulted this new GG….and have his covert blessing?
In a world where the Verona Files idicate that L.B.Pearson was a KGB agent and that Britain’s MI5 and MI6 heads (McLean, Philby and Burgess) were Soviet moles….this is not that outrageous….and considering the logic of forcing an election when the poll numbers do not indicate a victory…it is logical.
Theo Caldwell on fire!
I knew Brad Wall before he was Brad Wall. Well said sir. I am not going to spend a lot time debating the legality of the arrangement put forth by the libs/NDP/Bloq. It may well be legal but I find deeply offensive. Now having said that, I want to forecast what I think will ultimately be the end result of such an arrangement. Financial markets will not like it resulting in a short period of decline. The longer term reaction will depend on how these three parties conduct themselves. If they are reasonable and act to strengthen our finances and limit the size of government, markets will react positively. However, there is little likelihood of this so I predict that there will be a very abrupt end to the current rally followed by a period of stagnation. Ultimately Duceppe will figuratively put a gun to Canada demanding more from the rest of Canada. I believe that the other two will give in. However because of the fragile balance of power this will be too much for a few of the liberals. Ultimately, they will vote for their own survival and defeat this arrangement. We will head back to the polls but this time the choice will be clear. The Libs and the NDP will be seen as having sold out Canada to further their appetite for power. That election will be a referendum by the rest of Canada on Quebec independence. I think Quebec will get their wish to be independent. Time frame? Less than two years.
I think that the Liberanos are getting their $$ for this campaign from the secret trust funds – mentioned by the AG and PMSH many times – they are beyond the reach of the Ag. These Trust funds (like the Trudeau Foundation) were set up buy the Liberanos during the Crechan/Paulie II years using – wait for it – taxpayers $$. Of course Georgie Porgie is involved.
I thank you all above for the excellent, excellent comments and analysis. Canada has brains and they all are here at SDA. Thank-you Kate for giving the experts a place to speak their minds.
Hey Kate, remember when Brad Wall tossed you under a bus? Heh, that was funny.
It may be time for Alberta to publicly ramp up the Heritage Cheque system again, held in abeyance for election results, to show that Albertan’s wealth is not available to the rest of Canada without the express permission of its citizens.
“Ignatieff may choose to not recognize the democratic result of the election and may try to seize power with the support of the other parties, including a party dedicated to the breakup of Canada, ”
hi kate.
remember pierre bourgault the albino separatist? he was yapping away during the hayday of conservative brian mulroney.
I called up the conservative mp and asked why bourgault was given time on publicly supported television (TVO) to spew his hatred of confederation.
came back the answer he’s entitled to his political views.
so it seems conservatives are on side with that after all.
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/wake-up-critics-heres-obamas-grand-plan/?singlepage=true
In lockstep with the NDP, LPC, and Bloc’s grand plan:
“World governments or governances have been part of the Marxist curriculum for decades, driven by anti-colonialist, anti-imperialist, and anti-capitalist ideologies. At the moment, the driving forces are earthism, enviromentalism, and fear of manmade global warming. (From the ideologue’s perspective, planetary incineration is the ultimate consequence of imperialist capitalism.) The future of the globe and the human race is at stake — and in order to suppress global warming, the world needs special taxes and special tools to regulate industries and modify human behavior. Who will control these new controlling mechanisms?
… The first report of the Club of Rome, published in 1972, introduced to the world the perceived apocalyptic consequences of human activities and human reproduction, and the need to create regulating and controlling political mechanisms. Since then, progressive movements have been trying to implement these mechanisms, like cap and trade or a global tax. …
The Liberals are spending WAY too much money.
Is SORROs backing the Liberals?
“We will head back to the polls but this time the choice will be clear”
And the choice is not clear now? What will it take to get a Conservative majority? There are still too many obtuse, out of touch and downright stupid voters (not in Sask or Alta) in this country to make that a reality.
Well Said Mr Wall, Well Said
BTW anyone notice Michael Iffy on the news Trying to change what he said to Mansbridge
Outstanding letter.
If the opposition claim that 60% DIDN’T vote for Harper, we can say that 70% DIDN’T vote for the Liberals, 80% DIDN’T vote NDP, and 90% DIDN’T vote for the Bloc, or to put it humourously, 240% of Canadians DIDN’T vote for their coalition of losers.
Biff, currently the choice is clear to you and me but not to everyone. There is the residue of past smears on Harper that some people cannot overcome. The only way that these people will see the LIB/NDP for what they are is an overt act to subvert the will of the people to undermine our democracy and the stark reality of their capitulation when it comes to Quebec. I hope. If this does not wake them then we are doomed.
Well put, Brian Mallard. A showdown at the OK Corral is what Canada needs, and the “coalition” disaster—with the power hungry clowns in charge of it, I can’t see it being anything but—will push us closer to that eventuality.
And maybe—just maybe—Canadians will finally realize the betrayal of the left-wing parties in this country and give the Conservatives the majority they deserve. Maybe . . .
In case anyone missed it Special Ed agrees with Brad Wall. He was going to write his own letter saying so but he couldn’t find his crayons.
As I suggested two days ago on another thread about the Minority parties contempt for democracy, it also looks like this election is a $300 million leadership review of the Conservative Party orchestrated by the Minority Parties, but financed by you and me.
“Brad Wall could abolish the PST, discover and freely distribute a cure for cancer and lead the Roughriders to their 4th Grey Cup, all on the same day, and Mandryk would complain that the premier wasn’t doing anything to secure an NBA franchise for Moose Jaw.”
I luv it!
Go Bulls Go!
My anatomy of the Coup. Fairly encompassing:
http://burpnrun.blogspot.com/2011/04/anatomy-of-coup.html
“The only way that these people will see the LIB/NDP for what they are is an overt act to subvert the will of the people to undermine our democracy”
The Three Stooges tried, and almost succeeded, in pulling off this stunt after the last election and the voters seem to have forgotten already.
Hopefully, in the event of another Conservative minority, the GG will tell the coalition clowns, in no uncertain terms, to take a hike.
You know what? Maybe a coalition would be the very thing this country deserves. Bring us right down past our effin’ (that’s financial) knees in no time flat. Get it over with.
Might be preferable to this “death by a thousand cuts” thing.
Sooner we get it over with, the better.
How long do you think it would take with those 3 putzes running things? 6 months? A year?
Jaime M
U might be right. Two years ago when people said the same thing about BO I shuddered and disagreed. Looking at the results today (TEA Party) I think you could be right.
That said, I’m not sure Confederation is strong enough to withstand what you prescribe.
Maybe a coalition would be the very thing this country deserves. Bring us right down past our effin’ (that’s financial) knees in no time flat. Get it over with.
You gotta be young and rich to say a thing like that.
How about the CPC wins, the Liberals are swept away like Mulroney’s Progressives, and we watch the socialist disaster unfold south of the border as an object lesson that socialism fails wherever it’s tried.
Then Canada becomes a 2 party state, with the exception of the BlocHeads(who will wither on the vine without the LPC), and every election henceforth is a clear choice between Conservatism and a Canadian flavoured re-enactment of the Obamanation.
Black and white, good and evil.
How about that?
The coalition is constitutionally legitimate. However, it is only proper in the case where the politicians are truly reflecting the will of the citizens living in their ridings. A cabal of progressive party leaders reflects only their desire for power and control. I would bet many Liberal voters would NOT support jumping in bed with Jack “subsidized housing” Layton and the Socialist Blocheads. I doubt they will be asked their opinion, and if they freely provide it it will be ignored like Climategate and the Chretien/Martin theft of $50+ billion from EI.
The Liberals are pushing the “it’s legitimate” meme but really, do you believe them?
Anything anybody gets away with is legitimate.
They might rule Canada but they won’t be viewed as legitimate in Alberta or rule it for long.
Count on it.
Albertans would freak out being ruled by Quebec like that.
Preston Manning built the Reform Party almost soley on Albertan’s resentment of Quebec.
Alberta, you do not have a Conservative government; you have a Liberal government wearing blue suites. Wild Rose is the only way to get rid of the rot.
Everyone seems to forget that Harper has the Senate.
Even if the coalition takes over, their first budget won’t be approved and we’ll head into another election.