If the Harper government gets voted out, we will have a coalition government. Fascinating stuff coming out of Ottawa these days. It makes me happy to go home for Christmas.
01
Dec
It’s official
So CBC has updated their story on the coalition government, with a few more details.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/11/30/canada-coalition.html
01
Dec
Coalition government?
This story appeared momentarily on cbc.ca. It’s since disappeared from their front page. Wonder why?
NDP, Liberals reach deal to topple minority Tory government
Last Updated: Sunday, November 30, 2008 | 9:51 PM ET Comments 69
CBC News
The NDP and Liberals have reached a deal to topple the minority Conservative government and take power themselves in a coalition, CBC News has learned.
A deal has been negotiated between NDP Leader Jack Layton and Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion that would see them form a coalition government for two and a half years, the CBC’s Keith Boag reported, citing sources.
The NDP would be invited into cabinet and get 25 per cent of seats, Boag said, adding that the party wouldn’t get the position of the finance chair or the deputy prime minister’s post.
“That’s the big step forward tonight,” Boag reported.
The Bloc Québécois wouldn’t be a part of the coalition, but would have to support it, he said.
“The most difficult question is who’ll be the leader,” Boag said, adding that Dion, who negotiated the deal, believes he has the right to be prime minister.
Opposition parties say they have lost confidence in the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper after Thursday’s economic update by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty failed to provide a stimulus package for Canadians.
Since then, the Liberals have been in negotiations to form a coalition with the NDP, and the concessions made by the Conservatives this weekend have done nothing to change the party’s view that Harper must go.
14
Oct
Election day
The Globe and Mail has named Vancouver Quadra one of the 45 battleground ridings that can change the country.
So get out and vote, UBC! Students need to make themselves heard this election.
UBC area voting stations will be at:
* Place Vanier
* Walter Gage Residences
* Acadia Park Commons Block
* Old Barn Community Centre
* UBC Golf Club
I’m always really impressed by Gilles Duceppe. He is one smart guy - and not just because of his infallible ability to relate any question to separatism/federalism. He can think on his feet better than any of the other four and he always has intelligent comments to make. He nailed Harper and to a lesser extent Dion nicely on an Afghanistan question.
Duceppe pointed out that Harper blames the Liberals for many of their Afghanistan-related decisions, and holds them to account on them. However, he said, the Liberals made their decisions early on in the mission, and Harper, with the benefit of experience and as he sees conditions deteriorate, continues down the same path, making bad decisions.
I thought that was a particularly good comment, and I don’t think Harper was really able to respond.
Favourite moment of the debate (or of the half I saw):
- Dion turns to Layton and says how the reason Mr. Duceppe will never be prime minister is because of how he makes decisions on Afghanistan.
- The moderator and Duceppe gently point out that he is speaking to Layton, not Duceppe.
- Dion laughs and says yes, he meant Layton, and there is a very different reason why Duceppe won’t be prime minister.
Funny stuff.
“The Ottawa NDP, they’re not listening to BC.”
That is the tagline of the first attack ad I have ever seen targeting the NDP. I saw it a few minutes ago on Global BC, in the middle of Oprah. The ad features a greying, bald head from behind, with its fingers stuck in its ears as the narrator talked about crime and road construction. I think the Conservatives could have picked a better Layton double, myself.
If I were Jack, I would take this as a good sign. The NDP is finally being seen as a credible threat in BC. I wonder, are the Conservatives running similar ads elsewhere?
I’m trying to find the ad at the moment. When I do, I will post it here.
07
Sep
Election October 14
Good luck finding anything but election coverage to read or watch in the next few months.
Also, the CBC Ottawa newsroom is in the background right now on Newsworld, and it’s making me homesick.
05
Aug
Local news
I thought I’d take a minute to write about how much I like local news.
That’s right, national and international politics-loving me has gotten right into the local news scene over the last couple of months. There’s something to be said about knowing something about the place where you live.
Every day, I talk to someone or see something that makes me really appreciate the city. I’ve discovered whole neighbourhoods that I never visited before. So many people in the city are working on these amazing projects, and it’s really something to be able to meet them, or at least talk to them over the phone.
Sure, there are fluff stories, but there are also highly meaningful stories. Unlike many national politics stories, these can affect people immediately and every day.
Of course, I write this as I scour the web for story ideas to present in that all-important story meeting tomorrow. In case you didn’t know, local news is hard.
04
Jul
Michael Byers, NDP
So my old professor Michael Byers plans to run for the NDP in Vancouver-Centre.
I can’t say I’m surprised. It was no secret at UBC that he was planning to run for something… although the rumour at the time was that he was going Liberal. And, at that time six months ago, I wondered why not NDP. I guess I was proven right in the end.
It seems everybody on the Maclean’s blogs has something to say about this event. So does the Vancouver Sun, unflattering as that article is. The part that interests me is that he decided Stephane Dion’s “Green Shift” wasn’t any good and he preferred the NDP’s environmental plan. Dion must have better marketing, because I don’t remember what the NDP’s environmental strategy is, other than that it’s not (NOT!) the same as the Liberals’.
Still, I’m not sure why Byers doesn’t like Dion’s plan. It seems fairly consistent with his lectures on environmental issues in class. It’s also fairly consistent with the problem he posed to the class: how to ethically dispose of an SUV his family won in a grocery store contest. He didn’t want to drive such an environmentally-damaging car, but nor did he want to sell it, because that would mean somebody else would drive the gas-guzzler all over Vancouver. I don’t know what they finally ended up doing.
His lectures on environmental problems or on many international issues were quite good though, and the support he gave to his students was admirable. Like any good politician, he knew everybody, and would frequently enlist his contacts to help out on student projects.
Anyhow, Prof. Byers, should you ever read this, feel free to comment or drop me an email. I’d love to know why you think Layton’s strategy is better than Dion’s. And what you did with that car.
18
Jun
Ribfest ahoy!
Also…
The smell coming past the Ceeb is to die for. To find Ribfest, start at Parliament Hill and follow your nose.
Or, go to Sparks Street. Ribfest runs from Wednesday, June 18th to Sunday the 22nd. A full rack of ribs (a huuuge portion) is about $20, a half $12 or $15 and a third $9. Some places sell pulled pork sandwiches and chicken, which under normal circumstances are both solid choices, but it is called RIBfest after all.
The line of bureaucrats at every booth at lunch today was astounding.
