The personal blog of @mattfguerin, a media manager, loving husband, writer, filmmaker, political junkie, union activist based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Ignatieff: "We categorically rule out a coalition or formal arrangement with the Bloc Québécois."
The Liberal Party won't try to form a coalition with any other party, Leader Michael Ignatieff promised Saturday.
Ignatieff tried to pre-empt possible questions from the media — and criticism by Conservative Leader Stephen Harper — by releasing a written statement about 45 minutes before he was due to kick off his campaign on Parliament Hill.
"We will not enter a coalition with other federalist parties," Ignatieff said in the statement. "In our system, coalitions are a legitimate constitutional option. However, I believe that issue-by-issue collaboration with other parties is the best way for minority Parliaments to function."
"We categorically rule out a coalition or formal arrangement with the Bloc Québécois."
Ignatieff says if Canada faces a minority parliament after the election, he'll work issue by issue with other parties.
This leaves Stephen Harper the only leader lying to Canadians about (his 2004 love of) coalitions.
Ignatieff tried to pre-empt possible questions from the media — and criticism by Conservative Leader Stephen Harper — by releasing a written statement about 45 minutes before he was due to kick off his campaign on Parliament Hill.
"We will not enter a coalition with other federalist parties," Ignatieff said in the statement. "In our system, coalitions are a legitimate constitutional option. However, I believe that issue-by-issue collaboration with other parties is the best way for minority Parliaments to function."
"We categorically rule out a coalition or formal arrangement with the Bloc Québécois."
Ignatieff says if Canada faces a minority parliament after the election, he'll work issue by issue with other parties.
This leaves Stephen Harper the only leader lying to Canadians about (his 2004 love of) coalitions.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Ignatieff should rule out a coalition with the Bloc...
Some free advice for the federal Grits:
In response to the next question on the coalition, Michael Ignatieff should answer: I'll never form a coalition agreement with the Bloc or lead a government that depends on support from the Bloc Quebecois. Ignatieff should also agree the party with the most seats gets the first chance to form a government.
But of course, Ignatieff should say his main goal remains to form a majority Liberal government. None of these questions of political uncertainty will matter if the Liberals win a majority government.
And leave it at that...
In response to the next question on the coalition, Michael Ignatieff should answer: I'll never form a coalition agreement with the Bloc or lead a government that depends on support from the Bloc Quebecois. Ignatieff should also agree the party with the most seats gets the first chance to form a government.
But of course, Ignatieff should say his main goal remains to form a majority Liberal government. None of these questions of political uncertainty will matter if the Liberals win a majority government.
And leave it at that...
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Guy Giorno's BIG LIE: Another Tory minority in 2011 could stop coalition just like in 2008...
Yes, it looks like a big theme in the upcoming Tory election campaign will be: vote Tory and give us a majority because otherwise the opposition parties will form a coalition with the Bloc Quebecois and the country will go to hell...yada yada yada...
If this logic were true, we'd have a coalition government right now. But we don't. Why not? Because Stephen Harper, as leader of a minority Conservative government in 2008 faced with possible defeat to a coalition, prorogued Parliament. The move killed the coalition in its tracks.
If it worked in 2008, why wouldn't Harper just shut down Parliament again this year should he win another minority in the upcoming election and be faced with this 'inevitable' coalition?
And more importantly, why aren't more reporters asking the Tories this question today? When will the media do their jobs and ask these Tories these tough questions before they continue to spin this bunk?
If this logic were true, we'd have a coalition government right now. But we don't. Why not? Because Stephen Harper, as leader of a minority Conservative government in 2008 faced with possible defeat to a coalition, prorogued Parliament. The move killed the coalition in its tracks.
If it worked in 2008, why wouldn't Harper just shut down Parliament again this year should he win another minority in the upcoming election and be faced with this 'inevitable' coalition?
And more importantly, why aren't more reporters asking the Tories this question today? When will the media do their jobs and ask these Tories these tough questions before they continue to spin this bunk?
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Justin Trudeau shows very poor judgment...
So much for the political judgment of Justin Trudeau. This was pretty daft on his part, I must say. Sometimes, opposition critics feel the need to criticize the government for the sake of criticizing. This should not have been one of those times.
Honour killings are barbaric and putting that in a document outlining Canadian values to new immigrants is perfectly acceptable, in my opinion.
I'm also glad that gay marriages are finally mentioned in this citizenship guide. It's about time!
********** UPDATE
Finally, some better thought-out comments from Trudeau today lessens the damage from yesterday's musings: “My problem with the use of the word barbaric is that it was chosen to reassure Canadians rather than actually change unacceptable behaviours,” he said on Twitter.
“The subjective value loaded into that word makes it easy to dismiss as an insult, rather than a statement of basic, simple fact,” he added.
Instead, he suggested describing such acts as “totally unacceptable,” a phrase he says is “clear, strong, and objective, without being ‘us civilized, you not.’”
On that front, he is making some sense. The Harperites have cut funding to women's groups and the kinds of community organizations in minority communities that help women escape domestic violence. It is typical of Conservatives to use 'pejorative' language to attack a problem, but then do little to nothing to actually deal with it.
Added a senior Ignatieff official today on this issue: “It’s disappointing that the Conservatives think that a mention of violence against women in this guide is a sufficient strategy to actually combat violence against women...If Stephen Harper claims to be concerned about violence against women, why has his government refused to develop a National Violence Against Women Prevention Strategy that the House of Commons unanimously endorsed in 2008?”
Honour killings are barbaric and putting that in a document outlining Canadian values to new immigrants is perfectly acceptable, in my opinion.
I'm also glad that gay marriages are finally mentioned in this citizenship guide. It's about time!
********** UPDATE
Finally, some better thought-out comments from Trudeau today lessens the damage from yesterday's musings: “My problem with the use of the word barbaric is that it was chosen to reassure Canadians rather than actually change unacceptable behaviours,” he said on Twitter.
“The subjective value loaded into that word makes it easy to dismiss as an insult, rather than a statement of basic, simple fact,” he added.
Instead, he suggested describing such acts as “totally unacceptable,” a phrase he says is “clear, strong, and objective, without being ‘us civilized, you not.’”
On that front, he is making some sense. The Harperites have cut funding to women's groups and the kinds of community organizations in minority communities that help women escape domestic violence. It is typical of Conservatives to use 'pejorative' language to attack a problem, but then do little to nothing to actually deal with it.
Added a senior Ignatieff official today on this issue: “It’s disappointing that the Conservatives think that a mention of violence against women in this guide is a sufficient strategy to actually combat violence against women...If Stephen Harper claims to be concerned about violence against women, why has his government refused to develop a National Violence Against Women Prevention Strategy that the House of Commons unanimously endorsed in 2008?”
Saturday, March 5, 2011
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