Ottawa ON – There are two basic types of political discipline- internal party discipline and the party’s ability to restrain itself from foolish endeavours. The recent NDP filibuster over the Canada Post back to work legislation puts both types of discipline on display for the NDP. The NDP did wellContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – With all the rhetoric surrounding the Conservative government’s introduction of back to work legislation, its worth looking at previous government reaction to strikes at Canada Post. There is a long history of troubled labour relations at the corporation, for example, there were some 19 strikes, lockouts andContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – For once I actually agree with former Prime Minister Paul Martin. The occasion for this unusual situation occurred when he said “Most Canadians would not send their children to the kind of schools that Ottawa condemns aboriginals or certainly First Nations on reserves to go to… This isContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – In her final report released last week in Ottawa, retiring Auditor General Sheila Fraser stated, “Despite the federal government’s many efforts to implement our recommendations and improve its First Nations programs, we have seen a lack of progress in improving the lives and well-being of people livingContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – One of the interesting aspects of politics is analyzing what is going on and attempting to decipher some of its meaning. Rarely does what is in front of you turn out to be the whole story. More often it is but a smoke screen for what isContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – Opposition politicians whining about a government budget isn’t new, its part of their job and its what they do best. Nor was there much that was new in Harper’s budget yesterday. It didn’t contain any dramatic surprises; even the settlement with Quebec on the HST issue hadContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – NDP Premier Darrell Dexter of Nova Scotia has offered Jack Layton some friendly advice, namely dial down the volume. Pretty solid advice and hopefully Jack will follow it. It’s perfectly normal for opposition parties to criticize the government. Let’s face it that is what they do. AsContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – In an out-going interview, former House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken pointed to the advent of minority government in 2004 as the key point from which civility in the House of Commons began to deteriorate. I would go further back to 1984 and the arrival of theContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – It was interesting to hear that Layton has decided to clean up parliament by ending heckling from the NDP benches. Unfortunately he ignored Conservative MP Michael Chong’s other recommendations which would certainly have gone a lot further and dramatically changed the tone in the House. Heckling isContinue Reading
CFN – Exactly what type of background checks and vetting did the NDP do for their candidates? It is no secret that political parties insist that prospective candidates fill out lengthy application forms when an individual expects to run for the party. These forms are quite detailed, often several pagesContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – I see NDP MP Pat Martin thinks all the attention being paid to newly elected MP Ruth Ellen Brosseau is over the top. Really, that’s a bit strange coming from an MP who is known for his over the top comments and media-seeking profile. While Brosseau mayContinue Reading
CFN – PMO’s effort to appease voters upset with high gas prices is a far too obvious attempt to move the issue to the sidelines while they get ready for a shuffle and the return of parliament. Trotting Tony Clement out to make a toothless announcement just as gas pricesContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – It’s always fascinating to watch the Liberals in action. When they find something is inconvenient, they simply manipulate it to suit themselves. In this case, it is their party constitution that is inconvenient because it may not suit some potential leadership candidates. Have they learnt nothing fromContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – Layton’s assertion that the NDP is the true alternative to the Conservatives and the NDP’s reluctance to talk about a merger with the Liberals makes sense, at least that is for the next four years. Riding on his party’s election victory Layton has his hands full andContinue Reading
Cornwall Free News – Actually I have several of them… one for each leadership campaign and one for each election that the old PC Party fought after 1993, before merging with the Canadian Alliance and forming the new Conservative Party in 2003. It’s always a bit sad to watch aContinue Reading
Cornwall ON – Arrogance can lead to the downfall of many politicians, political leaders and on occasion of political parties as well. Last night Canadians taught the Liberals that lesson. Unfortunately for the Liberals, their arrogance has been on display for some time. Back in 2004, it was expressed byContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – An interesting choice of words from the Liberal leader, but people who follow politics know that politicians chose their words very carefully. That one sentence allows Ignatieff considerable wiggle room should he wish to form a government with the support of either the NDP or the BlocContinue Reading
Ottawa ON – Today Canadians found out that we are facing yet another election, the fourth in seven years. The next six weeks will be filled with the cut and thrust of politics, claims and counter claims, essentially the good, the bad and the ugly of politics. And when theContinue Reading