Stephen Taylor

With one eyebrow raised

I can’t believe the news today.

In a move sure to astound, Paul Martin recruited Bloc Québecois co-founder Jean Lapierre to run as a Liberal in Quebec in the next federal election.

Does this indicate that despite one’s political inclinations or political past, as long as one is a Martinite, all is forgiven? It is good to see a seperatist become a fan of Canada again. It will also serve to take some Bloc votes from that party which makes it appear as though the Bloc is on its way out. Good strategy on behalf of Paul Martin, but what leaves me unsettled is that this man was the co-founder of the ‘federal’ party which helped the Parti Québecois bring this country to within less than one percentage point of a national crisis. Mending fences is always a difficult process and I guess that this is a perfect example of that difficulty.

If the Liberals can forgive such a former sovereigntist then perhaps Paul Martin and Alan Rock can give Brian Mulroney a call to share some laughs over a few pints. “Sorry ’bout our witch-hunt, Brian. We just didn’t realize at the time that we’d come to love those things called NAFTA and GST.”

From the Dept. of Irony

I believe that my political views are enriched by discussions with other Conservatives. I find that when we talk policy, we can argue the best approach that we should take concerning the issues of the day. However, I also engage in discussions with others who identify themselves as Liberal or as a supporters of the NDP. One of my best friends is, in fact, a staunch supporter of Mr. Jack Layton and the Orange Squad. I find that through discussion with him, I can at least understand, while rarely support, his point of view and that of other lefty Canadians.

My friend recently shared a letter that he had received from Mr. Layton and wanted to point out something he found quite ironic and baffling at the same time. I’ve scanned in the letter and you can access it below.

Click to enlarge

Jack Layton, in his letter, greases the wheels for his wide-eyed supporters:

“There are new political financing rules as of January 1. There’s a 75% rebate of your first $400! That’s right. You can now give $400 to our exciting and energetic New Democratic Party and get $300 back in a tax credit. So your donation of $400 only costs you $100. The other $300 is a loan! I’m hoping you’ll stretch to that limit right now, if you can. Because we need your help as never before to tackle the corporate drift of Paul Martin’s Liberals.”

You may be wondering… “Did I just read that right? Did Jack Layton actually bribe his members with a tax cut”. Don’t worry… Jack says it’s just “a loan!”

Let’s follow some Layton logic shall we?
1) Jack Layton is promising his members a tax cut
2) so he can take out ‘a loan’ from his members and then, ultimately, from the rest of us.
3) so that he can form the next government
4) to raise all of our taxes!

It’s difficult to understand Jack Layton’s logic, yet it’s entertaining to read his letter. From his fatherly pride over his passionate spunky team of die-hard workers “Tommy would be proud of our little team here”, to his Xeroxed ‘handwritten’ underlining of all the important parts of his letter, to the leftist rhetoric peppered throughout his piece of creative writing.

Throne speech delivered

Martin prior to throne speech So, now that the throne speech has been delivered, let’s take a closer look. The key item, it seems, in the speech was the “new deal” for cities. The NDP says that it doesn’t go far enough and the Conservatives say that it treads on the constitutional balance between the federal/provincial/municipal governments. I’m also very skeptical of Paul Martin’s “one time” two billion dollar into the health care system. Paul claims “it’s broke”, so he’ll put a two billion dollar band-aid on it and hope it holds until he’s ready to retire. Why is it broken Paul?

I keep getting a strange feeling every time that I hear the liberal spin about how this new Liberal government is going to be different from Jean Chrétien’s government, and how spending focus and policy is somehow going to shift. By the will of the Liberal party membership (including the loyal Liberals in BC), we have a new Liberal Prime Minister and he’s the “new deal” for Canadians. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Prime Minister Paul Martin was a key player in the Jean Chrétien government when he was Finance Minister Paul Martin. The allocation of government spending has been long determined and considered by Paul Martin long before he was Prime Minister. It’s not as if Paul Martin has just recently seen the books for the first time and has had an epiphany. Rather, this speech from the throne is merely the pre-election platform of empty promises by the same old government. Indeed, this government has had years to consider a better deal with cities and has had years to find a solution for their failed management of healthcare. I believe that Peter MacKay said it best yesterday, after the speech, when he said that Paul Martin is like an arsonist returning to the fire and then claiming he is a firefighter. It seems as if government turnover in this country has been reduced to the Liberal party coronation of a new leader and calling him “the new deal”.