Monday, July 31, 2006

MI MiA

(Updated at bottom)

I've already talked about Ignatieff's silence a couple of times so I'm going to wait until all the details are public before weighing in. Politicians are human beings too (except Dick Cheney) and sometimes personal issues must take precedence. And sometimes technology and/or airlines let us down. At this point, we're just hearing about a few no-shows which have some of Michael's supporters a little uneasy. It should be noted that A BCer in Toronto sheds a bit of light on the invisibility act here.

In addition, as a supporter of a candidate other than Michael Ignatieff, I don't have a real problem with Michael spending a month in the middle of the leadership race outside of the country. In fact, I would encourage all of Gerard's opponents to go on lengthy vacations overseas for August - I hear Chile is beautiful this time of the year.

So rather than pontificate ad nauseum about the values of communication and the responsibilities of being a party leader, I'll instead take up the Frog Lady's challenge and come up with the top 10 reasons to explain Michael Ignatieff's disappearance:


10. He was flying Air Canada. 'nuff said
9. Jimmy the K had a "chat" with him
8. This is all part of a complex Cylon plan to ensnare the human race
7. Michael is wherever Andrew Coyne goes to when he vanishes without warning
6. He's too distraught over the cancellation of "The One" to campaign right now
5. Michael is simultaneously running in the Hungarian Presidential primaries
4. Has become engrossed with the blogosphere, posting frequently under his alternate identity
3. His campaign team felt this was the best way to dispel accusations that he has spent too much time outside of Canada
2. He's taking construction holidays to show he's in touch with Quebec culture
1. Stephen Harper was in charge of his evacuation from Hungary...so it might be a while



UPDATE: Via the Liberal mole, today's Team Ignatieff newsletter:

Each week we use these updates to give our team the inside scoop on what's happening coast to coast in Michael's campaign. After a few weeks of 'quiet', when Michael and Zsuzsanna were in Hungary with family, we are about to launch into the second half of this leadership campaign.

Tomorrow, Michael will be publishing an op-ed in a major national paper and doing a series of national interviews. Talking Points for everyone on our campaign team will follow in the morning to keep you up to date. From there, Michael picks up his campaign tour by heading to Manitoba on Wednesday, Kenora and Northern Ontario for Thursday, and to Quebec by the weekend.

We had previously planned to kick off our August tour in British Columbia, but an unavoidable delay on Michael & Zsuzsanna's return from Europe affected the scheduling of that trip. Michael is looking forward to heading back to BC for the Liberal Caucus meeting in three weeks and will take some additional time before the Caucus to meet with the team & all of his BC supporters. It’s a 35-degree day in downtown Toronto right now – if there’s one place we’d all like to be, it’s the west coast!



THE PRODIGAL SON RETURNS UPDATE: Iggy's op-ed is in the Globe today and it's, not surprisingly, a very well written and well thought out piece. Mind you, it trumpets the same thing every candidate outside of Brison and Volpe have already said and it would have been nice to hear this from Ignatieff two weeks ago. If Ignatieff wants to spend a month outside of the country during a leadership campaign, that's his (ill-advised, I'd say) prerogative. No one is denying the importance of family. But to go silent is just weird and would be completely unacceptable from a Prime Minister or opposition leader. Even if he was with sick family, he should have spent a few hours a week talking to the campaign team and drafting a statement on the Middle East conflict.

Say It With Me

Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.
Frank McKenna is not a candidate for Liberal leadership.


And when you're done repeating that, please try:

There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.
There will not be a fall election.

Sunday, July 30, 2006

Kennedy Generation

A few of the Kennedy youth heading to PEI this weekend have set up a travel blog to recap their wacky hijinx. Liberal MP Marc Holland has even joined in with a guest post.

On The Bubble

Just a reminder that voting for the Greatest Prime Minister We Never Had closes Monday at noon, so get your votes in. Some background information on the candidates can be found here:

Sifton Endorsement
Several candidates panned
A look at the female candidates
A look at the 19th Century candidates
Links to bios

The top 16 will make it to the next round so it might be time to quit the "bloggers for HH Stevens" campaign and start some strategic voting. Here are the standings as they sit right now:

1. Robert Stanfield
2. Preston Manning
3. Ed Broadbent
4. Tommy Douglas
5. George Etienne Cartier
6. Lloyd Axworthy
7. Roy Romanow
8. Peter Lougheed
9. John Crosbie
10. Frank McKenna
11. Stephen Lewis
12. Louise Arbour
13. Bill Davis
14. D'Arcy McGee
15. John Manley
16. Mike Harris
17. Deborah Grey
18. CD Howe
19. Mitchell Sharp
20. Paul Martin Sr.
21. Dalton Camp

Louise Arbour and above all seem safe to make it to the next round and are just jockeying for position. I've already talked about Grey and McGee so I'll give a quick run-down on the other candidates between 13 and 21 who have a chance to make it to the knock out round (no one else appears to be within striking distance).


13. Bill Davis: It's no secret that I have a soft spot for Ontario education ministers and that's where Davis first made his mark, dramatically reforming the education system in Ontario in the 60s. In 1971 he won the PC leadership and majority government. However, Davis is best remembered for the minority governments he led in the second half of the 70s. Because of the minority status and the Tories urban strength, Davis brought in many progressive reforms to health, education, bilingualism, and workers rights. He also jumped into National debates on many occasions and was a strong support of Trudeau's constitutional patriation plan. Davis briefly considered running for PC leadership in 1983, before recognizing that he'd have a tough time wooing the Western delegates.


14. D’Arcy McGee: McGee was a newspaper editor and a father of confederation (as an aside, were any fathers of confederation not newspaper editors?). Before entering politics, he spent a lot of time living in Boston, so one imagines the Tilly supporters in this contest will hit him hard on that. In the 1860s, he joined the grand coalition and was a strong advocate of Westward expansion. McGee was critical of the Irish Fenian movement and it’s widely believed that that was responsible for his downfall. In 1868, he became Canada’s first, and only, federal politician to ever be assassinated. On the bright side, it did get him a hip pub named after him.


15. John Manley: As a strong supporter of John Manley during the last "leadership race", I'm glad to see him doing well in this poll. Unlike the guy who won, Manley was always an individual willing to make unpopular decisions. This caused him some grief from the anti-American wing of the Liberal Party over the years and landed him in hot water over his insane view that Canada should have a Canadian head of state. In Foreign Affairs, he was praised for his reaction to 9/11. In Industry, he was praised for his focus on innovation. In the end, he rubbed a lot of Liberals the wrong way for having the nerve to run against the anointed one and for questioning the party's membership rules. But it definitely makes an interesting "what if" to imagine how Prime Minister Manley would have performed had he been selected Liberal leader in 2003.


16. Mike Harris: The less said about this, the better.
(in fairness, there are some good things one could say about Mike Harris, but I really don't want to be the one to say them)


18. CD Howe: D'Arcy McGee got a pub named in his honour and CD Howe got a think tank. This should tell you a bit about the kind of man CD Howe was. Howe certainly fit the mould of the Liberal Prime Ministers of his era: extremely competent, focused on business, and downright arrogant. Howe was Transport Minister prior to WWII and received heaps of praise for his role in running the war effort at home as Minister of Munitions and Supply. As Minister of everything, he was instrumental in growing Canada's infrastructure through the CNR, St.Lawrence Seaway and Air Canada. However, his "what's a million" line during the pipeline debate inevitably led to the downfall of St.Laurent's government.


19. Mitchell Sharp: I don't plan to say which 16 people I'm voting for but I will say that Mitchell Sharp is one of my all time favourite Liberals and I think he'd be a worthy pick for the group of 16.

After a career in business and trade, Sharp was elected as a Liberal MP in 1963. As Minister of Finance from 1965 to 1968, Sharp put his business background to work and helped mentor along a young MP by the name of Jean Chretien. In 1968, Sharp tossed his hat into the ring for Liberal leadership. However, when crisis hit the Canadian dollar during the campaign, Sharp abandoned his campaign to focus on his job as Finance Minister, putting the country's well being ahead of his personal ambition. Because of this, he was forced to drop out of the race. But by throwing his support behind Pierre Trudeau, he gave Trudeau the credibility with right wing and establishment Liberals necessary to win (I do realize that by giving him credit for making both Chretien and Trudeau what they were, I've probably killed any chances he had in this contest).

Throughout his career, Mitchell Sharp performed well in all Cabinet portfolios, displaying a refreshing amount of sincerity, honesty and loyalty. While he may not have had the flair of some politicians, he certainly would have made a very capable Prime Minister.


20. Paul Martin Sr.: Had this contest been run three years ago, I suspect PM1 would have been a final four contender; needless to say, the sins of the son have probably hurt the father's popularity. It's a shame too, since I was hoping to be able to write an "alternative history" where Martin's supporters rig the rules to ensure him a win at the '68 leadership convention and, upon taking office, he purges the party of Pearson loyalists and calls a judicial inquiry into the Rivard scandal.

All jokes aside, Martin was a long time Liberal Party stalwart and accomplished a lot while in government, especially in health care and foreign affairs. As a three time leadership loser, few in this contest have come closer to the top job than Martin and I'm quite surprised that he hasn't cracked the top 16.


21. Dalton Camp: Rejected endorsement: John Diefenbaker.

Despite having never been elected as an MP himself, Camp was certainly a bright individual who could handle himself in front of the cameras. He also proved himself to be a master tactician and cut-throat when he needed to be, so it's not far fetched to imagine this Red Tory as Prime Minister of Canada. OK, maybe it's far fetched, but not "Prime Minister Fry" far fetched.



Greatest Prime Minister We Never Had - Seeding Round
Atlantic Canada
Dalton Camp
John Crosbie
Joe Ghiz
Joseph Howe
Allan MacEachen
Angus MacLean
Alexa Mcdonough
Frank McKenna
George Murray
Jack Pickersgill
Joey Smallwood
Robert Stanfield
Samuel Tilley
Robert Winters
Clyde Wells
Quebec
Louise Arbour
Lucien Bouchard
Henri Bourassa
George Etienne Cartier
Maurice Duplesis
Adélard Godbout
Marc Lalonde
George-Émile Lapalme
Jean Lapierre
Ernest Lapointe
Pierre Laporte
Jean Lesage
Rene Levesque
Jean Marchand
D'Arcy McGee
Frank Scott
Ontario
Edward Blake
Ed Broadbent
George Brown
Sheila Copps
Bill Davis
George Drew
Eddie Goldenberg
Mike Harris
Paul Hellyer
CD Howe
Warren Kinsella
David Lewis
Stephen Lewis
Donald "The Donald" MacDonald
Flora MacDonald
Barbara MacDougall
John Manley
Paul Martin Sr.
Agnes McPhail
Oliver Mowat
Allan Rock
Mitchell Sharp
OD Skelton
Western Canada
Bible Bill Aberhart
Izzy Asper
Lloyd Axworthy
Dave Barrett
WAC Bennett
John Bracken
John Brownlee
Iona Campagnolo
Larry Campbell
MJ Coldwell
Stockwell Day
Gary Doer
Tommy Douglas
Gary Filmon
James Gardiner
Deb Grey
Mike Harcourt
Elijah Harper
Ralph Klein
Peter Lougheed
Ernest Manning
Preston Manning
Don Mazankowski
Nellie McClung
Audrey Mclaughlin
"Duff Man" Duff Roblin
Roy Romanow
Ed Schreyer
Clifford Sifton
HH Stevens
Wilhelmus Nicholaas Theodore Marie Vander Zalm
JS Woodsworth

(view results)

Saturday, July 29, 2006

The Daily Dinning Returns

I must say, I'm downright giddy after reading this gem from Paul Wells. Apparently my best buddy Jim Dinning personally donated $25,000 to the Paul Martin campaign back in 2002 (this certainly won't help to dispel the frequently made comparisons between Dinning and Martin). Here's the text of the letter which I can only hope will be reprinted in every newspaper in Alberta over the next few days:

February 7, 2002

Mr. Jim Palmer
[Address]

Dear Jim,

Further to your conversation with Steve Snyder, I am pleased to provide you TransAlta's support for Project 2000.

On a personal note, I worry that our governments across the country have become a 'hotbed of rest' and I can only hope that Mr. Martin and others might be able to re-inject a sense of urgency, passion and priority into the affairs of our nation. Soon.

Kind personal regards,

[Signature]
Jim Dinning
Executive Vice President
Sustainable Development and External Relations


Now, for those of you confused as to why this would be a major scandal (besides the misleading statements Dinning gave back at the time that Wells gets into), let me explain a bit to you about Alberta politics. Albertans are very forgiving people. If you make fun of people on AISH, they'll forgive you. If you throw a book at a young girl, they'll forgive you. If you say that ranchers should have "shot, shoveled, and shut up" rather than reporting Mad Cow cases, they'll forgive you. If in a drunken stupor, you go and berate homeless people at a shelter, they'll forgive you.

But there is one thing Albertans will not forgive you for.

And that one thing is being connected to the federal Liberals. So I suspect donating $25,000 to Paul Martin's campaign will not go over extremely well with the PC members in this province. Just a hunch.

What If Politics: The French Connection

I won’t have time to profile each and every candidate for the Greatest PM we never had (check out some other profiles here) so I’ve been trying to examine the people who might otherwise be overlooked. Thus far, I’ve profiled the female candidates and those who made their mark in the 19th century. Today, I examine the Quebecers: They may not be as well known in English Canada but quite a few good Prime Ministers have come out of that province so it's worth a look. Tomorrow I’ll take a look at the candidates “on the bubble” for making it to the group of 16.

So, here’s a look at the contenders from La Belle Province. I’ve decided not to profile the separatists (and whatever the heck Jean Lapierre is) but if anyone wants to make a strong case for Prime Minister Levesque or Bouchard, I’m all ears.


Maurice Duplessis
Are you one of those people who thinks democracy is way overrated and that the country would be a lot better with an iron fisted dictator? Well, then, Maurice Duplessis may be the candidate for you. During his close to 20 years as Premier, Duplessis instituted the Padlock Law, cracking down on freedom of the press (and, worst of all, he often only selected press gallery reporters questions from his list instead of their list). His tight alliance with US business and the Church helped hold him in power, as did some of the dirtiest election tactics ever seen in Canada.

Adelard Godbout
Liberal Premier of Quebec during the interlude of Duplesis’ reign. By, all accounts, he did more for Quebec in those five years than Duplesis did in the 15 which followed. Godbout gave women the right to vote (in 1939…), made elementary school attendance compulsory and reformed the education system. He gave workers the right to unionize and founded Hydro-Quebec. Unfortunately, his support for Mackenzie King cost him the 1944 election, fought in the midst of the conscription debate.

Marc Lalonde
Lalonde is best remembered in Calgary as the Energy Minister who brought in the NEP. I’m going to go on a hunch and say that Lalonde will not get a lot of votes from Conservative Albertans in this contest. A close advisor to Pierre Trudeau, Lalonde also served in a wide range of Cabinet position over the years, including Finance.

Pierre Laporte
A tragic figure is ever there was one. Laporte was a fierce critic of Maurice Duplesis and was seen as one of the key progressives in Jean Lesage’s equipe du tonnerre. He was a leadership candidate in the convention which selected Robert Bourassa as party leader and went on to serve as immigration Minister under Bourassa’s government. During the infamous October Crisis, Pierre Laporte was kidnapped, then murdered, by the FLQ’s Chenier cell. Under 50 at the time, it’s not hard to imagine Laporte going on to bigger things had he survived.

Jean Lesage
I’m actually surprised Lesage hasn’t fared better in this poll. After serving 13 years in King and St.Laurent governments, Lesage left federal politics in 1958 to become leader of the Quebec Liberal Party. Under the "Maîtres chez nous" slogan, Lesage’s win in 1960 is often seen as the defining moment in the Quiet Revolution. Lesage’s government brought in massive reforms in nearly every field, making substantial progress in education and health, while curbing the power of the Church. They also nationalized hydro power, leading to a powerful Hydro-Quebec. Lesage began the all-too-familiar tradition of Quebec Premiers trying to get more from Ottawa and as much autonomous power as they can possibly squeeze out of the federal government.

Ernest Lapointe
Had Mackenzie King not stuck around for so long and the Liberals gone ahead with their alternance tradition, there is little doubt that Ernest Lapointe could easily have become Prime Minister of Canada. Lapointe served for close to 40 years as a Liberal MP and was King’s Quebec lieutenant for much of that time. During his dozen years as Justice Minister, Lapointe made great strides for Canadian independence on the international scene and was busy at home, often locking heads with William Aberhart’s government in Alberta.

Georges-Emile Lapalme
Lapalme is currently sitting dead last in this contest so it’s really gonna take a Herculean sales pitch to get him into the next round. Like Lesage, Lapalme was a federal Liberal who jumped to the provincial scene to become PLQ leader – the only problem is, he jumped a decade too early. He fought hard against Duplessis as opposition leader for much of the 50s, and was the Deputy Premier under Lesage’s government when they finally took office.

Jean Marchand
Marchand was always the wise man Pearson wanted in ’65 – Trudeau coming with him was only at Marchand’s insistence. So it’s not hard to see a scenario where Marchand, and not Trudeau, turned into the francophone candidate to become Prime Minister in ’68. Marchand made a name for himself leading the strikers at the 1949 Asbestos strike, seen by many as the start of the Quiet Revolution. After winning a seat in 1965, Marchand was appointed Minister of Citizenship and Immigration and would go on to hold several key portfolios under Pearson and Trudeau.

Frank Scott
A poet and scholar who never ran for elected office, despite being involved in politics for much of his life. Scott was instrumental in founding the League of Social Reconstruction, the CCF and other left wing organizations in the 1930s. Along with Frank Underhill, he co-wrote the Regina Manifesto, often seen as the threat needed to scare the Liberals to the left. He fought hard against Duplessis’ Padlock Law and sat on Pearson’s bi and bi commission. In addition, he was also a constitutional expert and helped found several literary journals.


TO VOTE, CLICK HERE

Friday, July 28, 2006

A Very Profitable War

Cross-Posted to Gerard's OC

I just received this press release from the Gerard Kennedy campaign and I assume it will be up on his website soon (UPDATE: Globe article here). I suspect that trying to make some money off Harper's "principled stand" is bound to rub some people the wrong way because the implication is certainly that you should donate to the Tories because they support Israel.


Kennedy Condemns Immoral Conservative Fundrasing Tactics

Toronto, ON -- Liberal leadership candidate Gerard Kennedy today condemned the Conservative Party of Canada for using the recent conflict in the Middle East as a partisan fundraising tool in reaction to an appeal sent out last night from Conservative Party executive director Michael Donison.

“We have people dying and families being displaced on both sides of this conflict and meanwhile, Stephen Harper is allowing his foreign policy to be used as a partisan fundraising tool. This crosses the line.”

Under the heading, Finally - A Leader who's willing to stand up and take a tough stand, Conservative Party Executive Director Michael Donison emailed party supporters asking for "a special contribution now of $150 or $75" in response to Harper's "principled stand on the new turmoil in the Mid-East".

Kennedy called on the Prime Minister to denounce the email and state clearly that Canada’s foreign policy is not a partisan political tool to be wielded crassly for the sake of Conservative Party gain.



Here's the original e-mail:

---------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: Finally - A Leader who's willing to stand up and take a tough stand
Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2006 18:20:16 -0700
From: Conservative Fund Canada
Reply-To: donate@conservative.ca

En Francais In English

During the last federal election, Stephen Harper promised to give Canada a principled foreign policy that advances and defends the Canadian values of freedom, democracy and the rule of law. As Prime Minister, he is delivering.

Dear,

Our Conservative Prime Minister, Stephen Harper was amongst the first of the world's leaders to take a principled stand on the new turmoil in the Mid-East. Since then, leaders the world over have risen to stand with Stephen Harper. Our nation has every reason to be proud.

Admit it: Moral clarity feels a lot better than the endless equivocation we found with our previous government.

But not everyone is grateful for the strong, clear direction of Canada's new government and this includes in particular the opposition parties who are only interested in maneuvering for party advantage.

And so, I must turn to you to ask you for your support.
The fact is: the opposition is not thrilled with the growing strength of the Harper government and the resurgence of national pride Canadians are showing in their country. You need only look at their ceaseless machinations to see that they are doing everything in their power to bring this government down..

We must be ready for an election now because the opposition is blindly determined to drag the country to the polls, on any pretext they can contrive.

As a matter of public record, everyone knows the Conservative Party of Canada managed the last election without adding a dime to the Party's debt. You made that possible, it's just that simple. And if we intend to win the next election and win a majority - we need to continue moving heaven and Earth to be ready.

When an election comes, we will have just days to mount a campaign and ensure the continuance of the most dynamic and forward-looking Canadian government in recent memory. The time to lay the foundation is right now and we continue to need your help if this effort is to succeed.

It is a wonderful thing to be reminded of the power of ideals, principles in which we believe and on which we will act. We have had far too many years of vacillation on ideals and fundamental values about which the majority of Canadians are clear and certain.
Unsurprisingly, Don Martin got it just right in his July 20th National Post column, speaking of Prime Minister Harper, he wrote: " He's proven himself bold, imaginative and unpredictable. This is something refreshing on the Canadian political landscape - a leader willing to take risks to do what's right in the face of certain criticism. It stands him in stark and favourable contrast to the hesitant poll-driven Martin reign."

What did surprise me, though, were the private comments of a Liberal acquaintance, among them the following: " I have never been so proud to be Canadian. I'm thrilled that we're investing in our military. I'm thrilled that we're staying to finish a job in Afghanistan, and I'm ecstatic that we are finally taking a position on issues of global importance like what is happening in the Middle East. Please let Stephen Harper know that I've never been more proud of being a Canadian."

Ultimately, not everything is about party politics. Canadians know what's right and wrong and it is a great satisfaction even if one may not politically admit it - to have a government that has the courage to tell the plain truth.

This government is worth the fight; help us make sure we win the next election whenever it comes. We can expect an avalanche of Liberal fury to get back into power and a flood of media support for their effort. Help us keep the focus on principle and character and Canada's return to its place in the world.

I ask you to make a special contribution now of $150 or $75 to the Party today and help us be prepared to defend the decisive leadership of Stephen Harper and our New Conservative government.

With my sincere thanks,

Michael D. Donison
Executive Director, Conservative Party of Canada

P.S. - Your contribution is tax deductible. To find out the specific tax advantage of your contribution, we've provided a simple tax calculator. For more specific information on the rules governing personal contributions to political parties, click here.

If you prefer that I not contact you again by email, please click here.

Authorized by Conservative Fund Canada, Chief Agent of the Conservative Party of Canada.



Delayed Hat Tip: Public Eye Online and a BCer in Toronto had this one yesterday

Friday Link Round-Up

1. Curious where your Liberal leadership candidate of choice stands on the Middle Eastern conflict? Well, most of you will be able to find out in this Toronto Star article. With no real disagreements among the candidates on domestic issues (gasp! They all want more female MPs and support the environment. Who woulda thunk?), foreign affairs are definitely taking on a larger role in this contest than I would have imagined back in March.

2. Rumour has it, the Conservatives are set to cut Canada's participation in several international scholarship programs which is unfortunate.

3. Paul Wells savagely rips into the PLECFFPDDISTW (AKA: Council of the Federation. AKA: NAMBLA).

4. On that topic, I don't have much to say on the equalization topic since I think there's more hope for permanent peace in the Middle East than on finding a formula 10 provinces can live with.

5. Speaking of conflicts with little hope for resolution, Jason Cherniak and TDH Strategies have an interesting back and forth going on how effective Stephane Dion's environmental plan actually is.

6. Gerard Kennedy has come out in favour safe injection sites in Vancouver, taking objection to Harper's musings during the campaign to close them down. Former Vancouver Mayor, Da Vinci inspiration, Kennedy supporter, and Greatest PM We Never Had candidate, Larry Campbell was on hand for the announcement.

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Whaaaaaaaaaa?

According to Anne Coulter, Bill Clinton has "latent homosexual tendencies" because he has a lot of sex...with women.

He's gay. Because he sleeps with women. That makes him gay. Heterosexual sex is a sign of homosexuality. We're not making this up.

Just watch the video.


hat tip: Clear Grit

What If Politics: Party like it's 1899



While everyone is probably familiar with John Manley and Preston Manning, politicians who made their mark a hundred years ago are at quite a disadvantage in a tournament like this. History is written about the winners, after all. In last year's contest, the final match was between John A. MacDonald and Wilfrid Laurier so, clearly, there were some good Prime Ministers back in the day. It should therefore stand to reason that a few other 19th century politicians would have made fine leaders for this country too.


Joseph Howe
Appears to have Scott Brison’s vote in this tournament. Howe was a strong believer in freedom of the press and his influence could be felt on the Nova Scotian government over many years. Howe was a vicious opponent to confederation and after he failed to prevent it, he led a temporary ad hoc rainbow coalition of MPs from Nova Scotia who opposed the agreement.


George Henry Murray
The Cal Ripken of provincial politics with a record 27 year consecutive Premier streak. Clearly he did something right. Or maybe he just sold out to the big money potato lobby. Of note, George Murray lost five elections before finally being elected to the provincial legislature (so he's really Tony Clement's role model).


Samuel Tilly
Tilly was New Brunswick Premier and a strong supporter of confederation. It was Tilly’s suggestion to use “from sea to sea” as our motto, so he's the one to blame for the 30 letters to the editor in the Globe I see every day about changing our motto to "sea to sea to sea". Tilly entered federal politics in 1867 and served for over 7 years as Minister of Finance (never once running a balanced budget – shame!).


Henri Bourassa
Bourassa is certainly not a member of the Michael Ignatieff school of foreign policy and he resigned as a federal Liberal in 1899 because of a disagreement over Laurier's decision to send troops to the Boer War (he felt it was a snap vote with no real time for debate). Bourassa founded Le Devoir and used it as a vehicle to criticize many of Laurier's pro-British decisions and helped contribute to Laurier's defeat in 1911 (leading to the election of a pro-British Tory government – d’oh!). Bourassa, not surprisinglym fought hard against conscription in the first world war and developed a reputation as the defender of the French Canadian people.


George Etienne Cartier
This is an individual who I really feel is worthy of a final 4 appearance in this tournament and he’d certainly make for a worthy winner. Carter was MacDonald's right hand man in the pre-Confederation Parliament and helped set up the grand coalition with George Brown. He was a fierce advocate of confederation and deserves much of the credit for bringing Quebec onside with the idea (or, “most of the blame”, if you prefer). According to my good friends at wikipedia, he also:

played a leading role in pushing through legislative reform that effectively abolished the semi-feudal seigneurial system of land ownership in Lower Canada, turning its legislative council into an elected body of representatives, and pushed successfully for the adoption of the Civil Code within the province.

Cartier was one of MacDonald's most trusted Ministers and he often sat in for the PM when John A. was “under the weather”. In other words, he was the Prime Minister of Canada. He negotiated the deals to bring Manitoba and BC into Canada, as well as the construction of the trans-Canada railway.


Edward Blake
Edward Blake is the only federal Liberal leader to never become Prime Minister. So, consider him the Liberal counterpart to Stanfield…or Drew…or Bracken…or Manion…or, well, you get the picture. Blake became Ontario Premier in 1871 and led the original Mad as Hell tour against John A. MacDonald’s pacific scandal, helping to bring down the PM. He became Liberal leader in 1880 and “never lost his Clear Grit style and ability to bore an audience for hours on end with pedantics”.


George Brown
Founder of the Toronto Globe (1851 headline: “LIBERAL-CONSERVATIVES SURGE AHEAD IN SOUTHERN ONTARIO!”). Brown wrote often in opposition of slavery in the US south and in support of representation by population in Canada. As the leader of the clear grit party, he supported the separation of church and state and the annexation of the north west territories. His joining of the Great Coallition was also instrumental in the coming into being of confederation. He was the unofficial leader of the federal Liberals from 1867 to 1873.


Oliver Mowat
Mowat was an ally of George Brown’s and a member of the Great coalition. As Ontario Premier for 24 years, he fought hard for provincial power and decentralization, often complaining about the “$23,000 gap.” He also oversaw a lot of democratizing measures in Ontario and tried to ease tensions between Catholics and Protestants. Mowat was the equivalent of Laurier’s running mate in the 1896 election, helping the Liberals break through and form government.

Greatest Prime Minister We Never Had - Seeding Round
Atlantic Canada
Dalton Camp
John Crosbie
Joe Ghiz
Joseph Howe
Allan MacEachen
Angus MacLean
Alexa Mcdonough
Frank McKenna
George Murray
Jack Pickersgill
Joey Smallwood
Robert Stanfield
Samuel Tilley
Robert Winters
Clyde Wells
Quebec
Louise Arbour
Lucien Bouchard
Henri Bourassa
George Etienne Cartier
Maurice Duplesis
Adélard Godbout
Marc Lalonde
George-Émile Lapalme
Jean Lapierre
Ernest Lapointe
Pierre Laporte
Jean Lesage
Rene Levesque
Jean Marchand
D'Arcy McGee
Frank Scott
Ontario
Edward Blake
Ed Broadbent
George Brown
Sheila Copps
Bill Davis
George Drew
Eddie Goldenberg
Mike Harris
Paul Hellyer
CD Howe
Warren Kinsella
David Lewis
Stephen Lewis
Donald "The Donald" MacDonald
Flora MacDonald
Barbara MacDougall
John Manley
Paul Martin Sr.
Agnes McPhail
Oliver Mowat
Allan Rock
Mitchell Sharp
OD Skelton
Western Canada
Bible Bill Aberhart
Izzy Asper
Lloyd Axworthy
Dave Barrett
WAC Bennett
John Bracken
John Brownlee
Iona Campagnolo
Larry Campbell
MJ Coldwell
Stockwell Day
Gary Doer
Tommy Douglas
Gary Filmon
James Gardiner
Deb Grey
Mike Harcourt
Elijah Harper
Ralph Klein
Peter Lougheed
Ernest Manning
Preston Manning
Don Mazankowski
Nellie McClung
Audrey Mclaughlin
"Duff Man" Duff Roblin
Roy Romanow
Ed Schreyer
Clifford Sifton
HH Stevens
Wilhelmus Nicholaas Theodore Marie Vander Zalm
JS Woodsworth

(view results)

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Libranos

I think the Star lead to this story says it all:

Toronto MP Joe Volpe's rocky campaign for the Liberal leadership just keeps getting more bizarre.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

What If Politics: The Ladies

As a reminder, you can vote again every today until Monday for the Greatest PM we never had.


Given that we've never had a female Prime Minister (OK, OK, a real female Prime Minister), I figured it would be appropriate to start off the first round profiles for "best PM we never had" by looking at the female candidates in the race. To prevent this race from looking like, well, the Liberal Leadership race, it would be nice to see a couple of these candidates do well in the poll.


Alexa McDonough
Alexa became the first woman to lead a major political party in Canada when she won the party leadership of the Nova Scotia NDP in 1981. Of course, "major political party" may be a stretch, since she was the lone NDP MP to win a seat that election. No doubt Nova Scotia had very few results for people over the next four years. McDonough replaced Audrey McLaughlin after winning the NDP leadership in 1994, no doubt because most delegates were confused thinking she was Audrey McLaughlin. Despite being a strong performer in the House and attempting to make the NDP more relevant, she found the party continually marginalized during her time as leader.


Louise Arbour
One of 87 rumoured Liberal Leadership contenders to not throw her hat into the ring, Louise Arbour certainly has as impressive a resume as anyone in this contest. Well educated with a background in law, it's interesting to speculate about how her life would have gone had she entered politics instead of taking an appointment to the Ontario Supreme Court. As chief prosecutor of a war times tribunal, she indicted Slobodan Milosevic so she certainly is capable of taking on, and bringing down, imposing politicians. In 1999 she was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada and in 2004 she became the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. With a resume like this, she'd be the equivalent of a female Michael Ignatieff if she were to enter politics now.


Sheila Copps
Sheila has certainly tried to became Prime Minister more than anyone else on this list. In 1982 she ran for leadership of the provincial Liberals...and lost. In 1990 she ran for leadership of the federal Liberals...and lost. In 2003 she ran for leadership of the federal Liberals...and was decimated, before being run out of the party and politics the next spring. While many on the right strongly dislike Sheila, she's proven to be a fierce fighter time and time again - certainly an admirable quality in a Prime Minister. And having come closer to becoming Prime Minister than any of the other females on this list, she certainly deserves some consideration.


Flora MacDonald
Flora MacDonald has the ignominious record of losing to Joe Clark in the 1976 leadership convention. MacDonald was secretary of state for external affairs throughout the late 70s and early 80s and also held several portfolios under Brian Mulroney. As a Red Tory with political experience who entered the '76 convention as a serious contender, it's not hard to imagine a scenario where Flora won PC leadership and went on to have a long and successful career as Canada's first female Prime Minister (she could, after all, count).


Barbara MacDougall
Like Flora, Barbara held several Cabinet positions, including Secretary of State for External Affairs. Like Flora, she was also a Red Tory. I'll admit I don't know much about Barbara, but I do question her political judgment, given her decision to support Belinda Stronach in the 2004 CPC leadership race.


Agnes Mcphail
McPhail has the distinction of being the first ever female MP in Canada. While that ensured her a place in Canadian history and in Trivial Pursuit games, she certainly had the ability to accomplish so much more. Agnes won 7 elections, provincially and federally, and fought tirelessly to advance the issues which were important to her. As a provincial MPP, she was responsible for Ontario's first equal pay legislation. Bouncing around on the left of the political spectrum between the United Farmers, the Progressives, and the CCF, she was never in a position to become Prime Minister and but she certainly had the work ethic, political saavy and ideas necessary to be an effective leader. She also displayed some spunk - when asked by a male MP "have you ever been mistaken for a man?", she replied "no, have you?".


Iona Campagnolo
Iona is probably best know for:

a) Making a harmless comment which may have started 20 years of Liberal infighting at the 1984 leadership convention
b) Getting slapped on the bum by John Turner during the 1984 election

Because of that, a very impressive career has been overshadowed. This broadcaster was elected in 1974 and soon became Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs. She also served as Secretary of State for Amateur Fitness and Sport. However, like most BC Liberals, her political career was short lived, being defeated in 1979. She was soon elected LPC President and demonstrated the kind of leadership and action during that time one would love to see in a PM, rebuilding the party from the ground up due to her tireless work.


Deb Grey
Thanks to this former teacher, the Reform Party of Canada holds the record for the largest female representation ever in a caucus, at 100% from 1989 to 1993. Interestingly enough, her legislative assistant during this time was none other than Steve Harper. Deb showed the honour you'd like to see in a Prime Minister, always apologizing for her mistakes. She also showed the hypocrisy you expect from a Prime Minister, flip-flopping on her refusal to take MP pensions. Her frequent trips to 22 Minutes and Air Farce also showed she was never afraid to laugh at herself.


Nellie McClung
"Never retreat, never explain, never apologize. Just get the thing done and let them howl!"

Not a bad slogan for a PM to live by, eh? Nellie had always been active in partisan politics but where she really made a name for herself was in the women's suffrage movement. As 20% of the famous five, she was instrumental in the "Person's Case" and in ensuring women got the vote in Manitoba. A good writer and witty speaker, we've all seen her mock trials re-enacted on the Heritage Minutes. As a former Liberal MLA in Alberta from 1921 to 1926, she automatically gets a vote from me, despite controversy over many of her writings on eugenics and sterilization.


Audrey Mclaughlin
Audrey was the first woman to ever lead a major Canadian federal political party (if you consider the NDP a major party). She also became the first Yukon MP to ever lead a major Canadian federal political party. Unfortunately for Audrey, she had the misfortune of leading the NDP at a time when the federal NDP bared the brunt of the blame for unpopularity of Mike Harcourt in BC and a young man in Ontario whose name escapes my memory right now.

Monday, July 24, 2006

The Best Prime Minister We Never Had

Canada has had 22 Prime Ministers and, truth be told, over half of them can only be classified as failures. When you see names like Bowell, Turner, Campbell, and Meighen on the list of our former leaders, it's not hard to wonder if there was anybody out there who could have done better.

Over the years, a lot of politicians have been given the title of "best Prime Minister Canada never had". So for the rest of the summer, I'll be weeding down a list of close to 100 would be Prime Ministers until one is crowned.My hope is that this will be a fun way to learn a bit about some great men and women who gave a lot to their country, without receiving the fame of glory of...say...Joe Clark.

The first round will be to cut the field down to 16, at which point the top 16 will be seeded for head to head battles (the four regional winners will get the top 4 seeds). You're eligible to vote for up to 16 candidates every day, until noon on next Monday when the contest will be closed. Feel free to write endorsements and mobilize the vote for your candidate of choice; I'll be profiling some of our coulda-been-PMs over the next week. The ballot is bellow and I've included links to biographies of all the contenders as well:

Greatest Prime Minister We Never Had - Seeding Round
Atlantic Canada
Dalton Camp
John Crosbie
Joe Ghiz
Joseph Howe
Allan MacEachen
Angus MacLean
Alexa Mcdonough
Frank McKenna
George Murray
Jack Pickersgill
Joey Smallwood
Robert Stanfield
Samuel Tilley
Robert Winters
Clyde Wells
Quebec
Louise Arbour
Lucien Bouchard
Henri Bourassa
George Etienne Cartier
Maurice Duplesis
Adélard Godbout
Marc Lalonde
George-Émile Lapalme
Jean Lapierre
Ernest Lapointe
Pierre Laporte
Jean Lesage
Rene Levesque
Jean Marchand
D'Arcy McGee
Frank Scott
Ontario
Edward Blake
Ed Broadbent
George Brown
Sheila Copps
Bill Davis
George Drew
Eddie Goldenberg
Mike Harris
Paul Hellyer
CD Howe
Warren Kinsella
David Lewis
Stephen Lewis
Donald "The Donald" MacDonald
Flora MacDonald
Barbara MacDougall
John Manley
Paul Martin Sr.
Agnes McPhail
Oliver Mowat
Allan Rock
Mitchell Sharp
OD Skelton
Western Canada
Bible Bill Aberhart
Izzy Asper
Lloyd Axworthy
Dave Barrett
WAC Bennett
John Bracken
John Brownlee
Iona Campagnolo
Larry Campbell
MJ Coldwell
Stockwell Day
Gary Doer
Tommy Douglas
Gary Filmon
James Gardiner
Deb Grey
Mike Harcourt
Elijah Harper
Ralph Klein
Peter Lougheed
Ernest Manning
Preston Manning
Don Mazankowski
Nellie McClung
Audrey Mclaughlin
"Duff Man" Duff Roblin
Roy Romanow
Ed Schreyer
Clifford Sifton
HH Stevens
Wilhelmus Nicholaas Theodore Marie Vander Zalm
JS Woodsworth

(view results)


Atlantic Canada
Dalton Camp
John Crosbie
Joe Ghiz
Joseph Howe
Allan MacEachen
Angus MacLean
Alexa Mcdonough
Frank McKenna
George Murray
Jack Pickersgill
Joey Smallwood
Robert Stanfield
Samuel Tilley
Robert Winters
Clyde Wells

Quebec
Louise Arbour
Lucien Bouchard
Henri Bourassa
George Etienne Cartier
Maurice Duplesis
Adélard Godbout
Marc Lalonde
George-Émile Lapalme
Jean Lapierre
Ernest Lapointe
Pierre Laporte
Jean Lesage
Rene Levesque
Jean Marchand
D'Arcy McGee
Frank Scott

Ontario
Edward Blake
Ed Broadbent
George Brown
Sheila Copps
Bill Davis
George Drew
Eddie Goldenberg
Mike Harris
Paul Hellyer
CD Howe
Warren Kinsella
David Lewis
Stephen Lewis
Donald "The Donald" MacDonald
Flora MacDonald
Barbara MacDougall
John Manley
Paul Martin Sr.
Agnes Mcphail
Oliver Mowat
Allan Rock
Mitchell Sharp
OD Skelton

Western Canada
Bibble Bill Aberhart
Izzy Asper
Lloyd Axworthy
Dave Barrett
WAC Bennett
John Bracken
John Brownlee
Iona Campagnolo
Larry Campbell
MJ Coldwell
Stockwell Day
Gary Doer
Tommy Douglas
Gary Filmon
James Gardiner
Deb Grey
Mike Harcourt
Elijah Harper
Ralph Klein
Peter Lougheed
Ernest Manning
Preston Manning
Don Mazankowski
Nellie McClung
Audrey Mclaughlin
"Duff Man" Duff Roblin
Roy Romanow
Ed Schreyer
Clifford Sifton
HH Stevens
Wilhelmus Nicholaas Theodore Marie Vander Zalm
JS Woodsworth