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Just in: All 3 opposition parties to vote against Conservative budget
March 24, 2011 - 1:43pm
The government is on the verge of collapse. Layton on right now has unequivocally rejected this budget on the heels of the other 2 opposition leaders announcing their opposition.
Off to the races.
And kathlinne petty, chris hall and janice stein (not to mention all the other talking heads up to today) are shocked that layton was against it.. Is our media that dumb, or just playing games.
I'm not shocked he shot it down..
I'm shocked at how Layton basically decimated it..
This budget is DOA,folks...
We're goin' to the polls!!
Perhaps what offended him was the 11th hour call to the backroom from Harper.
Not that he doesn't do that sort of thing, but I can imagine it doesn't look good to be seen so publicly doing that sort of thing.
His opposition was far stronger than I could have hoped for. He did decimate it.
Anyway, the government will fall within days. Friday is a likely date.
...unless they pull that HST deal out of a hat.
I guess we'll see now if Harper really wants to have an election or not.
No hats.
If Harper had changed his mind about wanting an election, he would have offered more. There were a number of things that wouldnt have cost that much.
You have to hand it to Layton - i think he knew he wanted to force an election this Spring a long time ago. If he had done what Ignatieff did and made demands back in January that were clearly never going to be met - Layton would have been ignored for the last two months and we would have already been in a pre-campaign. Instead by being coy and talking about NDP priorities Layton made himself the main news story for most of the past six weeks - even while ebing out of commission part of the time with his surgery.
I agree...
The Hail Mary that the Con's threw suggests,perhaps,the internal polling numbers over the last week are clearly starting to fall.Maybe I'm wrong and some of the ethical stuff IS starting to stick...
Another thing,and I agree with Chantal Hebert on this,everything that's in this budget is going to a priority photo-op to say the opposition shot it down.Tacticly,both federal opposition parties are going to have to after Mr.Harper on the ethical issues to put him on the defensive AND,try to change the economic channel.
And finally,this stint by Sweatervest Stevie should lay bare to all old Reformer's that Reform is completely dead..And that Mr.Harper has little,to no,pricipals left of his NCC days.He is,in that sense,identical to the Liberal party because it's now obvious that he will do anything to remain in power.That should'nt surprise anyone seeing as his government has been found in contempt of Parliament three times in the last year...
Personally,I think these ethical issues require more time to percolate with the populous,however,if the opposition wants to go..It's time to go!!!
Prepare for the Socialist/Seperatist coalition crapola to be talked about ad nauseum..
If the Con's do that,they will have no leg to stand on when it comes to any Socialist/Seperatists coalition stuff...
And the opposition will crucify him for it...
It will also show ,especially to the hardcore Reform base,that he's basically the "Eastern Bastard" they usually detest...
I've been saying all along that enough MPs will get 'diplomatic flu' and the budget will pass. Then the govt can fall on the ethics matters.
.... unless Harper decided to just pull the plug as one commentator suggested on CBC.
That might mean him breaking his fixed election date law again, but it would prevent his government falling on the ethics issue.
Slasher Jimmy says he wants to run on the budget...
No doubt,he did'nt get that all by himself,Harper did...
Makes me wonder if they really are that dumb. I mean, they're clearly not smart.
Evan Solomon: Harper's spokesman just said 1) "NO" to going to the G-G; he wants a vote on the Budget. 2) the Cons will try to force a Budget vote Thursday night ahead of the Liberal's Opposition Day Motion Friday.
If any of these idiots in parliament vote for a budget with any deficit they are not acting in the interest of the people. Even if you believe the numbers presented are true and nothing is hidden that still adds $1175 in debt for every man woman and child in Canada.
Deficits are not necessarily a bad thing in the short-term. As long as you can come back to par or a surplus over the business cycle, you need not worry. Government balance sheets should be studied with the long-term in mind.
(moved to election thread)
Any deficit is a bad thing with maybe an exception for a major natural disaster or a war where we facing an invasion. Other than that spend what you got and not a penny more.
Over the next 4 years the Cons say they will increase the deficit by $100 billion which is about $2950 for every human in the country. The big prize at the end is a surplus in year 5 of $300 million which won't cover the interest payment on the debt they accumulated.
In the late 1800's Canada build a big deficit. It was needed to build infrastructure for an expanding population. Deficits in themselves are not bad as long as the money is used wisely and the benefits outweigh the costs.
Annual deficits are meaningless, especially when costs are front-ended. Public services and infrastructure should be amortized over a generation- the generation that uses them eventually pays them back.
As I have pointed out before, government deficits are a bogey-man being used by the ruling class in an attempt to squeeze even more blood from the true productive class. Historically, governments have often defaulted on their debts, usually with positive results. See the quotation from John Ralston Saul, in his book "The Doubter's Companion" which I posted in another thread:
http://www.rabble.ca/comment/1176000/Absentia-right
God, are we in for an onslaught of bullshit from the Conservatives over the defeat of the Budget. Flaherty on The National says he has all the big economists congratulating him on his new Budget, and he says the Economist gave it a glowing review. What a bunch of horse manure. During Evan Solomon's panel with Mulcair among others, he got a tweet from the Canadian Labour Congress saying they like the budget.
Dark days and much bullshit ahead. Anyone for taking a break until this is all over?
Yeah, but who? Mulcair was clearly taken aback, and said he wanted to read the fine print of what the CLC said.
Here is the CLC release:
http://www.canadianlabour.ca/national/news/georgetti-urges-parties-consi...
I am surprised by the CLC release.
The increase to the GIS is about $50 a month. It might cover the increase to the cost of home heating and this year's inflation...
Thanks, Sean, I was beginning to question my sanity. I guess it was Ken Georgetti that tweeted Evan Solomon during his panel. Mulcair looked pissed off.
Apparently the Liberals will have an opposition day on, is it Thursday? Then a confidence vote in the House. And then Harper still has it within his power to go to the GG and say that his government has reached an impasse with Parliament and call an election. Iggy says that the Harpers are way out of line with abuse and disregard for Canada's institutions etc and conservatives crooking the public in general. But he still would not commit to a Liberal Party decision to bring down the government. I think they want to go to an election but don't want to be the named as the party forcing an election.
And Flaherty rambles on and on to Mansbridge about how world markets and even Libyans are counting on stability in Canadian government bla bla. Mansbridge asked Jimmy, if avoiding an election is all that important, then why didn't the conservatives consider working with Parliament toward a compromise?
Harper scheduled the Liberal opposition day for Friday.
"But Georgetti says the GIS should not be the long-term solution to seniors’ poverty. 'The best way to provide retirement security for Canadians is to improve the Canada Pension Plan. We want a firm commitment from this government for a gradual and fully-funded doubling of Canada Pension Plan benefits. We want a time line for implementation, as soon as the required amending formula is reached.'"
"Georgetti says that the CLC wants the government to invest in programs that help to create a stronger economy with good family-supporting jobs, and wants Ottawa to do more to help the unemployed...."
http://www.canadianlabour.ca/national/news/georgetti-urges-parties-consi...