Progressive Leaders Urge Opposition Parties to Form Coalition Government
This just in:
"For Immediate Release
November 28, 2008
Progressive Leaders Urge Opposition Parties to Form Coalition Government
OTTAWA, ON - Prominent progressive leaders have come together today to urge Stéphane Dion and Jack Layton to put partisan concerns aside and form a coalition government to serve the best interests of citizens suffering from a global economic crisis.
The open letter follows.
November 28, 2008
An Urgent Message to Stéphane Dion and Jack Layton: Only a Coalition Government Can Provide the Leadership Canada Needs
Dear Leaders,
We, the undersigned, write to you during this time of economic crisis to urge that you set aside all partisan considerations in favour of decisive action to help Canadians who are suffering and whose livelihoods are in jeopardy.
At this critical moment, a coalition government would be the most capable of delivering the kind of stewardship the economy needs, and the least likely to put partisan interests ahead of responsible government.
Barely five weeks after promising to work cooperatively with the opposition parties - representing a majority of voters - Prime Minister Harper failed to deliver a plan to halt the devastation being wrought upon hard working families. Instead his Conservative government is using the crisis to attack the democratic process, violate the rights of public servants to bargain collectively and end pay equity. Canada now stands alone as the only government in the western world without a coherent economic stimulus plan. The Harper government talks of balancing the budget by selling off assets and restraining spending, the exact opposite of the stimulus response that virtually all economists and many others are arguing is necessary.
Time is of the essence. You have an unprecedented opportunity to deliver to citizens a coalition that is capable of putting aside partisan ploys and to work cooperatively and swiftly in the interests of all.
Despite Mr. Harper's contentions, the outrage of citizens and opposition parties is not about public funding of political parties, but rather, it is about a Conservative plan that would actually deepen our country's economic crisis. The Harper government's taking party funding off the table should not be a reason for backing down from your efforts to construct a coalition government.
Please be assured that we all stand ready to offer constructive ideas on ways to help workers, their families and communities weather this storm and emerge stronger than ever.
Signatories:
Ken Lewenza, President, Canadian Auto Workers
Paul Moist, National President, Canadian Union of Public Employees
Dave Coles, President, Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada
Denis Lemelin, National President, Canadian Union of Postal Workers
Steven Staples, President, Rideau Institute
Bruce Campbell, Executive Director, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
John Urquhart, Executive Director, Council of Canadians
Mel Watkins, Professor Emeritus of Economics, University of Toronto
-30-
For further information please contact the respective organizations or Anthony Salloum, Rideau Institute"
Thread proliferation.
There is no reason not to have posted this in the existing discussion.
You might put it there now. Unless this thread takes an entirely different direction- which the opening post is not- this one will probably die naturally or be closed.
The other thread is way too long. And am glad to see all the orgs getting together on this endeavor. But the NDP is going to have to be strong on messaging their role and not cave byway of not have prominent positions in cabinet.
___________________________________________________________ "watching the tide roll away"
This list of names and organizations, and the united stand they propose, is amazing in a number of ways - and would (I believe) have been unthinkable even one week ago. I hope someone is listening. I'm certainly going to do my bit with Mulcair and with Gilles Duceppe, FWIW.
We live in very interesting times.
The concept may have been unthinkable for most a week ago but with the exception of the Rideau Institute which I'm not familiar with, the rest don't seem to be very strange bedfellows. They're all NDPers.
Uh I think that would be news to at least a couple of them
I think Ken Lewenza and John Urquhart would be surprised to be described as NDPers.
I also find it interesting that the some of the largest unions in the country seem to have worked out their own coalition on this vital political issue, with the notable absence of some others (the CLC of course, but also Steel, NUPGE, etc.). Hopefully they will join in. Even more important would be to see the FTQ (Québec Federation of Labour) lend its voice, though they will probably take their lead from the Bloc rather than vice versa.
I don't think it's newsworthy, or even all that interesting, that the Council of Canadians, the CAW and Mel Watkins want to see an anti-Harper coalition government. I mean, good on them, but I don't think it's really that novel. Or interesting.
I was shocked at the Conservative attempt to bankrupt all other parties so that they could rule without opposition. This attack on the basic principles of democracy should not be under-stated. Civilized countries provide public funding to political parties so that it is not possible for the "rich" to co-opt the government without viable opposition.
This combined with the callous response of the Conservative government to the effects of the present world crisis on Canadians shows clearly why all other parties (Liberal, Green, NDP and BLOC) should band together to form a unified alternative government.
While I have not in the past been at all trusting of the Liberal Party (and its leadership), I agree with these progressive voices that is now time to put partisan differences aside.
Furthermore, it is perhaps the time to start discussion of uniting the Liberal Party, the NDP and the Green Party (other than the BLOC, which afterall is separatist) under one banner for the next election. I am now convinced that the Conservative Party, if elected, might undermine democracy so badly that Canada would no longer be a free country with genuine choice during elections.
We do not need Canada to become like Alberta, where only one political party is financially viable enough to launch a province-wide campaign.
I don't think it's newsworthy, or even all that interesting, that the Council of Canadians, the CAW and Mel Watkins want to see an anti-Harper coalition government. I mean, good on them, but I don't think it's really that novel. Or interesting.
Ummmmm, you're kinda missing the point here.............
The newsworthy part is CUPE, CUPW, CCPA, and CEP joining in this call....
So it is novel, and it is interesting. If you don't agree with it, that's another matter. But if you want to suggest you've heard it all before, a link would certainly be appreciated.
CUPE, CUPW, CCPA and CEP want to see Stephen Harper lose and replaced with a Liberal-NDP coalition.
It's true they've never called for THAT specifically before - so I can't provide a link.
It's interesting in who's NOT there but I have a sneaking suspicions that has more to do with who could act quickly or unilaterally and who had to wait until they had a meeting of the board.
Maybe "interesting" isn't the word I should have used.
I just predict that no one will take note. It won't be reported outside rabble. (Of course the fact that it was sent out at 6pm on a Friday doesn't help either). We'll see.
www.cfnu.ca
KenS, I posted in a new thread because the other thread looked like it was about to be closed. So you are right about my needing to improve my babble etiquette...I do think the letter is very significant and newsworthy. It is not an every day coming together of players. And I believe (I hope) it is just the beginning...
Speaking of which, I just learned that we are all invited to sign the open letter to Dion and Harper: www.smartvote2008.ca
I just predict that no one will take note. It won't be reported outside rabble.
Wrong - and thanks for the update and link, Sean:
Canadian Labour Congress supports coalition if government falls
These are historic moments.
Just added my name to the growing list of people who want a change.
Don't get me wrong. I think a coalition government would be good for Canada and for Canadians. But what struck me about the signatories to this letter is that they are all male. No one from NAWL or FAFIA or LEAF or any of what's left of the Canadian women's movement.
But that's Canadian politics, eh?
Unionist, can I get a link to the press coverage you saw? Or are you just predicting? Or something else?
This comment was in the other thread but I could not respond before it was locked. It is interesting to note that a segment of the NDP-Fightback does not want to see a coalition, very interesting. Any other progressives not supporting this?
my response:
Enemy of Capital's argument of not taking a united front and holding our nose when working with the Liberals, but letting Harper ban strikes (and god knows what else is up the pipe) is wrong in my eyes.
Sure the NDP are sell outs. But they're way better than the tories.
As critical as I can be of the Grits, and the Dippers, they will be the most mature in actually working together vs. the Tories just talking about it.
I think the working class cares not about party partisanship or pure Marxist thought. They want jobs, the old UI and war resisters to stay. If they can get even some of it in a coalition, so be it. The people will decide in the next election, or demand if things get strange.
---------------------------------------------------------
why is it that polling booths look like cattle chutes?
Canada is not an island and it's important to look at the broader context. Neoconservative capitalism has been discredited the world over. That's why Obama won the election and strengthened his party's control over both houses of Congress. That's why John Howard was defeated in Australian elections last year. That's why centre-right politicians in Europe have publicly stated that capitalism needs restraint. Even in Columbia, the powerful US-backed right-wing government is beginning to show cracks. Meanwhile, the non-industrialised world, led by Latin America, is fighting back strongly. Canada is effectively alone in the world in having a standing neo-conservative government, and Harper has shown that he will not adapt. That's why he called last Fall's election in the first place, so he could have carte blanche. Well, he lost, and we were all surprised by how strongly the Liberals fought back. It's only downhill from here, because he has nothing to offer. Even some right-wing media outlets are criticising him, so hopefully that means his honeymoon is off. It's a tough job for sure, but if this coalition can work and make real progress, it can be sold.
One of the main complaints I hear about politicians is that they bicker among themselves and can't work together like adults. I think this is exactly the way this coalition has to be sold.
Somebody here want to monitor this site? I was wondering if it was a leftwing or rightwing political hack site designed to get information.
Conservative or Coalition
Somebody here want to monitor this site? I was wondering if it was a leftwing or rightwing political hack site designed to get information.
Conservative or Coalition
It looks like a woefully underused site designed tosort of gauge opinion. There just isn't enough information on there to tell yet
qoute "
Enemy of Capital's argument of not taking a united front and holding our nose when working with the Liberals, but letting Harper ban strikes (and god knows what else is up the pipe) is wrong in my eyes.
Sure the NDP are sell outs. But they're way better than the tories.
As critical as I can be of the Grits, and the Dippers, they will be the most mature in actually working together vs. the Tories just talking about it.
I think the working class cares not about party partisanship or pure Marxist thought. They want jobs, the old UI and war resisters to stay. If they can get even some of it in a coalition, so be it. The people will decide in the next election, or demand if things get strange. "
I never implied canadians care about partisanship or marxist anything. I claim that the workers party (the NDP based on trade union support also with activist element, which I support aswell) aught to represent the working class, farmers and students who elected them. sitting on capitalist governments in exchange for cabinet posts (even important ones like finance, though lets face it this is unlikely) doesnt bring in postive change for those forementioned groups. I site all former coalitions that the British Labour party participated in and other such situations in history. the bosses snap the ranks of government in times of crises and the NDP will be forced to make attacks on the workers farmers and students. this will come in the form of back to work legeslation when strikes are called and other such concessions that will have to be made to the bosses government. I never nor has the Fightback magazine suggested that the Tories should hold power. we say we should defeat the gov't and have not stated any postion on a accord. I personnally would assume an accord is fine if palatable and reasonable damands are made from the Liberals in echange for support from the NDP caucus. this ensures our voice in parliament isnt silenced in a cabinet that will enevitably attack workers, farmers and students as bad as any tory govt (if not worst if history proves true). also I dont claim to speak for the Fightback editorial board I just support its politics and agree with its postion on this issue especially, this isnt a new position that the paper has adopted it has always been published in the program.
www.marxist.com
Somebody here want to monitor this site? I was wondering if it was a leftwing or rightwing political hack site designed to get information.
Conservative or Coalition
It looks like a woefully underused site designed tosort of gauge opinion. There just isn't enough information on there to tell yet
I believe it just took life hours ago. You know sometimes sights pop up that have no history, and then become an influence in political action.
The idea of a formal electoral coalition with the Liberals is IMO a very bad idea but that is different than a legislative coalition after an election. If we had PR then we would expect our governments to be arriving at consensus on policy even though they ran on divergent platforms. However in the face of the worst crisis this country has faced in my decades on this planet I would far rather have the NDP and the Bloq (if they would come) at the cabinet table. I think it can be a good litimus test for the NDP and Bloq to see what issues emerge on the governments agenda.
A NDP Liberal minority governments if entered into would have to have at least a rough budget worked out ahead of time because if they defeat themselves in less than a year they will hand Harper a majority come the next election. A minority government, especially with three partners, requires all parties to leave at home anything they know one of the other parties would find unacceptable. The Harperites determined they could rule as if they had a majority and poked a stick in the oppositions eyes with measures that had little to do with economics. I think that the other three parties can find common ground on the major issues. If they revert to the pre-Harper era of only having a limited number of confidence votes then they should be able to last until at least the spring of 2010.
___________________________________________________________________________________________From North of Manifest Destiny
These guys are poor losers as Liberals and Conservatives have had little to differ about until now. And whats different now? Well its all about campaign donations as issues of freedom of speech get little attention. So the complaint is if they do not have the money to campaign from the federal government they do not stand a chance of winning? So they are going bring down the government yet they say they don't stand a change to win? I'm lost and so did they and if they don't like the decisions made well they don't need to bring down the house they need to get on with politics as usual instead of over throwing a government during hard economic times. Not good for Canada's economy and not good for the Liberals or the NDP as they just put us through a media frenzy of commercials and I'm pretty sure Canadians are not going to be into another round.
I find this amazing!
The main purpose of the public subsidies is to replace donations made by the "rich" and "powerful" in our society to our political parties (that is, the banks, oil companies, unions, et cetera). This would prevent them from having too much influence over the government of the country. This is commonplace in most other democractic countries and any attack on the public subsidies would be viewed as a direct attack on democracy.
I do not much trust the Liberals (in many respects, I believe they have brought the situation on themselves). On the other hand, I do not want to see a one-party state in Canada (where only the Conservatives, the party of the rich, have the funds to launch a reasonable election campaign).
Even in the United States, there is public funding of the political parties in order to prevent the destruction of democracy. Obama decided to forego this funding (while McCain took it) as he believed he could raise more than what the government would provide. I do not agree with this as it means that the leader of the country can be "bought" by supporters.
I fully support the other political parties guaranteeing the survival of democracy by forming a coalition government. While I agree that the present economic situation is important and that the Conservative government has a grossly inadequate response to the situation, I believe that the more compelling reason for the coalition government is the preservation of our democracy.
And Obama will take his positions some center to the right and some center to left as the economic crisis unfolds as their is no set perscription for an ailing economy. And thats whats needed is someone flexible as to see the bigger picture and not stuck on all this neo con stuff and rather find common ground like the country and whats best for her people. Instead of whats best for the Liberals and the NDP as they see an opportunity to go to battle again. The Liberals have no leader and the NDP is in a position to be an effective opposition rather than a coalition to disrupt governments ability to make decisions. And the Feds need to get real too and hear out the opposition and come up with some packages that will truly stimulate the economy. And since there are no set solutions they will not all be the end all be all but collectively they may be just what this country needs.
A vote for the NDP is a vote for Harper. Remember that slogan as the Liberals pushed one commercial after another on how they should be the chosen ones? Well they weren't and thats democracy at her finest this coalition is democracy at her lowest. And as far as the Liberals go they were in pretty much the same position before they lost the previous election and nothing much has changed except they have no direction other than to cause havoc. Investors will be greatly turned off with Canada's instability.
___________________________________________________________________________________________From North of Manifest Destiny
And spending all that money isn't whats needed at this time however thanks to the media and the information age don't need to spend the cash to get a name for yourself. Just start doing, start talking, and the rest will start happening as real time takes over changing the way voters choice their politicians. So there is hope for a more democratic society as big media and big money no longer decide who they will put into office.
And it wasn't the electorate that said they didn't trust them at first it was the commercials who went on and on how Harper's government could not be trusted prior to the election and all that campaigning. Prior to that Harper's government was viewed as highly favorable in the poles while Liberals were not and the NDP were seen as an effective opposition while Liberals seen to be on same page. So let face it media spins the tell and we get the tall tells. Just think if the Liberals were in we would now have are Carbon Tax which would have been a real hardship for many Canadians and makes you kinda wonder exactly what this coalition has in store for you? Democracy? Taxes?
Good on the unions for rallying around this idea. It gives the Liberals, BQ, and NDP reason to push forward knowing that there are large elements of Canadian society coming in to support the idea.
I was waiting for NUPGE to pronounce, and am glad to see they have. The quote below is from president James Clancy:
Stephen Harper puts partisanship above public interest
“If the prime minister is not prepared to withdraw his partisan and ideological agenda and concentrate on the economic crisis, then the opposition parties must form a coalition and defeat the government.”
Emphasis added.
This movement is snowballing. Thank you, Mr. Harper!
I hope that the signatories to this release can organize calls for public demonstrations of support for a coalition.
This is a really exciting, creative and appropriate opportunity for Canada. It will be great to see NDP in action.
Most importantly, it will show that Canadians really don't want the US style divisive politics that Harper and his ReformCons represent. It is a real made in Canada response!
This declaration represents an historic betrayal by people who claim to be leaders of the labour movement.
They call for the Canadian labour movement and the Canadian left to put aside our differences with the Liberal Party unconditionally and get behind an effort to install a Liberal-led government in Ottawa. And why? Simply for the sake of putting Liberals in charge instead of Conservatives.
Buzz Hargrove was rightly excoriated at great length by babblers for endorsing "strategic" voting for Liberal candidates. Now it seems the rest of the labour bureaucracy is falling in line with him and babblers are drinking the Liberal Party kool-aid along with them.
The most shocking thing is that this comes at a time when the capitalist class has made it clear that they intend to fight the current economic crisis by appropriating trillions of dollars of our money to bail themselves out, while proposing to cut back on spending to help the vast majority of workers who are the real victims of the impending recession/depression. And meanwhile real action to fight climate change is being ruled out because of the hardship it will create for the capitalist class.
This unconditional call for a Liberal-led government is devoid of any context of maintaining the independent struggle of the workers to defend their hard-won gains and protect themselves against the economic blows still to come, and even makes it harder for them to do so.
This is a call for the Obamafication of Canada.
Instead of a real left alternative, independent of the capitalist class and rooted in the workers organizations, Canadian workers are to be presented with the Liberal Party as the only "practical" alternative to the Conservatives, just as Obama was packaged as the only "practical" alternative to McCain. When Canadian politics becomes a U.S. style duopoly, we can look back on this moment as the time when the tide turned decisively against independent working class politics.
I don't think it's newsworthy, or even all that interesting, that the Council of Canadians, the CAW and Mel Watkins want to see an anti-Harper coalition government. I mean, good on them, but I don't think it's really that novel. Or interesting.
Ummmmm, you're kinda missing the point here.............
The newsworthy part is CUPE, CUPW, CCPA, and CEP joining in this call....
So it is novel, and it is interesting. If you don't agree with it, that's another matter. But if you want to suggest you've heard it all before, a link would certainly be appreciated.
Don't those groups sign joint letters all the time? I could swear I've seen them all endorse (eg) arms embargoes to human rights violators in the past.
Granted, this is more immediately politically significant. (And awfully good to see, of course.)
I think Iggy going along with the no vote shows ya all where the coalition lies, Bob Rae turn-coat oportunist. Bet he never forsaw how Canadians would react to being lied to over the extention of the war. We are a tolerant country but we are not brain dead. This is a no go for the government period and we do not need to form a coalition with a snake who would go along with that Empire agenda that way Iggy did.
RR
Thanks, Rocky, for reviving this thread.
That statement by the so-called "progressive leaders" seems even more fatuous today than it did at the time.
On the contrary, the coalition notion is more vital than ever. What we did not fully know at the time (Nov. 30, 2008) was the terror it would instil in the hearts of the Michael Ignatieffs and Bob Raes of this world. Building a "real left alternative", as per M. Spector, is necessary, but it does not exclude taking other concrete measures to enable workers and other marginalized sections to feel their power. Ignatieff's pro-Harper betrayal of December 2008 - and since - reinforces that truth.
I think Iggy has said something to the effect that if things don't go his way by next election, a coalition of some sort might be in the skunkworks. Today's Liberal Party elite have perfected the art of talking out of both sides of their mouth at the same time. I have no idea what he meant by whatever it was he said. Perhaps he meant that the current Liberal-Tory alliance would be ongoing. No idea. Jack has said that his door is always open to any official party leader who feels that he should begin opposing the Harpers and their pro-US and big biz agenda at some point.
I'm really astonished at how extremely neocon right wing the Liberals have become under Iggy and Rae. What are they good for, really?
According to the leaked Lisa Raitt tape of last year, the Banks are dictating a big business agenda from Bay Street. Iggy and Harper are merely cosmetic leaders. I think it's to create an illusion for us ordinary slobs that we feel as if we have a say in things on election day.
I don't think they've changed that much, Boom Boom. They blow with various winds and are subject to many pressures. No one could have imagined that Chrétien, for example, who eagerly joined the U.S. "mission" in Afghanistan in October 2001, would have resisted joining the "coalition of the willing" in March 2003. I don't think many predicted that Paul Martin would have nixed Canadian participation in the Strategic Defence Initiative, or heeded Chrétien's call to support same-sex marriage, or been pushed into a national child care program and the Kelowna Accord and such. A couple years before or after, any of these could have gone differently.
So what are they good for? Adding numbers to a coalition to slow down and halt the Harper juggernaut, which knows no vacillation of the Liberal variety. Giving the people a sense of power that they can achieve something politically, even when none of the parties (including NDP and BQ) are consistently on their side. Of course there is the danger that someone will acquire illusions that the Liberals are "on our side" if we play the coalition game. But they may acquire the same illusions about the NDP or BQ.
No one is "on our side". It's just us. We've been losing so long, we need some victories. And as my experience in the union and peace movements have taught me, victories can make some strange bedfellows.
I remember this period. Right before the coup.
We've been losing so long, we need some victories. And as my experience in the union and peace movements have taught me, victories can make some strange bedfellows.
Good point, actually.
He and Manley had done their part stooging for the US years prior in 1994 with signing the most US-friendly trade deal in American history. I think the CIA and Hollywood must have suggested that Chretien step down and let a new stooge takeover for appearance sake. And many Canadians were fooled apparently.
Canada's Covert War in Iraq Richard Saunders