Election campaigns get a lot of attention for an obvious reason: they can undo governments.But political life goes on continuously, if less noticeably, as groups try to secure government support. Want something from those in power? Pledge your support. Clients and patrons — that is what the Ancient Romans called it — and this form of political trading goes on, mostly out of sight, throughout the political calendar.

Usually by the time the writs are dropped, and the parties are out on the hustings, the deals have made. Once the election jousting begins, favour-seeking stops, momentarily, until the next parliament is chosen, and power is re-allocated.

But someone forgot to explain this to Buzz Hargrove.

The U.S. owned auto industry is in trouble. When Detroit talks plant closures, as Ford did about a Windsor engine facility, think corporation negotiating with governments to see who can invest the most in keeping their share of auto production and jobs.

When CAW president, and longtime NDP member, Buzz Hargrove does a photo-op with the Liberal Prime Minister, puts a CAW-TCA jacket on Paul Martin, and says, we need to elect as many NDP and Liberals members as possible, think Liberal investment in the Canadian auto industry to protect CAW members jobs and future.

Hargrove knows what everyone knows about the likelihood of a Paul Martin government. When you need your government to back you up in big three bargaining, it helps to be able to take some credit for putting it in office.

If there is going to be a Liberal minority government, the CAW wants to be seen to be making it happen, so it can get something for its members in return.

But a Liberal minority government only works for labour with the NDP holding the balance of power. Elect enough Liberals, and you get Conservative policies. Three successive Chrétien majorities with Paul Martin leading the way on policy made Brian Mulroney look pink.

To elect New Democrats you have to defeat Liberals. For the Liberals to remain a minority, having a ton of Bloc voters in Quebec helps a lot, but only NDP members can swing the policy agenda left.That would be true if the Conservatives, not the Liberals, formed the minority.

The scary Tories want to reduce the GST rate from seven percent to six, and then to five.Economists spoke out against this, so it is worth a second look.

Richard Shillington of Tristat has shown how such a move would favour lower income Canadians. No wonder economists are against it. And the outgoing Liberal Finance Minister tried to pretend it would have the opposite effect, helping out the rich.

Now, if anyone should know about helping out the rich it is the Liberal Finance Minister. He cut taxes on corporate dividends.

Corporate profits are at record levels, so he reduced taxes on them.Cutting taxes on foreign-owned oil companies, as the Liberals did, may be one of the greatest giveaways by government in the history of humanity, let alone Canada.

Big oil does not need the money, obviously. Oil money is gushing out of Canada in the form of windfall profits because the U.S. price of oil, which is the proxy for the world price, is up considerably. Canadian oil production costs are stable, so the higher revenues from higher prices are going straight to the richest of all foreign corporations.

Watching a government let money generated in Canada get away like this makes building pyramids in the desert of Ancient Egypt look like smart public works.The Liberals should have brought in a surtax on corporate excess profits, not cut corporate taxes; and spent the considerable tax revenue making things better for those less well off, not helping out U.S. owned corporations.

But Liberals are not going to tax commodity producers when world price hikes put money in their pockets.

The deal with the corporate sector was struck decades ago: they run the show. When things are good they get the spoils. When they are bad, they get government money. Liberals protect big business, faithfully, and, in return, get big support from business. It is noticed in business circles that Liberal leaders, such as Martin, and David Emerson (Vancouver-Kingsway, Minister of Industry) are businessmen themselves.

Only a strong NDP caucus has the opportunity to force the Liberal hand on corporate taxes. And, the reason we have an election is the Liberals wanted to make corporate tax cuts, and give corporations public money for medicare, and the NDP said no.

This election is about a new government contract with Canadians to provide the services needed to improve the quality of life in this country. That requires reining in corporate greed. It means sharing the costs according to ability to pay. It will not happen unless the NDP can get a majority in the next parliament to sign on.

The election campaign is about getting the negotiation of a new contract between parliament and people out in the open where it belongs.

Duncan Cameron

Duncan Cameron

Born in Victoria B.C. in 1944, Duncan now lives in Vancouver. Following graduation from the University of Alberta he joined the Department of Finance (Ottawa) in 1966 and was financial advisor to the...