Day 14 — Harper platform: The Vancouver Sun reports, “The Conservatives will release their platform on Friday in Toronto, setting the stage for their leader, Stephen Harper, to provide more detail to voters about what the party would do with the majority mandate it seeks. Harper will be at the campaign event where the platform is released, said the Tories’ national campaign chairman, Guy Giorno.” This will take place at the Mississauga Convention Centre, Hall D, 75 Derry Road West at 10 a.m. ET and cover five main areas — families, jobs, balancing the books, crime, and defending Canada.

Crime focus: The Calgary Herald reports, “A Conservative majority government would bundle (at least 11 unpassed crime bills) into one bill and push it through Parliament within 100 days, Stephen Harper will announce today in unveiling his party’s platform…” The Liberals have said they would cut the $10 billion to $13 billion the Conservatives plan to spend on ‘U.S.-style mega-prisons.’

Harper’s climate crimes: The Vancouver Sun reports, “Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his international colleagues have not gone far enough to avoid ‘dangerous’ climate change, according to an Environment Canada report that could cause problems for the Conservatives on the campaign trail. …Climatologist Andrew Weaver, at the University of Victoria, said (the Environment Canada climate) report highlights the ‘hypocrisy’ of the Harper government’s approach to climate change. The Conservatives agreed internationally to take steps to help keep warming below the 2 C threshold, but the government continues to promote expanded use and export of Canadian oil and coal that are driving up emissions.”

Environmental question for leaders’ debates: The Council of Canadians has signed a letter — along with Association québécoise de lutte contre la pollution atmosphérique, Centrale des syndicats du Québec, Écojustice, MiningWatch Canada, Coalition EAU SECOURS!, Greenpeace Canada, National Union of Public and General Employees, and others — calling on the broadcast consortium “to ensure that the federal leaders’ debates (on April 12 and April 14) include questions and time for discussions pertaining to the environment.”

Other platforms: The Liberal party platform was released last weekend. Council of Canadians analysis on their water and climate policies can be read here and here. The Green Party platform was released yesterday. To read it go here. The NDP platform will be released on Sunday. The Bloc Quebecois platform came out last week.

Not out of the bubble yet: Yesterday, Conservative leader Stephen Harper said, “If anybody is kept out of any of our events that’s there to hear our message, we obviously apologize to them.” Anybody? Media reports indicate that at least eight people have been turned away from Conservative rallies. Does this mean the Conservatives will no longer screen for Facebook pictures, petitions signed, T-shirt slogans, youth who sing O Canada, etc.? No word on that yet. Be sure to blow a bubble (even a bubble-gum bubble!) for democracy and burst Harper’s campaign bubble by going to our action alert. The first pictures can now be seen at this same web-link!

Unwilling to debate: The Globe and Mail reports, “Some Conservative candidates across Canada are emulating Stephen Harper’s tightly scripted election campaign by refusing to attend all-candidates debates or appear before the media. The Conservative leader has earned much criticism for avoiding unscripted forums, a practice that opponents are calling a bubble campaign.” According to the newspaper, Conservative candidates in this category include Deepak Obhrai (Calgary East), Diane Ablonczy (Calgary-Nose Hill), Julian Fantino (Vaughn), Bryan Hayes (Sault Ste. Marie), Ed Holder (London West), Damian Konstantinakos (Ottawa Centre), and Chris Alexander (Ajax-Pickering). Conservatives who say they are open to debates include Gail Shea (Egmont), Laurie Hawn (Edmonton Centre), Mark Strahl (Chilliwack), Ryan Hastman (Edmonton-Strathcona), and Jason Kenney (Calgary Southeast).

New Maude Barlow election video: Maude’s second election themed video will be posted to our website — www.canadians.org — later this morning. Be sure to check it out!

Our web poll: The Great Lakes poll on our website has 172 people saying YES, more should be spent on cleaning up each of the Great Lakes than the $2 million the Harper government spent on the G20 Fake Lake. To vote, go to www.canadians.org.

Tap water drinkers unite: The Polaris Institute and the Council of Canadians released a statement yesterday expressing concern about the Harper Conservative party and bottled water. The Toronto Star had reported, “When Joanna MacDonald pressed officials further (on why she couldn’t enter a Harper forum in Guelph), she was asked if she had ever been involved with any on-campus clubs. When MacDonald replied that she had been involved with various environmental groups — including one advocating for the removal of bottled water from the university grounds — she said the official responded, saying: ‘Well, that’s probably why.'” To read our statement, click here.

Hamilton protest: Council of Canadians trade campaigner Stuart Trew was at this non-partisan student rally yesterday. The Vancouver Province reports, “Two McMaster students, Maddie Tye and Shanthiya Baheerathan, organized (a rally outside a Harper event in Hamilton yesterday afternoon) through Facebook. Tye said she expected about 250 people to attend. She said the rally would be non-partisan in nature. She said the students wanted to demonstrate to display their intentions to vote and don’t want to be ignored by the leaders. She said some of the students had attempted to register for the Conservative rally, as is required at all Tory campaign stops but were initially rebuffed. However, (some of) the demonstrators were (eventually) allowed access to the rally after assembling outside.”

Kamloops debate: Kamloops This Week reports again, “the Kamloops chapter of the Council of Canadians (all-candidates debate) will take place on April 15 at 7 p.m. at Desert Gardens Community Centre.” Chapter organized all-candidates debates are listed here.

Imagine no F-35s, it’s easy if you try: The Vancouver Province reports, “John Lennon’s widow has put the kibosh on Stephen Harper’s straining take on the classic Imagine, banning the PM’s duet from YouTube. Ono endorses versions by other artists but reacted with an ‘Oh, no!’ when she heard Harper limping along with 10-year-old Lady Gaga protege Maria Aragon during a campaign stop.” Above us only sky.

Ajax-Pickering: CBC reports, “With the Conservatives eyeing a majority government, the Toronto-area riding of Ajax-Pickering is near the top of the party’s target list. But the Liberal incumbent, Mark Holland, is a rising star in his party. The Conservatives also have a heavy-hitter in their corner, with their candidate, Chris Alexander, being a former Canadian ambassador to Afghanistan.”

Arcade Fire: The website of the popular music group states, “It is about to be voting time. Our current leader has championed some pretty destructive initiatives on everyone’s behalf… it’s really important to get out and vote on May 2nd. …Canada is still a pretty good country, and worth fighting for…”

Where the leaders are today: Harper will be at a media briefing 8 a.m., Mississauga Convention Centre, Hall D, 75 Derry Road West; a campaign event, 10 a.m., Mississauga Convention Centre, 75 Derry Road West; Campaign event, 1:30 p.m., then at a rally in Kitchener, 6 p.m., Bingemans, 45 Bingemans Centre Drive. There is no information on Ignatieff’s schedule. Layton will make an announcement in Esquimalt, 8:30 a.m. Fisgard Lighthouse Maintenance Yard, Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site, 603 Fort Rodd Hill Road. Then he will be at a town hall meeting in Kamloops, 4:30 p.m. Interior Savings Centre, Parkside Lounge, 300 Lorne Street. May will be on a whistle stop train tour that departs Toronto at 6:45 a.m., Oshawa, 7:23 a.m., Cobourg, 7:57 a.m., Belleville, 8:39 a.m., Kingston, 9:14 a.m., Brockville, 10:12 a.m., Cornwall, 10:57 a.m., Dorval, Que., 11:47 a.m., arrives Montreal 12:06 p.m.

Today’s poll: The Times and Transcript reports, “For all the missteps this week, several polls suggested national voter preferences had not shifted markedly, but there were interesting regional variations. Results of a Nanos tracking poll yesterday put the Tories at 39 per cent support and the Liberals at 30.4. The NDP was running at about 17 per cent support.”

Brent Patterson, Political Director, Council of Canadians
www.canadians.org

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Brent Patterson

Brent Patterson is a political activist, writer and the executive director of Peace Brigades International-Canada. He lives in Ottawa on the traditional, unceded and unsurrendered territories of the Algonquin...