-_-
Oh, oh. It looks like a turf war has broken out for the Liberals in Outremont
Thu, 2009-09-17 18:37
#1
Oh, oh. It looks like a turf war has broken out for the Liberals in Outremont
Thu, 2009-09-17 18:41
#2
Unless there are serious principled issues at state here, why don't the Liberals use the democratic process, and let the people of Outremont chose their own Liberal candidate.
Guerre Cauchon-Coderre dans Outremont
La tension monte entre les libéraux dans la circonscription d'Outremont. Au moment où Denis Coderre s'apprêterait à nommer une candidate-vedette pour y représenter les couleurs du parti, les militants de l'association locale se mobilisent pour faire désigner l'ex-député Martin Cauchon.
Selon nos sources, la candidate que Denis Coderre a en tête est Nathalie Le Prohon, une femme d'affaires de Montréal dans la quarantaine, qui a été PDG de Nokia et qui est maintenant membre d'une série de conseils d'administration, dont celui d'Hydro-Québec, en plus d'avoir été nommée au Comité de vérification de la Défense canadienne.
Dans une lettre envoyée hier à Michael Ignatieff et obtenue par La Presse, la présidente de l'Association libérale d'Outremont, Diane Phaneuf, a officiellement demandé au chef libéral de «bien vouloir désigner l'honorable Martin Cauchon au titre de candidat du Parti libéral du Canada dans le compté d'Outremont lors de la prochaine élection générale».
«Au cours des dernières semaines, l'honorable Martin Cauchon nous a fait part de son souhait de retourner à la vie politique active et en ce sens, il a formulé le désir de soumettre à nouveau sa candidature à titre de député d'Outremont représentant le PLC», lit-on dans la missive, signée au nom de l'Association libérale fédérale d'Outremont et de son Conseil de direction.
La Presse a aussi appris qu'un leader de la communauté hassidique d'Outremont, communauté qui représente traditionnellement une base électorale importante pour le Parti libéral dans cette circonscription, a aussi contacté le bureau du chef Michael Ignatieff pour lui faire connaître sa préférence pour la candidature de Martin Cauchon.
Rivalité
Selon des sources au PLC, l'actuel branle-bas de combat de militants dans cet ancien bastion a été provoqué par la rivalité qui existe entre Martin Cauchon et le lieutenant du Québec de Michael Ignatieff, Denis Coderre.
À titre de lieutenant, M. Coderre a la responsabilité de trouver des candidats dans les 75 circonscriptions de la province. Or, ses mauvaises relations avec son ancien collègue du Conseil des ministres l'auraient amené à tenter de l'écarter du paysage politique pour les prochaines élections.
Mais de toute évidence, cette décision de M. Coderre, qui depuis sa nomination se fait accuser à mots à peine couverts de placer ses propres intérêts avant ceux du parti, ne fait pas l'unanimité.
«Nous sommes conscients que ce comté peut être attrayant pour d'autres candidats potentiels, a écrit Diane Phaneuf dans sa lettre. Mais nous vous soumettons respectueusement qu'au cours des années passées comme député d'Outremont, l'honorable Martin Cauchon a su gagner la confiance de ses concitoyens et qu'il a l'appui indéfectible de l'organisation du comté.»
http://www.cyberpresse.ca/actualites/quebec-canada/200909/17/01-902695-g...
Thu, 2009-09-17 18:48
#3
i just read about this here: http://thedeerfieldmystery.blogspot.com/2009/09/outremont-marches-to-its...
i'd add that iggy really can't elect to let this go to a nomination meeting without the assumption cauchon would win. this is a battle.
Thu, 2009-09-17 19:15
#4
The more fratricidal war there is among Liberals in Outremont - the BETTER!!!
Thu, 2009-09-17 21:12
#5
Le Cauchon, LeProhon and le Coderre... messieurs, madame, start your mouths... and just ignore those pesky "Où est l'argent?" signs...
Thu, 2009-09-17 22:02
#6
I don't see the NDP losing that seat in the next election. I hope not anyways.
Thu, 2009-09-17 22:30
#7
Looks like Cauchon may be starting his run for the post-Ignatieff Liberal leadership.
How effective would Cauchon be as Liberal leader? I seem to recall that he did have some populist appeal, despite his urbane appearance.
As for his politics, weren't they essentially the same as Chretien's?
Thu, 2009-09-17 23:02
#8
THat's quite premature. First of all its clear that Coderre will not let Cauchon be the Liberal candidate in Outremont so he won't be an MP - unless maybe he's willing to run against a BQ MP somewhere. If Cauchon was that ambitious he wouldn't have dropped out of politics in the first place.
Thu, 2009-09-17 23:12
#9
Cauchon was definitely being groomed as Chrétien's successor by a wing of the party when he was still in the House. And as late as [b]last November[/b], he didn't sound much like a "never again" leadership candidate:
[url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/11/18/cauchon-leadership.html][color... won't run for Liberal leadership[/color][/url]
"My passion for my country has never been stronger and I have been sorely tempted to enter the race," the statement from the former federal justice minister read.
"However, while [b]my heart says yes[/b], the realities of fundraising and organization are too daunting [b]at this time[/b]."
Fri, 2009-09-18 00:18
#10
Actually compared to Ignatieff and a lot of the other clueless Liberals, Cauchon might not be a bad choice, for the Liberal party that is.
Fri, 2009-09-18 04:23
#11
THat's quite premature. First of all its clear that Coderre will not let Cauchon be the Liberal candidate in Outremont so he won't be an MP - unless maybe he's willing to run against a BQ MP somewhere. If Cauchon was that ambitious he wouldn't have dropped out of politics in the first place.
Dropping out of politics for a time is not necessarily unambitious. In fact, it may be a strategic part of a political career. Both Mulroney and Chretien dropped out, before going on to be PM.
But so did Turner, and look how that turned out. However, Turner was gone for almost a decade; with the others being out for shorter periods of time.
Fri, 2009-09-18 13:24
#12
I don't see the NDP losing that seat in the next election. I hope not anyways.
On the other hand, there wouldn't be such a big fight for the Liberal nomination if there weren't a reasonable chance of that happening.
Sat, 2009-09-19 00:28
#13
I don't see the NDP losing that seat in the next election. I hope not anyways.On the other hand, there wouldn't be such a big fight for the Liberal nomination if there weren't a reasonable chance of that happening.
Exactly. There's a reason the Liberal nomination there is such a sought after prize.
Sun, 2009-09-20 20:51
#14
Ignatieff, when it comes right down to it, does not seem like much of a fan of democracy.
Cauchon calls on Ignatieff to allow open nomination in Outremont
Former cabinet minister Martin Cauchon is putting Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff on the spot, calling on him to let grassroots members - not backroom machinations - determine the party's candidate in the prized riding of Outremont.
Cauchon, who handily won the Montreal riding in three consecutive elections before retiring from politics in 2004, confirmed Sunday that he wants to stage a comeback.
And, until last week - when Ignatieff's Quebec lieutenant, Denis Coderre, announced that Outremont is being reserved for an appointed woman candidate - Cauchon thought Ignatieff wanted him back too.
In his first public comments on the matter, Cauchon said "somebody very, very close to the leader" met with him in June and asked him to run in the next federal election in Outremont - a longtime Liberal fiefdom until it was captured by New Democrat Thomas Mulcair in a stunning 2007 byelection upset.
Cauchon, who has been practising law in Montreal, wanted the summer to think it over. After reflection, he decided about three weeks ago that he would indeed take the plunge and let Ignatieff's people know of his decision.
Having been encouraged to make a comeback, Cauchon was dumbfounded when Coderre pronounced there would be no open nomination contest in Outremont.
"To tell you that it was a surprise to me, it is just an understatement," Cauchon told The Canadian Press.
Coderre's announcement last week came on the heels of a leaked letter from the riding's Liberal president urging Ignatieff to let Cauchon carry the party's banner in the next election. The president said Cauchon is the favoured choice of grassroots Liberals in Outremont.
Many Quebec Liberals privately believe Coderre is determined to thwart Cauchon's comeback because he sees him as a threat in a future leadership contest.
Ignatieff was cryptic when asked about the apparent infighting between the two titans, saying the battle to represent Outremont was a good sign of party renewal.
Cauchon said "the next logical step" following Ignatieff's comment would be to allow an open, democratic nomination contest in the riding.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5hJ1cpeowM6b...
Mon, 2009-09-21 14:58
#15
Iggy has sided with Coderre. Cauchon is out and now Mulcair can have th easy task of running against some corporate hack imposed by Coderre against the wishes of the local riding association.
http://www.cyberpresse.ca/actualites/elections-federales-2009/partis/par...
Mon, 2009-09-21 16:07
#16
Actually ignatieff although he didn´t intend to do it, has probably done Cauchon a favour. When the Ignatieff Liberals fall flat on their face in the next election (read Gagnon today) Cauchon may be there to pick up all the broken pieces.
Why doesn´t Mulcair talk to Cauchon and suggest he run for the NPD somewhere else in Quebec. What does the NPD have to lose by proposing that.
Mon, 2009-09-21 16:09
#17
Well, you'd lose the spectre of their on-going dispute, for one thing. Which Comrade Brother Wells has summed up rather fittingly here!
Mon, 2009-09-21 16:25
#18
A Liberal blogger and activist from the left coast who now reluctantly calls Toronto home, Jeff Jedras blogs as A BCer in Toronto.
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Jeff Jedras: Liberals are making a mistake in Outremont
Quebec politics have always puzzled me and Quebec Liberal politics have always infuriated me. And I'm feeling both emotions the more I read about how the Liberal Party is blocking popular former MP and cabinet minister Martin Cauchon from even seeking the Liberal nomination in the riding of Outremont.
I'm told that, last night, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff contacted Cauchon and told him he was not going to be allowed to be a candidate for the Outremont nomination. That appears to have been confirmed this afternoon when, following his speech to the Toronto Board of Trade, Ignatieff told reporters that, while he liked Cauchon, he'd prefer a female candidate chosen by his Quebec lieutenant, Denis Coderre, to try to win Outremont back from the NDP's Thomas Mulcair.
I think Ignatieff is making a mistake here, both in supporting Coderre's decision to block Cauchon and, frankly, in giving so much-leeway to Coderre and trusting his motivations when it comes to organizing Quebec. According to many published reports, Coderre is more interested in blocking a possible rival to his own leadership bid then he is in organizing Quebec for the next election. And the way Coderre hung Stephane Dion out to dry doesn't fill me with confidence in his loyalty to the Liberal cause.
Coderre is said to favour Nathalie Le Prohon, a director with Hydro Quebec. I know nothing about her, I'm sure she'd make a fine candidate. And if she's interested, she should contest an open nomination against Cauchon and whoever else would like to run.
I do know about Cauchon, and he is exactly the kind of person we need on the Liberal team, both in Quebec and nationally. He's no stranger to Outremont; he won and represented the riding as their MP in 1993, 1997 and 2000, deciding not to seek re-election in 2004. He's best remembered as the Minister of Justice under Prime Minister Jean Chretien who helped lead the way towards the recognition of same-sex marriage and pushed hard for the decriminalization of marijuana.
Cauchon is an experienced and capable candidate who would be a cabinet shoe-in and who, in my mind, represents the progressive wing of the Liberal Party of Canada, a wing that we must put front and centre if we're going to be successful in the next election. And, almost as importantly, he's a proven winner.
I sincerely hope Michael Ignatieff will reconsider his decision, and allow Martin Cauchon to contest an open, fair and honest nomination race in Outremont. Already among the Liberal blogroots, the call for an open nomination race is growing. I believe in Ignatieff's leadership, and I hope he will listen to the grassroots here and let democracy prevail.
We need Cauchon on the Liberal team, and to sideline him is a mistake. Let Cauchon run, let the local membership decide who their candidate will be, and keep the party bosses out of the way.
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2009/09/21/...
Mon, 2009-09-21 16:47
#19
remind
OMG, I so love the polar bear's copulating picture. Did not even care what Well's had to say, the picture spoke volumes. :D
And this from a link in Well's diatribe was salient to me:
It's one thing to have a guy like Coderre around to do your heavy organizational lifting, I guess, so long as you don't allow his style of politics - which is, in a word, boorish - to define you. But that's exactly what Ignatieff will be doing if he lets Coderre strong-arm Martin Cauchon out of the Liberals' nomination in Outremont.On one side, you've got a former justice minister who was at the forefront of his party's socially liberal agenda earlier this decade, and who's taken time off from his law career to contribute thoughtful essays on the future of federalism. On the other, you've got a former immigration minister best remembered for the Shane Doan idiocy, who's managed to veer off-course even as an opposition critic.
If Ignatieff were to choose the latter to the exclusion of the former, it would say a great deal about what he looks for in people, and what he wants his party to look like.
Mon, 2009-09-21 16:55
#20
I once had the honour of meeting Quebec writer Jacques Ferron thirty years ago - when I was writing the Rhinoceros Party's spoof platform - and I plaintively asked, in reaction to his broadside against all federal politics:
"But what about the NDP?..."
His answer:
"They are merely the Liberal Party's stud farm."
What a turnaround it would be if the NDP started welcoming the best of the Grits... (which isn't very much, I agree).
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:00
#21
Iggy is at least consistent. He didn't have to run for his job as leader so why should anyone else. Cauchon sounds as left of centre as Pat Martin so it would be a real win electorally for the NDP to have him run. If left liberals want to join the NDP that is their prerogative, some defections in Ontario would be really useful to the NDP as well.
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:04
#22
remind
martin, those on who actually are on the left in the Liberals, are quite obviously going to have to start looking for a new home, because it is quite evident that power, for the sake of power, is their only enduring interest.
also, it is good thing they only looked for the NDP's 3 grade studs. ;)
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:09
#23
Yeah, but could they withstand Babble's heat???...
Re: CODERRE's shady background
From a CBC website:
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Groupe Polygone Editeurs Inc.
Based: Montreal
Between 1997 and 2003, Le Groupe Polygone Éditeurs Inc. was on the receiving end of nearly $40 million in government sponsorship funds.
In 2000, the company was paid $330,000 for a non-existent hunting and fishing show.
Notable political connections. Before becoming citizenship and immigration minister and later minister responsible for La Francophonie, Denis Coderre was vice-president of public affairs for the company.
Jacques Corriveau was a consultant.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:10
#24
Actually, the NDP has already captured the entire progressive caucus of the Liberal Party.
He's currently the M.P. for Outremont.
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:17
#25
remind
LMAO @ tommy's smart mouth. :D
martin, I doubt it, not many like the tempering of heat. ;)
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:27
#26
I kinda wish Marlene Jennings (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce) would consider it. She was quite vocal about her 28 colleagues who supported C-484 (making fetuses full-fledged Canadians... as long as they remain in the country).
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:29
#27
S'funny cause it's true.
Think about it. Most of us here are not candidate material, or interested in being a candidate or M.P. But we know what each political party stands for, both in principle, and more importantly, in practice.
Can't tell me that the Gerard Kennedy's, Ken Dryden's, Glen Pearson's of the Liberal Party know exactly what the party is about-- serving the corporate sector by tricking progressive people through bait and switch campaigning to vote against their interests.
In many ways, it's the so called "progressives" of the Liberal Party that may in fact be the most sadistic politicians of all.
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:45
#28
remind
As I stated in another thread tommy, I believe for the most part, Liberal MP's are further right than the Cons, to the point of desiring fascism so that they can remain in power without pesky elections, and are socio-pathic to boot and that they only pretend left, because they need the votes.
However, they can no longer pretend to be such with Ignatieff et al's presence at the helm. They are stuck with no way out.
And I will have you know, I am candidate material, just refused the opportunity to be such, so I guess I fall into the not interested category. ;)
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:45
#29
As long as they're Grits, yes. But if they were to switch allegiances, wouldn't they have a lot of folks keeping them honest? And they would now trick not-so-progressive people to vote NDP.
Maybe we need a [url=http://rabble.ca][color=orange]"You'd look good in orange..."[/color][/url] postcard campaign...
Mon, 2009-09-21 17:49
#30
remind
LOL, martin, but I have seen some great orange ties recently, by some who have no ties to orange.
Mon, 2009-09-21 18:32
#31
remind
'kay :D
Tue, 2021-11-23 21:36
#32
.
Mon, 2009-09-21 19:13
#33
And I will have you know, I am candidate material,
I did say most.
All the better reason to try and tear that mask off the Grits.
Yeah, but every time we try, some perfidious souls on our side glue the mask back on with stratergizin' voting.
Mon, 2009-09-21 19:18
#34
remind
Not sure how many are gung ho, I certainly am not. I could not name one Liberal, that I believe resembles anything close to "progressive".
Mon, 2009-09-21 19:35
#35
...the libs trot out their progressives as a bait and switch so that who really runs the party can hide behind these "tokens"...
(Back-edited for clarity) All the better reason to try and tear that mask off the Grits by enticing them away.
Mon, 2009-09-21 19:41
#36
I could. "Hug a Liberal" was the mantra of the N.S. NDP, according to Matt Hebb in Alberta the other weekend. But Martin Cauchon was raised in the party. You won't get him and probably wouldn't want to.
Mon, 2009-09-21 19:50
#37
Can't argue with old-school cynicism... but I'm sure many would have said the same thing about Mulcair a few years back.
Mon, 2009-09-21 19:57
#38
remind
Never knew about Mulcair a few years back. ;)
Mon, 2009-09-21 20:11
#39
There you go.
Mon, 2009-09-21 20:14
#40
Mulcair will have a field day with Ms Le Prohon.
As a current member of the board of directors of Hydro-Québec, Ms Le Prohon was probably one of those people who voted last month to grant an $800,000 subsidy to an exclusive private school in NDG. Problem is, Thierry Vandal, HQ's CEO is the chairman of the board of benefactors of said exclusive school.
La Presse ran a blaring headline highlighting the fact and within a day, the college was forced to forego the grant. The whole story put the Charest government in hot water, with pointed questions about yet another subsidy to a private school while the public network needs a lot of investments. The PQ and ADQ even called for Vandal to resign .
So let just say, I'm not sure the LPC wants to play up the "Hydro-Québec director" card if an election is called within a few months... Just sayin'.
Tue, 2021-11-23 21:36
#41
.
Mon, 2009-09-21 20:17
#42
but I'm sure many would have said the same thing about Mulcair a few years back.
Doubtless I would have. But Mulcair didn't jump to a political party that promised quick and easy access to the treasury, or even any kind of prestige he didn't already enjoy. And if so called progressive Liberals wanted to cross over and run as New Democrats when we're sitting at 15% or so in the polls, then I'd be inclined to welcome them, and take them at face value.
But they won't. M.P.'s who have a philisophical epiphany almost without exception, epiphanize in the direction of access to taxpayer's money.
Mon, 2009-09-21 21:42
#43
The NDP could use a couple of scrappers... orangutans... maybe some from the Bloc... I'll work on Mourani and Paquette!
"Take this, Stevie!"
Mon, 2009-09-21 21:58
#44
Ignatieff rejects Cauchon's bid to re-enter politics
A backlash has already built against the decision, with some Liberals privately admonishing it, and Cauchon supporters calling it anti-democratic and anti-grassroots.
Difficulties in Quebec
The controversy is a harbinger for other difficulties in the Quebec wing of the party. Coderre has pressured some long-serving MPs with safe seats to resign, according to a number of Liberal sources. They told CBC News the party wants those seats for star female candidates as part of its renewal process.
The sources said former party leader Stéphane Dion, along with Bernard Patry, Raymonde Folco, and Lise Zarac, have all been asked to step aside.
---------------------------
Coderre criticized
Several Liberals, who would not speak publicly, told CBC News that Coderre's style and approach to the Quebec election strategy is too divisive.
They said the leader should strip Coderre of his responsibilities in Quebec before it threatens party unity.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2009/09/21/montreal-outremont-cp...
Mon, 2009-09-21 22:22
#45
remind
There is that many star female candidates in QC who want to be Liberal candidates?
Perhaps this is a cover story for the MP's who are resigning because they hate Iggy and the Toronto frat boys, along with Coderre?
Why would they ask a women to resign, namely Lise Zarac, only to slot another woman into her place?
Think the Liberals are going for no press is bad press?
Mon, 2009-09-21 22:43
#46
The real reason may be that since almost all Quebec seats are going to go to Bloquistes anyway, except for some dyed-in-the-wool Grit ridings where people would vote for a mailbox, Quebec is the place where to spruce up the party's representation numbers without losing any significant seats.
Mon, 2009-09-21 23:13
#47
remind
People are that stupid in QC, to keep on supporting the Liberals no matter?
Mon, 2009-09-21 23:28
#48
Only in some ridings (very few of which have a Francophone majority, I must say...).
Mon, 2009-09-21 23:33
#49
remind
Sounds like BC then.
At least they congregate in specific areas so one know where they are. ;)
Mon, 2009-09-21 23:34
#50
I kinda wish Marlene Jennings (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce) would consider it. She was quite vocal about her 28 colleagues who supported C-484 (making fetuses full-fledged Canadians... as long as they remain in the country).
She has to evict del Negro first.
Tue, 2021-11-23 21:37
#51
.