Tory Election Act Changes: Still Oversold

From an Natty Post article on the Torys healthy looking poll numbers; Darrell Bricker, president of Ipsos-Reid, comments:

"'They have made such a strong case about their desire not to have an election that to go back now and try to instigate one makes them look a bit hypocritical. Plus, they also have a bill in the Senate right now [calling] for fixed election dates.'"

In fact, some have suggested that the Libs save their own skins by getting this bill out of the Senate before Harper can call his Spring election. Unfortunately, that probably won't work. The proposed Election Act changes are very much less than they appear. I wrote back in June, riffing on a piece done by Cerberus, that:

1) The revised Act will not let a government that is down in the polls extend its term into a fifth year, a la Mulroney's gang and Bob Rae's hapless Ontario Dippers.

2) The revised act will continue to allow a government up in the polls to pull the plug on a parliamentary session and call a snap election, a la Chretien in 2000.

Now, a few people argued back then that even if this was true, Harper would be "morally obliged" to hold off on an election call until the fixed date came up. I answered this at greater length back then, but the short response is: morally smorally! The changes still allow the government drop the writ anytime before the fixed date that they think is advantageous.