QUEBEC (CP) — The new leader of the federal Liberals says he won't topple the Tory government over Canada's mission in Afghanistan.
The Bloc is looking for an excuse to provoke a quick election before Liberals can get organized, according to Dion.
Toppling the government over Afghanistan would serve no purpose, he adds.
It's good tactics, I think, for Dion and company to bring down the Tory government over some item in the February budget rather than siding with the Bloc on what will certainly be labeled the "cut and run" motion. If Layton can, however, put some real teeth into the Tory's clean air legislation, then finding another item that justifies going to the electorate might be tricky.
The chess game begins.
4 comments:
Stephane! Stephane! Stephane! Lift your eyes up. Pay attention to the real world, where a bitter battle is being fought between Harper and the Bloc. That is were the action is, not in the renewal of the LPC. The reason the Bloc wants a no-confidence motion in early February is to force an election. They want the Harper government out of power, and the Liberals back in. Their target is Harper, not Dion and the Liberals.
Why do they want an election in February? Because they know that Harper will present a budget in the spring which will move $4 billion from the other provinces and federal government, to Quebec. That meets the first ransom demand of the Bloc, for their support of Harper's next budget. And he will table an agreement (to be contained in a constitutional amendement, if possible, but if not, to be a valid agreement between the Federal government under Harper and the provinces), which will reduce the ability of the federal government to spend money in any province in an area which is a provincial area under the constitution. He will also pledge not to raise additional funds via federal taxation, but to reduce the federal government's share of taxation, with the provinces being given more room to raise more taxes. This is his new variation of his old firewalling concept.
Both steps will be popular in Quebec. The Bloc will be forced to support Harper's budget. Harper will then stay in power another 18 months, until he sets up a non-confidence vote in the first or second quarter of 2008, and goes to the country at a t ime of his own choosing.
So, the Bloc wants Harper out now before they have to support his budget and keep him in power.
And if Dion does not understand that the best thing the Liberals could do right now is sink Harper now, by siding with the Bloc, then he is making a mistake by not appreciating that the Bloc is the only party which can force Harper to call an election. The Liberals and NDP cannot.
Harper is very clever; the Bloc understands this. Has Dion not learned from the mistakes the Liberals made in late 2005 and January 2006?
Sounds like Ignatieff is talking some sense to Dion and he is listening. The French Terror Alert scale has gone from "Hide" to "Run", and as they begin to scurry out of Afghanistan they are looking mighty lame. I don't think many Canadians want our country to appear like that as well.
Celine postpones his visit with Madame la Guillotine. Iggy is bemused.
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