Segacs's World I Know

Posts Tagged ‘paul martin’

Paul Martin doesn’t want to participate in missile defence, but still wants to be consulted by the US on whether to shoot down a hypothetical incoming missile:

Stockwell Day, the Conservative Party’s foreign affairs critic, laughed off Martin’s demand that Washington would have to alert Ottawa before taking out an incoming missile.

“These missiles are coming in at 4 kilometers ( 2.5 miles) a second, and if the president calls the 1-800 line and gets: `Press 1 if you want English, press 2 if you want French, press 0 if nobody’s there …’ I mean, it’s crazy.”

Day made a funny. Who knew he was capable of one?

Anyway, this is just Canada playing our usual game of handing over the dirty work to our southern neighbour and then criticizing it for not being squeaky clean. Nothing new here.

…a bunch of stuff happened.

For one thing, the Martin government released a federal budget, which was another snoozer. Lots of promises to everyone that will deliver not a whole helluvalot to anyone. By my calculation, the “massive tax cuts” promised will save me exactly $14 in income tax next year. That’s two movie tickets and a small popcorn on cheapy night. Yippee! The budget was designed with one purpose in mind: to keep the Liberals in power. Well, mission accomplished, I suppose.

From the maybe-yes-then-again-maybe-no department, Paul Martin has proven himself, in the grand tradition of Canadian leaders, to be incapable of making a decision if it might cost him a few votes. Martin has opted not to participate in the missile defence program with the United States, on the grounds that, well, it would give him bad press because of rampant anti-Americanism. Oh, and the NDP might use words like “Star Wars”. Everyone knows that Star Wars are scary. Especially “Attack of the Clones”. That was just awful.

Anyway, I don’t quite get it. And neither does Paul Cellucci:

“I personally don’t think it’s in Canada’s sovereign interest to be outside the room when a decision is made about a missile that might be coming toward Canada.”

Paul, Paul, Paul… haven’t you learned anything in your years as ambassador to Canada? It’s not that we’re not interested in defending our country. It’s that we Canadians have deluded ourselves into thinking that if we smile and are nice and polite to everyone and refuse to take a stand on much of anything, that nobody will ever attack us. As for those pesky terrorists, well, they’re mainly just misunderstood, and we’ll give them an immigration hearing in about 6 months.

Moving on. Syria might withdraw from Lebanon in response to massive public and international pressure following the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri… maybe. I guess the Syrians don’t particularly relish the thought that the ever-pervasive “End the Occupation” posters at ANSWER rallies might be directed against them, instead of against Israel. Of course, everyone knows that Baby Assad is really just stalling, hoping that the issue will blow over and the world can go back to merrily ignoring Syria’s sins and condemning Israel. That should happen in about 10 seconds, when the Israelis begin heightening security measures in reaction to today’s suicide bombing in Tel Aviv. If there’s one thing the Arab world can count on, it’s the rest of the world’s single-mindedness when it comes to Israel.

Finally, from the Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish department, Holocaust-denier Ernst Zundel will finally be deported from Canada, after hanging out in a Toronto jail for the past couple of years, trying to fight extradition to Germany on the grounds that he would immediately be prosecuted there for hate crimes. Somehow, I can’t see anyone shedding any tears over his departure.

Carolyn Parrish seems to be emboldened by Paul Martin’s inability/refusal to do anything to her besides go “tsk tsk”. Her latest outburst almost seems like a nose-thumbing at Martin because she knows he won’t fire her or otherwise penalize her in any way:

Renegade Liberal MP Carolyn Parrish has once again enraged members of the opposition and her own caucus after tossing a George W. Bush doll on the floor and grinding it under her heel on a satirical television show.

Something tells me there’s an apt comparison in here, to the world’s inability/refusal to do anything to rogue states who thumb their nose at international policy… like Iran with their nuclear weapons program… nah, too obvious!

To Carolyn Parrish: I mean this in the nicest possible – oh, who am I kidding? Just shut the fuck up!

Update: Looks like Paul Martin finally got the message. He fired Carolyn Parrish… at long last.

Parrish’s antics reminded me of a child who pulls increasingly annoying attention-getting stunts, in effort to find out where that invisible line is. Well, Carolyn, now you know.

The real question: with Parrish sitting as an independent, will she support the party that threw her out on votes… or the opposition Conservatives?

Update #2: Cliff speculates that she’ll join the NDP. She’ll likely be welcomed with open arms there by many MPs who share her “values”.

In the meantime, Canadian politics has started up again. The throne speech was yesterday – anyone notice? – and really only held significance because of the minority government situation:

Prime Minister Paul Martin promised selective tax cuts to boost the economy while renewing commitments to strengthen Canada – U.S. relations and enhance social programs in a Throne Speech designed to keep the opposition parties from defeating the Liberal minority government.

The speech promised tax cuts, economic reform, and education programs. It made no mention of investing in the cash-strapped military (our newly-purchased submarine is dead in the water).

The NDP will probably vote for. The Conservatives will likely vote against. The Bloc is anyone’s guess, though I’m betting they vote for – it’s not in their best interest to have another election so quickly. Of course, I could be wrong.

In PM Paul Martin’s first address to the United Nation, he blasted the world’s inaction on Sudan and called for more rapid international action there, and in other countries in crisis:

“The Security Council has been bogged down in debating the issue,” said Martin, who pledged $20 million Cdn to assist the African Union in its drive to quell fighting between government-backed militias and rebel groups.

“While the international community struggles with definitions, the people of Darfur struggle with disaster. They are hungry, they are homeless, they are sick and many have been driven out of their own country. Tens of thousands have been murdered, raped and assaulted,” told the gathering.

“Our common humanity should be a powerful enough argument and that is precisely what is missing. Put simply, there is still no explicit provision in international law for intervention on humanitarian grounds.”

Martin also admitted that intervention in Sudan is too little, too late:

“We should have intervened last June when Canada called for it,” said Martin, who acknowledged progress had been made with a UN Security Council resolution last weekend that threatens sanctions if violence continues in Sudan’s western region of Darfur.

“It’s been a long time in coming, far too long in coming,” he said.

We could argue that Canada’s aid is also too little, too late. But realistically, there’s very little our overextended military could do.

Martin has been relatively invisible on the international scene since taking office last December. This is his first effort to try to take a leadership role, in the spirit of Canada’s past reputation. And certainly, the crisis in Darfur needs more attention to be called to it – from a country other than the US, which has very little credibility right now thanks to the Iraq situation, the election, and general anti-Americanism.

Canada’s call to action is a step in the right direction, and I think Paul Martin deserves props for his speech today and his call to action. Unfortunately, the United Nations he is addressing is one that’s hell-bent on inaction.

The Marijuana Party may have only obtained 0.2% of the popular vote, but their platform has generated a real buzz. Now, the Martin government has pledged to decriminalize marijuana within this mandate:

Prime Minister Paul Martin pledged to reintroduce legislation this year to decriminalize the possession and use of small amounts of marijuana.

There had been rumours that, under pressure from the United States, the new Martin government would let the legislation fall.

Parliament failed to get the legislation through before it was dissolved prior to the June 28 election which saw Martin’s government reelected, but without a majority in Parliament.

Meeting with reporters after the first formal meeting of his new cabinet, Martin said “the legislation will be reintroduced this fall.”

I don’t smoke the stuff – never have, never will – but I support this legislation. There’s no reason why someone who smokes a cigarette can do so legally, but someone who’s caught smoking a joint will end up with a criminal record. Law enforcement resources should be dedicated to important crimes, not to chasing people with a little bit of weed.

In fact, I’d say this doesn’t go far enough. Decriminalization – replacing a criminal sentence with a fine for a regulatory infraction – won’t solve the crime involved from the supply end, nor will it help people who are legally allowed to smoke pot for medical reasons to have access to a standardized supply. The government out to simply legalize it and then tax the hell out of it, just like cigarettes. If people want to harm themselves or indulge from time to time, at least the money will go to fund the government, and not to line the pocket of some drug lord.

Sure, there are problems associated with legalization. So decriminalization is probably an important first step. And I’m not advocating drug use. But there are worse things in life than the occasional joint, and it’s time for the law to catch up with reality.

David Janes has a roundup of the (mostly-disappointed) reactions of right-leaning bloggers, who chose to believe the polls and Harper’s optimism before last night. Debbye says we got the “devil we know”, and Colby Cosh says he made himself “look like an ass” while Damian Penny “feels like a rube”.

Don’t beat yourselves up too much, guys. The pollsters had it way wrong. There’s going to be a lot of questions being asked at Ipsos-Reid this morning.

Big journalism reacts as well. The Gazette thinks that the Liberals won because “fear overcame disgust”. The Globe and Mail says that Martin’s victory was only provisional, and that he should resist NDP pressures to swing too far to the left fiscally. The CBC speculates on what’s next for Martin, and questions his role as a leader. And of course, the separatist paper Le Devoir lauds the Bloc’s “remarkable victory” and says Quebecers gave the Liberals a “kick in the ass”.

Indeed. It was the Quebec Bloc sweep that cost the Liberals their majority government.

There’s a lot of speculation going on about what comes next. Will Martin manage to form a stable minority governing coalition? Or will the whole house of cards collapse in a few months? We’ll have to see.

The votes have been counted, the results are in, and the analysis begins. Before the morning papers start screaming out their opinions, here are a few thoughts to leave the evening:

Liberals: The nominal winner, Paul Martin, managed to hang onto a plurality, pulling ahead of expectations in the final days of the campaign and making a stronger showing than many people thought. He’ll keep his job. But he also lost his majority, several cabinet ministers, and a whole lot of seats. He also lost his ability to move his party rightward and bring in fiscal reforms, now that he will have to deal with the NDP. He probably has mixed feelings tonight.

Conservatives: Harper’s campaign was the biggest disappointment of the night for his supporters, and his opponents are breathing a sigh of relief. Despite peaking numbers and some crazy-talk about a Tory majority, Harper will be relegated to official opposition status yet again. Despite picking up a few seats, he’s the big loser of this election, no question.

Bloc Quebecois: Duceppe’s virtual sweep of Quebec was a big victory for Duceppe, as he brought his party to levels not seen since the Bouchard days. Predictably, he’s now claiming that this was a vote for sovereignty, and it looks like we might be facing the prospect of another referendum here in Quebec. On the other hand, Duceppe has to be at least a little disappointed that his party will not be holding the balance of power in Parliament.

NDP: Layton and his ragtag bunch of lefties are the night’s big winners. Despite getting the least number of seats of the big 4 parties, and only 15% of the popular vote, it is the NDP that will be setting the agenda in Parliament with this minority government. They will hold the balance of power, and Paul Martin will be forced to make all kinds of concessions to them in order to govern. Layton’s camp is ecstatic tonight.

Overall: In a way, this was the worst possible result. The Liberals had an opportunity to win a majority and move the party closer to the center. Instead, they will be forced to deal with the NDP. In a way, I would have almost preferred a Conservative minority, because at least then the government would’ve been powerless to do anything, propped up by the Liberals only long enough for them to regain their popularity, and then soundly defeated in an election that would restore a Liberal majority. Now, instead of more centrist ideas getting respect, we will be hearing about all of the NDP’s nutty policies getting attention. Tomorrow’s Canada is worse off than yesterday’s, and that says a lot.

So I will head off to sleep, feeling a mixture of relief and disappointment. And then I will remind myself that none of this really matters all that much anyway.

7:30pm: It’s gonna be a long night. Despite the TV networks’ rush to predict the result first, I doubt anyone will know anything certain for quite some time.

I will update the table above intermittently when candidates are declared elected, but I assume most people will be watching the coverage live. Instead, I’ll post some comments as I go along.

8:15pm: So far, the results for the Liberals aren’t looking nearly as grim as most of the media had been predicting.

They just announced that Scott Brison managed to win his riding – as a Liberal. Very interesting. Unlike a lot of people, I don’t view switching parties as a sign of being a “traitor”, but more as a sign of wanting to stay true to one’s ideals. Some people accused Brison of opportunism, but I think he just found that his values fit better with the Liberal party. Apparently, most voters in his riding agreed.

On the other hand, John Herron, who also switched from the Tories to the Libs, lost to the Conservative candidate in his riding. Win some, lose some.

8:50pm: Bad news for the Conservatives all over Eastern Canada, as they are down in seats and way down in popular vote. The Liberals have done what they needed to do in that part of the country, at any rate. There won’t be much more news until results start to come in from Quebec, Ontario, and Central Canada.

9:10pm: The first Bloc Quebecois MP has been elected, in Gaspésie/Îles-de-la-Madeleine. A sign of things to come in Quebec as a whole? Probably.

9:25pm: Local Conservative Party headquarters in Montreal are in a friggin’ Cage au Sports! That’s hysterical!!!

9:30pm: Polls are now closed in most of the country. Results should start to come in pretty quickly now.

9:45pm: Everyone’s talking about Layton versus Mills in the hotly-contested riding of Toronto-Danforth. But the big story that hasn’t been reported there is that the Conservative Party candidate, a guy with the odd-sounding name of Loftus Cuddy, is the brother of Blue Rodeo’s lead singer Jim Cuddy. (Blue Rodeo’s concert on Saturday at Bourbon Street North was awesome, by the way).

10:05pm: CTV just predicted a Liberal win, though they’re not saying yet whether it will be a majority or a minority.

Remember folks, you heard it here first.

10:15pm: With only 2 out of 205 polls reporting, my riding of NDG-Lachine has been declared a win for incumbent Liberal Marlene Jennings. No surprises there. I knew when I voted for her that it wouldn’t be much of a race.

10:30pm: The media networks are all projecting a Liberal minority now. As happy as I am that the Liberals will be taking it, my relief is tempered by the fact that the NDP might get enough seats to combine with the Liberals for a majority, thus giving the NDP all kinds of undeserved power in government and swinging policies to the far left. I’m crossing my fingers that they’re wrong.

10:45pm: David Pratt, the Liberal minister of defence, was defeated in his riding. Some big-name Liberals are falling to the Tories, but it won’t be enough for Harper’s team to take the reins. The Liberals are still way ahead.

10:50pm: At the moment, using elected and leading totals, it’s looking like Liberals + NDP will combine for enough seats for a majority. Goddammit! This is bad, bad news for Canada.

11:00pm: L. Ian MacDonald is talking about a “Lib-Lab” coalition, and Jack Layton dusting off his shopping list. With the NDP holding the balance of power, this is probably one of the worst-case scenarios that could have emerged. The Liberals had a golden opportunity to move rightward, towards the middle, under Paul Martin. Instead, thanks to the Bloc sweep in Quebec, the party will be forced to move leftward.

11:15pm: It’s all over now but the fat lady singing.

Gilles Duceppe just gave his triumphant victory speech after his sweep in Quebec, and – surprise surprise – is suddenly talking about sovereignty again nonstop (after swearing that this vote was not about separation). I don’t know why this stuff even bothers me anymore, it’s so expected. Still, this is bad news for Quebec.

In the rest of the country, it’s pretty much understood that Paul Martin will govern with Jack Layton’s help. The NDP agenda will be front-and-center, and we can kiss Martin’s fiscally-responsible policies, like debt reduction, goodbye.

The good news is the Liberals won. The bad news is, well, everything else. Unfortunately, I predicted this.

I was flying home from Toronto today but I caught snatches of the debate on the radio, and the end on television.

Two thoughts were running through my head for most of the debate: That it was actually kind of funny, and would be even funnier if not for the sad fact that these are the leaders of our country, and that it’s even sadder that Duceppe actually seems to be winning.

Harper seemed like he was already looking ahead to the prospect of a minority government, soft-pedalling his debates with Layton and especially Duceppe. Martin, for his part, looked like a tomato about to burst. Layton was just plain creepy with his fake smile that he wore the entire time. And is it just me or do you find it sad that Duceppe’s English is better than Martin’s French?

If I have to award points – and admittedly it’s tough – I’d give them to the following candidates:

To Paul Martin, for being the only candidate not to suck up to Gilles Duceppe.

To Stephen Harper, for being soft-spoken while everyone else was yelling like little children.

To Jack Layton, for actually managing to wear that smile for the entire time.

To Gilles Duceppe, for managing to use the words “fiscal imbalance” a record number of times in a two-hour period.

And last but not least, to the moderator, for staying awake.