Month: August 2009

You may have seen postcards in your mailbox this summer from various Conservative MPs that criticize Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff. These “ten percenters”, as they're known in the trade, are paid for by the Canadian taxpayer. I wrote about one version here earlier this month.

Last week, while travelling with Prime Minister Stephen Harper on his 2009 Arctic tour, we saw but a handful of people outside Harper's press events that you would characterize as protesters. In Yellowknife, NWT, last Thursday, there were a half-dozen folks from public sector unions carrying placards protesting Conservative cuts to things like Status of Women Canada. The next day, in Whitehorse, Yukon, there was one lonely pamphleteer outside the hotel where Harper held his final press conference stuffing what I'd call reverse ten percenters into the hands of anyone who would take them. I reproduce them here for you. We have no idea who is behind these as the young pamphleteer preferred to remain anonymous.

Each of the three is set up like the Conservative ten percenters, encouraging you to send the post-card like fliers to an MP in Ottawa which, if you do, won't cost you a penny because postage to MPs is paid for by all taxpayers.

In this first one, (detail left) the pamphleteer appears to object to the Conservative ten percenters and s/he tells Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs as much:

Dear Chuck

We are sick and tired of the excessive amount of fliers and junk mail that you seem to find great pleasure in mailing out. Not only are your efforts a complete waste of paper, we also take offence to the fact that you have adopted the American style of attack ads which have little intellectual substance and which ar offensive. We are certainly more intelligent than attack ads .

Please cease and desist with your non-stop junk mail barrage.

When you are ready to engage in productive political efforts please give us a ring.

A second one, addressed to Stephen Harper, PM, argues that “We believe that the Conservative vision for increasing militarisation is not in tune with Canadian identity.”

A third one, also addressed to “Stephen Harper, PM” features “A Brief Compilation of some of the adverse impacts the Conservatives have had on Canada”.

All of them carry the tag line – The Harper Government: Destroying Canada.

In case you missed it, here's the Frobisher fly-past from last week, starring Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the HMCS Toronto, the HMCS Corner Brook, the CCGS Pierre Radisson, and three CF-18 Hornets from Bagotville, Quebec …

Here's my colleague Andrew Mayeda today on the latest Ipsos-Reid poll done exclusively for Canwest News Service and Global National:

The Conservatives now command 39 per cent in support among decided voters, compared with 28 per cent for the Liberals, according to the survey, conducted exclusively for Canwest News Service and Global National by Ipsos Reid. Since the last Ipsos poll two months ago, the Tories have climbed five percentage points, while the Grits have slumped seven points.

On Friday in Whitehorse, I asked Harper what he and his party were doing to do what he has not been able to do three times as leader of his party: Win a majority government. He did not answer the question. (I asked what he was doing to boost his party's fortunes; he replied that no Canadian wants an election) Here's an edited version of the exchange:

AKIN: As we wrap up a week here (north of 60), I wonder if we might think a little more broadly about some of the political discussions that will happen this fall … It did have a bit of the flavour of an election-style swing at some of the stops and media opportunities. And I wonder, as some of your caucus members are speaking at barbeques this summer about the need for a majority Conservative government, I wonder if you could talk about what steps you and your party are taking to achieve that. You've had three cracks at the can against relatively weak and under-resourced opponents, two of them, of course, you were successful with a minority (but) how do you get over the top? What are you doing this fall to take your party to the promised land with a majority of MPs?

HARPER: Well, let me be very clear. In fact, I think you know what the answer to that question's going to be, David. I travel constantly. Have always travelled constantly, not just as Prime Minister, but as leader of my party, constantly across the country. I certainly have travelled during the summer and have always come up north during the summer for a week or so. Our focus is on governing this country. Our obvious focus, through this project and many others, is on getting this country successfully through the global recession. We know the global recession is impacting Canada. We're still doing relatively well compared to others. We think we're in a position to come out of this recession well. But I think the emphasis of all parties in the House of Commons should be working to ensure that we're working on the economy in the fall and that that's our focus. And I'll say over and over again, I have not met a single Canadian – a single real person out there — who's telling me that they think we should be fighting an election right now.

[Applause]

I encourage you to listen to it as it happened. This MP3 file is 3:45 and contains PMO Deputy Press Secretary Andrew MacDougall acknowledging me and Radio Canada Ottawa Bureau Chief Emmanuelle Latraverse as we each ask our somewhat related questions. Under the terms of engagement laid down by the PMO, no followup questions were permitted. The 14 or so reporters travelling with the Prime Minister were allotted three questions by the PMO — two in English and one in French. As is customary under such circumstances, the travelling reporters decided by consensus the broad lines of questioning and who the questioners ought to be.

Latraverse asked about the implications of the discord emanating from the Employment Insurance panel. Harper's response is largely conciliatory and diplomatic, noting that, at the end of the day, the government must do what is right for Canadians, but that he is expecting proposals to come from both sides and some sort of useful recommendation to evolve.

I'm airborne with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, half the federal cabinet and more than two dozen media types, political staff and bureaucrats en route to Iqaluit, Nunavut where we will begin the prime minister's 2009 northern tour. This is something Harper has done every summer that he has been prime minister — head to Canada's Arctic, in the belief that, if Canada's sovereignty is to be respected in the north, it can't but have the prime minister tramping around the place as much as possible. This year's tour will touch down in Iqualuit and Pangnirtung in Nunavut and then Yellowknife, NWT, Whitehorse, Yukon and a yet-to-be disclosed location in the Yukon.

The trip started, though, with this odd event (left) — one of the police vans that preceded the prime minister's motorcade to the Ottawa International Airport appears to have gone bump in a very big way. This van was carrying officers with somebody's tactical squad, part of the prime minister's security detail. It didn't appear anyone was hurt when they pulled in a few minutes ahead of the PM's motorcade and the airbags in the van had not deployed.

We have questions: For example, if you're driver in the PM's security motorcade, do you have to stop and fill out paperwork when you have an accident? We have asked authorities that and other questions about what happened but have no answer just yet.

Cabinet ministers are airborne with us, by the way, because Harper is convening a meeting of cabinet's priorities and planning committee, the committee, chaired by the PM himself, that is responsible for guiding and managing the government's overall agenda. Some ministers are already up in Nunavut but on board with us — safely ensconced up at the front of the military Airbus we're on so that pesky reporters can bug them — is Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl, Senator Marjory LeBreton, Transport Minister John Baird, Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon, Public Works Minister Christian Paradis, Treasury Board President Vic Toews, Human Resources Minister Diane Finley, and Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt. The new Clerk of the Privy Council, Wayne Wouters, is also on board.

Most of those ministers will have to return south after their day-long meeting Tuesday but Harper and the media will be travelling on to Whitehorse and Yukon after a couple of days in Iqaluit.