Category: Politics/Conservatives

Parliamentary Secretaries compared: Some veteran MPs out; some rookies are in

Prime Minister Stephen Harper named his Parliamentary Secretaries to his Ministers today. Parliamentary Secretaries can have a variety of duties but, basically, they are there to act for the minister in the House of Commons when the Minister is absent and be the link between Parliament and the minister. The folks at About.com seems to have a pretty reasonable backgrounder on the job if you'd like to learn more.

A Parliamentary Secretary can count on a slightly thicker pay packet than your garden-variety backbencher. All MPs earn a base salary of $157,731 a year but a P.S. gets an extra $15,834 a year.

If you're in the government caucus, being a member of the ministry is best, a parliamentary secretaryship is not bad, and, if you don't get either of those, you're probably angling to be chair of one of the House of Commons committees. MPs get an extra $11,165 for being a committee chair. (In fact, some parliamentary geek types tell me that in a majority parliament, being a committee chair may actually be more influential and interesting than being a Parliamentary Secretary.)

Depending on the prime minister, a parliamentary secretary's job can be a try-out for a full-time minister's job. Some prime minister's, prefer to look to those who have been chairs of House of Commons committees for future ministers.  In the current ministry, Maxime Bernier, Steven Blaney, Ed Fast, and Gary Goodyear were chairs of committees before being elevated. (Bernier went from full minister to committee chair and is now a minister of state)

Here's a list of Parliamentary Secretaries since Stephen Harper became prime minister in 2006 prepared by the Library of Parliament (Note to any librarians reading this blog: Laurie Hawn, the P.S. to the minister of national defence at the conclusion of the 40th Parliament is missing in this list). Harper has promoted just five MPs from Parliamentary Secretary all the way to full Minister. They include John Duncan, Jason Kenney, James Moore, Christian Paradis, and Peter Van Loan, . Harper has promoted seven ParlSecs to the Minister of State role including DIane Ablonczy, Steven Fletcher, Helena Guergis, Ted Menzies, Rob Moore, Alice Wong, and Lynne Yelich.

So, I think it's fair to say that becoming a Parliamentary Secretary is helpful but it's not necessarily going to put you in line for a cabinet spot.

In fact, as you'll see from the list below, six MPs who were Parliamentary Secretaries at the conclusion of the last Parliament do not hold that role as the 41st Parliament begins. Not returning in their ParlSec role are: Laurie Hawn (gets to be on some sub-committee of Treasury Board instead but there's nothing I can find in the House of Commons rules that gives him extra money for that work), Brian Jean, Greg Kerr, Ed Komarnicki, Dave MacKenzie, and Mark Warawa.

In fact: Just one MP who was a ParlSec at the conclusion of that last Parliament got a promotion: Alice Wong moves up to become Minister of State for Seniors.

And while four members of the ministry were defeated on May 2 — Lawrence Cannon, Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Josee Verner and Gary Lunn — just two Parliamentary Secretaries went down to defeat at the polls: Sylvie Boucher and Daniel Petit.

There is a lot of “stability”, to use the PMO's fave phrase, in the current roster of Parliamentary Secretaries. Just two MPs who were backbenchers a month ago are getting a promotion.That would be Paul Calandra and Candice Hoeppner. But there are eight rookie MPs who will make their House of Commons debuts next week as Parliamentary Secretaries. They are: Eve Adams, Chris Alexander, Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Robert Goguen, Kellie Leitch, Chungsen Leung, Michelle Rempel, and Susan Truppe.

One other note: Two ministers of state from the last Parliament — Rob Moore and Rob Merrifield — not only fell out of the ministry but neither are parliamentary secretaries.

So here's my list of MPs with their job at the end of the 40th Parliament and their job as the 41st Parliament opens:

MP Last position in 40th Parliament Beginning 41st Parliament
Adams, Eve – Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs
Alexander, Chris – Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence
Anderson, David Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and for the Canadian Wheat Board Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and for the Canadian Wheat Board
Boucher, Sylvie Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women DEFEATED
Brown, Lois Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Cooperation Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Cooperation
Calandra, Paul MP Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage
Carrie, Colin Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
Dechert, Bob Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Del Mastro, Dean Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
Dykstra, Rick Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration
Findlay, Kerry-Lynne – Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice
Glover, Shelly Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance
Goguen, Robert – Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice
Gourde, Jacques Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Works and Government Services, for Official Languages Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Works and Government Services, for Official Languages and for the Economic Development Agency for the Regions of Quebec
Hawn, Laurie Parliament Secretary to the Minister of National Defence MP
Hoeppner, Candice MP and Chair of the Standing Committee on Human Resources Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
Jean, Brian Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities MP
Kamp, Randy Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans and for the Asia-Pacific Gateway
Keddy, Gerald Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade, for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and for the Atlantic Gateway
Kerr, Greg Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs MP
Komarnicki, Ed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and to the Minister of Labour MP
Lake, Mike Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry
Leitch, Kellie – Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and to the Minister of Labour
Lemieux, Pierre Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture
Leung, Chungsen – Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism
Lukiwski, Tom Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
MacKenzie, Dave Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety MP
McLeod, Cathy Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Revenue Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Revenue
Obhrai, Deepak Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Petit, Daniel Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice DEFEATED
Poilievre, Pierre Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
Rempel, Michelle – Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment
Rickford, Greg Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario
Saxton, Andrew Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board and for Western Economic Diversification
Truppe, Susan – Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women
Warawa, Mark Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment MP
Wong, Alice Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism Minister of State (Seniors)

Annals of re-branding, part 3: It's back to "Government of Canada" for the the very first funding announcement

For those keeping score, Stephen Harper's Conservatives have used a few different variations over the last five years when describing the activities of their government in official government press releases. There was the original, back in 2006 and stretching through to 2008, of “Canada's New Government is pleased to announce …” . Then, as early as May, 2010, we started seeing the “Harper Government pleased to announce…” template.

Today, we had our first “pleased to announce” kind of press release from the new majority Conservative government. And, one week in, at least, they've gone back to the plain vanilla “Government of Canada is pleased to announce …”

This is the first funding announcement so far as I can see coming from the government of the 41st Parliament and — this may come as a shock — it's money for an event in Saguenay, QC, which, after being part of the riding held by Conservative Jean-Pierre Blackburn for the last two Parliaments, is now the fiefdom of one of our new Quebec NDP MPs, Claude Patry.

So Patry wins whatever award there is for being the first MP of the 41st Parliament to bring home some of that Ottawa bacon! Well done, M. Patry!

What M. Patry won for his riding is $39,063 from Denis Lebel, the Minister of State for the regional development agency for Quebec, that will be used to help stage the Coupe des Nations Ville de Saguenay, a cycling event that will tourist dollars and other economic benefits to the Saguenay-Lac St. Jean region. (Lebel just happens to represent the riding to Patry's west but I don't want anyone to think I'm suggesting anything!)

And this seems like a good a point as any to invite you to follow along my reporting of each and every spending announcement this government will make between now and 2015 through my #OttawaSpends project on Twitter. The Harper government, during its last minority run from 2008 to 2011 made nearly 6,000 spending announcements and I tried to tweet out most of them and provide periodic updates at this blog. You can check in on the OttawaSpends project by visiting http://www.twitter.com/ottawaspends or, if you're a Twitter maniac, simply follow @ottawaspends. And if you are following me @ottawaspends be sure to read this explainer for the syntax and rationale for the project. As always, keen to hear your feedback and suggestions for this project.

 

Abortion and hidden agendas: Brad Trost set to be this year's Cheryl Gallant

It is just coming up to 1 a.m. in Ottawa as I write this and, out in St. John's, NF where the Conservative leader's campaign tour finds itself bedding down for the night, Dimitri Soudas, Stephen Harper's chief spokesman, has just finished a rush midnight briefing with the reporters on that tour.

Soudas called the briefing to respond to stories that appeared in The Toronto Star and Le Devoir who were given a tape recording of Saskatoon MP Brad Trost — who proudly boasts that there is no one to the right of him in the Conservative caucus — in which Trost bragged that his government had cut funding to Planned Parenthood – but couldn't yet announce that cut. When asked about the cut earlier this evening, party spokesman gave no answer. (See the story). Soudas, late in the evening, is telling reporters that no decision has been made.

It was an exquisitely timed leak — likely from Liberal sources  — to the Star and Le Devoir as, with a little over a week to go, it puts abortion into the middle of the election campaign and gives Harper's opponents the chance to yell “A-ha! So-Con Hidden Agenda!”. This tactic, unfair as it might have been, turned many female voters away from the Tories in 2006 and almost cost them that election. Now, with the Liberal campaign unable to find much traction, the old bogeyman that Harper will gut abortion access in Canada is about to be trotted out.

I say it was unfair to have done this in 2006 and 2008 for two reasons: The Conservative Party, at its first policy convention, took a grassroots decision — with a lot of yelling and screaming — that it would not touch abortion laws in Canada. Harper has said in those two earlier campaigns and has said again in this campaign that he would not take action on abortion. In five years leading a minority government he has walked the walked (for better or worse, depending on your point of view) and even voted against a private members bill from an MP in his own caucus that would have nudged the dial slightly towards the anti-abortion folks.

But in this campaign, Harper is actively and openly seeking a majority government. And with Trost now saying Planned Parenthood is not getting any funding but we can't tell you about it … well, it gives the Conservatives' opponents an easy swing at the plate: If Harper does this with a minority, what changes won't he even tell you about with a majority?

 

So the Conservatives — or rather Soudas in his midnight briefing — now have to stuff the toothpaste back in the tube because of the Trost remarks, in much the same way they tried to do so (unsuccesfully) in 2004 when Conservative MP Cheryl Gallant compared abortion to the beheading of an Iraq war hostage.

And yet: Too many politicians won't stand up for their own convictions on this issue — it's an issue that does not follow partisan lines no matter what any Tory-hater tells you — but will be quick to criticize any of their opponents who do. (Watch what happens to Trost Thursday). In the 2006 campaign, I thought it tremendously hypocritical of Liberal Prime Minister Paul Martin to try, at the end of the campaign he would lose, to use the abortion bogeyman to attack the Conservatives from a stage filled with several of the Toronto-area Liberal MPs who actually took fundraising dollars from anti-abortion groups. Believe me: You will find a healthy percentage of Liberal MPs who are not comfortable with abortion laws.

Of course, there are many in the Liberal caucus that believe that the right to abortion access ought to be strengthened in law. (Legal beagles will te

Meanwhile, there are many small-c conservatives in the country who wonder why it was they elected a Big-C Conservative government if not for taking action on restricting or limiting abortion. They are as frustrated as the small-l liberals who want a government that will lock-in abortion access rights.

But, as any professional politician will tell you: The issue is simply not a vote winner. It's a polarizing issue where consensus is difficult if not impossible. Kudos to Brad Trost for standing up in front of his constituents and laying it on the line. I would say the same thing to any politician who stood up to campaign as hard for the opposite view — for the simple reason that we ought to be able to find politicians who will not frankly discuss their views on these difficult, troublesome but tremendously important topics.

 

Latest Tory ad: Is this what Harper was decrying on debate night?

During the English-language debates, Conservative leader Stephen Harper had this to say:

“I don't think this kind of political bickering, personal attacks back and forth, is frankly going to do anything for Canadians.”

Two days later, Harper's party released this new ad:

Question then: Is this a “personal attack” or is it, as Conservatives argue, simply reminding voters of things Ignatieff actually said?

Statement from Auditor General Sheila Fraser

Public Statement from Sheila Fraser, Auditor General of Canada, regarding news reports about the audit of the G8 Legacy Infrastructure Fund:

We will not release or comment on our audit report on the G8 Legacy Infrastructure Fund. Under the Auditor General Act, we can only present reports when Parliament is sitting. The Office of the Audit General of Canada remains the custodian of its reports until they are presented to the Speaker of the House of Commons for tabling.

I strongly caution the public to wait until our final report on the G8 Legacy Infrastructure Fund has been tabled in Parliament and made public.

We work very hard to keep our reports confidential before they are tabled. There are indications that an early draft of this report may have been released by someone outside our Office. Our normal audit process requires that we share early drafts of our reports with government departments. We do this so they can validate the facts on which our conclusions are based, provide any additional relevant information, and so they can prepare responses to our recommendations. Sometimes during the process of fact validation, additional information is brought to our attention. Only the final report that is tabled in Parliament represents our audit findings and conclusions.

 

The Diamond Aircraft drama in London and conflict charges from the Liberals

Liberal Leader MIchael Ignatieff just left; Conservative leader Stephen Harper is there as I write this, and, tomorrow, NDP Leader Jack Layton will be in the Forest City, also known as London, Ont.

The most volatile riding is likely London West where Conservative Ed Holder is a first-time MP who knocked off in 2008 a five-time winner in Liberal Sue Barnes.  Liberal Glen Pearson is a likely incumbent favourite in London North Centre (he succeeded former Liberal cabinet minister Joe Fontana who is now London's mayor). Similarly, Conservative Joe Preston looks to be in good shape in Elgin-Middlesex-London (Harper's and Layton's rallies, incidentally, are both at the same hotel in Preston's riding). And in London-Fanshawe, the NDP want Irene Mathyssen to hold that seat. She succeeded Pat O'Brien, who finished his parliamentary career as an Independent after leaving the Liberal caucus over the same-sex marriage issue.

For Londoners, one of the big campaign issues this year is federal help for a local aircraft manufacturer, Diamond Aircraft. The airplane maker needs a $30 million federal loan without which it could end up laying off up to 200 workers. Ignatieff backed the loan program during his visit last week.

So far, the Conservative government has resisted Diamond's request.

Reporters from the London Free Press, one of the Sun Media titles I write for, were keen to ask Harper about this issue during his visit there to day although Harper tends to take no questions at his afternoon events in cities he visits. Read their set-up piece for today's visit.

In the meantime, the Liberal war room is trying to stir the pot by suggesting that the old job of Harper's chief of staff, Nigel Wright, may be getting in the way of a decision. Here's what the war room has:

Is this why the Conservatives won’t commit to giving Diamond Aircraft its loan?

  • Until last fall, Nigel Wright sat on the Board of Directors at Hawker Beechcraft and will likely return there once his stint as Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister comes to an end.
  • Hawker Beechcraft is a competitor of companies like the London-based Diamond Aircraft.
  • Diamond Aircraft needs a loan to proceed with production of its D-Jet, a new Very Light Jet (VLJ) class plane.  It has secured $20 million from the private sector and $30 million from the Government of Ontario, but they are both contingent on a $30-million loan commitment from the federal government.
  • The federal government has refused to provide this commitment, even though there is very clearly a market for this plane – according to Thomas House, owner of YouJet, business executives are downsizing from corporate jets to planes like the D-Jet, and he hopes to purchase several D-Jets for his company.  (London Free Press,  April 1, 2011)
  • The downsizing by business executives has impacted Hawker Beechcraft, which announced last fall that it was suspending production of its corporate jet, Light Jet  (LJ) class 400XP, due to a plunge in demand. (The Wichita Eagle, Nov. 13, 2010)
  • Is this why the Conservatives are refusing to help Diamond Aircraft? Has Nigel Wright had any influence on the Conservatives’ decision?

Months after fighting and losing to Julian Fantino in byelection, Liberal turns and endorses him in general election

Well, you don't see this everyday: Last fall, Tony Genco was the Liberal candidate battling tooth-and-nail against former OPP commissioner and Conservative candidate Julian Fantino in a byelection in the federal riding of Vaughan. Fantino won — but it was certainly not a landslide. In fact, given Fantino's star power, the number of big hitters (including PM Harper and Don Cherry) who campaigned with him, and the financial resources of the Conservative Party, one might have thought that Fantino would have scored much bigger.

But that's all water under the bridge now. The Liberals turned away from Genco for this general election and to a new candidate, Mario Ferri. And now it appears that Genco has turned away from the Liberals. Here's an “open letter” Genco submitted to the Vaughan Citizen:

I feel I have a responsibility and moral duty to the people of the City of Vaughan, particularly those who voted for me in the November 2010 by election to share my thoughts and perspectives on the current campaign. After much thoughtful reflection and deliberation, I am pleased to announce that I will be supporting Julian Fantino as our Member of Parliament for Vaughan and the Conservative Party of Canada in this important general election.  I have arrived at this decision after careful consideration and deliberation, recognizing that given my history and background, this will come as a surprise to many. No doubt that there will be many cynics who will view this in a variety of inaccurate ways. For this reason, I want to provide my own direct comments to ensure the facts are clear and my enthusiasm for my decision is understood.

Julian Fantino is a great Canadian. Even in the recent by-election when I ran against him, this was something I and many Liberals, including Michael Ignatieff himself had acknowledged when he approached him to run for the Liberal Party before me. He is a committed and proven public servant who has always excelled to the highest offices within his organizations and has been highly regarded and respected. His heart is always in the right place and his devotion to the community is unquestionable.

Julian Fantino has delivered for the people of Vaughan. He was recognized by Prime Minister Stephen Harper with an appointment to the Cabinet, almost immediately upon being elected.  As Minister of State (Seniors) he not only has national responsibilities but he has an important portfolio that many Vaughan residents are in need of improved Government services within. Already we have seen significant accessibility to information on senior programs and initiatives thanks to his hard work. As well, a grant to a large senior’s organization in Vaughan has recently been provided because of his dedication. The improvements proposed by the Conservative Government in its recent budget with regards to seniors needs and concerns were Julian at his best- delivering results for the people of Vaughan and Canada.

In a very short time, Julian has been able to provide funding on a long lasting legacy project for Vaughan through a significant grant for the Vaughan Health Campus of Care. Frankly, I was extremely skeptical about his capacity to deliver any results in any period of time. However, I was even more astounded that Julian was able to make the case to the federal government so quickly to provide $10 million of funding for an important Vaughan complex that will ultimately be home to a hospital facility, a life-sciences cluster and many other much needed health services.  I attended the announcement, and said then that this truly is good news for Vaughan’s people.

Julian has earned the right to continue to represent our community in Vaughan. I am honoured to have him serving us.  Simply put Julian Fantino delivers… period! Julian decided to sacrifice his time, energy and talents and devoting it to further public service for the people of Canada and our community in Vaughan- something that he didn’t have to do but something he clearly wanted to do.

Those of you, who supported me when I ran against the Conservative Party and Julian Fantino in the recent by election, may be shocked by my current perspective. But ultimately, I truly believe that this is what is right given the realities of what Julian has done for us since his election.

Up until very recently, I seriously considered running in this general election, but I have to say my heart wasn’t in it. I spoke to many residents who had encouraged me to run given the momentum that I had built thanks to the support of many Liberals in this riding. I now encourage, every Liberal in Vaughan to seriously reconsider their support for the Liberal Party and support the Conservative Party of Canada and Julian Fantino.

The Liberal Party that I joined over 20 years ago in university has disappeared. The ideas that I tried to represent of balance, diversity and nation building no longer exist in this version of the Liberal Party.  It’s clear that the Liberal Party policies do not resonate with the majority of Canadians. The recent electoral results speak for themselves. The Liberal Party is adrift continuing to be nostalgic about its historic contributions and past glory’s, without having built from those successes of the past to renew its ideas to reflect the needs of the new modern Canada. I have only come to this realization recently. I therefore did not submit my papers to run for the party this time, because I simply felt betrayed by a party that took for granted its people. I am delighted with all that Julian has delivered for our community and that he has already made a real difference for all of us.

This election is unnecessary particularly in Vaughan where we have been in perpetual campaign mode over the past year. We are suffering from chronic election fatigue here.   No Government is perfect but people like me are starting to realize this – the stability and focus of the Federal Government led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper will help ensure that the values of a modern Canada -those of responsibility, duty, balance, diversity and prosperity for all- will continue to evolve in a positive and optimistic fashion.

I hope that all citizens of Vaughan and all Canadians consider these issues as they reflect on their needs for the future and vote for the Conservative Party in this election. There is no other party in Canada that can form a majority government and we need one now more than ever, as people are vulnerable to a continuingly fragile economic recovery.  I hope all citizens of Vaughan particularly those who have voted Liberal in the past send a strong message to Ottawa that we want a strong united government, which has Vaughan represented by Julian Fantino.  I know that Julian Fantino given his track record will continue to represent us extremely well in the Conservative Government for many many many years to come!

Here comes the coalition again: NDP candidate quits in London, calls it "a strategic decision" to stop Harper

Our friends at the London Free Press are reporting this morning that the NDP candidate in Elgin-Middlesex-London resigned today. NDPer Ryan Dolby said he made “a strategic decision” to quit because “I am worried if Stephen Harper gets a majority.” This, I'm pretty sure, guarantees that the whole “coalition” meme is going to pop back up on the campaign trail for the leaders.

Indeed, Free Press reporter Randy Richmond has already tweeted that the Conservative incumbent in Elgin-Middlesex-London, Joe Preston, has already call this evidence of a coalition.

The NDP still has plenty of time to find a candidate. The deadline from Elections Canada to file the papers to become an Official Candidate for the May 2 vote is not until April 11.

Still, based on the results of the 2008 election, if every Liberal voted Liberal again, and every NDP voter from '08 voted Liberal, Preston would still win by more than 2,500 voters if all his voters showed up.

Meanwhile, the NDP National Campaign says Dolby's decision is unfortunate and that they'll have a nomination meeting in that riding within 48 hours. They are running candidates in all 308 ridings.

Harper then and now on the choices for an unhappy Official Opposition

In 2004, Opposition Leader Stephen Harper was not happy with the current state of Parliamentary Affairs and he wrote a letter to then Governor General Adrienne Clarkson in which he said, in part:

“We respectfully point out that the opposition parties, who together constitute a majority in the House, have been in close consultation. We believe that, should a request for dissolution arise this should give you cause, as constitutional practice has determined, to consult the opposition leaders and consider all of your options before exercising your constitutional authority.”

But today, outside the residence of the current Governor General David Johnston, Harper said an unhappy official opposition leader has only one option:

“First of all you don’t try and form a government if you lost the election. That is not legitimate. If Canadians elect the other party, even by a minority you respect that judgement. It is illegitimate to attempt to overturn that and if you want to overturn it, you go back to the people and get a mandate to do so. “

What Harper actually did in 2004 is very different than what Dion actually did in 2008.

But Harper in 2004 had “lost the election” and yet was seeking some kind of “options” other than an election to supplant Martin as prime minister. In 2011, Harper seems to say there is only one thing an Opposition leader can do if he doesn't like the government — “you go back to the people and get a mandate.” But in 2004, he was cautioning Clarkson that before “a request for dissolution”, she should consider “all your options.”

 

Conservatives: Opening campaign statement

Delivered by Prime Minister Stephen Harper outside Rideau Hall this morning:

Good morning.

In light of yesterday’s disappointing events I met with His Excellency the Governor General, and he has agreed that Parliament should be dissolved.

Before I say anything else, I would like to begin by thanking Canadians for the confidence and trust they have given me and my colleagues over the past five years.

It has been a privilege and honour to serve as Prime Minister of the best country in the world as together we faced the most difficult days of the global economic recession.

At the same time, because of the great challenges that still confront us I understand that our job is not done.

Today the world economy remains fragile.  The risk of a new international debt crisis is still with us.  Armed conflict, political turmoil and humanitarian disasters in the Middle East and elsewhere have serious potential consequences for the global recovery.

Against this backdrop of growing economic risk, and against our advice, the opposition parties have chosen to force an election the country doesn’t want; an election the economy doesn’t need.

They have deliberately chosen to halt the implementation of the Next Phase of our Economic Action Plan, a plan that has thus far allowed Canada to emerge from the global recession in a much better position than most other countries.

To my fellow Canadians I say this: the opposition parties have made their choice.  Now we Canadians get to make ours.

On May the 2nd, we will choose between stable national government and a reckless Coalition; between a low-tax plan for jobs and growth, and a high-tax agenda that will stall our recovery, kill jobs and set families back.

Canadians need to understand clearly, without any ambiguity: unless Canadians elect a stable, national majority, Mr. Ignatieff will form a Coalition with the NDP and Bloc Québécois.  They tried it before.  It is clear they will try it again.  And, next time, if given the chance, they will do it in a way that no one will be able to stop.

We need to ensure that our government is stable, national and wholly committed to the unity of our country.

Imagine a coalition of arch-centralists and Quebec sovereignists trying to work together.

The only thing they’ll be able to agree on is to spend more money and to raise taxes to pay for it.  We’ve all got too much at stake.  Now is not the time for political instability.

Now is not the time for economic uncertainty.  And now is most certainly not the time for higher taxes.

For Conservatives, economic recovery is our focus; economic recovery is our plan; and we will continue to use each and every day of a renewed mandate to complete our economic recovery, to provide growth, jobs and financial security for Canadian families.

The outcome of this election will therefore impact each and every Canadian with a job to find or a job to keep; a home to buy or a mortgage to pay; a retirement to fund or a business to build.

During this campaign, our focus will be on these Canadians: real people with real priorities who never wanted this election in the first place, who only want the economic recovery to be completed and political stability in Ottawa so they can have financial security at home.

We will be asking Canadians for a renewed mandate to:

Implement the Next Phase of Canada’s world-leading Economic Action Plan to protect and create jobs as outlined in the Budget.

To make life easier and more affordable for working families, the people who work hard and play by the rules.

To make our streets safer, putting the rights of victims ahead of criminals.

And to stand on guard for our country by cracking down on human smuggling and strengthening our Arctic sovereignty.

Canada is coming out of the global economic crisis with a clear economic advantage.

Today, the world looks to Canada.  And this is something we should all be proud of.  We can protect this advantage.  We can complete our economic recovery.  And we can keep taxes down.

And so I ask Canadians for their support.  I ask Canadians: who can deliver the stable national government that Canada needs to complete our economic recovery and keep taxes down?

Thank you.