Tonight in Toronto, the three individuals who hope to carry the New Democrat flag in the soon-to-be called by-election in Toronto Centre met for a debate. Alice Funke, known to her fans as PunditsGuide was there and live-tweeted the proceedings. I have grabbed her tweets, lightly edited them and presented them in chronological order: Thanks, Alice!
Throughout the timeline here, the following applies:
LM=Linda McQuaig
JH=Jennifer Hollett
SG=Susan Gapka
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Hello Toronto, and specifically #TorCen. When will Union Station be finished?
Free lunch at @tejross Campaign Office Launch and barbecue. #TorCen #byelxn41 He’s working the line now. http://t.co/xI1wINSsXW
#lpc #torcen #byelxn41 nominatn cand Todd Ross ( @tejross ) addresses office launch party: stresses poverty, housing http://t.co/KdWoy6QNdZ
In the house early for the Toronto YNDP #NDP #TorCen#byelxn41 nomination candidates debate at OISE. Live-tweeting to follow.
First, though, I have to re-charge my BB 9320 battery for the third. Time. Today. Grr.
#TorCen #ndp #byelxn41 nomination debate about to start. @LindaMcQuaig @jenniferhollett and @SusanGapka on the stage now.
Seeing @Erin_Weir, riding pres @VinceCifani, @apocalypsoball and @joecressy in the house, so far. #ndp #torcen #Byelxn41
The Toronto YNDP may or may not endorse a candidate at the end, but they will tweet me and let me know if so, and I will RT. #torcen #ndp
Oh, I think I see the Etobicoke-Lakeshore provincial candidate PC Choo, here, as well.
McQuaig to start off the 5 minute opening statements; then 40 minute Q and A, followed by closing. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: Thanks the yNDP for their “activism and engagement”. Isn’t just about winning but abt comm activism & getting prog agenda back into db8
LM: recognizes her fellow candidates; praises the “healthy nomination process”. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: calls herself an “activist advocacy journalist”; compares Bay St’s view of the new super-rich & those of Main St #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: Much of my work has been about debunking the “nonsense” of the so-called globalist agenda. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: But it doesn’t have to be this way — proof is in the north eur countries who are very comptv in the modern econ #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
JH: An exciting time to be a New Dem in #TorCen. I blv politics is very personal — where we eat, live & work — or not work #ndp #byelxn41
JH: tells her family story of immig & working class employment+the RC Church; family emigrated from Belfast to StCath #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
JH: early adopter of soc media, b/c a new way of reaching ppl. Journ about questions; now wants to pursue answers #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
JH: Issues on the doorstep here are 1. Housing, 2. Jobs, and 3. Public Transit. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
@SusanGapka Thanks. Nice to meet you in person.
JH: also wants to discuss envmt & equality in the Q&A session. Says most pressing issue tho may be disillusionment #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
JH: the great thing about politics is that it’s what we make it. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
SG: we’re all New Dems, and now we’re having a bit of a contest, but the day after the vote we are all the same team #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
(Interesting note: she said that with @amarjeetkaur in the room, if you know the back story) #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
SG: What a great party where an old street girl like me can be on the stage with these 2 other great ladies #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
SG: Is leaving after the debate to use her season tickets to the Argos. Said it was tricky to figure out what to wear for both (laugh).
SG: Says only in the #ndp could an LBGTT trans activist like her be in the running for a race such as this. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
SG: points out how far the fight for trans rights has come in just the last 10 yrs; thanks Pam McConnell on city cncl #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
SG: George is gone and on holidays, the two Raes are gone and on holidays; we’ve had enough of PMSH — it’s our time #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
Q: About TM statement on not raising personal taxes, and smarter cuts. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
A: LM I’ve argued my whole career that the rich shld pay more taxes. I understand that if I’m an NDP MP, I will be a prog voice in caucus
JH: Also rejects the austerity agenda. The cuts we have to focus on reversing are the cuts in corporate taxes. Need to fund soc servs
SG: points out the unequal division of wealth in the riding. I’m in favour of looking at income security models. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
Q: On cash stockpiling on corporate balance sheets (remember: the YND is a youthful hotbed of youthful hotbeds). Wonders if other taxes?
A. Candidates are being very careful. SG smiles and says she would hire @Erin_Weir as an advisor. Talks about soc determinants of health
LM: Simple truth is that we used to have much more progressive rates in this country, and it didn’t kill econ growth #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: You’re talking about “dead money” as Mark Carney called it, and it’s why we can’t get the economy working again. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: in a recession biz won’t invest, b/c consumers have no $ to spend, so govt has to step in a bit. 2008 proved that #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: it was that awful G20 where Harper encouraged govts around the world to stop stimulating the econ #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
@JosephSears1 Pls see back in my twitter feed. Unless you’re being snarky. I’m too busy to answer snark just now.
@jesse_helmer yes, Gapka said she wanted to look at models of income security.
Q: what to do about housing for young ppl, basicaly. SG: need to be building more affordable housing, period. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: Runs down the stats on how bad the housing sitn is in the riding. Says one of main probs is how the feds cutting their spending here
LM: Contrasts cuts in housing subsidies to the poor, to subsidies to the rich via capital gains exemption on primary res. Inequities in aid
JH: brings it back to issues raised at the coop housing mtg they attended last night. Housing shld not divide us. Ppl feel a stigma. Wrong.
@JosephSears1 @LindaMcQuaig @jenniferhollett @SusanGapka I’m referring to them by initials.
Q. YND’er advocates a more activist campaign saying it’s what will work.
LM: Irony is, PMSH’s policies are not widely popular, but at least he looks principled b/c he stands his ground. Imagine same on the left!
JH: very important that politics is on the doorstep, not in Ottawa. The issues the TYND raise are the issues we’re hearing at the door.
JH: We need to let people feel they have a voice in this party. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
SG: the reason I’m doing this is not to be part of the mainstream, but to fight for the people on the street. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
Q: shooting of Sammy Yatim. Why hasn’t federal NDP taken stand against police brutality?
JH: I’m glad TYND took a stance. The shooting of Sammy was a tragedy. ALSO points out importance of social media! We need to support …
JH: … families, support better educ. But we need to stop criminalizing youth, esp youth of colour. U know how hard it is jst to walk home
SG, I gather, has appeared in videos made to educate police officers on community policing.
SG: we have policies, but not all officers on the st are following. Action came b/c of public pressure in this case. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: Role of the video underlines that FOR YEARS this was going on without any videos. The Dziekanski case wld not have been w/out video.
LM: All points to the need for transparency. Need proper video-taping of interrogations, and SanFran policy of videocams on police uniforms
Q: Isn’t it ironic that what even the “far left” in the NDP demands today was taken for granted 40 years ago? Can we talk abt capitalism?
SG: I may get in trouble for this, but I thought that’s already what we were talking about. We’re talking to ppl and trying to make a diff.
LM: I do think that outcomes are imp, not just a “reformist trick”. Improvements in ppl’s lives actually matters #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: If you empower ppl by giving them security, you will empower them to take the next step in our democracy. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: you are suggesting that making people poorer will make them rise up, but in fact it never happens that way; quite the opposite,
JH: This is the 1st time we’ve come together as the 3 cands & it’s because we love the deb8s at the YND. Essential part of a healthy democ
Closing remarks. LM: we didn’t address climate change tonight: Looming problem, b/c PMSH is doing nothing about it.
LM: this is a complete departure from Cda’s trad’l – leading role in the world, as we did w/ ozone layer depletion. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
LM: We have to resist this Harperist, Thatcherist, Reaganist view, and start to talk about the real alternatives being used in scandinavia.
JH: I want to talk to you as youth. As Kofi Annan said recently: we’re not listening to you & we need to. You have optimism we may have lost
JH: I live my politics, and we need people who are active on the ground, and I do that. So I’d like to bring that to the campaign.
SG: Asks who here is better off now than they were a year ago, 10 years ago? But says she is better off than at 6 PM for the db8 tonight.
SG: I’m using to being 2nd or 3rd, so I’m used to working harder. We’re going to talk housing & educ, but I do need to rep the LBGT comm too
That’s it for the debate. Now the photographs, and pass the hat for room rental etc. Live-tweeting over and out. #ndp #torcen #byelxn41
PS from AKIN: If you live-tweeted this debate, let me know, and I’ll grab your tweets and mix them in.
As an exec of the Toronto Young New Democrats (the hosts of this debate) I am pleased to announce that we have endorsed Linda Mcquaig for the Toronto Centre NDP nomination.