13 replies to this topic

[mat]

Eh Gad - not again. Flaherty's pre-budget speech has got the opposition parties in a buzz of activity. Below is from a Globe and Mail article.

Incensed opposition parties are threatening to topple Stephen Harper's Conservative minority and have begun informally exploring the idea of cobbling together a governing coalition.

The Liberals are taking the prospect so seriously that some MPs are privately discussing ways to dump Leader Stéphane Dion without waiting for their party's scheduled May 2 leadership vote.

Sources say NDP Leader Jack Layton has cancelled a trip Friday to Vancouver to take part in the opposition talks, which went on through much of Thursday.

The machinations followed the release of the fall fiscal update.

The question will be the Liberals - with the leadership conference not until May 2nd, and the party in debt, will Dion resign to allow a coalition under Ignatiaff? Would a coalition survive?

My feeling is Harper has misjudged this, cutting off public funding for political parties 'should' backfire. It might be that looking at poll numbers, and a record low turnout - the Conservatives are saying to Canada 'you don't care - so you might as well live with us'.

Long live democracy!

[Coreyburger]

This disgusts me, especially given they didn't announce this before the last election. What I really hope is that all the opposition parties stick to their guns and force Harper to back down. Hopefully they can help get the message out that this is about fundmental democratic freedoms by helping remove the money equation from politics.

[mat]

This disgusts me, especially given they didn't announce this before the last election. What I really hope is that all the opposition parties stick to their guns and force Harper to back down. Hopefully they can help get the message out that this is about fundmental democratic freedoms by helping remove the money equation from politics.

Agreed on democratic principle, but this is about political tactics - who will blink 1st. If another election is called tomorrow, with the Liberals essentially without a leader, the NDP in debt, the greens(?) and Quebec in the middle of a provincial election - it would be chaos.

Media has been taken aback at this, along with the opposition. Killing public funding for federal parties is a direct challenge - is Harper so weak he needs this kind of policy to attempt a majority?

[Bernard]

Forcing the Canadian public to pay for the political parties is unethical. The public can chose to join the parties and they can give them money directly. This subsidy of parties means the political parties are even less connected to the people than before.

The collective annual subsidy to political parties is about $50 000 000. About $28 000 000 is the per vote subsidy, $7 000 000 the annual value of the election expense rebate for candidates, and $15 000 000 through the tax credits for donations.

All the parties need to do to replace the subsidy is to get a $5 donation each year from each person that supported them. If they can not organize that they need to consider what they are doing and why.

If the opposition can not agree to a small reduction in the budget of something that is of no direct benefit to 95% of Canadians or to running the government, what hope is there that the opposition will agree to do anything rational in this parliament?

Unless Harper agrees, the Liberals and NDP can not govern. They have a lot less seats than the Conservatives.

The only thing the Bloc, Liberals and NDP agree on is getting the taxpayers to fund them. The Bloc disagrees with any federal environmental action, federal control of healthcare, and almost anything else the federal government does because it wants the province of Quebec to do it.

[G-Man]

I disagree the funding allows for small parties to get funding as well such the Green Party. The only party that has solid funding minus the subsidy is the conservatives.

That said I highly doubt we will see a change in government or another election.

[ted - 3 - dots]

Forcing the Canadian public to pay for the political parties is unethical. The public can chose to join the parties and they can give them money directly. This subsidy of parties means the political parties are even less connected to the people than before.

The collective annual subsidy to political parties is about $50 000 000. About $28 000 000 is the per vote subsidy, $7 000 000 the annual value of the election expense rebate for candidates, and $15 000 000 through the tax credits for donations.

All the parties need to do to replace the subsidy is to get a $5 donation each year from each person that supported them. If they can not organize that they need to consider what they are doing and why.

If the opposition can not agree to a small reduction in the budget of something that is of no direct benefit to 95% of Canadians or to running the government, what hope is there that the opposition will agree to do anything rational in this parliament?

Unless Harper agrees, the Liberals and NDP can not govern. They have a lot less seats than the Conservatives.

The only thing the Bloc, Liberals and NDP agree on is getting the taxpayers to fund them. The Bloc disagrees with any federal environmental action, federal control of healthcare, and almost anything else the federal government does because it wants the province of Quebec to do it.

--------- LOL -----

Cutting off the funding to the other political party's ...?

What's next for Harper,,, appointing himself , "Dictator-for-life" ...?

Simply , he helped to wipe-out the Reform-Party of Canada ,,,,,,,,,,
and then the Conservative-Party of Canada,

so what's next for Steven Harper ...????????????????


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a Perpetual War financed on the cheep ...?
( oups, he's already doing that in Afghanistan )

sorry


ted... ( can't wait for my vote for the NDP , to become one for the Ruling-Party ) ...!

with-out the hastle of having to vote .

[Bernard]

The only non-elected party that gets funding is the Greens.

Most of the subsidy at the moment goes to Conservatives. Of the $50 000 000 total, $25 000 000 goes to the Conservatives.

Since Canadians are not interested in joining the parties and in general dislike them, why should they be forced to pay for them? There is no direct benefit to Canadians or government from this subsidy. Not only does the public have to pay, they have no control over the political parties, no oversight, and no say in how they are run.

Or should the feds give candidates for local council the same subsidies? Give Rob Randall $7000 a year till the next election for the votes he got.

[ted - 3 - dots]

The only non-elected party that gets funding is the Greens.

Most of the subsidy at the moment goes to Conservatives. Of the $50 000 000 total, $25 000 000 goes to the Conservatives.

Since Canadians are not interested in joining the parties and in general dislike them, why should they be forced to pay for them? There is no direct benefit to Canadians or government from this subsidy. Not only does the public have to pay, they have no control over the political parties, no oversight, and no say in how they are run.

Or should the feds give candidates for local council the same subsidies? Give Rob Randall $7000 a year till the next election for the votes he got.

---- wait a minute -----

are you saying that is all that I have to do ,
is run against the federal-Conservatives (as an independent) ,?
and I'll get $7000 a year to add to the welfare payments I already get ...!

I mean I'm allowed to keep $400.oo bucks a month , as "earning's" ...! 7-k ...?


>>>>>>>>> I'm Announcing that I have just become "an Independent-Federal-Candidate" ,

" I obviously don't need to win "

but , I could use the extra income YOUR VOTE brings me ...!

ted... ( vote for me ) please ...!

seriously , I really could use the extra income .


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a "federal" candidate

[Coreyburger]

The only non-elected party that gets funding is the Greens.

Most of the subsidy at the moment goes to Conservatives. Of the $50 000 000 total, $25 000 000 goes to the Conservatives.

Since Canadians are not interested in joining the parties and in general dislike them, why should they be forced to pay for them? There is no direct benefit to Canadians or government from this subsidy. Not only does the public have to pay, they have no control over the political parties, no oversight, and no say in how they are run.

Or should the feds give candidates for local council the same subsidies? Give Rob Randall $7000 a year till the next election for the votes he got.

It is a not a subsidy. It is effectively a donation, by the voter, to the party of their choice. It allows a lot of people who couldn't otherwise financially support their party to do so. And given cutting it would cripple, at least temporarily, all three of the opposition parties, and thus leave the Conservatives in complete control of the airwaves, there is a small problem there.

And yes, ads still matter. Obama won in large part because he could inspire people to give small amounts of money and then used that rather large pot to totally overwhelm McCain in television ads.

Of course, all of this boils down to the fact that the Reform party started as a grassroots party and as the youngest of the parties, still retains the largest level of that. And this is not about ideology. The Green Party is also heavily grassroots, also because it is young. Older parties tend to get more "party-ish" and thus have a harder time keeping the average person interested. As such, I would wager that per-capita giving is much high in Alberta than anywhere else in the country. I would also wager there is a fairly large gap, in number of contributors and total amount contributed, between a lot of the old PC ridings and the old Reform/CA ones.

[KublaKhan]

Um...does this mean I get a refund on my last ballot? Because I think it was broken. It didn't work properly. And it isn't working properly now.

[mat]

Um...does this mean I get a refund on my last ballot? Because I think it was broken. It didn't work properly. And it isn't working properly now.

Sorry all sales final - until the next election!

[ted - 3 - dots]

Um...does this mean I get a refund on my last ballot? Because I think it was broken. It didn't work properly. And it isn't working properly now.

---- No Kubla , your ballot is NOT broken ---------

a short but Blood-Less Coup , called a NO-CONFEDANCE VOTE , will
set the record right ...!

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"try-party-politics , really rule the day " ,,, or is that rule's over Stockwell-day ....!!!!!!!!!


Non-Confidence-Motion's ...? ( you ask )
beat's house arrest ....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


and they will beat Harper's "reformed-conSERVE-it-tives" ...!


ted... ( non-con votes ) yum yum ...!!!!!!!!! and bye bye ...

[Coreyburger]

Um...does this mean I get a refund on my last ballot? Because I think it was broken. It didn't work properly. And it isn't working properly now.

You are not alone. 990,000 Green Party supporters (amongst a huge number of others from all the other parties: Cons in urban Canada, Libs in the West, etc.) are busy wondering why their voice wasn't heard.

[mat]

I nearly fell off my chair reading this - Harper has been forced to back down on dropping party subsidies, and has sent his 'forces' on a media offensive, as well as delaying a confidence vote for a week. It illustrates our PM's arrogance, utter lack of insight and consideration of public/opposition resolve. From the Globe and Mail - email sent to MP's.

After 24 hours of peering into a yawning political abyss, the Harper government took a step back on Saturday, dropping a plan to kill subsidies for political parties.

"When it comes to the funding and subsidies that political parties get, we just don't think it's worth getting into an election on that issue," Transport Minister John Baird said. "We won't be proceeding."

A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the government will have more to say on Sunday, suggesting there may be more further retreats in store.

The flip-flop may not be enough to soothe the opposition, which is also looking for a major package to help the troubled auto, manufacturing and forestry industries.