That whole NewNewNewWeSwearWeReallyMeanItThisTimeSpiritOfCooperation thing was getting old. Again. Although it’s kind of adorable how Ignatieff, at least, is still at least pretending to hold out hope for a blue-ribboned miracle on employment insurance reform. Don’t stop believing:
That whole NewNewNewWeSwearWeReallyMeanItThisTimeSpiritOfCooperation thing was getting old. Again. Although it’s kind of adorable how Ignatieff, at least, is still at least pretending to hold out hope for a blue-ribboned miracle on employment insurance reform. Don’t stop believing:
From the Calgary Herald:
Prime Minister Stephen Harper dared opposition parties on Saturday– namely Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff–to topple the Conservative minority government, arguing it will trigger an election Canadians don’t want and leave voters with a stark choice at the ballot box.
“Let the opposition parties threaten to get together to defeat us and replace us,” Harper told about 800 Conservative supporters during a barbecue at Heritage Park. “Canadians have been clear that they do not want another election.” […]
Ignatieff, meanwhile, urged supporters Saturday during a party fund-raiser breakfast at the Calgary Zoo to prepare for the next election. He lambasted Conservative attack ads and accused the prime minister of taking Alberta voters for granted.
But after his address to supporters, the rookie Grit leader wouldn’t speculate on when the next campaign may come. He said the Liberals will wait to evaluate the outcome of a bipartisan panel reviewing employment insurance reform.
You know, I’ve got to think that by this point, most Canadians — well, Canadians of the voting persuasion — have probably done the math, and figured out that the government only needs the support of one out of the three other parties in the House to survive a non-confidence vote. Given that, it’s hard to see how they would lay the blame solely on the shoulders of the opposition if the country was sent careening back to the polls this fall. Then again, considering how easy it turned out to be to persuade the Liberal leader into hitting the rewind button during last month faux showdown, the prime minister is probably pretty confident that he can do it again, if necessary – and if not, he’s fully prepared to summon up the ghosts of treacherous coalitions past once he hits the campaign trail.
Anyway, as luck would have it, ITQ was on CTV News yesterday afternoon chattering on about this exact same thing — check it out here.