Thursday, March 27, 2008

Absent Liberals have given Harper his majority

Liberals who once fretted over the prospect of a Harper majority government are singularly responsible for giving him one, the Ottawa Citizen reports today:

"The Official Opposition supported the government on extending the Canadian mission in Afghanistan, motions on its centrepiece crime bill, and on other parliamentary arcana, such as a bill regarding the settlement of international investment disputes … The voting records support the growing contention that the Liberals are not truly functioning as an official Opposition as they seek to avoid running an election behind struggling leader Stéphane Dion.”

In the election, Liberals claimed they were dead set against Harper’s “neo-conservative agenda.” They begged Canadians to “choose the Canada you want.” And just in case Canadians were considering choosing the NDP’s Canada, instead of the scandal-ridden and promise-breaking Grits, Liberals stooped to allege in a press release (now no longer on the Liberals' site, of course) that Jack Layton had no principles:

“We have to wonder what his real principles are. He would rather risk Stephen Harper's success than be faithful to his own party's principles. But even more than that, Mr. Layton has repeatedly pledged to work with a Stephen Harper government. You're either for progressive social and economic policies, or you’re not. Contrary to what Jack Layton apparently believes, you can not have it both ways.”

Oh, the irony. The Citizen article trashes that Liberal talking point: It turns out that when Stephen Harper has needed an ally, he's turned to the Dion Liberals more than anyone else.
Liberal MPs are the ones to have broken with their party’s principles and repeatedly worked with a Stephen Harper government -- voting more than 60 percent of the time to support the Conservatives, while the New Democrats voted with the government only 26 percent of the time.

The people who voted Liberal in January 2006 were sold a parcel of goods – and they deserve better. They deserve a party that stands for what it believes in, not what party elites think is better for an election they are scared of triggering.

Jack Layton and the New Democrats are the real opposition to Harper.

4 comments:

Malcolm+ said...

The old saw that New Democrats are "Liberals in a hurry" has been proven false.

The truth is that the Liberals are "Conservatives who lie about what they believe."

Blogging Horse said...

... and how they behave.

Wheatsheaf said...

"Liberals, Tories same old story" never rang so true.

Pamela said...

It is scandalous that the “official” opposition has been missing in action for more than half the votes. Liberals voted with the Conservatives so often they should change the party colours to purple!
RRRR