Thursday, October 31, 2013

When An Economist Challenges The Conservative's Pro-Big Business Agenda .... He gets called a 'Bolshivek'. Welcome To Harper's Canada

In 2011 the Harper Conservatives did some loud back slapping about an an out-of-court settlement with U.S. Steel. Then Industry Minister, Christian Paradis said “This settlement demonstrates that the Investment Canada Act is working”

This was an attempt to distract from the fact that under Harper the Investment Canada Act was really only working for big corporations that wanted to buy up Canadian companies.

Turns out even this deal was just another Conservative fabrication. The company never even bothered to restart its massive Hamilton blast furnace, shuttered completely since 2010. On Tuesday, U.S. Steel announced that the Hamilton facility shutdown would be permanent.

Erin Weir, an economist with the United Steelworkers (the Union affected by this shutdown) pointed out that U.S. Steel is closing its blast furnaces in Canada in order to shift high-value production south of the border to the US ... killing Canadian jobs. In response, the Harper administration said nothing. Nothing!

Weir went on CBC’s Lang and O’Leary show to make this case and was called a Bolshevik by Right wing academic and Harper apologist, Ian Lee of the Sprott School of Business!

So once again we see a typical corporate brown-noser name calling anyone who challenges the Conservative's corporate agenda. Big business can’t stand anyone who gets in the way of their unlimited ability to make profit without any regulation whatsoever.

Kudos to economist Erin Weir for standing up for the economic interests of the people of Canada, because, hey .... with Harper in power, someone has to do it.

U.S. Steel to close Hamilton operations | Toronto Star

posted by leftdog at Thursday, October 31, 2013 | Permalink |

In Spite Of Ongoing Interviews And Investigation Of Duffy / Wright, RCMP Had NO Knowlege of $13,560 Cheque From Conservative Party Until Duffy's Senate Speech ..

None of them .. Harper, Wright, Novak, Hamilton, LeBreton, Tkachuk, etc etc etc, are being forthright or honest about the facts and sequence of events in the Senate Scandal:

PARLIAMENT HILL—An RCMP account of a lengthy police interview last June with two lawyers answering for Nigel Wright over the controversial $90,000 cheque he gave to embattled Senator Mike Duffy contains no reference to a separate $13,560 cheque that Mr. Wright also arranged to pay Sen. Duffy’s legal costs with Conservative Party money.

Despite the storm that erupted in Parliament this week over Sen. Duffy’s disclosure that Mr. Wright agreed to use the Conservative Party’s coffers to help settle a growing scandal over Sen. Duffy’s expenses, it appears the payment was either not mentioned or not recorded during the interview with Mr. Wright’s legal counsel, as a special Mountie unit in Ottawa began an investigation into possible breach of trust over the payment and Sen. Duffy’s expense claims.

Mr. Wright resigned on May 19 as Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s chief staff several days after the $90,000 payment was disclosed, and has since been at the centre of the broiling Parliament Hill furor over Senate expenses and his deal with Sen. Duffy.

An RCMP affidavit, filed in court last July to obtain a judge’s order to obtain Senate records on Sen. Duffy’s expense claims and payments, Jean-Francois-Arbour and Supt. Biage Carrese conducted with Mr. Wright’s lawyers— Patrick McCann and Peter Mantas.

Though there was no mention of the cheque for Sen. Duffy’s legal fees in the report, it detailed at length Mr. Wright’s role in the Conservative Party; his view that Sen. Duffy should repay expenses he claimed for his designated Ottawa house as his secondary residence; Sen. Duffy’s concern he did not have the money to repay the $90,000; Sen. Duffy’s fear that if he did not claim a primary residence in Prince Edward Island it would put his Senate seat in jeopardy; Mr. Wright’s assurance that would not happen; and an original proposal that the Conservative Party would pay $32,000 worth of Sen. Duffy’s impugned expenses.

“When it was realized that the cost was actually $90,000, it was too much money to ask the Conservative Party to cover,” the affidavit says, also noting that the head of the Conservative Fund Canada, Conservative Senator Irving Gerstein, was aware of the negotiations and of the payment to Sen. Duffy.
While the cheque to repay Sen. Duffy’s expenses drew on Mr. Wright’s personal bank account, the $13,560 for his legal fees to Ottawa labour lawyer Janice Payne came from donations to the Conservative Party, which are heavily subsidized by the public through generous income tax deductions for political contributions to all political parties.
Hill Times

posted by leftdog at Thursday, October 31, 2013 | Permalink |

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Former Prime Minister Joe Clark Says Stephen Harper Needs To Tell The Truth!!!

Former prime minister Joe Clark says current PM Stephen Harper needs to "bring people into the facts" and tell the real story about what went on with Senator Mike Duffy and Nigel Wright, the PM's former chief of staff.

Clark has written a new book — titled How We Lead — about Canada's foreign policy, and our country's global standing. The book is quite critical about Harper's approach to international affairs. CBC chief correspondent Peter Mansbridge interviewed Clark on Wednesday about leadership, not only on foreign affairs, but also on management, including how he sees the Senate scandal that's been unfolding in Ottawa.

Clark says Harper should get some advice about how to tell the story effectively.

CBC: "As unlikely as it may seem, if Stephen Harper picked up the phone and called you up and said, 'I need your advice,' what would be the single piece of advice you'd give him on what was happening right now?"

JC: Right now, I think he has to bring people into the facts. That's a careful way of saying ….... "

CBC: "It's a careful way of saying he's not telling us the real story."

JC: "And I think he needs to tell the real story and I think he needs to seek some advice as to what's the most effective way to do that....That's a question he should have asked a long time ago."

Clark also says that what really surprises him is that the party is attacking its own. "It raises a very real question that comes back to the prime minister: if Mike Duffy has been such a problem, who appointed him? If Nigel Wright is the person they're blaming, who hired him?"

"This is very tricky ground for the prime minister and he, I think, is trapped by a process, by a use of a process that he himself created," Clark says.
CBC

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 30, 2013 | Permalink |

Wow! Conservative Party Of Canada National Council Officials Move To Issue Gag Order On Party Members / Convention Delegates

Subject: Fw: CBC Requests for Interviews

Gord Elliott wrote:

Fellow Conservatives

I and other members of the party have received emails from the CBC fishing for people to interview about Mike Duffy’s allegations. I have ignored all of the requests and strongly urge you to do the same. Should you happen to talk to one of their reporters, please refer the reporter to our party’s Director of Communications, Cory Hann, at 613-755-2000.

Gord Elliott

Alberta Member Representative

National Council

Conservative Party of Canada

(Photo courtesy Montreal Simon ... )

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 30, 2013 | Permalink |

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Stephen Harper And His PMO Are Still Fine Tuning Their 'Fib' Concerning the $13,500 2nd Cheque .....

Mike Duffy has confessed but Prime Minister Harper is still practicing the old Conservative mantra of 'deny, deny, deny'.

"In the Commons Tuesday, Harper and the Conservatives sustained yet another bruising barrage from NDP leader Thomas Mulcair. Sen. Mike Duffy’s latest revelation – that his $13,500 legal bill was paid by the Conservative party – is now confirmed. The best explanation the PM could offer was that such payments are routine. As for why the party he heads saw fit to foot the bill for a senator in trouble over behaviour now deemed a hanging offence, he had no answer. It’s a mystery, like the Shroud of Turin."

-Ekos Polling shows that 18% believe Stephen Harper .. that means 82% believe he is not being truthful!

posted by leftdog at Tuesday, October 29, 2013 | Permalink |

Mike Duffy Now Knows The Truth That Buckdog Blog Has Been Warning You Of Concerning Stephen Harper Since Feb 2006!!!

"The millions of Canadians who voted for Prime Minister Harper and the thousands of Tories gathering in Calgary this week would be shocked to see how some of these people, some of these Tories, operate. They have no moral compass. Oh, they talk a great game about integrity, but, in my experience, they demonstrate every day that they do not understand the meaning of the phrase “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”
Senator Mike Duffy
October 28, 2013

-=-=-=-=-=-

"I see that Democracy Watch has dubbed Prime Minister Harper both a liar and a hypocrite. Democracy Watch apparently gave the Tory ethics package high marks during the election but now says the Harper government has written gaping loopholes into at least 5 areas of the new code of ethics. That took about 15 minutes and is anyone surprised? We know that when it comes to ethics the neo-cons are gonna want loop holes big enough to drive a truck through because they're not gonna want anything to get in the way of implementing their agenda. I mean, they are (with apologies to royalty everywhere) the kings and queens of the what's-in-it-for-me set, when you're trying to grab up all you can who's got time for ethics?"
Buckdog Politics
February 20, 2006

posted by leftdog at Tuesday, October 29, 2013 | Permalink |

Monday, October 28, 2013

The Corrupt SOB Who Is Our Prime Minister ... should take his own advice!!!!!! sheeesh!

I thank God EVERY DAY, that I am NOT afflicted with 'Conservatism'!!

posted by leftdog at Monday, October 28, 2013 | Permalink |

Dick Cheney (who someday will be charged with war crimes) Says Canada Is 'Too Dangerous' And Cancels Toronto Speaking Engagement ..

TORONTO — Former U.S. vice-president Dick Cheney has cancelled an April appearance in Toronto citing concerns Canada is too dangerous.
“He felt that in Canada the risk of violent protest was simply too high,” said Ryan Ruppert, president of promotions company Spectre Live Corp., which had booked Mr. Cheney for an April 24 appearance at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
“They specifically referenced what happened in Vancouver,” Mr, Ruppert added.
In September, Mr. Cheney was speaking at a private club in Vancouver when protesters massed outside the front door harassing ticket holders and in one instance, choking a security guard.

The former vice-president was reportedly held inside the building for more than seven hours as Vancouver Police in riot gear dispersed the demonstrators.
Cheney, who along with former President George W. Bush remains unpopular in Canada, had been slated to talk about his time in office and the current U.S. political landscape.
“God forbid there was ever an emergency,” said Ruppert, noting Cheney’s history of heart problems.
The National Post

posted by leftdog at Monday, October 28, 2013 | Permalink |

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Conservatives Need To Come To The Realization That Harper Is The Problem ...

OTTAWA — The Conservative Senate caucus will meet Monday morning to discuss possible amendments to three motions that would suspend embattled senators Mike Duffy, Pamela Wallin and Patrick Brazeau without pay or benefits. [...] “There are a lot Conservative senators who are very concerned about the way the government proposes to do this, so I hope they’re going to have an opportunity (Monday) to try to persuade the government to change its mind,” Cowan said. “What I would hope is that Conservative caucus would say, ‘We not only have to do the right thing, we have to appear to do the right thing and do it in the right way. Let’s have the proper process.’"
National Post

posted by leftdog at Sunday, October 27, 2013 | Permalink |

Friday, October 25, 2013

Stephen Harper flip flops ... now says a ‘FEW’ people knew about Nigel Wright’s $90,000 cheque to Mike Duffy .. not just Nigel Wright

'Where there was once just Nigel Wright, the prime minister said for the first time Thursday that a “few” people knew of the scheme to pay Sen. Mike Duffy $90,000 for his questionable housing expenses. Stephen Harper made the comment Thursday during question period in the House, immediately drawing jeers from the opposition benches.

“Mr. Wright has been clear. The decision to pay Mr. Duffy with his own money was his and his alone. He informed very few people,” Harper said. “Any insinuation, any suggestion that I knew or would have known is incorrect. As soon as I knew, Mr. Speaker, I made this information available to the public and took the appropriate action.”
National Post

posted by leftdog at Friday, October 25, 2013 | Permalink |

Thursday, October 24, 2013

MSM Has Yet To Detect Stephen Harper's Slip Up In Question Period On Wednesday ...

".. during Wednesday's question period the Prime Minister let slip a statement that contradicts a point he has emphatically made in the past.

The issue was whether Nigel Wright "acted alone" on the notorious $90,000 gift, or whether other Conservative Party or government officials were involved.

The question came from NDP leader Tom Mulcair: "On June 5 and 6, when I asked the Prime Minister whether Ray Novak was involved in the Duffy affair, the Prime Minister said that Nigel Wright acted alone. Was that true?"

In his answer, Harper appeared to have misunderstood the question, although that may have been an intentional "misunderstanding."

Note carefully that Mulcair was not asking the Prime Minister whether or not Ray Novak was involved.
The Opposition Leader merely referred to Novak to give context to his more general question, which was: Was the Prime Minister speaking the truth, in June, when he said Nigel Wright acted alone?
"Mr. Wright has been absolutely clear in terms of who he told he intended to repay Mr. Duffy's expenses to," Harper replied.

In alluding to folks whom Wright "told" about the $90,000 Harper in effect admitted that he had been less than forthright in June. His statement on Wednesday was tantamount to admitting that Wright had not acted alone.

Harper tried to muddy the issue by throwing in the non sequitur that if "others" were, indeed, involved in the $90,000 caper, Ray Novak (currently the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff ) was not one of them:
"[Wright] did not say Ray Novak was one of those people. He has named those people..."
Now, let's pause for just one second here.

Either Wright "acted alone" or he acted in concert with other people, people whom Harper now says Wright has, in fact, "named."

What happened to Harper's earlier claim that Wright acted alone?

Can the Prime Minister's answer on Wednesday and the assertion he made in June (that Mulcair quoted on Wednesday) both be true?

That would defy logic.

But if truth is the first victim of war, it seems that logic is the first victim of the kind of desperate political gamesmanship Harper is engaged in these days."

By Karl Nerenberg

Rabble.ca

posted by leftdog at Thursday, October 24, 2013 | Permalink |

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Political Cartoonists Have Field Day With Harper's Dishonesty Dilemma ..

Cartoon by kind permission of
Graeme MacKay at mackaycartoons.net
(Click on image to enlarge)

Cartoon by Greg Perry - The Tyee
(Click on image to enlarge)

Cartoon By Theo Moudakis — National Newswatch
(Click on image to enlarge)

Cartoon By Malcolm Mayes — National Newswatch
(Click on image to enlarge)

Cartoon by Michael de Adder - Hill Times
(Click on image to enlarge)

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 23, 2013 | Permalink |

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Stephen Harper .... The MOST CORRUPT Prime Minister In The History Of Canada!

Mike Duffy's address to the Senate

Via the Canadian Press, a transcript of Mike Duffy’s remarks to the Senate this evening. Thank you, honourable senators. I want to speak in support of this motion because I believe, after the excellent speech we heard from the leader of the Opposition here in the Senate, that there are a lot of questions that need answers. And while some might argue that having the proceedings before a judge and under oath might be absolutely preferable, given the size of the issue we’re dealing with, any move towards allowing senators to have their say before they’re shipped off I think is a great move and I support it. I rise here today against the orders of my doctors, who fear my heart condition has worsened after months of unrelenting stress. But given the unprecedented nature of today’s proceedings, I feel I have no other choice than to come here and defend my good name. Like you, I took a solemn oath to put the interests of Canadians ahead of all else. However, the sad truth is, I allowed myself to be intimidated into doing what I knew in my heart was wrong out of a fear of losing my job and out of a misguided sense of loyalty. Much has been made of the $90,000 cheque from Nigel Wright. I hope I’ll be able to give an explanation of the chain of events and the circumstances surrounding that gift without impugning the rights of others to a fair trial, should criminal proceedings follow. Let me summarize it this way: On Dec. 3, 2012, the Ottawa Citizen ran a story asking, how could I claim expenses for my house in Kanata when I had owned the home there before I was appointed to the Senate? The inference was clear: I was doing something wrong. I immediately contacted Nigel Wright, the prime minister’s chief of staff, and explained that I was doing nothing improper. Nigel Wright emailed me back, saying he had my expenses checked and he was satisfied that my accounts were in order, that all was in compliance with Senate rules. In fact, he said, there were several other senators in the same situation. This was in December 2012. Mr. Wright said: The story is a smear.
Following the PMO’s advice, I ignored the media, but the attacks from Postmedia continued and the political heat escalated. So after caucus on Feb. 13 of this year, I met the prime minister and Nigel Wright, just the three of us. I said that despite the smear in the papers, I had not broken the rules, but the prime minister wasn’t interested in explanations or the truth. It’s not about what you did; it’s about the perception of what you did that has been created in the media. The rules are inexplicable to our base. I argued: I’m just following the rules like all of the others. But it didn’t work. I was ordered by the prime minister: Pay the money back, end of discussion. Nigel Wright was present throughout, just the three of us. The next week, while I was at home in P.E.I., I had a series of discussions on the phone with Nigel Wright. I said I didn’t believe I’d broken the rules and that to repay would be an admission of guilt. Canadians know me as an honest guy. To pay back money I didn’t owe would destroy my reputation. The PMO piled on the pressure Some honourable senators called me in P.E.I. One senator in particular left several particularly nasty and menacing messages: Do what the prime minister wants. Do it for the PM and for the good of the party. I continued to resist. Finally, the message from the PMO became: Do what we want or else. And what was the “else”? He said the Conservative majority on the steering committee of the Board of Internal Economy, Sen. Tkachuk and Sen. Stewart Olsen, would issue a press release declaring me unqualified to sit in the Senate. However, if you do what we want, the prime minister will publicly confirm that you’re entitled to sit as a senator from P.E.I. and you won’t lose your seat. Tkachuk and Stewart Olsen are ready to make that press release now. I said: They don’t have the power to do that. He said: Agree to what we want right now or else. I made one last effort. I said: I don’t believe I owe anything, and besides which, I don’t have $90,000. Don’t worry, Nigel said, I’ll write the cheque. Let the lawyers handle the details; you just follow the plan and we’ll keep Carolyn Stewart Olsen and David Tkachuk at bay. There were elaborate undertakings negotiated among the several lawyers involved in this. They were taking instructions from their clients: at least two lawyers from the PMO, one I know of from the Conservative party and my own lawyer. There was an undertaking made by the PMO, with the agreement of the Senate leadership, that I would not be audited by Deloitte, that I’d be given a pass; and further, that if this phoney scheme ever became public, Sen. LeBreton, the leader of the government of the day, would whip the Conservative caucus to prevent my expulsion from the chamber. PMO officials confided it wasn’t easy to get this commitment to do as they were told from senators LeBreton, Tkachuk and Stewart Olsen, but the email chain shows it took hours of shuttling back and forth as the lawyers checked with their principals about the guarantees they were going to give to ensure that I wasn’t censured for going along with this PMO scheme. Given all of those emails, you can imagine my shock when I heard there’s not a single document about all of this in the PMO, not one. In response to an access-to-information request, CBC was told there’s not one single document related to this matter in the PMO. Well, if they’re not in the PMO, they’re in the hands of my lawyers and I suspect in the hands of the RCMP. Why don’t I release those documents now? Because the people involved have rights, which under our system, must be protected. Are the police looking at possible criminal charges? Are they wondering about bribery, threats and extortion of a sitting legislator? This is serious stuff, and the people who were involved and there’s more than those I’ve mentioned here today deserve to have their rights protected. It’s the Canadian way. It will all come out in due course when all of the players are under oath and the email chain can be seen in its entirety. While all of this was going on in the interim, despite the big agreement, I was sent off to Deloitte, not by the Board of Internal Economy but by the special select subcommittee. Not Sen. Marshall’s group, no, no. I wasn’t sent there. I was sent straight off to Deloitte by senators Stewart Olsen, Tkachuk and Furey — straight to Deloitte. And then, when Deloitte wanted to see everything including my wife’s bank account, I was told in the reading room in the back: They’ve got all they need. It doesn’t matter. Don’t bother. After combing my living expense claims, my travel claims, Senate air travel, my cell phone records and Senate AMEX, Deloitte found that I had not violated the Senate rules. Then, in May, after someone leaked selected excerpts of a confidential email I had sent to my lawyer in February, in which I voiced my opposition and concern about the deal, the PMO was back with a vengeance. I was called at home in Cavendish by Ray Novak, senior assistant to the prime minister. He had with him Sen. LeBreton, leader of the government in the Senate. Sen. LeBreton was emphatic: The deal was off. If I didn’t resign from the Conservative caucus within 90 minutes, I’d be thrown out of the caucus immediately, without a meeting, without a vote. In addition, she said, if I didn’t quit the caucus immediately, I’d be sent to the Senate ethics committee, with orders from the leadership to throw me out of the Senate. With Ray Novak, my wife and my sister listening in on the call, Sen. LeBreton was insistent: You’ve got to do this, Mike. Do what I’m telling you. Quit the caucus within the next 90 minutes. It’s the only way to save your paycheque, quote. I understand that caucus disputes are internal and not a matter for the Senate. However, when one’s status as a senator is repeatedly threatened, I believe this amounts to an attack on my independence as a senator and is criminal, or at the very least, a serious violation of my privileges. Colleagues, like you, this kind of politics is not why I came to the Senate of Canada. It’s not why millions of Canadians voted for the Conservative party. It’s not the Canadian way. I came here to build a better country, to use my experience as a journalist to help build a better Prince Edward Island. I want to continue my hard work for the island and I can only do that if you follow due process. Honourable senators, this particular motion, should it pass, would be a serious violation of my human rights, including the most fundamental right of all: to be considered innocent until proven guilty. That’s a basic right in our democracy. In the words of the Bill of Rights Act of 1960 — one of the great Tory accomplishments in my lifetime and in my view John Diefenbaker’s most important legacy — we are all entitled to fundamental justice. This motion put forward by Sen. Carignan is in direct conflict with any sense of fundamental justice. Not only is it a firing without a firing, as Sen. Segal has correctly pointed out, it deprives me not only of a paycheque but of a health plan, of life insurance. This, a guy who came back off sick leave because of a serious heart problem, who’s going to buy the heart drugs I need? What kind of a country do we have when the power can override the sick leave provisions of the federal government of Canada health care act or arrangement. I’ve got a certificate at home that says I’m a member of the government health plan. Well, guess what? Sen. Carignan has the power to tear it up. It doesn’t matter I gave up a life insurance plan because I had government insurance under the Senate. What, that’s all going to be gone in the twinkling of an eye because of a conspiracy? Let me repeat, Deloitte investigated, their audit of my expenses related to my home in P.E.I. did not find wrongdoing and they said I had not broken the Senate’s rules. It was the 15 members of the Senate board of internal economy who refused to accept the determination of the independent auditor at Deloitte. Why? I still don’t understand. And those same senators who conspired to put me in this corner, conspired to destroy my reputation with Canadians, they are going to sit here in judgment of me? Let me be clear. I’ve violated no laws, I’ve followed the rules and I’ve got a ton of documentation, including a memo, a two-page memo from Sen. LeBreton’s office about it, and I never received a single note from Senate finance or the leadership that suggested anything in my travels was amiss. In fact, those on the other side will remember how often I was lauded by the prime minister in a weekly meeting for all of the travelling I was doing and all of the assistance I was providing Sen. Gerstein, who has been an honourable man throughout this sad affair. Serving in this chamber has been, I’ll repeat, the greatest public or professional honour I’ve ever had. Why would I want to subvert it or discredit it in any way? I did not and I do not. Needless to say, I strongly agree with the remarks made on the weekend by Sen. Segal. This motion is something one might expect to see in Iraq or Iran or Vladimir Putin’s Russia but not in democratic Canada. It is not, I repeat, fundamental justice. Mr. Diefenbaker and Mr. Trudeau, were they here today, would be mortified. I urge you to defeat these motions or at very least vote in favour of Sen. Cowan’s motion to refer so that people can have their day in court. Honourable senators and my friends, especially my colleagues on the other side, today you are facing what I faced in February: Be a team player and go along with the PMO and Senate leadership or stand up and do your constitutional duty. I wish I’d had the courage to say No back in February when this monstrous political scheme was first ordered. Today, you have an opportunity to stand strong and use your power to restrain the unaccountable power of the PMO. That’s what this Senate’s about — sober second thought, not taking dictation from kids in short pants down the hall. I urge you to say No to these outrageous motions. Tell the whips, ‘My oath as a senator is to put Canada first and that comes before my loyalty to any party or any leader.’ Senators, Canadians are watching. Thank you.

MORE ..
‘Just the three of us’: Mike Duffy tells Senate that Stephen Harper told him to repay expenses

-Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s carefully constructed house of cards comes crashing down

posted by leftdog at Tuesday, October 22, 2013 | Permalink |

Monday, October 21, 2013

Looks Like Mike Duffy Took The Advice I Proposed On August 9th .. Pamela Wallin Should Follow Him ...

BUCKDOG: Maybe It's Time For Mike Duffy And Pamela Wallin To Throw Stephen Harper 'Under The Bus' And Come Clean On This Whole Sorry Affair!" - August 9, 2013
"When Stephen Harper decided to add Pamela Wallin and Mike Duffy to Canada's unelected, undemocratic Senate, he started in motion a series of events that has ultimately become an ugly, nasty political scandal.

For starters, neither Duffy nor Wallin qualified for senate appointment as representatives of their respective native provinces.

While Ms. Wallin is originally from Saskatchewan, she has lived away for most of her adult life and Saskatchewan was no longer her principle residence. Saskatchewan's right leaning corporate MSM came running to Harper's defence and tried to murky the waters about Wallin's residency requirement.

Same with Mr. Duffy. While originally from Prince Edward Island, he has for decades made Ontario the site of his actual 'principle residence'.

In his haste to add these two high powered, Conservative fundraisers to the 'Upper House', Stephen Harper and the Senate turned a cavalier eye to residency requirements for Duffy and Wallin.

Harper most likely instructed his PMO staff to 'make this all happen'. In order to try and maintain the optics of residency in their respective 'home' provinces, both Senators started to declare, in writing, that their principle residences were 'back home' in PEI and Saskatchewan.

Here is where it all went wrong. It is also the reason that Nigel Wright went through his $90,000 cheque contortions to try and help Duffy when the bottom started to fall out of the whole charade.

In order to be appointed to the Senate, ‘principle residence' reality had to be fabricated so that Harper's appointments appeared to qualify under existing Senate rules. False expense claims were the only way to maintain the charade ...

Stephen Harper wanted both Duffy and Wallin in the Senate so that these well-known Canadians could crisscross the nation and rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations for Conservative Party coffers.

Harper created this mess. It is his doing ... and, I predict, it will also be his undoing."

UPDATE:
-Duffy appointment not valid, despite approvals from PMO, Senate leader: law expert

posted by leftdog at Monday, October 21, 2013 | Permalink |

Friday, October 18, 2013

Supreme Court Of Canada Will Hear Sask Federation Of Labour Challenge Of Brad Wall's Right Wing Anti-Labour Legislation

Saskatoon – The Supreme Court of Canada released their decision today that they would hear the case of the SFL and the Charter challenge as against the Provincial Government and other public employers including Regional Health Authorities. SEIU-West members and leaders were watching with great interest. “We are pleased that the Supreme Court of Canada has granted leave to appeal to the SFL and others.

While SEIU-West was not granted full party intervenor status today, we will apply to be an intervenor and contribute in a positive way to the ultimate decision from the Supreme Court. Any government needs to be challenged when they pass such laws that have a negative, lasting effect upon all working people in Saskatchewan and beyond our borders,” said Barbara Cape, President of SEIU-West.

“What do we have to offer? Our opinion and our experience is that The Public Service Essential Services Act is a huge obstacle in achieving fair and reasonable collective agreements for our members employed in the public sector. We want to expose the hardships faced by public sector workers who are just trying to get a fair deal in a timely manner,” continued Cape.

As stated on numerous occasions, members of SEIU-West are not opposed to the provision of essential services. The issue is that this essential services law is so flawed that it deletes good faith bargaining altogether.

The Court of Appeal decision on April 26, 2013, determined that The Public Service Essential Services Act was constitutionally valid. This decision followed the earlier determination of Justice Ball, at the Court of Queen’s Bench, which was delivered on February 6, 2012, and found The Public Service Essential Services Act to be unconstitutional because it infringed upon Charter rights and freedoms.

“The only way to restore good faith collective bargaining in this province is to repair the essential services law so that it strikes a fair balance between public good and workers’ rights,” added Cape. “Quite recently, the public learned about the critical need for safe staffing levels in Saskatchewan long term care facilities; why is it that adequate staffing levels can be secured during a job action – but not on a day-to-day basis? We want a decision from the Supreme Court that requires the provincial government to fix this law so it works for everyone, not just the employer.”

SEIU-West represents more than thirteen thousand working people in the province of Saskatchewan. They include members who work in healthcare, education, municipalities, community-based organizations, retirement homes and other sectors

posted by leftdog at Friday, October 18, 2013 | Permalink |

Suspend ALL Senators ... Without Pay!

"What do you call the suspension of three Senators? ...... A good beginning!"
Tom Mulcair, Leader
Official Opposition

posted by leftdog at Friday, October 18, 2013 | Permalink |

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Harper's PMO Prevents Media Access To Event Then Sends Email To Party Membership Bemoaning 'Media Boycott'

Unbelievable! Here's how Stephen Harper handled communications of yesterday's Speech From The Throne:
-Banned all media & network reporters from his pre-Speech address to MP's
-PMO allowed only TV cameras to the conference
-Networks and News agencies balked - demanded PMO reconsider precedent setting dictate
-PMO say it would allow 1 reporter in and would report for ALL networks and agencies
-Parliamentary Press Gallery says NO! ... boycott the event ...
-CPC Director of Political Operations sends email/letter to Conservative Party membership, insisting that the media unfairly boycotted Harper's speech - won't give them fair news coverage!

(Here's from Nicole Green - CTV News)

"Conservative Party Director of Political Operations Fred Delorey sent a letter to party members Wednesday afternoon, after almost all of the Ottawa press gallery decided not to send a pool reporter or cameras into the Tory caucus meeting earlier in the day.
Normally, the press gallery reporters are allowed to cover the prime minister’s address to caucus on the morning of the throne speech, but the Prime Minister's Office said no reporters, only cameras. After a lot of back and forth between bureau chiefs and the Prime Minister's Office, the PMO agreed to allow one pool reporter to enter the caucus meeting. This pool reporter would be responsible for covering the speech for the entire press gallery. The gallery banded together, saying it was either going to be all of them in the room or none, so none it was. (I should note that Sun Media did enter the room to cover, the only news organization to do so.)
After the press gallery decision earlier Wednesday, Delorey sent a letter to party members about the incident:
Friend,
You won’t believe what the Press Gallery just did in Ottawa.
Some media decided to boycott an important speech by our Prime Minister – one where he laid out his vision for our country, before today’s Speech from the Throne.
Rather than send cameras to cover the Prime Minister’s speech, they attended the NDP's meeting, and were welcomed with cheers and applause. We knew they wouldn't give us fair coverage – but this is a new low for the Ottawa media elite.
Since you won’t see this speech on the evening news, we've updated our website with video from our Prime Minister’s speech:
http://www.stephenharper.ca/SFT/
Sincerely,
Fred DeLorey
Director, Political Operations
Conservative Party of Canada"

CTV News Online

... and the False Conservative spin got some print media traction far from Ottawa ..

-The HILL TIMES has more ....

posted by leftdog at Thursday, October 17, 2013 | Permalink |

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

'Expenstagram' .. New App For Conservative Members Of Parliament And Senators !!

H/T to our friends at 'This Hour Has 22 Minutes' ....

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 16, 2013 | Permalink |

The Worst Prime Minister In Canadian History, With The Largest Debt And Deficit In Our History ... Is On His Way Out!!!

Our crooked, corrupt Conservative government is going to try and pull the wool over voters eyes with a new Speech from the Throne today. Nothing in the document will address:
-the Senate scandal
-the Robocalls Scandal
-the highest deficit and debt in Canadian history
-how $114 Billion tax dollars bailed out Canada's banks
-How you paid for Harpers Keystone XL Pitch at NYC Event

etc. etc. etc.

Stop Harper!

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 16, 2013 | Permalink |

Monday, October 14, 2013

26 Liberal Senators AND 20 Conservative Senators Spent Over $1,000,000 Tax Dollars In Travel Costs During Last Federal Election ...

Canadians should not be all that 'thankful' for our Senate free-loaders on this Thanksgiving Day - 2013. The Hill Times has disclosed that Canada's unelected, undemocratic Conservative and Liberal Party Senators spent over 1 Million tax dollars to campaign for their political party during the last federal election.

Would someone please tell me why the Senate has not yet been abolished? (Liberal / Tory ... same old story)!

"The Senate spent more than $1-million to pay for Senators to travel between Ottawa and their regions during a period that covered the May 2011 election, according to online expenditure reports which also show that 46 Senators received reimbursements at least double their average quarterly travel amounts.
In all, 26 Liberal Senators and 20 Conservative Senators were reimbursed twice as much than their personal average for travel during the March 1 to May 31, 2011 quarterly period when there were 11 Senate sitting days. Parliament was dissolved between March 26 and June 1 for the 41st general election which took place on May 2, 2011. During this period, the Senate also reimbursed members $415,000 for travel outside of the national capital region, totalling $1.15-million for all travel.
An analysis of Senators’ expenditure records by former Senate staffer Barbara Robson Bond, obtained by The Hill Times, shows that some Senators had spikes in their travel claims during the March 1 to May 31, 2011, quarter which also shows that their expense patterns differed during this time.
For example, in the first two quarters where expense reports are available online, Saskatchewan Conservative Senator Raynell Andreychuk spent $3,029.73 from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30, 2010 and $14,949.73 in the second quarter from Dec. 1, 2010 to Feb. 28, 2011. In the third quarter’s filing, which included the election campaign, she spent $23,019.64. In the next quarterly filing after the election period from June 1 to Aug. 31, 2011, Sen. Andreychuk reduced her travel expenses to $14,850.96. All of her subsequent travel expenses ranged from about $6,200 to about $14,000.
Sen.Andreychuk was travelling overseas on Senate business last week, but her office told The Hill Times that her spending was within the allowable limits and that an explanation for the increased expenses could be because of higher ticket costs during that time. An assistant in her office also said that the number of Senate sitting days is an inaccurate indicator of Parliamentary duties. “Business goes on,” the staffer said.
Sen. Andreychuk is a member of the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Committee and chairs the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Group and therefore is meeting often with ambassadors and others relevant to her committee work and interests, her staffer said.
Senators are allowed 64 return trips in the form of points. This includes a maximum of 52 for “regular travel” for Senate business between a Senator’s province and Parliament Hill and travel within the Senator’s province. The Senate Internal Economy Committee amended the travel policy in the spring to allow only a maximum of 12 points for other regional and national travel while on Senate business, including a maximum of four points available for travel to New York and Washington, D.C., whereas before they could use as many of their 64 points for “other” travel as they wanted.
The analysis of expenditure reports, prompted by the Senate spending scandal, examined three years of quarterly financial reports filed by 125 senators starting in September 2010. The Senate expenses scandal erupted last fall when Senators’ travel and housing expenses were being looked at for several irregularities. After an initial internal investigation, the Senate Internal Economy Committee contracted forensic auditing firm Deloitte to look at former Conservative Senators Mr. Duffy, Patrick Brazeau (Quebec) and Pamela Wallin’s (Saskatchewan) expenses as well as former Liberal Senator Mac Harb’s.
Sen. Wallin’s expenses warranted extra scrutiny because of the $374,032.71 of “other travel” expenses she claimed over the last three years.
After a lengthy investigation into Sen. Wallin’s travel expenses, Deloitte found that she inappropriately claimed $121,348 worth of travel expenses and an extra $20,978 in questionable expenses to be determined by the Senate Internal Economy whether she should pay it back. The Senate Internal Economy Committee ordered her to repay a total of $138,969 because her travel claims did not meet criteria for “Senate business.” Sen. Wallin repaid all of the money, she said in a statement: “I wish to make it clear. I was not treated fairly by the Deloitte review, which was not conducted in accordance with generally accepted accounting principle, nor have I been treated fairly by the Senate Committee. Evidence that casts doubt on the correctness of the amounts owing was either ignored or disregarded during the review.”
When the Deloitte report was released, Sen. Wallin said: “Travel expenses which were approved and paid by Senate Finance in 2009, in 2010, in 2011, have in a number of cases now been disallowed. The basis for this latter decision is apparently some arbitrary and undefined sense of what constitutes Senate business or common Senate practice. And by Deloitte’s own admission, no inquiries were made of other Senators as to their definition or views on this subject.”
The Hill Times

posted by leftdog at Monday, October 14, 2013 | Permalink |

Saturday, October 12, 2013

'Premier Brad Wall's Sask. Party government ‘does not play well with others’ - Says Leader-Post Business Editor

In today's 'new' Saskatchewan, you generally find little criticism of Premier Brad Wall in the main stream media. Executives in Saskatchewan's corporate media simply love Wall and their editorial policy generally stays away from any criticism whatsoever.

But things are changing. Here is Bruce Johnstone, the Business Editor of the Regina Leader-Post::

"It might seem ungrateful, especially on Thanksgiving weekend, to criticize the Saskatchewan Party government’s economic development track record. After all, the Saskatchewan economy has posted average annual growth of 2.5 per cent since 2007 — the highest in the country.

But even Premier Brad Wall knows that government plays a supporting, not a leading, role in economic development. In his speech to the Saskatchewan Forum in Regina in May 2012, Wall admitted the province’s “stunning turnaround” since 2007 was “driven by commodity prices, driven by factors outside the control of government and you will never hear our government say, ‘Boy, because we got elected in ’07, look at how everything’s so much better economically.’ We know that there are external factors at play here.”

But the premier’s words raise the question: What role has the Saskatchewan Party government played in the province’s economic turnaround? It’s a good question to ask, since the Saskatchewan Party likes to portray itself as “business-friendly’’ and “pro-development,” as opposed to the supposedly “pro-labour, anti-development” NDP.

Don’t forget that Wall (named Saskatchewan Economic Developers Association’s economic developer of the year for 1998) promised to do economic development differently when the Saskatchewan Party first took office in 2007. Well, it’s different all right, but is it better?

From where I sit, the government’s track record in economic development brings to mind Stephen Leacock’s famous phrase “riding madly off in all directions.” You could say it’s been two steps forward and three steps back. A harsh assessment perhaps, but let’s look at the record.

Enterprise Saskatchewan — the cornerstone of Wall’s 2004 economic plan, The Promise of Saskatchewan: A New Vision for Saskatchewan’s Economy — was launched in 2008 with great fanfare and high expectations, pumped full of money, revamped and restructured, then unceremoniously dumped when it didn’t produce the desired results. ES was wound down in the 2013-14 budget and its $33 million annual spending disbursed to other ministries, mainly to Innovation Saskatchewan,

Even relatively successful government-industry partnerships, like Communities of Tomorrow, SpringBoard West Innovations, the Entrepreneurial Foundation, etc., have been shut down or allowed to wither away. The Film Employment Tax Credit, which generated $44.5 million a year in film and video industry activity at an annual cost to the government of about $8 million over its 14-year history, was scrapped and replaced by Creative Saskatchewan. How long will it last until the government gets bored with it and shuts it down?

The Ministry of the Economy, a “superministry” that combined tourism and trade, employment and immigration and energy and resources functions, was supposed to expedite decision-making, ensure a “clear path for people to invest here” and “remove barriers to growth of the economy,” Wall said. Has anyone noticed any improvement in these functions?

I could mention the government’s hostile takeover of Tourism Saskatchewan, sacking the CEO and turning it into a Crown corporation, or slashing the budgets for regional economic development agencies that were creating jobs and businesses in urban and rural Saskatchewan.

What it suggests is a government that “doesn’t play well with others.” In other words, the Saskies don’t like sharing power or tax dollars with any organization they don’t have complete control over. The common theme running through the Wall government’s economic development record is impatience with any group, program or policy that a) they didn’t come up with or b) isn’t controlled directly or indirectly by them.

One could accept the Sask. Party government’s small-c conservative philosophy that government shouldn’t be subsidizing business or “picking winners and losers,’’ if they actually practised what they preached. But for every program or organization they’ve shut down, a new one has taken its place, spending even more tax dollars than its predecessor.

Even that would be acceptable (if hypocritical), if the vehicles that the Sask. Party government has chosen to replace existing programs were more successful at creating economic activity or jobs. While the jury is still out on Innovation Saskatchewan and Creative Saskatchewan, recent history is not encouraging. All in all, the Sask. Party government’s economic track record is a checkered one, especially a government that prides itself in not picking winners and losers. Well, at least they’re half right."
Johnstone is the Leader-Post’s financial editor

© Copyright (c) The Leader-Post

-Another hit to economic diversity, government cancels innovation program

posted by leftdog at Saturday, October 12, 2013 | Permalink |

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Brad Wall's Sask Party Gov't Will Continue To Fund Research To Try And Prove Dr. Zamboni's Debunked Multiple Sclerosis Theory ...

(Sask Health Hon. Minister Dustin Duncan)

Sask. health minister says new study doesn't necessarily debunk MS liberation therapy
"Saskatchewan’s health minister says the province won’t be deterred by a new study that found the narrowing of the veins leading from the brain is just as prevalent in patients with Multiple Sclerosis as in people without the disease.
(Minister) Dustin Duncan says the findings of the study don’t necessarily debunk the efficacy of the liberation treatment for MS.
“I don’t think the information, the evidence, is conclusive to this point,” Duncan told reporters Wednesday. “We want to still be involved with the research.”

CTV News Online

Postscript:
There's something really weird about Right wing politics and science. Even the Regina Leader-Post Editorial Board (who absolutely love, endorse and support Premier Wall), have an editorial today echoing what most responsible adults in the province think about this ongoing use of Tax dollars to extend and continue holding out false hope to those afflicted by the horrible disease of multiple sclerosis.
Leader-Post Editorial: When hope gets ahead of science

posted by leftdog at Thursday, October 10, 2013 | Permalink |

Wednesday, October 09, 2013

Scientific Study Shows No Benefit From A Questionable MS Treatment Advanced By Both Medical And Political Charlatans ...

There is nothing new about a politician trying to get in front of a parade. Three years ago, Saskatchewan's Premier Brad Wall elbowed his way to the front of the line to thrust tax dollars into the hands of medical researchers who were advancing 'false hope' for thousands of Multiple Sclerosis victims.

July 2010 - Saskatchewan's Wall vows to fund contentious MS treatment
"In a striking departure from his political counterparts across the country, Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall says his government will finance clinical trials of liberation therapy, a contentious experimental procedure for multiple sclerosis patients.
The move shunts Saskatchewan to the forefront of Canadian efforts to introduce a treatment that has researchers, politicians and the MS community divided over the roots of the mysterious nerve-wasting disease and the pace of Canadian medical research."
Globe & Mail
July 27, 2010

Unfortunately for those who suffer from MS, neither medical nor political charlatans have provided any demonstrated positive results from all of their hype.

October 2013 - No link between narrowed veins and MS: Canadian-led study "A study published in the British medical journal The Lancet finds that narrowing of the veins leading from the brain -- a condition called CCSVI -- is just as prevalent in patients with Multiple Sclerosis as in people without the disease.
The study, funded by the MS Society of Canada and led by Dr. Anthony Traboulsee of the University of British Columbia, calls into question the controversial theory that MS is caused by or associated with CCSVI, or chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency."
CTV News Online
October 9, 2013

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 09, 2013 | Permalink |

Tuesday, October 08, 2013

A Fitting Wake ...

Nova Scotia .. October 8, 2013 ....

h/t to Brother Erin Weir

posted by leftdog at Tuesday, October 08, 2013 | Permalink |

Friday, October 04, 2013

Are Stephen Harper And The Conservatives Working With The Tea Party Republicans To Have Keystone XL Pipeline Approval Be Part Of Blackmail Demands Against President Obama?

OTTAWA - An anti-Keystone XL pipeline crusader has written to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, suggesting Canada's aggressive lobbying for the project played a part in the ongoing government shutdown south of the border.

Tom Steyer, a San Francisco billionaire and a major Democratic party fundraiser, chastises Harper for saying he would not "take 'no' for an answer" from U.S. President Barack Obama on TransCanada's Keystone XL.

In a question-and-answer session with the Canadian American Business Council last week in New York, Harper took a hard line on how Canada would respond if the Keystone XL project is rejected by the White House.

"My view is you don't take 'no' for an answer," Harper said. "This won't be final until it's approved and we will keep pushing forward."

Steyer takes issue with those comments in his letter to the prime minister."

"Have your government, your government’s lobbyist and/or agents representing TransCanada communicated with House Republicans about including Keystone in the original litany of demands put to President Obama?"
Tom Steyer

Canadian Press / National Newswatch

More...
-Bloomberg: 'Steyer Links Harper Keystone Lobbying to U.S. Shutdown'

posted by leftdog at Friday, October 04, 2013 | Permalink |

Thursday, October 03, 2013

'If Harper wants to be PM, job comes with questions from journalists': Mulcair

"Stephen Harper wants to be the prime minister of a G-8 country, to manage one of the most complex governments and economies in the world, and yet he wants to do it without talking to the public, without talking to journalists, and indeed without talking to Parliamentarians.”

Tom Mulcair.

The Canadian Press / National Newswatch

posted by leftdog at Thursday, October 03, 2013 | Permalink |

Wednesday, October 02, 2013

It's Time For Stephen Harper To Stop Acting Like A 'Freakin' Dictator - UPDATED!!

Journalist under fire for asking question of prime minister

By The Canadian Press — CP — Oct 2 2013

By Terry Pedwell - OTTAWA - Stephen Harper's office appears poised to prevent a veteran TV cameraman from travelling with the prime minister this week because he asked an impromptu question at a media event.
The TV networks are fighting back, insisting that they, not the Prime Minister's Office, should decide who to assign to cover Harper when he travels abroad.
CTV journalist Dave Ellis asked Harper for a comment last week about charges laid against then-Conservative MP Dean Del Mastro.
Harper was at a roundtable with a group of businesspeople in New York City, and had not taken any questions from media travelling with him over two days.
Prior to the event, reporters and photographers were told they were not to ask questions of the prime minister.
Harper is set to leave Thursday morning for a seven-day trip to Malaysia and Indonesia, and CTV had Ellis accredited to work on the assignment as a pool cameraman.
But following Ellis's New York assignment, CTV says it was told by the PMO that Ellis would not be allowed on Harper's plane, even though he had earlier been approved for the trip.
CTV News spokesman Matthew Garrow said Wednesday the network has nevertheless decided to send Ellis to the Ottawa airport to try to board the prime minister's plane with other journalists, and that other networks are backing that decision.
"Dave will be at the airport, and we'll see what happens from there," Garrow said.
All media pay full price for their transportation and lodging when travelling with the prime minister.
A spokesman for the prime minister said CTV will be allowed to travel with Harper, but would not say specifically whether Ellis will be turned away, despite repeated requests for clarification.
"No accredited Canadian media outlet is prevented from joining us for the upcoming trip to the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation Summit," said Jason MacDonald in an email.
"To suggest otherwise is absolutely false."
Other network members of the travelling TV pool have indicated they support the CTV decision to send a cameraman who may be turned away.
"To us, it's a very slippery slope to let the prime minister decide who gets on that plane and who doesn't," said one member of the pool who didn't want to be identified.
"That's why we are comfortable with CTV insisting that Dave gets to go. It's a question of principle."
National Newswatch

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

UPDATE:
PMO backs down ..

posted by leftdog at Wednesday, October 02, 2013 | Permalink |

Tuesday, October 01, 2013

The Teaparty Shutdown Of Government Isn't 'Crazy' ... It Is An Intentional And Strategic Crippling Of 'Government'

"If you don't want your tax dollars to help the poor, stop saying you want a country based on Christian values. You don't!"
President Jimmy Carter

The following article is one of the best insights available concerning the actions that the Teaparty Republicans are taking to cripple governement services in the US ...

I've Finally Figured Out Why Some Crazy Republicans Want To Shut The Government Down!
For the past few weeks, I've been scratching my head about why a minority faction of one of our two political parties seems so determined to shut the government down.
This group of extremists, known as "Tea Party Republicans," doesn't seem to care about the damage a shutdown will do to our fragile economy or confidence in our government. They also don't seem to care that the larger party they are members of, the once-admired Republican Party, will be tarnished by their selfish, irresponsible behavior.
Instead, the Tea Party extremists just say that, because they don't like a particular piece of legislation, they are justified in shutting the whole government down.
Grandstanding and brinksmanship are one thing, but the extremists who now control the Republican Party don't seem to be engaging in grandstanding and brinksmanship. Rather, they appear to be arguing that, any time a minority faction of our government is not given everything it wants by the rest of the government, it is acceptable to shut the government down. If this view of our government becomes accepted as non-crazy behavior, life in this country is going to get interesting in the next few years.
Anyway, this position and attitude has been mystifying to me:
Why engage in selfish, irresponsible behavior, hurt America and Americans, and destroy your political party's brand when you don't have to? Especially when even the Tea Party admits that the shutdown threat no longer has anything to do with the national debt!
My colleagues have explained two of the reasons, namely that 1) Voting districts have been so successfully gerrymandered that Tea Party extremists are assured of being reelected even if they behave like selfish, irresponsible lunatics, and 2) the country has become more conservative in recent years.
That helped me understand.
But now, on the eve of the shutdown, the "giddy" behavior the Tea Party extremists are displaying is becoming even more comprehensible.
Why?
Because the first parts of the government that will be shut down are the parts of the government that the Tea Party extremists say they hate!
Specifically:

The Environmental Protection Agency. The Tea Party extremists don't care about the environment and hate the organization dedicated to protecting it. So the fact that the EPA will have to furlough all but 1,069 of its 16,200 workers is great news to them. (Rebecca Ballhaus of the Wall Street Journal).
The National Labor Relations Board. The Tea Party extremists hate the NLRB, which tries to make sure that the country's workers are treated fairly. So it's presumably awesome that the NLRB will furlough all but 11 of its 1,611 staffers. (WSJ)
Food stamps for Women, Infants, and Children. The Tea Party extremists hate food stamps. So they'll be happy a special federal "WIC" food stamps program will be shut down. (Some bad news for Tea Party folks here, though. The broader food stamps program will continue.) (USA Today)
The Commodities Futures Trading Commission. The Tea Party extremists don't think we should have industry rules or regulators, so the fact that only 8 of the CFTC's 650 workers will come to work and get paid after the shutdown is downright exciting. (WSJ)
National parks and museums will close. The Tea Party extremists don't care about nature. And museums are for elitists. (WSJ)
Internal Revenue Service audits. The Tea Party extremists hate, hate, hate the IRS. So they'll be pleased that annoying IRS bureaucrats won't be able to hassle free people and confiscate more money from them. Unfortunately, they'll still owe taxes. And the IRS will still exist.
The Census Bureau will stop collecting data. Who needs data? (WSJ)
Applications for small-business loans won't be processed. The Tea Party extremists don't think the government should make small-business loans. (WSJ)
And so on...

Meanwhile, the parts of the government that Tea Party extremists love will keep right on cranking:

The military! Active duty service-members won't get furloughed. Only some civilians. (Sorry, civilians, you don't count. And you work for the government, so Tea Party extremists hate you.)
Border security (yes!), the Coast Guard, federal law enforcement, the National Security Agency, and prison guards. There won't be any cutbacks here. (Thankfully.)
Laws. Most of the Justice Department will still come to work.
Air traffic control and mail delivery.

The only bummer for the Tea Party extremists is that Social Security checks will still be delivered and Medicare bills will still be paid. The Tea Party extremists say they hate Social Security and Medicare, so this will be awkward for them.

But not that awkward. Because actual Americans like Social Security and Medicare, so the Tea Party extremists won't have to explain to their constituents why the government checks that they love so much have stopped coming.

In short, the order in which the government will be shut down appears to be almost perfectly designed to have the Tea Party extremists be able to say that, after the shutdown, the country will be better off.

So now their selfish, irresponsible behavior is actually starting to make sense!

And as BI Executive Editor Joe Weisenthal pointed out yesterday, this order of shutdown may make the shutdown last longer than it ordinarily would.

Why?

Because the Tea Party extremists will be able to say that they're happy about the new status quo!

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/why-republicans-want-to-shut-government-2013-9#ixzz2gTmjRTJg

posted by leftdog at Tuesday, October 01, 2013 | Permalink |

Buckdog