Stephen Harper’s government has been in power for more than four years now, without having disturbed any of the social issues that Liberals warned would be high on its (secret) agenda. Gay marriage remains legal. Mr. Harper has kept social conservatives within his caucus on a tight leash. Canada’s lack of a national policy dealing with abortion has remained unaddressed.
But Michael Ignatieff isn’t one to let reality get in the way. This week, the one-time Ivy League intellectual trolled for votes by dragging out the abortion issue, apropos of … nothing. Bizarrely, he declared that the right to abortion is too sacred to become a political football–even though the only one suited up for the gridiron is Mr. Ignatieff himself.
His remarks, delivered to a roomful of Liberal supporters, MPs, human rights representatives and humanitarian organizations, seem to have been cribbed from a yellowing Paul Martin-era briefing book. Yet even Mr. Martin never exhibited so much creepy enthusiasm for spreading the Liberals’ abortion gospel to foreign shores.
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Updates:
2:34 pm EST, February 6th, 2010 — Ignatieff’s abortion plan ‘pathetic’: bishop
“Declaring that he wanted to “lay down a marker” to warn off the government”
How American of you Iggy. When in doubt about confronting the critical issues of the day you just throw the word “abortion” on the table and leave the room. OK Iggy, maybe that’s the only way to get rid of the “hidden agenda” propaganda and we should take you up on it.
This is clearly a cynical Liberal strategy but let’s turn it on them. This could help us get rid of the phantom in our mega cities that vote solidly Liberal. Discussions in Toronto over proroguing inevitably lead to PMSH being a bully and having a hidden agenda if he ever gets a majority. This same phenomenon takes place in Quebec where women and abortion are a hot button because a couple of generations ago Catholic women had a dozen kids and that has left a deep impression on Quebec women in terms of family planning.
Many of these target voters that Iggy is patronizing are just hard core Liberals (or Separatist swing voters) and would never vote Conservative anyway. But by tossing in the word “abortion”, the discussion instantly becomes emotional and thus hard for a Conservative campaigner to maneuver the discussion back to the facts and to Accomplishments. Iggy has figured out the mega city and Quebec emotions and is playing that card.
The Liberals have not had a meaningful platform for decades. Emotional topics are all they have to fight with. Therefore it is all the more critical that we control the election agenda when it comes and set out 5 policies and then campaign hard on them. One of those policies should be to leave SSM and abortion alone, PMSH has made it clear that’s his intent, let’s formalize it.
Ignatief is trolling. He would love the CPC to take a bite from his sucker sandwich. Don’t do Harper. You are doing a great job.
It’s not merely and only the Liberal leadership, due to entrenched old blood and backroom manipulators that never assimilate “the lesson”, but Liberal supporters as well. Liberals talk ‘no new taxes’ on the campaign trail, but will never materialize that declaration when in office.
Dion alluded to raising the GST to 10 percent and Liberal supporters will see that get implemented should they ever be gullible enough to vote the party in again. And that’s only the beginning of the taxation. That’s why leaders like the former B.C. premier and Hudak in Ontario are warning that the HST is going to decimate business if it’s not withdrawn. Guaranteed. Canadians taxed at 50 percent these several decades are now facing upwards to 70 percent taxation on take home pay. Smart/alert citizens must begin now to refuse that honour. For one thing, it’s not doable. Especially for working families. The rents and mortgage rates are, on average, 50 percent of in many cases a husband and wife’s combined income.
Ignatieff and the Liberals are hop-scotching all over the policy map, minus workable items. Perhaps on purpose while they sit it out for their pensions only because it’s more than evident they don’t give the voters’ concerns even one iota of consideration. Liberals are known to view their jobs and paycheques as first priority. Little do the TO immigrants, latching onto faux Liberal promises, know that once in office the taxpurse is theirs to do as they please. And if fresh blood isn’t brought into the LPC, ADSCAM lite programs will come full circle.
Now, provincial conservatives need to refuse the July 1st HST plan. Perhaps on July 1st (Canada Day). This should be a day of planned tax revolts at every and all Canada celebrations. Stephen p is right when he says Canada needs a ‘tea party’ protest, so let it occur CANADA DAY.
This Iggy gambit isn’t about policy, it’s about trying to derail the Conservative government on an emotional issue. Liberals don’t have any policies. If push came to shove I think your would see that “the emperor has no clothes.”
Liberals COULD assimilate/comprehend at least for their own benefit towards remaining minimally viable, that returning to divisive issues like abortion and same sex marriage where the Canadian population is 50/50 IS NOT THE PRIORITY issue. “It’s the economy” the collective stupids want to get to some millenium.
With that in mind we have 17 days of prorogation for all parties to thrash it out. So go talk about income splitting for seniors — maximally relevant right now! Rework the income trust file and this can be done since apparently our aid to the terrorist supporting Palestinians has been withdrawn. Many savings programs from redundant NGOs wasting monies can be recouped as many commenters have been put up suggestions and pointing out useless wasted monies programs. All recouped monies can be targeted at tax cutting initiatives.
In other words, prorogation will prove beneficial if a blockbuster March budget is produced with tax cuts that’ll be the needed economic booster shot towards returned productivity as Mark Carney is urging in article after article.
Side note: Jock McBile in video turning Chretien over is exactly what’s needed in spoofing our present Liberal leadership. What an hilarious number AND educational in terms of Ignatieff and Rae getting spoofed like that. A lot of material to work with. CBC needs to pick up and do a sequel with a Jock McBile look a like. You know connecting with Canadians where comedy points to the sad facts of the matter. thanks for the Jock McBile instant recall, Jack. A memory to be appreciated and even reworked.
John Morgan (alias Jock McBile) is missed, Rhoda. Some of us still remember him well and as long as we do he is immortal.