Blog of Adam Daifallah -- author, journalist, law student. Lover of politics, writing, golf, curling, fitness, fashion, bacon and maple products -- not necessarily (but probably) in that order. Partisan of the Anglosphere. Contact me via email at adam@daifallah.com. This summer I am joined by Keir Wilmut and Omar Soliman.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Jennings speaks out

Kudos to David Lazarus of The Canadian Jewish News, the only reporter who apparently saw it fit to track down Dion-ite MP Marlene Jennings and get her views on the negotiations that led to the Liberal-NDP coalition in December.

Jennings informs us that she personally kiboshed having the Bloc Québécois' pet cause of having Bill 101 apply to federal workplaces inside Quebec -- red-flagged here during the heat of the moment -- adopted as part of a coalition deal:

The Bloc Québécois were prepared to keep a Liberal-led coalition government alive for two years, if the coalition allowed Bill 101 to apply to federally regulated companies in Quebec.

But Marlene Jennings, left, the veteran Liberal MP in charge of negotiating the coalition deal for the Liberals, said “no way” to the Bloc.

The proposed change to the province’s French language law would have allowed employees of federally regulated companies, including post offices and banks, to conduct business in French only.

“I said no. Never. Not while I have a breath in my body,” Jennings told a recent breakfast gathering at Shaare Zedek Congregation.

And the result, said the 11-year Notre-Dame-de-Grâce–Lachine MP, was that the Liberals settled for the Bloc pledging to prop up the Liberal-NDP coalition during confidence votes for 18 months, not two years.

Marlene Jennings may be a fierce partisan and an over-the-top heckler, but she did the right thing here.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 1:24 PM

  

Sunday, December 28, 2008

From the "What ever happened to?" file

Peter Pocklington, the infamous ex-owner of the Edmonton Oilers and ex-Conservative Party leadership candidate, is heard from. Good article here, with a complete picture of what Pocklington has been up to since he left Canada a decade ago. Turns out he is in a bit of trouble with the law.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 12:54 PM

  

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Support Tim Mak for CBC's Next Great Prime Minister

The CBC's annual Next Great Prime Minister competition is on, and the candidate who has my support is Tim Mak. Tim is a solid conservative from McGill University and he has some good ideas for the future of the country. I encourage everyone to visit Tim's contest site and vote for him!

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 2:13 PM

  

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Catching up

Here's a link to a book review I did a few months ago about Gil Troy's new book about the American presidency.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 11:32 AM

  

Monday, December 08, 2008

Guest blog: Hugh Meighen

The following entry was authored by Hugh Meighen, a friend and law student at McGill University.

-AD

As if an unprecedented constitutional crisis wasn’t enough, it looks like we’ll have even more to talk about over the holidays. Dion is under undeniable pressure to step down, in order to clear the way for a caucus vote in favour of Ignatieff, heir-apparent. Of course, Rae supporters are indignant. Not only would a caucus vote unexpectedly change the rules of the game, but Ignatieff seems to have caucus support wrapped up.

Liberals – and particularly the Liberal brass – should think hard about a caucus coronation of Ignatieff. What happened to all those earnest public avowals to reinvent and reinvigorate the Liberal brand? So much for Dominic Leblanc, who could have facilitated this process as a new contender for a new generation. He’s about to “fall in line.” This caucus vote doesn’t look much like renewal. It looks like frat elections at Alpha Delta Phi.

I think what we are really seeing is an effort by the Liberal Party to return to a winning formula. Stephane Dion’s victory was a grassroots victory that the party brass never really accepted. With all the power vested in the party elites this time around, they can be sure a similar mistake won’t happen again. Ignatieff is popular in Ontario and Quebec -- he’s bilingual and a true intellect. It’s going to be the 1990s all over again.

The problem is that it’s not 1996 anymore. The Tories are united and the NDP has been a very effective opposition. This means that the Liberal cause has to reach beyond its urban and Maritime base. Furthermore, the Liberal party needs to raise money. I hope those caucus members are willing to pay $10,000 each for a table in Vancouver because it’s going to be tough to sell memberships and fill a convention hall when there’s no decision to make.

I’m reminded of what passes for humility in Liberal circles: “We’re in the penalty box. We get that.” It’s as if the mere passage of time will restore the party to its rightful position on the ice and in the action. No, the Liberal party is not in the penalty box. It’s doing hard time. They need to think about who they are and what they want as a party. Canadian voters hold the keys to the Liberal future and having a caucus vote amounts to discussing escape plans with your cellmate.

Bob Rae and his supporters have it right, and rank and file Liberal members should be concerned by recent developments. However, I guess they’ll have to vent those frustrations in private, perhaps around the dinner table, because the way things are going, it’s not like their opinion really matters anyway.

-Hugh Meighen

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 1:27 PM

  

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Harper's got the conch

The Liberals have started throwing Dion to the wolves. John Manley's open call for his resignation is the first salvo; many more are sure to come. This also might be Manley's way of rethinking his decision to not run for leader. (One thing's for sure: Bob Rae's decision to make himself cheerleader-in-chief of the coalition scheme will likely be fatal to his campaign.)

The coalition movement has been a public relations disaster, with a spate of polls showing the Canadian public rallying to the Conservative Party. Obviously, sensible Liberals -- from whom we have not heard much these last ten days -- are realizing that Canadians are not warm to this. Hence why they must pin this on the outgoing leader to avoid damaging the Liberal brand any further. If Dion and Dion alone wears this, the party can move on relatively quickly.

It was an incredible week in Ottawa, where I currently am. Most days it seemed we were verging on Lord of the Flies -- quasi-organized chaos.

It was fascinating to observe the body language of MPs, with the Conservatives I saw looking either like they had been hit by a bus, or just waking up from a bad nightmare. Liberals had either a perplexed look or an overjoyed one (Marlene Jennings, whom I saw at a bar Tuesday night, had a Cheshire-cat grin on her face that would make even Donny and Marie Osmond marvel.) And journalists just looked exhausted -- probably because they were.

At the height of coalition fever, in the middle of the week, the behaviour of the Liberals and NDP reminded me of that scene in the movie The Ten Commandments when Moses climbs the mountain, leaving his followers below to revel in idolatry, adultery and other sins. The would-be coalition was worshiping the golden calf of power without thinking through the longer-term implications, all in an attempt to save Dion from joining Edward Blake in the dustbin of federal political history. (I specify federal political history because Blake did serve as Ontario Premier and had a spectacular legal career, founding one of this country's finest law firms.)

Prime Minister's Harper's office has come in for severe criticism for not having enough "adult supervision" in the Langevin block, but to me it seemed most of the child-like behaviour was emanating from the coalition. It will be fascinating to see the postmortems, and let's hope at least one parliamentary wag has it in him or her to write a book about what happened when all is said and done. I'm particularly interested to learn more about the role of ultra-ambitious MP Thomas Mulcair in creating this story, because I have a feeling he was the prime mover behind much of what went on.

Can't wait to see what happens next week.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 10:10 AM

  

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Taking stock is now possible

So, having fun yet?

The fever pitch has been hit and will only go down from here. So many surprises on so many levels, including the Liberals puzzling decision to use the Zapruder camera to tape Stéphane Dion's speech. Can't figure that one out.

Tomorrow, when the Prime Minister visits Her Excellency, we are heading into unchartered territory. She could decide either way. Various people are making comparisons to 1926 and King-Byng, or even Clark in 1979, but they aren't the same. Whatever she decides, it will be a first.

There is no other way out for the Conservatives. The announcement in the economic statement of the cut to the public subsidy for political parties put the opposition's back against the wall -- and they responded accordingly. The vote coming Monday has put the Conservatives' back against the wall -- and they will respond accordingly. If the GG agrees, there will be lots of criticism from various quarters, but any party in this position would take the same course of action. Certainly the Liberals would!

Things are changing so quickly. There is so much to say -- the long term implications of what's happened for Harper, the Tories (particularly in Quebec), the tactical errors that have been made, the fact that we are moving perilously close to a national unity crisis, etc. -- but for now: let's hope that if prorogation is granted, the five week break will seriously turn down the temperature. This is pure insanity.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 8:17 PM

  

Monday, December 01, 2008

Taking stock -- if that's possible

The latest news appears to be that the "train has left the station," according to Bob Fife. There may not be any turning back from plans to topple to the Tory government.

It is still up in the air whether the Governor General will refuse Harper's request to call an election, which, if the government loses the vote next Monday, he will be constitutionally obliged to ask for. Her Excellency may indeed heed the election request, as has been counseled by people like Norman Spector. It would mean a campaign over the Christmas holidays, but there are worse things in life. (This is assuming Harper doesn't prorogue parliament, which is becoming an increasingly plausible possibility.)

That the Liberals are unprincipled is no news to anyone, but that they would move ahead with this particular arrangement -- which gives the Bloc Québécois veto power over every bill to go through the House -- is really unconscionable, even scary. A return to power would also deny the Liberals their necessary time in the wilderness to truly rebuild from the ground up as the Canadian right did in the years following the 1993 election.

The problem is not in itself the fact that the Québec separatists would have increased power, it is the legislative damage that would be done. One long-standing Bloc demand, which has apparently been agreed to, is to have the French Language Charter (known as Bill 101) apply to workplaces that fall under federal jurisdiction inside Quebec -- ie. transportation, telecommunications, federal civil servants, etc.

This would be a devastating blow to bilingualism in this country and especially to English-speaking Quebecers -- particularly when one considers the amount of federally-regulated industries in the province (Bell, CN, CP, Air Canada, etc.) It is also a blow that would be irreversible. (Although it might not hold up in court.)

I would love to hear from the Trudeauvians on this to hear how they feel. Hello Deborah Coyne? Serge Joyal? Justin Trudeau himself? Can they really stomach this? Now is the time to stand up and be counted.

UPDATE: I have been informed by a very credible source that proroguing the House is not an option. There are various financial bills that need passing (money supply motions, etc.) so they must continue sitting.

UPDATE II: Just when you thought the situation couldn't get any more interesting: On the above, I am now told proroguing is indeed possible because the money supply motions could be taken care of via an Order in Council. Proroguing is very much an option being considered, then. But since there are now apparently cracks forming in the coalition, it might not be necessary.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 11:43 AM

  

Saturday, November 29, 2008

This is not King-Byng

One point that needs to be made urgently is that what is going on/may happen is not historically analogous to the infamous 1926 King-Byng affair.

In that crisis, the Conservative Party, then led by Arthur Meighen, finished first after an election, winning 116 seats. King and the Liberals were in second place with 99 seats. But because King had the support of the Progressives (a Western protest party), he was able to keep the confidence of the House and continue governing. When he lost the support of the Progressives, King went to Governor General Byng to ask for an election. Byng refused, and asked the party with the most seats in the House of Commons -- the Meighen Tories -- to take a stab at governing.

And therein lies the difference: as I understand it (and I stand to be corrected), at least some of the rationale behind Byng's refusal of King's election request was that the Tories had the highest number of seats.

In the current situation, the party posturing to take over power, the Dion Liberals, only has 77 seats -- half that of the Conservatives, which have 143.

The party with the most seats in the House is the current government, which is at it should be. If the Governor General consents to the proposed arrangement, she would be turning over the reins of power to party with half the representation of the first place party! Does that seem right? (A coalition Liberal/NDP government would have 107 MPs [edit - 114, sorry], almost 40 fewer than the Tories, which is still quite a gap.)

A lot of constitutional experts have been on TV in the last 48 hours saying the GG would give a chance to the Liberal/NDP coalition. They are the experts, not me, but it seems less evident to me that she should.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 1:55 PM

  

Friday, November 28, 2008

Brinksmanship and blinking

Who says Canadian politics can't be fun?

Long live the Westminster system!

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 3:38 PM

  

Friday, November 21, 2008

Hearkening back

In a not unprecedented but highly unorthodox move, former Ontario Premier Mike Harris has come out swinging in a National Post article about Ontario's steady economic decline since his departure from office in 2002.

In a devastating take-down of the Dalton McGuinty record -- which has, at least indirectly, led to Ontario becoming a "have-not" province -- the Mike Harris of old shone through to remind us of the imperatives of controlling government spending, keeping taxes low and bold economic thinking.

Why is this article important? Aside from the fact that its the first time anyone has mounted a serious, poignant and coherent challenge to the McGuinty record since 2003, it's the fact that Harris felt obliged to do so. In normal circumstances a past leader would defer to the current one. But the Tories are so AWOL in the Ontario public debate, someone had to step up and fill the void. Harris notes:

Following the failed paths of the David Peterson and Bob Rae regimes, over the last five years the provincial government has increased spending by an average of 8% each year. During this same period, the Ontario economy grew in nominal terms by 4% annually. This means that the Ontario government is actually spending twice as much as it can afford. It has created a spending machine, and this machine can only be fuelled by red-hot economic times. This is simply not sustainable.

Nice to know this statistic -- I had not heard it before. Thank you, Mike Harris, for reminding Ontarians what being conservative means again.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 12:55 PM

  

Thursday, November 13, 2008

The present moment

So many elections, so little time. A Canadian federal, now one in Quebec, the U.S. presidential -- and a Liberal party leadership.

The American election was something to behold, wasn't it? A pleasure to watch. Barack Obama ran a flawless, safe campaign and with the mainstream media pushing for him every step of the way, he pulled off what can almost, but not quite, be called a landslide victory. There are always lots of "ifs" after a campaign -- If the mess on Wall St. hadn't hit at the time it did, if John McCain had put forward a sensible alternative to the bailout proposal, if he hadn't done that nonsense about "suspending" his campaign -- the race might have been a lot closer. But it seemed like the Arizona senator had a death wish from the moment he was nominated.

The fact is no Republican could have won the presidency in 2008, particularly given the economic situation. Even Elizabeth Dole couldn't hold onto her Senate seat in North Carolina. If anyone could have won it, it was McCain -- one of the most unRepublican Republicans in Washington. Another candidate would probably have lost by the same margin or worse.

I do not begrudge McCain for picking Sarah Palin as running mate. In hindsight, maybe it was a bad choice. But at the time, it was imperative that McCain make a pick that would send an electroshock across the nation. Picking Palin did. At once he rejuvenated the conservative base of the GOP, sent fundraising through the roof and got him some much needed media focus. Mistakes were made in the way she was handled and her performances in the few TV interviews she did were sub-par, but at the time, I still think McCain made the right move.

I was always lukewarm about McCain. I admire his courage and patriotism. I preferred him in the 2000 Republican primaries to George W. Bush (I knew my first choice, Steve Forbes, never had a legitimate shot, but let's hope he reconsiders for 2012.) But McCain's constant harangues against his own Republican colleagues during the Bush years became tiresome. He took the "maverick" shtick too far.

As for Obama, I am ambivalent. I never bought into the excitement surrounding him. I saw him, and still do see him, as an empty shell. He strikes me as being devoid of serious convictions. He seems overly-malleable, which will result in another poll-driven presidency like Clinton's. I have never been attracted to that kind of politician. On the other hand, his victory has inspired a lot of people and has, at least, reconfirmed my faith in America as the world's greatest meritocracy, where anyone from any background can achieve what they want through hard work.

So where do things stand for the GOP? Are we in the midst of what Peggy Noonan has deemed a "liberal moment" in America? Again, it's too early to say. Recall that 48% of Americans still voted for John McCain. I think one could go as far as to say that the Republican party has not been in this bad a shape since the mid-1970s. They are ideologically rudderless, leaderless, untrusted and have no clear path forward. It is somewhat reminiscent of ... well, of the federal Liberal party.

The elections both here and in the U.S. represent the dénouement of the slow declines of two great political parties -- the Canadian Liberals and the US Republicans. Both of these slides have been a long time coming. Both have hit rock-bottom, I think, and there's nowhere to go but up. Both are in need of serious soul-searching and rebuilding. And they will both undoubtedly do that and be back stronger than ever within a couple of years.

I think I'll stop now; my fingers are getting tired. As for the Liberal leadership race -- watch Dominic Leblanc. The generational change theme should, and I think will, have real resonance with grassroots Liberals in this country. He is ambitious, smart (Harvard educated), bilingual, and, unlike the two other aspirants, has got what Warren Kinsella calls the HOAG ("hell of a guy") thing going on. He looks like a guy you could sit and drink a few pints with. It should be an interesting race to watch.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 4:36 PM

  

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Radio today

I will be a guest on CBC Radio's The Point today at 2 pm to talk about the US election results and other topics.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 11:20 AM

  

Friday, October 24, 2008

Funding secessionists

Defenders of public financing of election campaigns take note.

# posted by Adam Daifallah : 4:53 PM

  

 

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