Yesterday, Stephane Dion abandoned the Green Shift as a central plank of his campaign while the Liberal war-room and other senior Liberal communication officials did their best to shift the story by denying the departure.
Today, as revealed by the Calgary Herald, we see that the Liberals in Alberta are splitting from the rest of the candidates by releasing their own platform called the “made-in-Alberta agenda”. This rogue platform which promises free tuition for first year undergrads and a national pharmacare strategy shows that the Liberal Party’s Alberta candidates aren’t waiting around for Stephane Dion to flip-flop on ideas that are important to them.
In an election, the candidates are the team and the leader is the captain. Now, the Alberta candidates are off playing their own game while captain Dion is madly erasing the team’s chalkboard and fails to come up with any new plays.
Can you imagine a Prime Minister Stephane Dion that can’t implement his own agenda because his Alberta caucus has gone rogue? What does this say about Dion’s leadership when his team is turning their backs on Dion’s plan for winning this election?
Stephen Taylor is a scientist, political analyst and a blogger. Taylor writes here regularly and is the founder of bloggingtories.ca. Taylor has contributed to Macleans, CTV, talk radio and has been a featured speaker on new media at numerous events including the Western Standard Cruise and the Forum for Public Policy. In December 2008, Taylor organized Rally for Canada, a series of rallies held coast-to-coast to protest the proposed coalition government.
September 20th, 2008 at 10:21 am
My first impression is that nothing has happened in Canada for the last two and a half years and that the Alberta Liberals are now reverting to the Paul Martin/ Annie Mac governments of the past. Look for Ralph Goody to come out with a Made in Sask document. The Alberta Libs have written off Dion and sound a lot like the Alberta CPC. Western Separation lead by the Liberals? How ironic!
September 20th, 2008 at 10:28 am
So, how are these rogue Liberals going to pay for their promises? If the Liberals get in, are all Canadians going to pay the first-year tuition for Alberta students?
Hmm…these Liberal permutations–and there are bound to be a lot more between now and October 14–are getting curioser and curioser. I'm getting an image of a humungous labyrinthe, with most of the pathways leading nowhere. At each dead end, there's a Stephane Dion bobbly head saying: “Doo yoo t'ink it's izzy to give dee-rections?”
September 20th, 2008 at 10:35 am
Why do we Albertan's get linked to the word Agenda so much….seriously…is it because our province starts with A as well?.
September 20th, 2008 at 10:37 am
Damn Albertans. Always thinking for themselves.
The good news for Dion is that it is unlikely that many – or any – of these renegades will make the federal caucus.
The bad news is that Dion might not care one way or another soon.
September 20th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
Stephane should see it coming….afterall, Second place is the first place loser
September 20th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Seems the Liberal Party of Canada is about to self destruct thanks to the weak and indecisive leadership of Stephane Dion and his scary hidden agenda, the Green Shift carbon tax pogrom. The Liberal are about to be blown away at the ballot box, even in Ontario, the home of the long nosed McGuinty Liberals. John tory must be loving every minute of it.
September 20th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Oh man, I'm crying tears of laughter. Western Liberal separation. That is just too much. Harper is strong; he can lead his party; he does lead our country. Why do we even need an election? Sadly, the only other one who appears to have what it takes in terms of strength and determination is Elizabeth May. Oh man, that is so sad.
September 20th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
That's unfair. Do you think it is easy to set out a platform? Do you think it is easy to stick with a platform? Do you think it is easy to be a leader?
September 20th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
A couple of weeks ago, Garth fans were imploring him to go help out other Liberal candidates who weren't doing so well. I noticed that these requests have dropped off…completely. It seems that nobody wants Garth's help, any longer. The Liberal party is fractured beyond repair at the moment and this party hopes to run our country? A while back, Garth ended one of his blogs with: “man, we are so winning”. I ask the question: winning what? Harper is the leader we need to run our country properly.
September 20th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
I'm paying 100% for first-year undergrads? This sort of stuff frightens me.
This one little thing doesn't frighten me, but it's part of a pattern. A pattern of more and more people becoming dependent on the government for more and more things.
I don't like the government using money to make us do what they want. If some of these platforms were put in as written, you might have to surrender your children to daycare, your grandparents to a home care, your kids to a certain University (or curriculum). You might have to change jobs, or even industries – or even move! You might have to trade in your vehicle, and even your light bulbs, all because the financial incentives and disincentives the government has imposed to control your behaviour are so great that you can't afford to choose differently.
It's frightening to me. That policy may seem harmless, but it's part of a pattern that quite frankly scares the crap out of me.
Let people go to University, and be dependent only upon themselves, their talents, and their hard work.
Sorry Stephen, I know that wasn't the point of your post but I'm started to get really annoyed with a couple of weeks of politicians offering our money to some people, and taking it away from others.
September 20th, 2008 at 2:40 pm
Yes, Gabby, Education is a provincial responsibility. Guess Dion can't find enough to promise in federal jurisdiction so he's branching out. They've already promised billions and we're in a global economic downturn, so we know they really aren't tuned in to reality and they're hoping the voters aren't as well.
Looks like his Green shift isn't exactly one size fits all so he'll have to pick winners and losers or it's whatever any candidate wants it to be to help them get elected.
Not to call him a liar, but he did say it would be his plank in an election, now he's denying it, so what gives?
The Liberal voters in Alberta should be wary of a hidden agenda in the unlikely event Dion will get the chance to implement his pride and joy, the Green shift.
Let's say he's in deep do-do and it'll take a lot of Puffin power to hide it.
It would be interesting to know how well Ralph Goodale selling it in his Saskatchewan riding when his Premier has turned thumbs down on it? Wonder what his big line is?
September 20th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
The beginning of the end of the Liberal Party! Just as the Reform Party came onto the scene because the Progressive Conservatives were going nowhere, so will a new “Reform” party emerge from all this — but this time splitting the Liberal Party in two. Ha!
And I agree with you, Stephen, that this clearly proves that Dion is not a leader, and that his “Liberal” (read: Marxist) ideas won't fly in the West. The new reform party that will likely result from this will probably return to classical liberalism — something that is already underway now at the provincial level thanks to the next leader of the Alberta Liberals, Dave Taylor, and his New Liberal concept (newliberal.ca). In other words, there won't be any red left; instead there will be a shift to blue-yellow.
September 20th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Robert, the funny thing is that the Liberals take from some people and promise to give it to some people. What is really odd is that the recipients never seem to receive the money. Case in point – I know a fellow who lives on reserve. His reserve has supposedly been given millions but nobody has ever benefited from it nor has anybody actually seen it. Where did the money go? Nobody's life improved, no infrastructure improvements or development, no new housing, no new training…the list goes on. And, yet, apparently, millions of dollars were allocated.
September 20th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
How the heck can they be promising ANYTHING? These wannabes don't have the authority to promise used kleenexes let alone free tuition.
September 20th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Werner, Werner, Werner,
When you write Marxist, referring to the Liberals, you clearly don't have a freakin clue what you're talking about. Not that I'm a big fan of them but clearly, reading something else than the NP should be put in your agenda. You just need to write something as stupid as this for your intervention to loose any value that it might have had.
If anybody on this blog in interested in having peoples form the Liberal party ship jump off the boat, you might want to start by dropping the anti communist rhetoric of your grandfather and start thinking, really think, for yourself.
By someone still pondering who he will vote for.
September 20th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
I use Marxist not in connection with the Liberals, but with Dion only. He has dedicated his entire life to worshipping at the Karl Marx shrine, and he is a Marxist.
September 20th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
Who was it, Ken Boschkoff? who said it was going to be the biggest wealth redistribution in history. If that's not Marxist, I don't know what is…
September 20th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Werner you need to realize nobody is as smart as I am. I'm the smartest person on this blog, always will be.Either agree with me or blow off.
September 21st, 2008 at 12:40 pm
At leas tthye stated with the party unlike the tory candidate whose bigotry forced him to resign in Toronto today
September 21st, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Ignorance knows no bounds..I guess
September 21st, 2008 at 12:45 pm
well Stephane was right in your backyard last Thursday and the sell out crowd there didn't act like tories on a sinkng ship. The green shift program is much better than the shaft we will all get from Harper bu tthen again he isn't going to win.
September 21st, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Liz J…goodale is doing much better than tory candidates are in NFLD where their premier has convinced voters there of the real truth about Harpernomics. I'm pleased to note you will be another surprised loser on election day
September 21st, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Like hell he won't, when you are ahead in Ontario everywhere else is easy. Even the long-nosed Dalton has distanced himself from his Federal cousins now that Ontario is in a technical recession. Dream on TPQ.
September 21st, 2008 at 7:09 pm
“At leas tthye stated with the party…” What???
September 22nd, 2008 at 5:44 am
Soccermom, right, the biggest wealth redistribution in Canadian history does sound Marxist. Whoever said it from the Liberal tent leads one to wonder where their advice is coming from. Wonder if Rae has been getting some tips from his “Uncle” Mo and passing it along?
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:08 pm
Hi Garth. How's going?
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Bigotry? There was nothing bigoted in his blog. I agree about protecting oneself. Thanks to the Liberals, we have a legal system which allows murderers and other criminals roam free. To call him a bigot is to spout speaking points – Liberal speaking points. BTW – tthye stated with the party? Do you mean “they stayed with the party”, perchance?
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:16 pm
Actually, Paul Martin started the trouble in Newfoundland with a really dumb promise to give away the farm. If he hadn't been so eager to please everybody, this would not have happened. Harper, in an effort to correct Martin's incredibe blunder and to ensure fairness to the rest of Canada is being blamed. Williams has his good points but he is just like Garth in that he believes that he is always right and everybody else is wrong. He spews his venom in public, fights dirty, and likes to slag. He is not an honourable man. It is unfortunate because the Liberals will screw NL just like they always did. In 13 years of Chretien's reign, the Liberals did nothing to appease Williams. He had the same fights with Chretien as he is now having with Harper. What sets us CPCers apart from Liberals is our ability to see our own mistakes, to acknowledge all sides of the story, and to speak with originality and logic as opposed to spouting Liberal speaking points.
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Hi Garth. How's going?
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Bigotry? There was nothing bigoted in his blog. I agree about protecting oneself. Thanks to the Liberals, we have a legal system which allows murderers and other criminals roam free. To call him a bigot is to spout speaking points – Liberal speaking points. BTW – tthye stated with the party? Do you mean “they stayed with the party”, perchance?
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:16 pm
Actually, Paul Martin started the trouble in Newfoundland with a really dumb promise to give away the farm. If he hadn't been so eager to please everybody, this would not have happened. Harper, in an effort to correct Martin's incredibe blunder and to ensure fairness to the rest of Canada is being blamed. Williams has his good points but he is just like Garth in that he believes that he is always right and everybody else is wrong. He spews his venom in public, fights dirty, and likes to slag. He is not an honourable man. It is unfortunate because the Liberals will screw NL just like they always did. In 13 years of Chretien's reign, the Liberals did nothing to appease Williams. He had the same fights with Chretien as he is now having with Harper. What sets us CPCers apart from Liberals is our ability to see our own mistakes, to acknowledge all sides of the story, and to speak with originality and logic as opposed to spouting Liberal speaking points.