An AWM exclusive: Don't call the movers yet Iggy.
Having had his plans of being in a coalition cabinet thwarted by newly anointed interim Liberal leader Micheal Ignatieff; Jack Layton has made a deal with Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe that would have the NDP named as the official opposition with Layton as leader.
Similar to the failed tripartite coalition agreement the 2 parties are expected to approach the Speaker of the House of Commons with a letter of intent outlining their cooperation in forming the official opposition as their 2 parties combined have more seats than the now current official opposition Liberals.
An NDP insider said; "If Mr. Ignatieff will not honour the coalition agreement that he signed then we have no other choice but to do what Canadians have already strongly voiced with their votes in the last election." adding that "74% of Canadians voted against the Liberals being the official opposition and we are following along with the great traditions of our democracy by doing what the voters intended."
Our phone calls to the Liberal Party of Canada were not returned.
This is a joke, a frightening joke, but a joke none the less.
ReplyDeleteA coalition WITHIN a coalition. If the Liberals think it is okay to form a coalition to oust a government, how are they going to say its not okday to do likewise to oust the Opposition?
ReplyDeleteLMAO, I LOVE it!
Please tell me you have a link for this.........
ReplyDeleteKinda like if Canada is divisible, then so is Quebec.
ReplyDeleteLive by the sword, die by the sword, eh Iggy?
ReplyDeleteTaliban Jack seems to forget that the speaker of the house is a Liberal, one that has a history of playing favorites.
ReplyDeleteIf this is true,( anything at this point is possible) it would help explain JL's, posturing, particularly this last 10 or so days.
ReplyDeleteSpeculation would have us believe that good ol' Duceppe, has been at home drinking rum toddys, knowing that he wins in every scenario.
So does Jack get the master suite or does Gille? After all, he has more seats.... Good job Jack,you may be sleeping with the enemy, afterall!
LMAO! Note to Libranos, be careful what you wish for.
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas everyone.
JL could have been the elected leader of the opposition if he had applied for Dion's job instead of PMSHs. Didn't Chretain appoint the Bloc as official opposition years ago when Manning was leading the Reform party.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone seen or heard of Dion in the past few days.
My prediction is that the govt will not fall in Jan. Either several liberals will have the flu or leave the caucus.
Mary said,
ReplyDelete"Has anyone seen or heard of Dion in the past few days."
No, he headed home the first day of the bus strike and hasn't been heard from since....
Saw Jack on Duffy last night, he looked like he had been beaten upside his head with a sack of door knobs.
ReplyDeleteDuffy asked him if the coalition was still together, Jack stammered something about how he is talking to "Canadians" and how they are telling him that they want the coalition to take power.
Delusional to the end, eh Jack?
--
"Has anyone seen or heard of Dion in the past few days."
ReplyDeleteIggbert has him in his closet, he only brings him out to shine his shoes...
==
If true, this is political suicide for Jack as it would reveal his real motives behind the coalition.
ReplyDeleteIggy could never agree to such a demand, and the coalition would completely dismantle.
Could someone produce a link, no offense intended for the Alberta Ardvark, but I find this a little over the top, even for Jack, but then again, it does match his Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) syndrome we have all come accustomed to.
Timothy Coderre
o/t burried at the end of a TorStar article:
ReplyDelete'...In a sign not every segment of the economy is suffering, the premier attended an unpublicized $5,000-a-plate Ontario Liberal fundraiser at a Forest Hill mansion with about 20 guests last night. Liberal sources told the Star the event was a chance to give lobbyists private face time with the premier.
The dinner was left off McGuinty's official itinerary because it was deemed "private."
Wilson said,
ReplyDelete"unpublicized $5,000-a-plate Ontario Liberal fundraiser at a Forest Hill mansion with about 20 guests last night"
Let me guess, with $100,000.00 collected and the air of elitism they went into the hole by a couple thousand...
Us conservatives, would have thrown a party,had sponsors donate the goods, have everyone bring something for the food bank and invite 100 people instead.
Ideology of the entitled...a joke!
Why would it be political suicide?
ReplyDeleteDippers sitting in Official Opposition would have their supporters cheering,
and bring home all those borrowed votes from the Libs.
Of all the federal parties, the Bloc has always been most politically parallel to the Dippers.
I think the NDP insider is incorrect when he added "74% of Canadians voted against the Liberals being the official opposition". I think 74% of Canadians voted against the Liberals being the government.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I don't believe the coalition is completely dead. Whether it revives is up to Mr. Harper.
Sorry, I'm not buying this until I get a link.
ReplyDeletenot so fas dere Jack ... hugh forgets dat i myself am stil ere in dat ouse, an plan to be ere for long time.
ReplyDeleteafter hall ... Do hugh tink its heasy Moovhing!.
vous ami
Stephane Dion
The Rational Number said,
ReplyDelete"Also, I don't believe the coalition is completely dead. Whether it revives is up to Mr. Harper."
I also do not believe that it is dead but I ask you, when Mr Flaherty, has yet to hear from either the Libs or Dippers about their budget ideas; how do you reconcile that to be something that PMSH, is reviving.
Will the 2 parties, not look unconciliatory?
prove it
ReplyDeleteI asked this question for the tall heads at Macleans last week but I got no response.
ReplyDeleteIs it possible?I mean really?Is there a parliamentary way for this to happen? Anyone?
Daryl
IN MY ADMITTEDLY CURSORY RESEARCH INTO THE SUBJECT IT DOES APPEAR EASIER TO DO THAN FORM A COALITION GOVERNMENT
ReplyDeletei AM WORRIED THOUGH, DOES ANYBODY ELSE REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS LIKE IN 1993 WHEN THE BLOC WAS THE OPPOSITION? DO WE REALLY THINK GILLE WILL SIT ON HIS HAND AND LET THE VACUUM SALESMAN TAKE THE LEAD??
(THOUGH IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW NDP DO WITH SOME SHADOW SEATS)
If a coalition can form government, it would seem logical that a coalition can form the official opposition.
ReplyDeleteThe NDP is a Democratic Socialist party while the BQ is a National Socialist party, so aligning the two will be relatively simple.
ReplyDeleteIf this can actually work is another matter altogether, but to see them pull it off would be worth it just to see the look on Mr Ignatieff's face!
It will never happen, because it would alienate the most important member of the existing coalition, who's prominent role was to lead, not to be lead.
ReplyDeleteIggy, and the Liberals would slam the door on any such proposal, thus ending this whole charade of a coalition which has a dim flickering hope of ever surviving a month, much less to budgets.
Timothy Coderre
Oh - it would be soooooooooo nice if it was true - hey, maybe this blog gave Jack and Gilles an idea -can't take Harper down but they could certainly kick Ignatieff in the teeth for dumping them and going it alone. If the left believes the coalition was acceptable, then what possible gripe could they have against the NDP/Bloc becoming the official oppostion - after all the Bloc was official opposition before!
ReplyDeleteFor those that have yet to figure it out this post was of course faux news. Now if Jack really does believe that the coalition idea is both popular among Canadians and a good idea that Iggy is now doing his best to walk away from, it could become a reality.
ReplyDeleteJust think Jack, all of the OLO cash and perks that could be heading your way after a simple phone call to your buddy Gilles.
Thanks for the links everyone.
Al
To Bec,
ReplyDeleteI think the upcoming budget (update, whatever) is a 'hot potato'. The Conservatives don't want to be accused of spending on stimulus which turns out to fail, or to be blamed for a deficit.
They'd like the opposition to contribute suggestions, which they accept only under threat of a coalition. Then they can blame the opposition for the deficit and any failure of the stimulus to revive the economy.
Iggy can see this too, and has tossed the 'hot potato' back to Harper. How can credible suggestions be made without a coherent model from which to develop them? Flaherty has already revised his numbers once since the update.
Iggy figures if the Conservatives don't come up with numbers, he can paint them as uncooperative. If they come back with too optimistic numbers, the same applies. If Flaherty comes back with pessimistic numbers (I think this will be the case) then Iggy will beat him over the head with them. Partisan response to a partisan tactic - right back at ya.
IFF the numbers come through, I AGREE WITH YOU the opposition must respond with constructive suggestions or they will indeed not look conciliatory.
Boy, did this post get a lot of responses all over the net.
ReplyDeleteAnd, it wasn't even April 1st.
But, with the antics of the coup planners, anything is possible and we must be aware.
Also notice that the PM is moving out of 24 Sussex, for up to two years, for renovations.
Layton not going to Stornway, Iggy not going to 24 Sussex. What a great Christmas present.
Ignatieff and Layton, in a manifestation of deceit, tell Canadians that the Bloc is a non-player in the coalition, and won't be dictating the direction that the coalition governs, nor will the Bloc continue to promote Quebec secession - pure rubbish and hogwash.
ReplyDeleteThe Bloc laid down the terms and foundation right from the start, in the wording of the Liberal/NDP/Bloc coalition agreement, which is the agreement the entire Liberal caucus signed onto, including their new illustrious leader Ignatieff - and a position Ignatieff has reaffirmed several times recently - that he is prepared to lead a coalition government if given the opportunity.
Here is the very first sentence of the Coalition agreement - it should alarm us -
"The new government is supported by parties that share a commitment to fiscal responsibility, a progressive agenda and a belief in the role of government to act as a partner with Canadians and Quebecers".
When did Quebeckers, become something different than Canadians, or is this the price of getting Duccepe into the coalition, that the coalition and Canadians recognize from day one, that Quebec is separate from Canada, and not only to be referred to as such, but in fact to be treated as such.
Did Ignatieff and Layton agree that they will promote the recognition of Quebec as being separate from Canada - if they didn't why distinguish the separation in the first line of the coalition agreement?
Canadians are not to be played as fools by Ignatieff and Layton, who are prepared to sacrifice the unity of Canada, in their naked lust for power.
Duceppe has never deceived Canadians, as he has said on numerous occasions, he has no interest in what is good for Canada, and everybody, including all members of the media, has heard that, and in fact after signing this coalition agreement, Duceppe told the media, in regard to the Bloc, "I think every gain we are making here is good for Quebec and what is good for Quebec is good for sovereignty". Did any members of the media warn Canadians that the Bloc was only in the coalition to serve their own selfish interests, and that the Coalition was a threat to the unity of Canada? Fortunately, any Canadians that can count, did not have to rely on the media to tell them, that with their 49 MP's the Bloc was the lynch pin of this coalition, they have an effective veto, and they knew it, and the Bloc would exercise this new found power, to call the shots, and to advance their cause which is Quebec secession from Canada, which is not in the best interests of Canada. Maybe Canadians needed to explain that to the members of the media.