Posts Tagged ‘ Canadian federal election 2011 ’

Will AG’s G8 spending report be the straw that at least breaks the Harper Conservative lead a little?

Apr 11th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

[UPDATED APRIL 12]. On January 2, 2006 an article on this site wondered whether the Mounties’ strange announcement of a “criminal investigation into the possibility that Ottawa’s plans for income trusts were leaked” would finally be “the straw that breaks the Liberals’ back?”Â  And it quite arguably was, more or less – close enough for […]



Canadian federal election 2011 .. will the numbers change dramatically by the end of the week?

Apr 10th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

We are looking out on the third or middle week of the 2011 Canadian federal election campaign, with the English language leaders’ debate coming on Tuesday, April 12, and the French language debate on Thursday, April 14 (UPDATE: er, make that Wednesday, April 13 now: it turns out Montreal has an important hockey game on […]



One side of Mountie culture does look pro “Harper Government” .. and other noise along the campaign trail

Apr 7th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

Almost exactly three years ago now, it was reported that: “Former RCMP commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli’s decision to name then-Liberal finance minister Ralph Goodale in a criminal investigation likely influenced the 2006 federal election, the chair of the RCMP public complaints commission says.” Mr. Zaccardelli’s action did seem to correlate remarkably closely with the ultimate shift […]



Happy 125th birthday Vancouver .. our dreams will decide, & we are their Shapers ..

Apr 6th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

Many years ago now, an American political philosopher teaching at the University of Toronto claimed that Vancouver was the only other city in the world in which an authentic Torontonian could feel at home. I am not at all sure that this ever was altogether true, and it certainly no longer is, if it ever […]



Fear and hatred on the campaign trail in Canada .. is this Unknown Country about to become still more unknown?

Apr 4th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

At our regular Monday morning editorial meeting today one of the most senior editors drearily opined that bumping into the latest daily Nanos poll on the Canadian federal election of 2011 (“Tories enter second week with commanding 14-point lead”) called forth this distressing (and depressing) thought: “If this poll is to be believed, the Harper […]



Canadian federal election of 2011 : That was the first week that was – don’t jump to any conclusions yet!

Apr 1st, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

Today marks the first-week anniversary of the defeat of the second Stephen Harper minority government in Ottawa, on a first-ever “contempt of Parliament” non-confidence vote – and more or less the end of the official first week of campaigning for the Canadian federal election of 2011, which will reach some kind of (maybe?) dramatic climax […]



Would Harper majority government in Canada be like Cameron-Clegg coalition government in UK?

Mar 29th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

[UPDATED MAY 3]. There was a time when people interested in politics in at least English-speaking Canada also paid attention to politics in the United Kingdom (which used to be better covered in Canadian newspapers than it is today). And in the back-to-the-future 21st century age of Stephen Harper there are a few reasons why […]



There is an alternative to a Harper majority and it isn’t a “coalition” (or yet another Harper minority)

Mar 27th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

This morning John Ibbitson wrote on the Globe and Mail website: “Stephen Harper continues to insist that if he doesn’t obtain a majority government, a coalition will replace him. ‘Nobody is going to be fooled,’ he declared Saturday. But in fact he is the one who is trying to fool us.” A few hours later […]



Canadian federal election 2011 is its own economic action plan!

Mar 25th, 2011 | By | Category: Key Current Issues

[UPDATED MARCH 30, APRIL 5, 8, 11, 13, 22, MAY 1, 3]. There now appears no escape from the spring election “skillfully brought on by Mr. Harper” (despite his seven-year-old protests otherwise). For the tedious technical details, see, eg: “Harper government set to fall Friday, setting stage for vote in early May” and “Harper government […]



Is there any hope for a PM Ignatieff “supported either formally or informally by the NDP”?

Mar 23rd, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

According to the Postmedia News report in the Vancouver Sun: “Election on the way … budget rejected by opposition … The Harper government is refusing to consider any amendments to its federal budget, which was rejected by all three opposition parties Tuesday, setting the stage for a spring election.” (Or, as Mark Kennedy observed in […]