Sunday, December 07, 2008

Save the Threats, Formulate Policy

I was really disappointed to read comments attributed to Michael Ignatieff warning that Harper's government will fall if it doesn't produce a strong budget at the end of January.

Maybe so, maybe not, but that won't help Canadian workers or their families. Instead of focusing on ousting Harper the Libs need to focus on presenting alternatives. They need to be able to unveil, concurrently with the Tory budget, a budget the Liberals believe Canada needs, a budget the Liberals are ready to fight an election on.

Harper always places politics and his own political ambitions ahead of the country - always - but that's no excuse for the Liberals to play that game and especially not now.

Ignatieff, Rae and the rest of you - you've got time, use it. There really isn't a great deal to choose from in any of the leadership frontrunners. The Liberals have to be ready to govern in an enormous crisis from Day One.

Get to work and then, on Harper's budget day, show Canadians a clear reason why they ought to trust you, not him to ride out this storm.

4 comments:

CuriosityCat said...

Good points!

The Coalition will not become the government unless it unveils - and soon - its fleshed out Accord items, so that people can see more clearly exactly what the Coalition meant when it responsed to Harper's inaction.

Beef up the Coalition budget and then roll it out, with the Coalition leaders and senior MPs in the LPC and NDP going across the country to explain exactly how each item will help Canada and Canadians.

If we allow Harper to be the only one to unveil a budget, we can expect him to win the budget-framing phase in January ...

RuralSandi said...

We have to remember - it is not guaranteed that GG will allow the coalition to govern.

Then it would be an election - Harper would get his majority.

We have to be so careful here.

The Mound of Sound said...

That's why,Sandi, the Libs need to do more than bluster about bringing down the government. If he sees advantage in it, Harper wouldn't hesitate to goad the opposition into defeating his minority. It's because of his proclivity to pull these stunts that the Libs have to use this opportunity to put together their own platform, their own proposed budget, to show Canadians that they're a worthy alternative.

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