It is clear the stunt orchestrated by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to save the face of his government was a flop. Not only is the new team riddled in controversy and incompetence, a July 4 email suggests the team isn’t a change. Same old, different day, different faces, a bid to save the face of the Conservative government now finds itself in damage control.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced his cabinet shuffle in light of a scandalous spring session he would rather forget. The Duffy Affair isn’t gone yet, and while changing face may aide Harper, it turns out some of the people he’s promoted may do more harm than good to his credibility. The Duffy Affair wasn’t a cabinet problem, but rather a PMO problem which found its way to the Prime Minister himself.
Effective tomorrow, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews will resign his cabinet post and his seat as MP. Not only does Toews join a list of MPs walking out the door, Toews makes room for Harper’s attempt to put new blood into the front benches of his government – which he hopes will revive the dying brand. Toews is leaving to spend time with his family and pursue opportunities in the private sector.
Amid an upcoming cabinet shuffle, Conservative Senate Leader Marjory LeBreton has resigned the cabinet and a few other Conservative MPs have indicated they won’t run for re-election. The spring sitting was mired in scandal and the upcoming cabinet shuffle may be Harper’s only hope at reviving a severely tarnished brand.
Conservative MPs are breaking ranks and speaking out against Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s quest to muzzle them. As the reasons for breaking ranks vary, one reason has 9 backbench MPs on the same page: freedom of speech, or in laments terms, the lack of it.
Environment Minister Peter Kent defended his government’s disdain and censorship of scientific facts claiming it was an “established practice.” This comes as the government plans to axe Environment Canada and cripple environmental assessments in their effort to quickly push forward the keystone pipeline project.
Public Safety Minister Vic Toews doesn’t like to have his private life exposed but is keen on exposing the lives of Canadians with Bill C-51, renamed to C-30, which would give the government and authorities unrestricted and unwarranted access to everything you do online and on your smartphones.
As a part of Harper’s announced “major transformations,” the retirement age will be increased to 67 from 65. The argument is that our current Old Age Security system is unsustainable but when you look at the way the Conservatives manage your money and when you look at their pensions, you just have to wonder if it is necessary.
What do Lise St-Denis and Irwin Cotler have in common? Apart from being Liberal MPs, they have both been attacked by their opposition using the dirtiest tactics available. The NDP has claimed for years that the Liberals and Conservatives were destroying democracy with vicious politics and offered themselves as an alternative. It appears that the “Fix(ed) Ottawa” that Jack Layton spoke of was hot air and unfortunately, it’s not the first time this blog has come to this conclusion.
As if the House of Commons and senate wasn’t enough, the Prime Minister’s Office is the biggest in history. This comes as the Canadian economy is crawling and austerity is coming to find $4 billion in savings. Harper called for small government back in the 90s and in 2004, however, that Harper is gone. In the first 5 years of Harper’s mandate since 2006, bureaucracy has grown 13%, contradicting these small government principles.
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