In its length, in its cost and in its debate schedule, this election is unusual. The first and possibly only real debate of the campaign ended and here are the highlights of what happened.

Developing Canada’s oil sands brings great promise to the Canadian economy and allows for an opportunity to emerge as a major player in the energy market. The oil that sits unrefined in Alberta opens doors to vast new trade opportunities, which each bring long term benefits. Most importantly, Canada’s oil presents an opportunity to lower fuel prices nationwide and offset some of the tax burden from middle class families to fund the services Canadians cherish. Overall, if exploited wisely by Canada’s private industries and used for the right objectives, Alberta’s oil sands present an opportunity to bring great benefits to this country… Why would you want to give that away?

The Conservatives are usually the ones prided with policies pertaining to national security and protecting countries from foreign threats. Not only did the Conservatives fail to live up to their mantra, they endangered our allies.

The Harper government has labeled and attacked opponents of the XL Keystone pipeline project on the premise that they received funding from American environmental groups. It turns out that the Harper government has also been getting foreign funding.