Dear Conservative Party of Canada

[cbacon 0]

Please get a leader who isn't out of his fucking mind:

 

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper says the government's same-sex legislation will make it through the House of Commons only because of support from the Bloc Québécois, and that, says Harper, means the legislation "lacks legitimacy."

 

    * INDEPTH: Same-sex Rights

 

BQ Leader Gilles Duceppe immediately pounced on the remarks, saying his party has as much legitimacy as the Conservatives.

 

But Harper says the same-sex political marriage between the Liberals and the BQ is illegitimate. He told reporters on his way into question period on Monday that the majority of federalist MPs will vote against the bill that extends the right to marry to gays and lesbians, and he warned that the Liberals will face a backlash from voters outside Quebec.

 

"It makes it an issue of Quebec versus Canada. Most Canadians have a skeptical view of Pequistes breaking up the country," said Conservative deputy leader Peter MacKay.

 

Harper, who has spent months wooing voters who oppose same-sex marriage for religious or cultural reasons, found a new target as MPs returned to Ottawa for the sole purpose of approving legislation to legalize same-sex marriage.

 

Harper branded Bill C-38 the product of an illegitimate union. "I think because this bill is only being passed with the support of the BQ, I think it will lack legitimacy with most Canadians. The truth is most federalist MPs will oppose this legislation," he said.

 

Barely a month ago Harper was working hand-in-hand with the BQ to defeat the Liberal budget, in a move that would have brought down the government.

 

Justice Minister Irwin Cotler pointed out the irony. "It was all right to seek their support for measures he wanted and suddenly they're illegitimate when it comes to Bill C-38. I find that surprising and even somewhat hypocritical," said Cotler.

 

BQ MP Richard Marceau says equating an issue of equality rights with Quebec separation is unbelievable. "I would say to Stephen Harper, 'Stephen take a break you need one. Forget the barbecues, you need to go home and relax.'"

 

NDP Leader Jack Layton was scathing in his criticism. "What Harper is saying is not only does he deny rights to gays and lesbians but also to Quebecers."

 

Public Works Minister Scott Brison called it "another case of Stephen Harper trying to divide Canadians and pit one group against another. For him to imply that somehow federalists are not as supportive of human rights and equality as separatists is truly offensive."

 

The Conservatives insist Harper is raising a legitimate issue with the majority of Canadians living outside Quebec and that he will continue to appeal to ordinary Canadians opposed to same-sex marriage.

 

The Conservatives concede they don't have the numbers to block the same-sex marriage bill in the Commons, but they have tabled a number of amendments intended to preserve marriage as the exclusive union of a man and a woman.

 

Conservative MP Ken Epp contrasted same-sex marriage to the civil rights movement of the 1960s in the United States.

 

"Blacks in the United States," said Epp, "never asked to be called white. They just wanted the same rights." Epp then went on to say that women in Canada sought equal rights without demanding to be called men.

 

"And so I ask the question in this struggle for so-called equality for same-sex couple, why do they want to use the word that describes heterosexual marriage and has for millennia?"

 

The bill would legalize same-sex marriage across the country. A number of court decisions in the past few years have allowed such marriages to be performed in eight provinces and one territory.

 

The NDP and Bloc support the bill. The Liberals are allowing backbench MPs to vote with their consciences, and as many as 34 Liberals may vote against it.

 

All but four members of the Conservative caucus are opposed to the bill.

 

Dear God, what will this man say next?

[cbacon 0]

In related news : Countdown to same-sex marriage legalization, in Canada.

 

Apparently Bill C-38 is going to be voted on in like ten minutes.

[CheesalaIsGood 0]

Another reason I love Canada. Boy are they gonna be mad on the radio tomorrow. What will we tell the children???

[ZGangsta 0]

Yeah, Harper can't seem to keep his foot out of his mouth. I mean, he acted like a total psycho when he tried to bring down the government, he made an ass out of himself with the whole Grewal tapes affair, and now this moronic statement. I wonder if he's curious about why the Cons. Party are bombing in the poles? It seems as if he attaches himself to an issue that he thinks will be his golden ticket to success and just keeps pushing to the point where Canadians just get sick of his lies and rhetoric and more and more lose respect for him. Jeez, he's turned into the Tom Cruise of Canadian politics.

Supposedly the thing is, he has a very close knit circle of advisers who are essentialy yes men who shield him from any criticism from the sane members of the Conservative party.

 

The latest obsessive point for him seems to be that the Liberals are "in bed with the separatists" because they voted together on ONE ISSUE. Does he actually think that people aren't going to see the hipocracy in that considering the Conservatives have been allied with the Bloc for the past 6 months. So the same sex bill won't be legitimate because it has Bloc support but your power grab last month to topple the government would have been? Can't have it both ways.

I don't see Stev-o leading the party for much longer.

[Dogbert 0]

I forgot. Didn't Harper and the Tories JUST team up with the Blocheads to try and take the government down?

 

"Hello, Kettle? This is Pot. I just called to say you're black."

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

I forgot. Didn't Harper and the Tories JUST team up with the Blocheads to try and take the government down?

 

"Hello, Kettle? This is Pot. I just called to say you're black."

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

That's exactly what I said when this was mentioned on CTV Newsnet Friday morning.

 

The CPC can join with the Bloc for a budget vote, but they're not a legit party when gay marriage is the topic?

 

I understand as Leader of the Opposition, it's his job to disagree(to an extent) with what the party in charge is doing. But Harper is a self serving nut at best. I'm not saying that because I'm a leftist. There's little to no debate there.

[dubq 0]

Harper's going a little overboard, I have to admit. I'm still waiting for the day when McKay can take his rightful spot as leader of the CPoC.

[Red Baron 0]

Harper's going a little overboard, I have to admit. I'm still waiting for the day when McKay can take his rightful spot as leader of the CPoC.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

It doesn't matter who leads the Conservative party for Canada. They need to do two things to get in power.

 

1.) Do not stray too far to the right.

2.) Deborah Gray has to step down. If she has any power in the Canadian government, sooner or later its gonna be her ideals not the Party leader.

[Jobber of the Week 0]

"HARPER IZ INSANE!!!!!one" = The reason why the Liberals will be able to sit and loot Canada for as much as they like for the forseeable future

[cbacon 0]

Sad, but true.

[Red Baron 0]

Canadians want to be in the middle, thus why the Liberals are in power. Sometimes its left-centre or right-centre, but they don't like being on the one side.

[Dogbert 0]

We'd rather stick with the fuck-ups we know, rather than give the power to the ones we don't.

 

Canada's in a sorry state right now. The people know that we're gonna take it up the kazoo no matter who's in power.

[LaParkaMarka 0]

Canada is in a sorry state? Compared to who? I'll take iffy medicare and a ton of political infighting over what's going on in some other first world nations.

[cbacon 0]

And as bad as the Liberals are, they are making progress towards paying off the debt. The problem is that they piss away the rest of their surpluses with more and more tax cuts instead of more transfer payments to the provinces for things like health care and education

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

And as bad as the Liberals are, they are making progress towards paying off the debt. The problem is that they piss away the rest of their surpluses with more and more tax cuts instead of more transfer payments to the provinces for things like health care and education

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Fair enough. Keep in mind, however, we've had budget surpluses since 1997, we're not exactly pissing money away.

 

Canada is in a sorry state? Compared to who? I'll take iffy medicare and a ton of political infighting over what's going on in some other first world nations.

 

I'll second that to a degree, but this again re-inforces our problem of identity. We're far too hung up on what we're not as opposed to what we are.

[CanadianChris 0]

Dear God, what will this man say next?

If it's not "I resign," the CPC is in serious trouble.

[Jobber of the Week 0]

Now that I finally squinted and looked hard and read the article a bit deeper, I notice that there's only one actual quote from Harper in that article, and C-Bacon failed to bold it when that was what the article was about. Granted, it was difficult to find since the article also included quotes from about a half-dozen politicians and their aides about same-sex marriage.

 

Harper branded Bill C-38 the product of an illegitimate union. "I think because this bill is only being passed with the support of the BQ, I think it will lack legitimacy with most Canadians. The truth is most federalist MPs will oppose this legislation," he said.

 

That's all he said. And it seems that the hypocracy here was that they were previously working with the Quebec party on a budget? I could understand that pissing people off, although I believe we've seen far dumber stuff in US politics.

[Red Baron 0]

Ya, he's being a hypocrit. A standard in Canadian politics.

[dubq 0]

Dear God, what will this man say next?

If it's not "I resign," the CPC is in serious trouble.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

He'll resign if he doesn't win the next election - it's a given. I doubt it'll happen before then, though.