From this week’s print edition: my column is built around an interview with Stéphane Dion. I have spent much of the past four months writing more about Stephen Harper than Boswell did about Johnson, so I was happy for a chance to concentrate on the other guy. An excerpt:
“The Conservatives call it Stéphane Dion’s Permanent Tax On Everything. Dion had detailed replies to every question I put to him. He quoted the chief statistician of Norway and economists like Jack Mintz. The danger, during a campaign, may be that Permanent Tax On Everything fits onto a postcard, whereas the chief statistician of Norway would face a tight squeeze.”
As always, there was stuff in the interview that didn’t make it into the final column. I asked Dion about whether he wants Elizabeth May to take part in televised debates; he said he sure does. But others, especially the Conservatives, oppose that because May’s bottom line is that Dion should be the next prime minister instead of Harper, I said. So you’ll have two party leaders onstage who want the Liberal to be prime minister. “That’s her right in a democracy,” he said. “If Jack Layton reaches the same conclusion, we’re not going to bar him from the debates, are we?”
Ah. But is May’s participation a pre-condition of Dion’s? “No. I want to be there.”
I should note that the interview, like almost every conversation I’ve had with Dion over 13 years, took place in French, so I could be the one struggling with accent and vocabulary challenges. Here’s how it all turned out.
Print
Comment
The “your guy too” argument never negates the original criticism, but is handy for adding perspective and levity. It’s certainly true that the biggest danger facing Dion’s Permanent Tax On Everything (not the most probable, but the most devastating to Dion if it were to happen) is that his own caucus will eat the plan alive before he even gets a chance to put it to voters.
I’d suggest the “your guy too” is more particularly compelling in this case because the promises of this government were rather specifically “we’re not like them”.
Liberal, Tory, same old story.
Very True Paul : I would also add that this screwy idea of a tax grab only re-inforces an existing problem that the Liberal Party has not seemed able to deal with and that is the rural – urban split and right now as it stands I would not be a prospective Liberal MP in a rural community for all the tea in china. This is putting a lot of pressure on the caucus and if Dion is not very careful not only will it eat this plan alive but if there is someone (no names mentioned)in the LPC that has leadership ideas (nudge nudge wink wink) then it provides them with a wedge of considerable weight to leverage at the next LPC leadership convention which might be or is (I’m not sure here)in December?. Judging by a common theme I am hearing and seeing RE: maybe Iggy or Bobby would be a better fight against my boy Stevie! (PS: this concerns me as between you, me and the wall I really do not see Dion being sucessful against Harper)
T. Thwim, are you of the belief that any government that breaks any promises is as bad as a government that breaks most of them?
Again, by my count, the Tories have been very good at keeping their major promises, and pretty good at keep their less major promises.
Don’t quite know where this notion comes from that the Tories are major promise breakers. Although I will admit that Harper did his best to raise expectations on that score by howling and screaming about anything and everything while leading the opposition.
OK, so we’re now full-blown into “your guy too” territory, and off-topic, too. Yay.
Brian will be very upset that you’re not concentrating on my shameful, torrid man-love for Dion. Eyes on the ball, people!!!!
Anyone observing the sorry display of campaigning and communicating provided by the Liberals this summer will probably reach only one conclusion: The Liberals must be crazy, or they must not really want to be re-elected.
It all started with Liberal leader Stéphane Dion’s Green Shift plan, which provides for a carbon tax and offsetting income-tax cuts. The trouble with this shift is that it doesn’t really do anything, or much anyway, for the environment. As other Liberals have admitted, including one Member of Parliament, the Green Shift plan is not about the environment at all but about redistributing wealth from one end of the country to the other.
Mr. Dion took quite the pounding from all sides for his plan – from Conservatives, the NDP and even environmentalists. Yet, to his credit, he soldiers on. However, the hole he has already dug for himself isn’t quite deep enough yet, so he has decided to pick up the shovel one more time to do some more digging.
As he descended deeper and deeper into his Saddam-Hussein-like hole, the lack of oxygen must have triggered some hallucinations, with some ghostly voices whispering into his ear, “Stéphane, listen to us. We have an even better idea for you that you can take to the Canadian people.”
This idea involves “carbon tariffs”, import duties slapped on products from countries that, in Mr. Dion’s estimation, don’t do enough to fight global warming. Experts in trade law and, generally, those with common sense were quick to label his latest idea as “bafflegab” and “crazy”. It is not hard to see why they would say such things.
Not only would such a move trigger a trade war with the U.S., because such tariffs would be a clear violation of the NAFTA agreement, but one with many other countries around the world as well on whose business Canada depends to keep its economy going. The U.S. would doubtless be among Mr. Dion’s first targets, even though America’s record on greenhouse gases and environmental protection has been much better than Canada’s for years, but that wouldn’t stop Mr. Dion from making contrary claims.
Those tariffs would also increase the prices of such imported goods for Canadian consumers, which is hardly welcome with the economy on its way down and inflation pushing up prices high enough as it is. Voters in Canada are usually quite malleable as long as political messages involve some lofty ideas and principles, but when they get hit in the wallet – and this is where it really hurts – even the mostly passive Canadian electorate will become agitated enough to do serious harm to any party that suggests such nonsense.
What must be really galling to Liberals is that there is no need, or justification, for Mr. Dion to be touring the country now and spreading his message. As party insiders have said, “Everything that is being discussed this summer is not being written in stone.” Why, then, go around the country and talk about hypothetical and vague ideas that are “not written in stone” and only serve to upset and frustrate everyone? Didn’t Mr. Dion’s advisers tell him that this would be counterproductive? Oh, yes, that’s right, Mr. Dion never listens to anyone.
The NDP, too, is visibly aggravated by Mr. Dion’s plans. Nathan Cullen, an NDP MP, said Mr. Dion is “jeopardizing the entire climate debate by making it look ridiculous.” Indeed, he is. It remains to be seen how long Mr. Dion can go on like this before Green Party leader Elizabeth May sends him a Dear-John letter to inform him that their friendship is over. For it seems that the biggest stumbling block to the debate on global warming and environmental issues is none other than Mr. Dion himself.
Funny, wasn’t it Dion himself who mentioned that America probably wouldn’t be affected as both presidential candidates have said they plan to price carbon as well. Ah well, truth be damned, full steam ahead, right?
As for the man-love, since Feschuk has now shown us the future of Dion with the Magnum Moustache of Magnificence, can you really blame him?
Werner, save the essay for your own URL… remember it is a comment section. And by the way, there are people on the left who don’t think that highly of Jack Layton’s positioning.
My apologies Mr. Patels, but after reading your essay, I instinctively thought of Hogan’s Heroes (Werner Klemperer as Col. Klink)
“Shuuuulzzzz!”
Shouldn’t you comment only if you actually have something to contribute on the topic at hand? It would also nice if you didn’t hide behind a “Dot” like a coward.
Blues Clair:
Thanks for the link. This proves that Dion is moving even further to the left than the NDP — and let’s not forget that Dion’s favourite subject of study has always been Marxist.
Oops, too fast: this should have been “Marxism” (I suppose I was thinking of what Dion really is …).
By the way, “Dot”, I am not German — far from it, in fact. Let’s just hope that no German reading this files a human rights complaints against your stereotyping.
OK Werner, “a debate” on the issues. I was hoping this would engage you.
You spout drivel about the US and NAFTA. True, Canada’s export trade is in the order of 85% to the the US, but if you took some time to try and understand trade issues, rather than taking the Pavlovian response, you might have a more enlightened view.
This Dion policy on carbon taxing imports, in my opinion, is in response to the Harper/Baird position that taking action on climate change (reducing CO2 emissions) is not worth undertaking unless China/India is involved in a post Kyoto agreement.
I doubt very highly that it has anything to do with US exports/imports, and come Can Fed election, when perhaps the direction of the US election has been decided (if it hasn’t already) we (as Canadians) may find our exports are subject to similar trade tariffs (are you familiar with California’s efforts to impose such tariff’s on Alberta oilsands production).
I don’t care to elaborate further, as this is a comment section, but someone, it appears, rang the bell, and you, by conditioned response, salivated.
Sorry, Dot, but I am allergic to Marxists and their ilk. And I will not allow this dreck to be installed in Canada.
Wells says
“Oh come on, JK, that’s a great shirt.”
LMAO, yes,yes it was…
Sandi says
” If it was, it would be implanted in the memory bank like Harper’s awful leather cowboy vest”
LOL.
Come on Sandi lets be real, nothng was as bad as that outfitt. And I am Harpermaniac.
Manners, everyone, please.
Oops. I was referring to the thread above JK’s last comment.
Dot
If you think the Americans are going to go nuts over the enviroment you are livin in a fairy tale.
The democract congress could not even pass a bill that was similer to Harpers climate change policy.
http://www.pewclimate.org/policy_center/analyses/s_139_summary.cfm
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1812836,00.html
JK,
I’m not as knowledgeable on US politics as others (I still watch McLaughlin Group) and I note in the last session all predicted at least a five seat swing from Republican to Democrats in the November 2008 election (1/3 of 50 contested?), so I’m not so sure change is not underway on climate etc. One would think many Dems would be running on this platform of increased environmental awareness/responsibility.
Nevertheless, at a State level, where many environmental decisions will be made (similar to Canada I believe), it may be a different story.
Certainly, the environmental lobby in the US at the Municipal, State, and Fed level to target Alberta oilsands production has not gone unnoticed, particularly by oilsands producers.
Many producers, I suspect, may welcome a Dion-like carbon tax if asked, if they haven’t stated as much already. All can afford it – they just need the laws/regulations to implement it. Shareholders would demand less, otherwise.
1/3 of 100 (not 50) I meant
Thanks for the response Dot.
I just don’t believe Dion’s Plan is about the enviroment. To me it is about getting the 2 percent GST cut back to pay for his spending promises.
Dot says..
“Certainly, the environmental lobby in the US at the Municipal, State, and Fed level to target Alberta oilsands production has not gone unnoticed, particularly by oilsands producers.”
Any amrican saying they hate are resurce riches knowing the deal they have with NAFTA is pandering(which I understand).
Dot says…
“Nevertheless, at a State level, where many environmental decisions will be made (similar to Canada I believe), it may be a different story.”
I think your right on that but I am not a 100 percents sure on it.
Just to be frank I think the CPC stole the origanel liberal climatre change policy. And Dion to try to make him self different came up wih this crazy plan.
Who knows, intill the next election all of us ae right.