For those of you just tuning in…

Kady:

Steve over at the blog Far and Wide was saying that he’s seen Bob Fife on CTV this AM saying that the Governor-General is unlikely to accept a Harper prorogue request due to the present circumstances.

I don’t know where Fife got that from or what source he has.. but that would be more unprecedented then granting a coalition a chance to govern, wouldn’t you say?

Here’s a link of interest:

01 December 2008
The constitutional background to the current situation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 28, 2008

Eugene Forsey on Dissolutions, Coalitions and Minority Government

Ompah, Ontario – “If Eugene Forsey were alive today, the democratic options open to Parliamentarians in the upcoming confidence vote would be much clearer,” says Helen Forsey, daughter of the late Senator and constitutional expert.

“My father would be telling politicians and media alike that there is no need for a fresh election, and no need either for any formal coalition of opposition parties to replace the Conservative government if it is defeated in the House.”

[...]

The section on Prorogation in Marleau & Montpetit is found here:

http://www2.parl.gc.ca/MarleauMontpetit/DocumentViewer.aspx?DocId=1001&Sec=Ch08&Seq=7&Lang=E

The relevant section reads:

“Prorogation of a Parliament results in the termination of a session. Parliament then stands prorogued until the opening of the next session. Like the summoning and dissolution of Parliament, prorogation is a prerogative act of the Crown, taken on the advice of the Prime Minister. [105] Parliament is actually prorogued either by the Governor General (or Deputy of the Governor General) in the Senate Chamber, or by proclamation published in the Canada Gazette. When Parliament stands prorogued to a certain day, a subsequent proclamation (or proclamations) may be issued to advance or defer the date. [106]“

I just posted this over on a Coynethread… it felt wrong not dropping parliamentary trivializing within one of Kady’s, posts, though, so I shall make dastardly use of Ctrl+V now that a better opportunity has presented itself here

My sense based purely on Google-powered nerdery is that precedent from other Westminsterine climes dictates the GG would likely deny any request for prorogation if the underlying reason seems to be dodging a non-con vote.

And–I dunno if Fife got to this–but were things to pan out that way, I think it would only boost the optics of the coalition: First Harper unilaterally delays the vote, then starts frantically bargaining away everything, then runs to the GG to shut Parliament down, only to have her slap him down hard for trying to go all extraconstitutional on us. And poor Steve has to twist in the wind for another day or so awaiting his inevitable execution in the House.

I daresay it’s particularly difficult to build a narrative about the “power-mad” opposition amidst a backdrop of you being the one getting a once-in-a-generation vice-Regal comeuppance for exceeding your powers to thwart the constitutional order.

Hmmm…the House looks even emptier than usual today. Or is that just the CPAC feed/my imagination?

Nice picture. A shot of liveblogger KO slightly right of center I believe.

And who is that fellow on the left and is he wearing a depends undergarment? He looks like he had a bad day.

Yikes, that *is* me. And look, there’s Bill Casey!

Yeah Jesse, Baird. I’m not sure if that’s for real, or just somebody playing games, but it would certainly be entertaining.

Bill Casey is mentioning this morning in the Chronicle Herald he will also vote against the government in the non-confidence motion.

What goes around comes around.

I think Casey was there just to throw Harper off track. By the way, despite Brother Wells’ goading (or maybe because of it), we have this GiornoNugget in the latest Don Martin installment in the NatPost (he seems to be a bit more reliable than Ivison who appears to have been punch drunk the past few days):

“But the bottom line was that Stephen Harper made a serious mistake when he ignored his chief of staff and pleas from several ministers not to include in the fiscal update the partisan death of a program that gives political parties $1.95 a year for every vote received in the previous election.”

See, the GreatGiorno was NOT responsible for this fiasco and he is clearly not prepared to take the fall for this particular mess.

Just one question Kady…
How do you click away at your Blackberry with only one hand – when you have to carry that stepladder around with you all the time?

What these collation clowns are trying to do is one legal hair away from treason. It’s something that we read about in the Congo or some other desperate & lawless country. Is it time that the Canadian people take to the streets? Have we reached the point were citizens must use physical force to ensure a legitimately elected government is allowed to govern?

Stephane Dion is trying to be a poor man’s Johnny Depp,- “Pirate’s of the Nations Capital”. Unfortunately he lacked the spine to resign and leave immediately after the Canadian people clearly told him to leave. Instead he Layton, Rae and Ignatieff attack like “thieves in the night”.

It’s time to cut the strings from the separatist party and let Quebec decide once and for all if they want to stay in or leave. To be a political party on the national level all parliamentarians should take an oath of office stating that they do not aspire toseparate and that they must attempt to field candidates in all parts of the country. If this causes a breakup of the country, which is what Duceppe wants than so be it. Perhaps Bob Rae, John McCallum, little Jack Layton and Iggy will take up residency in Montreal. Don’t let the gate hit your asses on the way out, fellows.