Categories: Capital Read, Inside the Queensway

Dion is gone – and the coalition? Still on.

by kadyomalley on Monday, December 8, 2008 1:31pm - 134 Comments

Date: December 8, 2008

For Release: Immediate

Statement by the Honourable Stéphane Dion

After the election on October 14 I announced I would stay on as Leader of the Liberal Party until my party could select my successor. One of my goals was to ensure an effective opposition to Stephen Harper’s government.

I believe that decision was the right one and I am proud of having forced Stephen Harper to back away from his attempt to force upon Canadians his most ideological and harmful plans in these tough economic times.

The alliance between the Liberal Party and the NDP to replace the Harper government, with the support of the Bloc Québécois, is a solid basis to give Canada a government that reflects both the aspirations of the majority of Canadians and the support of the majority of Members of Parliament. Such a government would be more stable than a minority Conservative government incapable of cooperating with opposition parties.

As the Governor General has granted a prorogation, it is a logical time for us Liberals to assess how we can best prepare our party to carry this fight forward.

There is a sense in the party, and certainly in the caucus, that given these new circumstances the new leader needs to be in place before the House resumes. I agree. I recommend this course to my party and caucus. As always, I want to do what is best for my country and my party, especially when Canadians’ jobs and pensions are at risk.

So I have decided to step aside as Leader of the Liberal Party effective as soon as my successor is duly chosen.

I will offer my unconditional and enthusiastic support to my successor in the same way I have always supported the leaders of our great party. I will work under the next leader’s direction with all my energy in order to give Canada a better government.

I wish to close by making it absolutely clear that my earlier departure does not change the facts of the situation that the Prime Minister has created in the last two weeks.

The Prime Minister and his government refused to lay out a plan to stimulate the economy. The Prime Minister has lost the confidence of the House of Commons. The Prime Minister shut down Parliament to save his job while thousands of Canadians are losing theirs. The Prime Minister has poisoned the well of trust and respect that is necessary for a minority government to work in Parliament – especially in a time of crisis.

Mr. Harper took an economic crisis and added a parliamentary crisis that he then tried to transform into a national unity crisis: this is no way for a Prime Minister of Canada to act.

It is my hope that the decision I have announced today will enhance the capacity of Parliament to function effectively for the sake of Canadians in this economic crisis.

Stéphane Dion, PC, MP

Tags: it's not over til it's -- oh, it's over, liberal notaleadership, Stéphane Dion, with a sigh not a whimper

More by kadyomalley

just another Canadian

And what’s to become of his dog, Kyoto?
wayne moores

Actually, I kinda liked Pierre. First rate intellectual with a sharp enough mind to know to never give the keys to the cabinet to separatists just for the sake of gaining power. I think if he were alive he would tell the party that they must go back to their grass roots, get some credible leadership,build a policy and platform and run on that. That will not be easy. Cretian threw so many hand grenades into the bunker as he was leaving that potential leaders like Frank Mckenna and others are staying away in droves. You will likely be surprised to know I was equally happy to see the Republicans get trounced stateside. They also were getting to think they were the natural governing party there. No matter what the political stripe when you think you are entitled to govern problems soon follow. If central canadian politicians continue to carry on in this manner we will have two separtist parties. One in Que. and one in Alta. Not a good result for this country. If the left is so sure their course of action is the correct one, unite and defeat Harper in an election. I don’t think anyone could object to that. I’m no huge fan of Harper, but he won. Live with it or defeat him at the ballot box. It’s called democracy.
Westerner

Form the Socialist Coalition Party of Canada (SCPC) and take it to the Canadian electorate.
Let democracy rule!
Diana

How amusing it is to hear the “yung uns” whine about what a bully Harper is. How mean he is. Well listen children we were forced to endure tenures of two of the meanest sob’s I,ve ever seen. Trudeau gave those of us in the west the finger.He held his own backbenchers in contempt . He was arrogant and rude and quite a pain in the backside. Liberals and the media bragged about what a street fighter Chretian was. How tough he was. He actually grabbed a Canadian by the throat and forced him to the ground.
And now the best they have is Inspecter Clouseau…to be followed by Iggy or Rae..both of whom signed the coalition agreement. The great liberal party of Canada.
Jack Mitchell

Diana — Yeah, but it’s not just that Harper’s a psychopath, it’s that he’s a psychopath with no style. He has the personality of a parking ticket dispenser.
Port Away

“Ted: It will never cease to amaze me how the media turned this issue from; a Prime Minister who ignored his own election law, stated there wasn’t a problem, tried to kill opposition, failed to tackle the economy, incited Quebec separatism and shut down parliament, into the fault of the Coalition. The bully in the schoolyard last term, was finally stood up to by those being bullied and it’s their fault for standing up to him? Where the hell did journalistic integrity go to?”

Ted, the media is corrupt and biased and ruled by people who doesn’t really care about democracy but to make the rich richer and the poor to serve them.

And on top of that, now for the regular brainwashed Joe being a bully pass as “leadership”.
Port Away

Just watched John Stewart making fun of Canada. Parliament shut down etc.

Thanks king steve! you successfully made us the laughingstock of the world!
just a Canadian

Cough, Cough, Cough.
Sorry, I just caught myself starting to regurgitate a lie that I read in the hill times.

Oops, Jack beat me to it. But, Jack he’s the Prime Minister of Canada. Elected by a more Canadians than any other pretender. And are you praising parking tickets dipsensers, or do you have something against them too?
Jack Mitchell

You mean he has style? Perhaps I was misinformed.
just a Canadian

um, Jon Stewart is a comedy show. With a decidedly liberal bias, but they do try to be funny.

Kinda like Mercer’s Talking to Americans would have offended Americans, if any cared about Canada.
just a Canadian

Yes has style. For a mean spirited sweater wearing bully.
If Harper is a psychopath, he hides it well. Kinda like the hidden agenda.

Do you actually buy this crap?

Critics say “place any name here” has a mean spirited dislike of parking ticket dispensers. The source that prefers not to be named says that it may have something to do with a past encounter in which “place name of person to be attacked maliciously here” came out on the losing end.
Port Away

hey just a Canadian, you should try to be funny too! you sound really bitter.

And I am not offended here but WE ARE the laughingstock of the world right now! Are you proud of king steve?

And I HATE the “if anyone care about Canada”, “nobody cares about Canada” etc. It usually comes from warmongers, hope you are not one of them.
Jack Mitchell

Just: “Do you actually buy this crap?”

No, I’ve never really bought in to the Tory talking points. But thanks for asking! Sometimes I feel like the Conbots never pause to notice if I’m even listening.
just a Canadian

Wall, Jack. Jack, Wall.
sf

Conservative Web Monitoring Team: you rock.

Dion was not much of a leader, that’s for sure. Harper mopped the floor with him, and more recently Layton played him like a fiddle. He screamed bloody murder in-between votes in the House and then walked out on them when they arrived. His central plank was dumped midway through the election because nobody liked it. He will be remembered for two of the most embarassing political videotapes ever recorded. He fought the separatists, until most recently when he decided to join the separatists. He ran up big debts in a leadership race and has still failed to pay them back. He had an excuse for anything and everything. He will be missed, mostly by the Conservative party.
Brian

Jack Mitchell: perhaps people don’t pause to notice if you’re listening because they don’t give a rats ass. For someone who never misses an opportunity to trot out the “tory talking points” line, it eludes you that your overuse of this particular tactic has itself become a liberal talking point.

Please carry on with your learned analysis and original thought (ie. Harper = Bush, Harper has a hidden agenda, Harper is a psycho, etc etc)
just a Canadian

If you are a Port Away, you should move a Port Closer. Cause buddy, you are way out there!

Is there anything else that you hate, while calling others “bitter” and the ever hateful “warmonger”.

WOW.
Jack Mitchell

Irony: 8
Conbots: 0

Brian: “Please carry on with your learned analysis and original thought (ie. Harper = Bush, Harper has a hidden agenda, Harper is a psycho, etc etc)”

Harper = Bush? No no, Bush believes his own schtick. Don’t slander the President, please. That really ticks some people off around here.

Harper’s hidden agenda. I don’t think he has any agenda except the naked pursuit of power. And it ain’t hidden.

Harper is a psycho. Hard to add much to what we already know. But I would draw attention to his hair. The hair of a psychopath. The mousse of a maniac. The light trim of a tyrant. Look more carefully, Brian. Be objective.
just a Canadian

Jack mistakes idiocy for irony. Well easy mistake for you. They both start with I.
Jack Mitchell

Just: “Jack mistakes idiocy for irony. Well easy mistake for you. They both start with I.”

One of them certainly does.
Brian

Jack Mitchell said “Harper’s hidden agenda. I don’t think he has any agenda except the naked pursuit of power. And it ain’t hidden.

The naked pursuit of power? You mean like winning free elections or making back-room deals to steal power weeks afterwards? The irony is not lost on the country that Bob Rae fully supports undemocratic back-room deals when it comes to forming a coalition government but adamantly opposes them for liberal leadership races.

Would creating a program for the sole purposes of laundering taxpayer money through friends and bagmen back into liberal party coffers qualify as a naked pursuit of power? How about firing the former president of the BDC, taking away his pension and sicking the RCMP on him because he wouldn’t approve an unqualified candidate / chretien crony for a loan — a loan that ultimately benefitted the liberal PM? Is that the naked pursuit of power? Or perhaps, you are referring to a Prime Minister and former finance minister who was responsible for the enforcement of the nation’s tax laws and used his own loopholes to avoid paying millions of dollars in Canadian taxes by flying foreign flags of convenience for his steamship company?
Jack Mitchell

Brian, does foam dribble down your cheek when you type these posts?
http://wherry kc

Wayne
I think i may have done you an injustice. your follow up post made me laugh. a man with both wit and an open mind is a precious thing, particularly in these trubled times. I loved the image of chretien throwing a handgrenade or two into the bunker on his way out. I rather likd the creton myself – a true bastard who could make you laugh – very rare combination. Harper has part of it down pat. If he could only pull off he second half , i might even like him a little . Trudeau on the other hand only piled every warm body he could find into the other big house, safely out of the way where they couldn’t do any more harm .
Agree with you, prefer Harper defeated at the ballot box. What’s that old sying: we stand on the shoulders of giants. The liberal party seem to be letting only dwarves in the door these days. It’s sad and not good for the country.
Steve Wart

Just read William Lyon Mackenzie King’s bio on Wikipedia. I think the world has changed since then. The Liberals need to figure that out.
http://wherry kc

Steve
What do they need to figure out?