Beyond The Commons

Aaron Wherry covers all the goings-on in and around Parliament Hill. Follow Aaron on Twitter: @aaronwherry

Categories: Beyond The Commons, Capital Read

by Aaron Wherry on Thursday, May 27, 2010 11:36am - 20 Comments

Regardless of whether it is wrong or merely tacky, this infomercial starring Tony Clement is, at the very least, highly entertaining in its own way.

CTV has the necessary background and meddlesome questions.

Tags: Tony Clement

John

Not to mention that this is the second story today that involves him violating copyright law. I highly doubt they paid for the rights to the songs played over the credits.
Emily

A health minister selling chemicals to China, probably while listening to his iPod, and Harper backs it all because Clement is such a 'good' minister.
Blues Clair

I implore PM Harper to impose a moratorium on that dang song. Lord have mercy.

sally

Which one? What a Wonderful World or theme from Chariots of Fire? Perhaps both?

Richard_S_Argent

With each passing day the resemblence to the Duplessis government grows stronger.
http://intensedebate.com/people/tobyornotoby tobyornotoby

This is weird all around. Apart from the ethics and the low rent production values (can they pick a cheesier tune to rip off?) to be effective in China, shouldn't the video be in a Chinese language?
Dee

Clinton had his "bimbo eruptions". Apparently the Conservatives have "unethical eruptions". What's next after Clement, Guergis, Jaffer, Bernier,… For Clement to claim that doing this video isn't a conflict of interest beggars belief. He would resign from cabinet if he was an honourable man.
Dave

Hi it's Tony from SlapChop
You know we can't do this all day
Be slappin' your troubles away with the SlapChop
Slappin' your troubles away with the SlapChop

wsam

Clement doesn't even do a very good job. I know he's not a very good speaker. But could he sound less convincing? He mailed it in.

Also. What is with the long pauses.

Canada has water [minute pause] animals [minute pause] birds … etc …

Terrible. Just terrible.
Anon 001

Tony " ShamWow!" Clement.
Holly Stick

There's a video of Jason Kenney that deserves wider circulation too:
http://stageleft.blogspot.com/2010/05/dear-jason-…
wellwell

This would have been a decent video had it begun at 3:20.

Tony Clement's segment might have been interesting if he'd been standing outside Norman Bethune's childhood home, a national historic site located in the Minister's own riding:
http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/on/bethune/contact.as…

Bethune still symbolizes health to many Chinese, so the Minister's tortured attempts to connect health and the environment would have had more salience had the connection with Bethune been made.

But since Bethune was a Communist (!), such an obvious symbolic opportunity might gotten Clement in trouble – he would know all about that, since he was the one who stuck the knife in Diane Ablonczy for cutting that Toronto Pride cheque.
Bobby

I see absolutely nothing wrong with this.
Next issue.

Lord Kitchener's Own

You might feel differently if you worked for a competing company one riding over who DIDN'T have the luck of being friends with a federal Cabinet Minister willing to shill for them in THEIR infomercial for Chinese investors.

Colleen

Harper's government is brain dead, because Canadians trying to sell anything to China but are precious resources are barking up a shady tree. China's new law don't buy from strangers, buy only from China will get in the way of investors big plans. America's Walmart, also made in China. And the lowest price is the law will continue to erode business in Canada with Chinese slaves. So much for all those big plans of selling to the Chinese market, ha, ha.

Canadian enough

Maybe it will help the Conservatives grab the Chinese vote in Canada. Harper's Governments commercials on Iggy not being Canadian enough are wasted on several hundred thousand immigrant Chinese in Canada.

http://intensedebate.com/profiles/eastendunderground Scoop

Highly entertaining from the perspective of worst production values, ever… I was thinking Feschuk wrote this in a fit of irony…

"Our world is a beautiful place: Trees (pause), lakes (pause), rivers (pause), animals (pause), birds (pause), flowers (pause)…" Every time I listen to it, I get to the 'animals' bit and crack up…

Fill with poorly composed videography (at different ratios), and you've got a winner…

But it certainly raises the question: how is this any different than Helena writing a letter on behalf of a company to the local municipal government?
CAPS

And apparently the guy who (badly) produced the video, one George Young, was named by Clement to the Canadina Tourism Commission.

To me that smells just as much as Tony "Slap Chop" Clement appearing in the video.
Patchouli

I can smell it from here!