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

The great recalibration

by Aaron Wherry on Friday, January 7, 2011 12:58pm - 30 Comments

A year ago, the Prime Minister asked the Governor General to prorogue Parliament so that he might “recalibrate” his government’s agenda and thus, one assumes, the very trajectory of the Canadian state. The resulting address to the nation set out the two wings of prosperity upon which our hopes would be borne: the creation of a national Seniors Day and the establishment of an award for volunteerism.

This past November, the Prime Minister made good on the former. And just now in Welland, a mere 12 months after the launch of our great recalibration, the Prime Minister has fulfilled his promise of the latter.

Let this transitional chapter in our dominion’s history now be considered closed, so that we might move forward, confident in the knowledge that our children and grandchildren and great grandchildren (and so on) will forever be in our debt.

Tags: prorogation, Prorogue, recalibrate, Seniors Day, Speech from the Throne, Stephen Harper

More by Aaron Wherry

bergkamp

I am divided about volunteer initiative: on one hand, governments give money to everyone and their brother, so finally giving money to volunteers is a good thing but on the other, we should not reward good behaviour because good behaviour should be its own reward.

Also, I bet many of the volunteers will be uncomfortable with recognition. Many volunteers like doing it anon, they don't want special thanks. Cheapens what they are doing, or so they think.

" …. confident in the knowledge that our children and grandchildren and great grandchildren (and so on) will forever be in our debt."

They are already in our debt, well more than $700 billion last I saw, so the new programs are nothing to celebrate.

hollinm

"more than $700 billion last I saw, so the new programs are nothing to celebrate"….thank that illustrious Liberal PM Pierre Elliot Trudeau and his then Finance Minister Jean Chretien for creating the massive debt Canada carries today.
gord83

Yes, volunteers should be good for nothing……..

Emily

'Michael Bennet, a Democrat from Colorado, said, “Sit and watch us for seven days—just watch the floor. You know what you’ll see happening? Nothing. When I’m in the chair, I sit there thinking, I wonder what they’re doing in China right now?” '

Ditto for Canada.
burlivespipe

First 'volunteer' award, complete with novelty cheque, goes to Kory T. of Ottawa for his creative means of inspiring debate!
A_logician

. . .our children and grandchildren and great grandchildren (and so on) will forever be in our debt.

I think you mean "forever in debt" – thanks to the fiscal policies of our government.
gottabesaid

Wow. For the past 12 months I was under the impression proroguing was a cynical ploy to shut down debate on a prickly issue. Turns out, based on what I'm reading here, that wasn't the case at all. I feel bad now for questioning PMSH's motives for shutting down parliament. Thanks Aaron for clearing this up. And leftist MSM, you're on notice: We won't get fooled again.

Livebloggin Junkie

The principle reason they prorouged last year was to re-jig the Senate committtees because they had achieved plurality but were still in minority on committees without a prorogation or disolution.

LdKitchenersOwn

I'm pretty sure at the time that they made that argument initially that about a dozen experts immediately shouted that it's not true that they needed to prorogue Parliament to do that, but I'll try to find a link to confirm….
Gayle

Whether or not they needed to prorogue to do that, the prorogation needed to be only for one day. Harper went longer because he wanted to prevent the committees from actually sitting.

psiclone

You gotta give Stevie boy the credit this last year as he did exactly what he said he would do ! he re-calibrated and got a ton of legislation through the House by shoving it all in a omnibus budget bill and then played whacakamole with Iggy and Jack – then he wrapped up our military mission in Afaghnistan and is now just waiting for the next photop which will bringing the troops home – He appointed enough Senators to give him a majority in the upper house – He won enough by-elections to give him the opportunity of going for a majority without a general election see this years bi-election possibilty count that 'll be enough for harper hater heads to explode everywhere and the list goes on and on – next stop world domination – look out kittens everywhere :)

danby

shoving it all in an omnibus bill

You must be sooooo proud.

MostlyCivil

Let the marathon viewings of "Matlock" begin across the nation.

Let the appreciation plaques be printed! Huzzah!

Jenn_

You mean we're going to have a billboard at the site of every volunteer appreciation award? So Canadians can know their government is working hard giving them out? I mean, if you need a billboard to see there's a hole in the ground with some heavy machinery around it . . . how many billboards will we need for teeny-tiny (or novelty) cheques?

jonatwitan

What's that? Two promises made and two promises kept? What the heck is going on here? I was literally this close to believing all of you said that Harper does nothing but lie! But now it seems that you are the ones lying!!!! Thank you Aaron for enlightening me. You are the only one I can trust now!

Gayle

Yup. Seniors Day and an award. Quite the accomplishment.

jonatwitan

You unfortunately seem to be missing my point. I have quite literally read on this website numerous times that Stephen Harper has NEVER kept a promise (original emphasis). Thus, if Aaron had reported that Harper promised to eat Fruit Loops for breakfast and low and behold he did eat Fruit Loops for breakfast, then my comment would still stand.

Gayle

Oh I am getting your point. I think to take a statement like that literally is a bit silly. I highly doubt anyone truly thinks Harper never kept a single promise when it is quite clear he has. He just has not kept many of the important ones, such as more accountability, never running a deficit, taxing income trusts, never appointing an unelected senator, etc.

I think it is rather convenient of you to take comments that are clearly exaggeration for effect and argue them as though they were meant literally.

Mike T.

I DARE Stephen Harper to run on a "it is clearly not true that I have not broken every single promise I have made, and have in fact kept at least two minor ones" platform.

chet

A friend of mine reminded me the other day of when the media openly mocked Preston Manning when he objected to a Liberal prorogue.

Back when attacking the notion of prorogue brought media scorn.

Back when the Liberals were in power.

Good times, good times.

Mike T.

Anybody wanna clue Chet in to why his comment is stupid?

chet

I for one think the 105th prorogue after the previous 104 is the tipping point for the public, and that liberal supporters like Wherry here continue to flog this very live horse.

A year hence prorogue(gate) will finally bare fruit vaunting the Liberals to certain power.

Keep at er.
chet

And I assure you, the above encouragement is in no way related to the entertainment value this endless scandal chasing by a party with no objective basis for actually gaining power, provides me and other conservatives.

THIS one is a winner.

After a year.

Really it is.
Gayle

Oh look. Biff is making stuff up again.

Keep on pretending this prorogation was exactly like all the others. Sure, you CPC types have been trying to sell that line for a year now, and no one is buying it, but maybe if you keep saying it people will suddenly become stupid enough to believe you.
hollinm

Yeah, since the prorogation thingy didn't work out too well for the opposition and the media it is time to move on eh Wherry.
Gayle

You seem to be confused. The "prorogation thingy" was never intended to work out "for" the opposition or the media. It was intended to work out for Harper, and since he did not get to have an election basking in the warm glow of Olympic fever, and since his poll numbers really are not that great to this day, I'm guessing it did not work out well for him at all.
hollinm

Ah but the prorogation thingy did work out for Harper. He got his prorogation, did what he wanted to do and came back. It was the hyped criticism that was so over the top that didn't work out at all. To suggest a parliamentary procedure that was done 104 times before is anti democratic was somehow this time was an affront to democracy is laughable.
I know the media and the opposition thought they had the Conservative government in the crosshairs because of the Afghan detainee question and by proroguing took the wind out of the issue. Well we have been back a year now and we are no further ahead.
What was your point about an election. There never was going to be an election instigated by Harper anywhere. It was only in the wet dreams of partisans like you and the left leaning media.
Gayle. Take a look. Remove Quebec from the polling numbers and you will find the Conservative party is running in majority territory in the rest of the country.
Gayle

I know you are smart enough to know the issue with this prorogation was the REASON he prorogued. I assume the fact you are willfully pretending that has nothing to do with it is because you adhere to the CPC school of thought that if you say something often enough it magically becomes true.

As for the election, again you can rely on willful blindness if it helps, but it was glaringly apparent to most of us that Harper wanted an election after the Olympics. Why don't you go and read the comments on the BT blogs made by many of your brethren just before Harper prorogued. Pundits were on that same page. So re-write history if you want, but you are not fooling anyone.

Harper's numbers have never recovered from his prorogation misstep. And I really hate to break it to you, but Quebec is actually part of this country, and their votes count just as much as yours, so little hypothetical analysis like taking them out of the equation is absolutely meaningless, other than the fact it seems to make you feel better about yourself.
hollinm

Harper is smarter than you think. If you think he thought that prorogation was going to make the detainee thing go away then you are not giving him much credit. I am not going to speculate, like you, why he prorogued because I have no idea. Believe what you will.
Because people speculated about and election does not mean it was on the radar for Harper. The numbers as you are quick to point out where never good enough for a majority govenment. The media speculates all the time about election timing. Its built in because they hope beyond hope that Canadians will defeat the Harper government. Not likely. Despite all that has gone on the Libs have never overtaken the Conservatives in any poll and Ignatieff's leadership numbers are a disaster.
My point about Quebec was that none of the federalist parties have a chance in Quebec. So it will be up to the ROC to vote for the next government. When you look at the Conservatives they are the clear favourite in the rest of the country. Keep dreaming Gayle.
Gayle

Hmmm

You first said prorogation worked out for Harper and now you are saying he did not do it in order to gain an advantage.

You can rewrite history if you want, but I am going with conventional wisdom that Harper wanted an election after the Olympics because he thought he would get his majority.

Quebec plays a role in determining whether or not any party gets a majority. You cannot simply write them off because it is convenient to do so.