What changed in the last 17 days?
By Aaron Wherry - Friday, April 8, 2011 - 137 Comments
In October 2008, Stephen Harper promised his government would “never” go into deficit. In November 2008, the Harper government projected budget surpluses through 2013-2014. In January 2009, the Harper government projected deficits through 2012-2013 and a surplus in 2013-2014. In October 2010, the Harper government projected deficits through 2014-2015 and a surplus in 2015-2016.
Two weeks ago, the Harper government projected a $300-million deficit in 2014-2015 and a surplus of $4.2-billion in 2015-2016.
Today, the Harper government projects a $3.7-billion surplus in 2014-2015 and an $8.2-billion surplus in 2015-2016.
Update 2:51pm… A kind of explanation is here.
Update 4:22pm… Jim Flaherty’s previous explanation is here.
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There, isn't that better?
By Scott Feschuk - Monday, February 21, 2011 at 9:39 AM - 48 Comments
FESCHUK: Yes, he called democracy in Egypt a tube of toothpaste, but our PM has a way with words
CP; Getty Images; Photo Illustration by Taylor Shute
It was a time that few will soon forget. As the Egyptian people rose up and chased their president from office, Stephen Harper took the measure of the moment, stared history in the eye and offered the following words to posterity: Those Egyptians, he said, “are not going to put the toothpaste back in the tube on this one.”
Other world leaders reached for eloquence. Our guy reached for the Colgate. None of those fancy historical allusions for Stephen Harper! He put it in plain, straightforward talk that even a hard-working Joe who also happened to have a serious brain injury could understand: Democracy—it freshens your breath AND prevents cavities! If the regime in Iran ever falls, we can look forward to Harper’s seminal “can’t put them horses back in that barn” address.
There’s the guy we used to know! The guy who never left the continent before he became leader of the Opposition. The guy who before winning power famously declared during a CBC town hall that he felt kind of worldly because his wife had travelled overseas and told him about it and stuff.
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Accountability in accounting
By Aaron Wherry - Thursday, May 28, 2009 at 1:31 PM - 19 Comments
From the good ole days. When it was the surplus that was being misunderestimated.
Stephen Harper, Oct. 6, 2004. “We also know that the government has been wildly inaccurate in its forecasts and spending projections over the past five or six years. In recent budgets the Liberals have lowballed surplus numbers by an average of $6.5 billion per year. In the U.S. they do not have this kind of debate. There is a congressional budget office. People there, like here, may disagree on fiscal policy, but they should not have to guess if the numbers they are using are accurate.”
Monte Solberg, Oct. 13, 2004. “It just makes the point that if government … is going to be taken seriously about numbers, it must provide estimates that are going to be at least close to where we actually end up.”
Stephen Harper, Oct. 13, 2004. “These guys were lying about the surplus, and this proves why we need independent fiscal forecasts.”
Rob Nicholson, Oct. 15, 2004. “The Liberal government makes a mistake every year by trying to guess the revenues of the country. It has mis-guessed the surplus every year. Mistakes are made, but the government might want to get some new people to advise it. That might be a good move. Why do we not bring in a bill suggesting that whoever has been advising the government for the last seven years as to what its revenues are should be fired. I bet we would get a consensus on that one. Is there anybody in the House who would disagree with bringing in a bill to get new people to advise the Liberals? We would all be better off and Canada as a whole would be better off.”
