Earlier this evening, a Radio-Canada journalist was trying to interview Dimitri Soulas, the PM's media spokesman. Michel Picard, I think it was, became increasingly frustrated with Soulas' evasiveness and his overbearing rote declarations that ran roughshod over the reporter's attempts to get him to actually answer the questions asked.The speaking points issued by Harper play over and over again in a never-ending audio loop, emerging from those who still march to his beat.
On discussion boards and blogs, such as those associated to Stephen Taylor's Blogging Tories, Harper supporters - the knuckle draggers, the religious ideologues and the lunatics have been free-styling and embellishing the party line.
Over the last four days, they have been savaging members of Parliament and the political parties who were elected by Canadians to serve them and govern their country.
Next they will direct their ignorance, their zealotry and their hate towards Governor General Michaëlle Jean. She is a woman, she is of Haïtian ancestry and she is progressive. She is also the most powerful person in Canada at the moment, invested with the legal and political potential to determine who will be governing our country in the year to come.
Pay attention to what they'll write about her, the lies they'll concoct, the venom they'll spew, the rage they'll direct towards this intelligent, powerful woman who represents the sum of all their irrational and toxic fears.
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I already decided earlier tonight that I'm doing some serious lovingkindness meditation over the course of the next week.
This, to me, is the hard line that separates traditional Canadian Conservatives (like my father) from the mutated, imported version of Conservatism foisted upon us by Stephen Harper and his RepubliCons: their attitude towards the Senate and (ultimately) the Governor General.
This whole episode has actually served to clarify the sad truth that these people would really, really rather have Canada become an American-style Republic instead of a Parliamentary democracy.
yes, they will rehash all they have said about her since she was named to the post. Her ancestry, the colour of her skin, that she is not native born, her appointment by a Liberal PM, the questions about her and her husband's souverainiste sympathies, her background in journalism and social work, and it will be ugly.
On the upside, they very much underestimate her public popularity.
I just heard historian Desmond Morton speaking to Anna Maria Tremonti on the topic of the up- & down- heavals in Ottawa _ He stressed the fact that our system of parliamentary democracy does not elect a prime minister. Rather, we elect a House of Commons. He called it a "confidence chamber". Who has the confidence of the House can form the government - under the aegis of the GG.
At the time of the loss of confidence of the House the GG's power seems to make the switch from ritual to actual.
The reason that I write this is that one of Morton's points was that the GG need not take a failed government's advice about appointments in its 'dying days'. This includes Senate appointments. I got the impression that it would be 'bad form' for Harper to try to stack the Senate - and 'bad form' for Madam Jean to accede.
She's already handling the job of GG with aplomb - now she's about to have greatness thrust upon her.
Norman Spector has already started the hate campaign:
If Ms. Jean were to decide to hand power over to a Liberal-led coalition, Conservative voters would be furious. Western Canadians, in particular, would feel that the government had been stolen from them. Outside Québec, there would be strong resentment against a party dedicated to breaking up Canada having a role in governing the country.
Ms. Jean was appointed by former Prime Minister Paul Martin. At the time of her appointment, she also held French citizenship, which she wisely renounced in the ensuing controversy. There was also considerable controversy over whether she and her spouse, Jean-Daniel Lafond, harboured separatist sympathies; in his case, few of those who know him believed the denials.
Funny how that second para. crept into the discussion, isn't it?
Hm, it seems I can't edit comments. pseudz thinks that maybe the person he heard on the radio was not Desmond Morton but Peter Russell.
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