« lsrael’s Hitler to Join the KnessetWhy Israel would not dare attack Iran? »

Harper runs a wrecking crew, not a government

December 11th, 2008

Frances Russell

The fear, loathing and demagoguery unleashed on Parliament Hill last week could create a dangerous constitutional precedent and cripple a necessary evolution in Canadian parliamentary democracy.

The nationwide hysteria whipped up by that fear, loathing and demagoguery may be dampened by the prorogation of Parliament until the end of January.

But at what price? An Ipsos Reid poll found that it left 75 per cent of Canadians "truly scared" for the future of their country. And a political scientist warns it gives future prime ministers the right to escape defeat on non-confidence motions simply by shutting down Parliament and locking its doors.

"Parliamentary democracy as it has been practised in Canada has been compromised," University of Toronto political scientist Nelson Wiseman says. "The precedent established means that under no conditions will the Governor General ever deny a prorogation to sitting prime ministers, no matter what the circumstances."

The Governor General grants prorogations by precedent. But every situation is fact-specific, he says.

This time there was a fact that had never existed before but it did not bear on her decision.

"We've never been in a situation where you've had a request for a prorogation and the Governor General was informed there was an alternative government that did have support of a majority of the members. In that context, I thought that it was reasonable for her to dismiss her first minister."

Wiseman has further fears. "You've basically debased the legislative branch and its checks on the executive branch. The whole idea of responsible government is that the executive is responsible to Parliament. (The prorogation) has given the executive more arbitrary control over Parliament. The government already controls the business of Parliament. Now the government controls the very existence of a session of Parliament."

Canada is divided linguistically and regionally, with multiple political parties and a parliamentary, not a presidential system. Coalition governments are becoming the only option to avoid political instability and multiple elections. Recent history proves the point. Since 2004, Canada has had three minority governments and three elections and may now be facing a fourth election and government in the new year.

But the hysteria whipped up by the fear, loathing and demagoguery of the past week has made it all but impossible for parties to attempt working arrangements, let alone coalitions, in the foreseeable future.

While coalition governments have been rare in Canada, experience around the world -- including in other Commonwealth countries -- proves they are hardly dangerous. The British tradition of two parties hasn't existed here since the early years of the last century.

For almost 100 years, Canada has had at least three parties. Now it has five. Not only are parliamentary majorities increasingly unlikely, but a minority party trying to operate as if it has a majority is indefensible.

What's to fear from a coalition, from involving more parties and perspectives in government? The greater the participation, the greater the expansion of democracy. More Canadians might even be encouraged to vote.

Engaging the sovereignist Bloc Québécois in supporting a federal coalition could bolster Canadian unity by re-engaging Quebec sovereigntists in Canada. "Separatist" is as inflammatory a label in Quebec as it is in English Canada, because many Québécois migrate back and forth across secessionist, nationalist and federalist lines.

Canadians do not elect a government, let alone a prime minister. They elect 308 MPs, who then choose the government and the prime minister. The government and the prime minister govern only so long as they retain the confidence of a majority of those 308 MPs. A party with a plurality of seats must negotiate and compromise with the opposition parties, not poke them in the eye with a sharp stick.

The Oct. 14 election gave the Tories 143 seats, 22 fewer than the 165 seats held by the combined opposition.

The Conservatives' deliberate demonization of the coalition as "socialists" and "separatists" as "treasonous" is the equivalent of yelling fire in a crowded theatre. It is shameful. It is also dishonest.

The public record shows that Harper as opposition leader in 2004 did exactly what the Liberals and NDP did last week with exactly the same objective.

He undertook serious negotiations with the parties he now chooses to deride as "traitors" so that he could take office should the Liberal minority government fall.

Dust off his 2000 Alberta "firewall" letter. Harper runs a wrecking crew, not a government. Parliament's well is poisoned and separatist fires in Quebec and Alberta are stoked. Harper is prepared to use anything -- lies, vicious attack ads and even mob rule (Transport Minister John Baird boasting about "going over the heads of the Governor General and Parliament to the people" -- to get his way).

Peace, order and good government are out. Rage, ideology and raw power are in.

Frances Russell is a Winnipeg-based freelance journalist and author.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

Source: http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=11352

No feedback yet

Voices

Voices

  • Paul Craig Roberts The Democrats are set to steal the election. They have everything in place except enough votes to hide their theft. Watch the video of the Trump Grand Finale, listen to the speeches by Robert Kennedy and Tucker Carlson. Marvel at the…
  • Joe Scarborough recently resigned from Congress unexpectedly, soon after a divorce and amid rumors about his marital fidelity Reader Comment Posted December 18, 2001 FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. - Lori Klausutis, a 28-year-old office worker for Rep. Joe…
  • Paul Craig Roberts Democrats Continue to Block All Efforts to Restore Electoral Integrity. Some Democrat courts rule contrary to the law on the books. The Democrat Nevada Supreme Court ruled contrary to law that non-postmarked ballots that arrive 3 days…
  • Chernobyl, Atomic Tests and Depleted Uranium Warfare Downwinders by Tracy Turner, with Doug Rokke, Libby Halevy, and Arni Gunderson. Infrared of German Dissidents Protesting a Nuclear Freight Train Hauling Nuclear Isotope Toxins. 8 grams of some…
  • Chris Spencer The political astroturf of the United States has been fractured by figures described as "saviors." The political careers of Barack Obama and Kamala Harris epitomize that trend in clay-feet "gods" and "goddesses." Both have cultivated…
  • Most of the world of Arabs for some four centuries consisted of provinces under the Ottoman Empire (Sultanate). by Dr. Vladislav B. Sotirović  The world of Arabs (the WoA), as a distinctive part of the globe, is of extreme significance for both global…
  • by Tracy Turner The Looming Crisis: Oil Addiction and Agricultural Collapse Threaten Global Food Security By 2054: Expected global oil depletion. 2007-2017: Olive biodiesel could have mitigated crises caused by reliance on fossil fuels. Estimated…
  • 41,909 bodies counted, 10,000 missing, death count higher than 51,909 David Swanson, World BEYOND War We generally accept that if you do a census and only count the people who answer their doors you miss some people, and that you can calculate an…
  • Kamala Harris represents a militant, in-your-face feminism... Cathy Smith Kamala Harris is an intensely divisive figure in contemporary politics—an incandescent icon for some, an ongoing disappointment for many others. As the first-ever woman Vice…
  • A geopolitical issue of South-East Europe became of very importance for scholars, policymakers, and researchers with the question of the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire as one of the most crucial features of the beginning of the 20th century in…
November 2024
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
 << <   > >>
          1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30

  XML Feeds

b2
FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted articles and information about environmental, political, human rights, economic, democratic, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. This news and information is displayed without profit for educational purposes, in accordance with, Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107 of the US Copyright Law. Thepeoplesvoice.org is a non-advocacy internet web site, edited by non-affiliated U.S. citizens. editor
ozlu Sozler GereksizGercek Hava Durumu Firma Rehberi Hava Durumu Firma Rehberi E-okul Veli Firma Rehberi