OTTAWA - Elizabeth May said her party will pursue legal action against a consortium of TV networks, which decided Monday to exclude the Green leader from the televised leaders' debates on grounds that three other leaders said they would boycott the show if she were allowed to share the stage.

A defiant May accused the party leaders of preserving a tight "old-boys club" and the networks of turning their backs on democracy instead of calling the leaders' bluff on their warnings of being no-shows.

"Day 2 of the Canadian election and democracy has taken a nosedive," the May told a news conference on Parliament Hill.

.....Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said it would be unfair to allow May to join the other leaders on the national stage because she is too closely tied to the Liberals.

.....She chastised the consortium for failing to give good reasons for its decision, saying only that she is being excluded because of threats from three parties - the Conservatives, Bloc Quebecois and New Democrats - that they would not participate if May were included.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said that while he supports her inclusion, he would not attend if the prime minister does not.

In a speech to supporters at an evening rally in Montreal, Dion blamed all the other party leaders for cutting May out.

"It's a no brainer, " he declared. "It's about fairness. Elizabeth May should have been part of the debate."
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_{"While not a Playboy reader, she invites a male acquaintance in for a quiet discussion of Chagall, Nietzsche, jazz, sex." - not a Hugh Hefner quote}

Republican Party
Byline: Destroying America for Political Gain
Current President: Gentleman's "C" George "Demolition" Bush
Current Vice President: Bunker Boy Dick "Nuke Iran" Cheney
Candidates:
President: Maverick Guy John "The Prisoner" McCain
Favorite Saying: "I'm against the war that's why we need to stay there and win; that's a maverick idea"
Vice President: Wing'r Sarah "Small Time" Palin
Favorite Saying: "Abstinence works, just ask my daughter"
Platform Summary: bringing change to Washington by doing exactly what Bush did.

Democratic Party
Byline: We are not Republicans
Presidential Candidate: Not Republican Barack "Remember, I'm not a Republican" Obama
Favorite Saying: "I have one house and there's no Republicans in it"
Vice Presidential Candidate: Bull Dog Joe "I Bite Republicans" Biden
Favorite Saying: "We want all the things the Republicans don't want and then some"
Platform Summary: We don't want the Republican platform

Green Party (Sorry this is a two party system) Park your liberal vote here

Peace Party (see Green Party) Overflow liberal vote parking

Constitution Party (see Green Party) Park your right wing vote here

Libertarian Party (See Green Party) Independent vote parking

America First Party (See Green Party) Overflow right wing vote parking

etc etc etc

------------------
"You have no respect for excessive authority or obsolete traditions. You're dangerous and depraved, and you ought to be taken outside and shot!" - Joseph Heller

when Stephen Harper was asked at an election whistle stop what type of vegetable he'd like to be, his reply was, "Let me say this. I would choose, if I had to, instead to be a fruit. Just what I am: sweet and colourful."

L0L Harper with his roots in the Reform Party prefers being a fruit????

Helmet Hair Harper is currently rebundling himself, wearing a sweater and being photographed with his children as a



BIG FAMILY MAN!

In the previous election he was seen bidding his children off for their first day of school. Harper shook hands with his children rather than hugging them! There are recorded photographs! L0L

If you believe those advertisements, may I sell you some FABULOUS swampland? Surely you didn't believe that Canada's Conservative Party wouldn't foist a version of Sarah Palin on voters?

Harper violated his own fixed election date law passed by parliament in 2007. Stephen Harper forced this election by going to the Governor General seeking dissolution of parliament saying he needed a new mandate but not expecting to get much improvement from the voters beyond them electing yet another minority government.

Harper makes unequivocal Afghan pledge for first time in more than 30 months

Murray Brewster | September 10

canoe.ca - Canada's war in Afghanistan will come to end in 2011, Prime Minister Stephen Harper declared in the kind of unequivocal statement he's resisted making for over two and a half years.

Harper said that 10 years' of war in the desert wastelands and mountains is enough. "You have to put an end date on these things," Harper said during a breakfast briefing Wednesday. "We intend to end it."

This is the same prime minister who famously intoned that Canada would not "cut and run" as long as he's in charge, and who had steadfastly refused to declare a firm exit date until he was forced to do so by an independent panel that reviewed the mission.

more at the link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

OTTAWA, TORONTO, WALKERTON, ONT.

At a NATO summit in April, Mr. Harper left the door open to keeping Canadian soldiers in the country, perhaps in the less violent north.

But yesterday, in the first week of the campaign for the Oct. 14 election, Mr. Harper sought to ensure that no such questions would hamper his efforts to woo the political centre and skeptical Quebeckers.
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_{"While not a Playboy reader, she invites a male acquaintance in for a quiet discussion of Chagall, Nietzsche, jazz, sex." - not a Hugh Hefner quote}

I love the word "relax", it's like "reform" on regulations- you know it's conservative code for "gutting" ;-)

Globe and Mail - Conservative Leader Stephen Harper is vowing a Tory government would open up Canada's corporate sector to more foreign investment, including relaxing rules for outsiders buying into its airline and uranium industries.

But he's trying to balance this with a pledge to give tougher scrutiny to takeovers by non-Canadians, promising a new national security test for buyouts that might threaten the country's strategic interests.

"We are a party of free enterprise, free markets and free trade," Mr. Harper told a Halifax audience. "But we also believe a government needs to know when to be able to draw the line when any foreign takeover would jeopardize our national security."

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

sigh...

Canadian Press - Stephen Harper may be closing in on his coveted majority despite being plagued by a series of miscues and bad news during the first week of the federal election campaign.

A new poll suggests the Conservatives have opened up a commanding 15-point lead over the Liberals, with 41 per cent of respondents supporting the governing party.

Typically, 40 per cent is sufficient to win a majority of seats in the House of Commons.

According to The Canadian Press-Harris Decima survey, the Liberals stood at 26 per cent, the NDP at 14 per cent, the Greens at nine and the Bloc Quebecois at eight.

The poll suggests the Tories have gained ground among key voter groups that have eluded them in the past, and in every region of the country. They took a seven-point lead in Ontario, a 10-point lead in urban centres and a 13-point-lead among women.

In Quebec, the Bloc remained in the lead but the Conservatives moved up into a competitive second place with the Liberals falling to a distant third.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

OTTAWA — Canadians have shifted to the right and made the country more conservative since he's been in politics, Stephen Harper contended Saturday.

But the prime minister also said that his Conservative party has simultaneously shifted more to the centre of the political spectrum and he warned that it must remain there if it wants to continue governing.

"I think the Canadian public has become more conservative," Harper said in Fredericton, N.B., at the start of a weekend swing through Atlantic Canada.

"At the same time, I don't want to say the Canadian public is overwhelmingly conservative or that it is necessarily as conservative as everybody in our party.

"And that means that our party has to make sure that it continues to govern in the interests of the broad majority of the population. That means not only that we want to pull Canadians towards conservatism but Conservatives also have to move towards Canadians if they want to continue governing."

Harper's comments appeared to be aimed at dispelling opposition accusations that he harbours a hidden, extreme right-wing agenda. And it was consistent with the message the Tories have been hammering home in television ads throughout the opening week of the campaign: Harper is a moderate, steady leader who's in tune with mainstream Canadians.

Jack Layton, at least, was not buying it. At an enthusiastic rally in Toronto, the NDP leader painted Harper as a heartless puppet of big corporations who has no interest in the needs of ordinary working families.

more

No point funding programs 'people actually don't want'

(DUH, the dumb and dumber approach that serves us so well in the US;-))

Globe&Mail - In his first detailed defence of $45-million in controversial cuts to arts and culture funding, Conservative Leader Stephen Harper called his party's decisions good governance and said the government must walk "a fine line" between providing financial stability and "funding things that people actually don't want."

In an exclusive telephone interview during a campaign stop at a winery in St-Eustache, Que., Mr. Harper, who many in the arts community have likened to a Philistine, also spoke at length about his life-long passion for music and the piano as he denied the cuts were ideologically motivated.

He said Ottawa should play "a fundamental role" in encouraging growth and excellence in arts and culture, but added the marketplace, consumers and benefactors must also help shape the cultural landscape.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

It's official. Now that Stephen Harper has taken to wearing sweaters and talking about the kids, now that John McCain is being eclipsed by America's favourite hockey mom, the theme of this election season has been formally declared. Welcome to Family Values Fall.

..... Politicians have always been shamelessly opportunistic about image. They kiss strangers' babies, get their scrubbed-shiny kids onto the annual Christmas card, hold spouses' hands in death-like grips out in public, terrified that they might appear insufficiently married. (Oh, the irony.)

But with their current campaigns, what the Conservatives and Republicans have done is bring the political exploitation of family to a whole new level. No longer is the family merely useful political backdrop. Now it's a political tool.

Much has been rightly made in recent days of the political exploitation of family, as Canadian and American politicians' kids are being trotted out left, right and centre. But mostly right.

..... And the campaign manipulators in both countries are using them without hesitation, whether it's Laureen, Ben and Rachel -- or husband Todd Palin with Track, Bristol, Willow, Piper and baby Trig. Force-marched into the circus ring, they have had conferred on them the role of agents in that social-conservative agenda so beloved of those on the far right, where much of the Conservative and Republican voting base resides.

This is living, breathing Family Values you can vote for.

This is the whole package: married mom and dad (two-parent household with none of that nasty same-sex business), kids (the purpose of marriage, right?), more kids (family planning being sort of Godless) and even little Trig Palin. Incredibly, the baby, who has Down syndrome, has actually been turned into a political statement.

Don't take my word for it. Visit the Governor of Alaska's official website, which has a whole link devoted to Trig Paxson Van Palin.

..... When Conservatives pointlessly sing the praises of Harper's family, when the Republicans put Palin's brood on parade, the message is loud, blunt and clear: Family Values at work.

More

_{"While not a Playboy reader, she invites a male acquaintance in for a quiet discussion of Chagall, Nietzsche, jazz, sex." - not a Hugh Hefner quote}

Conservative Party in the 2006 Election. Harper's government is a minority government in pursuit of a majority since the day they were elected.

They’ll try every trick in the book to get the electorate to vote for them. I know of no one that voted for the Conservatives.

Whether the electorate believes the Liberals have been out of office long enough won’t be known until after the evening of October 14th.

I am not fooled by Harper wearing fuzzy, blue sweaters putting his family on display and/or sitting at a piano bench relating that his family were musically inclined. Harper is an ideologue that needs defeating. Will it be this time?

Harper, IMHO, is a transplanted neocon! He's just the waterboy for Team Amerika...hired to help it quench its insatiable thirst to drink Canada Dry."

Read, Feng Shui Federalism which elaborates on Harper's philosophy.

I fully agree with the writer’s conclusion from the Walrus Magazine that Canada is based on place rather than people. Socialism within a democracy is very different from communism within a dictatorship. Rovian tactics turned the American election upside-down. Sigh…it may have the same result in Canada in 2008?

As a resident of Ontario., the sole province never receiving a dime in Equalization payments, since the beginning of Confederation...it has never bothered me to possibly pay more than my share of taxes in support of families living in provinces not as economically fortunate so their province enjoys services similar to mine. Liberal Ontarionions, living in both urban and rural areas, share that sentiment.

Toronto Star - No Canadian with a serious illness should ever have to go into debt or sell their home to cover their medication, Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion says.

Dion yesterday announced a program for catastrophic drug coverage worth $900 million over four years. The proposed plan would be in addition to programs already offered by such provinces as Ontario and Quebec.

"We believe that no Canadian should have to choose between taking a drug they need, and paying for their other basic needs," Dion said at a campaign stop. "Unfortunately, this is too often the case today, especially in the Atlantic provinces."

Dion said people with cancer, diabetes, arthritis and other serious illnesses should focus on getting better, not on worrying about their finances.

The Liberals' proposal is in response to former Saskatchewan premier Roy Romanow's landmark 2002 report on Canada's health-care system, which urged federal funding to help Canadians shoulder the cost of "catastrophic" drug costs, anything above $1,500 a year.

However, it is unclear how far Liberals are willing to go in terms of providing coverage...
full story at link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Canadian Press - Both the Conservatives and the Liberals have lost ground to the NDP and Greens, with indications the Tories may have slipped further from majority-government territory, a new poll suggests.

The Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey taken over the last four days gave the Tories 36 per cent, down two percentage points from Wednesday's figure, followed by the Liberals with 27, down a single point.

The poll put the NDP at 16 per cent and the Green party at 11, both up a point, while the Bloc remained at eight per cent.

"This race continues to become more interesting, and outcomes are becoming more varied and complex," said Harris-Decima president Bruce Anderson.

"Probably no question looms larger in terms of its import for both the Liberals and the Conservatives than the question of vote splitting on the centre-left and, in particular, among younger women."

The survey suggests the race remained tight in Ontario, with the Conservatives at 37 per cent and the Liberals at 34, both down a couple of points, with the NDP at 15 per cent support and the Greens at 12, both up slightly.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

THE CANADIAN PRESS

OTTAWA – A new poll suggests the Tories are inching toward being in a position to win a majority.

A Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey taken over the last four days shows the Tories rising to 39 per cent support – two points from their campaign peak – while the Liberals remain at 23 per cent.

The Liberals have dropped five percentage points in the last week.

The poll finds the NDP remaining at 17 per cent support, with the Green party at 11 per cent, one point down from Saturday's number.

The Bloc stayed steady at eight per cent.
More

_{"While not a Playboy reader, she invites a male acquaintance in for a quiet discussion of Chagall, Nietzsche, jazz, sex." - not a Hugh Hefner quote}

to honour their contribution to parliament and to help pump them up for the campaign. It's a high end Ottawa diner but so many orders will overwhelm the kitchen staff, so the Chef asks Harper if he minds having everyone order the same dish. "No problem," says Harper confidently. "I'll have the steak."

"And what about the vegetables?" inquires the Chef.

"They'll have the steak, too." Harper replies.

Bob Rae joke. A quick boo around the net and I see he tells it quite regularly.

Globe and Mail - (Tim Powers' Tory op-ed blog)

We are moving into debate week. Fairly or not, there is an expectation that there is much on the line for all candidates. I want to look at two of them - the Prime Minister and the want-to-be Leader of the Opposition, Jack Layton. First, though, a word about Mr. Dion.

Mr. Dion has much experience debating. There were many during the Liberal leadership race in 2006. Mr. Dion has said in other places he'll win both the English and French debates. Ms. May will probably help him try and do that. Mr. Dion's skills are not to be underestimated, though he has set the bar high.

Mr. Layton seems to have more ants in his pants than normal. He appears to be buoyed by polls that either show him tied with the Liberals or close behind them. He is going to use the debates as a platform to try to get the vote on the left galvanized behind him. While he has done well in this campaign, he sometimes comes across as a mix between the video professor on the Shopping Channel and a used car salesman. Canadians are going to want see less of that mixed persona and more of a refined style befitting someone who would be Prime Minister.

For Mr. Harper, success in the debate comes from holding your own and eking out a draw. When you are the incumbent everyone attacks you. You are subjected - or least will be in this debate - to a 4-on-1 assault. The PM might end up feeling like Stephane Dion at a Liberal caucus meeting. However, unlike Mr. Dion, the PM is a proven and competent leader. He is strong and capable, no matter how fierce the fire, and on Wednesday and Thursday those attributes will shine through.

(Debate-Canadian style- comments at link:-) )

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Harper edges closer to majority

Toronto Star - The Conservatives have a tenuous grasp on a majority government, while the Liberals and New Democrats are in a dead heat for second place, a new poll shows.

The survey, conducted for the Toronto Star by Angus Reid Strategies, found that 40 per cent of Canadians would vote Conservative if an election were held tomorrow.

The Liberals under Stéphane Dion continue to drop, losing core supporters to the Tories as well as to the other parties. For the first time in the campaign, the Liberals and New Democrats, under Jack Layton, are tied at 21 per cent support. The Greens register 7 per cent support nationally.

more at the link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Cbc.ca - The Bloc Québécois is holding ground against a Conservative surge in key areas of Quebec, according to a pair of polls published Monday.

The Bloc enjoys a seven-point lead with 33 per cent of voters' intentions, against the Tories' 26 per cent, and well ahead of the Liberals' 23 per cent, based on a Léger Marketing Poll done for the Journal de Montréal and French-language network TVA.

The poll found Bloc support remains steady in "ring" ridings around Montreal where the Tories are hoping to make gains (Laval, the Laurentians, Lanaudière, Montérégie and the Eastern Townships).

While the Tories maintain a strong presence in Quebec City, Chaudière-Appalaches, the Beauce, the Saguenay, and the Lower St-Laurence, "they can't come close to Montreal," said Christian Bourque, Léger Marketing research vice-president.
continued at link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

We're shocked, shocked! ;-)

cbc.ca - The Harper government approved 148 appointments to federal boards and agencies, long used as rewards for supporters of the party in power, as the election neared, The Canadian Press has learned.

Cabinet handed out the posts in three rounds, the first only two days before Parliament recessed for the summer, the second on July 30, at peak holiday time for politicians and political journalists, and the third less than a week before Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Sept. 7 election call.

Harper, who railed against Liberal patronage in the 2006 election, later failed to deliver on a campaign pledge to put an independent commission in charge of vetting cabinet appointments.

He shelved the idea after opposition MPs refused to ratify his nomination of Gwyn Morgan, a Calgary oil baron who is also a friend of the prime minister, as the commission chair.

more at the link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

There was another debate in North America Thursday night......

Globe and Mail - Conservative Leader Stephen Harper did exactly what he needed to do last night: weather the storm, and send Stéphane Dion packing.

An instant online poll conducted by Ipsos Reid after the televised leaders debate showed Mr. Harper as the debate's winner, but his lead and appeal as a Prime Minister both slipped during the event. New Democrat Leader Jack Layton was ranked second with 25 per cent of viewers saying he'd won.

But it was Green Leader Elizabeth May who emerged the real winner of the round-table event to which she was initially excluded. Having fought to be included, and then struggled through some language difficulties in Wednesday night's French debate, Ms. May was third overall in the English debate, claiming 17 per cent of support, said Ipsos Reid public affairs CEO Darrell Bricker.

“I think a political star was born last night,” Mr. Bricker said Friday. “They [respondents] didn't really know what she was going to do. Her first impression was really strong.”

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Canadian Press - Prime Minister Stephen Harper is facing more heat over the precarious state of the economy as the opposition leaders look to capitalize on a post-debate bounce Friday.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion is delivering a major economic address to the Chamber of Commerce in Montreal, while Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe speaks to a business audience in Toronto.

The NDP's Jack Layton was also eager to pounce on what he believes is a chink in the so-far solid Conservative armour - Harper's belief that the economy remains fundamentally sound.

"Well guess what, things aren't fine," he said Friday morning while campaigning in Montreal.

"The financial crisis has become an economic crisis and here in Quebec and in central Canada we're seeing that. Some 400,000 jobs have been lost in the manufacturing and forestry sectors.

"It seems to me that last night Mr. Harper really showed he doesn't understand the impact of losing one's job."

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

AP - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Friday that while the country doesn't need a panicky U.S.-style government, he does need a strong mandate from the Oct. 14 election so he can deal with a slowing Canadian economy. "We don't need a Parliament that acts and functions like the American Congress," Harper said. He later added, "We're not going to get into a situation like we have in the United States where we're panicking and annunciating a different plan every day."

more at link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

The trouble with Dion is that you can't understand him. The trouble with Harper is that you can.

CBC.ca - Canadian politicians appear to be in denial about the financial crisis, the head of a national business group says.

The party leaders don't seem to recognize that there is a crisis, said Perrin Beatty, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce."It's clear that something profound is happening, yet the politicians up to now have wanted to talk about everything else," he said. The politicians are living in one universe, while media reports of the international financial crisis paint a different picture, he said.

"Ordinary Canadians, people who are middle aged today, planning for retirement, have seen much of their retirement savings evaporating this week in the stock exchange," Beatty said.

But campaigning Saturday, the leaders did talk about the economy.

Asked why he is not proposing steps like the initiatives taken in other jurisdictions, Conservative Stephen Harper told a meeting in Yarmouth, N.S., that the Canadian economy and banking system are in much better shape than those in the U.S. or Europe.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

A poll released yesterday showed Conservative leader Stephen Harper in danger of losing his lead in the Canadian election campaign, though other surveys show him still solidly ahead.

A Nanos rolling poll taken Oct. 2-4 put the Conservatives at 34 per cent, down one percentage point from the day before, and the Liberals at 30 per cent, up two points.
More

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

L.Ian MacDonald, The Montreal Gazette, October 6

If it turns out that the Conservatives fall short of a majority on election day, it will because they were beaten at their own game, wedge politics, in Quebec.

Two issues that work for them in the rest of the country, cultural cuts and their crackdown on juvenile crime, have been flipped on them in Quebec.

Neither one, on its own, is enough to account for the sharp downturn in Conservative voting intention, and a surge for the Bloc Québécois, that has been apparent in daily tracking polls.

But when the two are bundled together, under the overarching Bloc theme that the Conservatives don't share Quebec values, that's trouble for Stephen Harper.
More

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

Ottawa | October 7

Canadian Press -Opposition leaders are seizing on new evidence of a spiralling financial crisis to paint Stephen Harper as out of touch - and out of empathy - with worried Canadians.

With polls suggesting economic concern is burrowing away at Tory support, Liberal Leader Stephane Dion offered an alternative Wednesday to the Conservatives' "do-nothing" approach in times of crisis.

"With an election less than a week to go, Canada's economy is facing significant challenges," he told a business audience.

"Stephen Harper has done nothing to face this challenge ... he has failed the most important test of a leader."

The International Monetary Fund said Wednesday that Canada will outperform other well-off countries, but can't escape a global slowdown as the world works through "the most dangerous shock in mature financial markets since the 1930s."

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

October 8

CTV.ca - NDP Leader Jack Layton jabbed at the prime minister from the heart of Conservative territory Wednesday, lambasting Stephen Harper's platform as an empty document.

Stepping up his attacks on Harper over the faltering economy, Layton warned that Canadians' pensions and homes are at risk and Harper is doing nothing about it.

Instead of protecting their jobs and savings, the Conservative leader is advising ordinary families to spend their money on plummeting stocks, Layton said.

"Most Canadians are extremely concerned, and yet he's trying to suggest that going out and gambling some of your money is the right strategy," he said after a breakfast rally in Edmonton.

"I think Canadians are looking for a government that's going to take this issue more seriously than that, and not be so cavalier or so casual."

Recent polls suggest the NDP could be the wild card in the lead-up to Tuesday's election. Layton could lead a breakthrough for the party or see its fortunes fall as voters scurry to the Liberals to thwart Conservative ambitions of forming the next government.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Ken Gallinger | October 4

Toronto Star -

Q: Here's my problem: I'm terrified that Stephen Harper is going to win a majority government. I live in a riding that has traditionally gone Liberal – but with Dion's leadership nationally, I'm afraid it could swing to Conservative this time. I'm a lifelong supporter of the NDP, and a party member. The NDP candidate in my riding is a nice woman – but she hasn't got a hope of winning. So, I think I want to vote Liberal this time; Dion may be boring, but he won't become PM anyways, and I want to do my bit to deny Harper his majority. So here's the question: Is it ethical for a member of one political party to vote, strategically, for another party? And do I need to give up my NDP membership if I vote Liberal?

continued at the link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

So much for the kinder,gentler Canadian campaign:-) mole

October 10

Mangled TV interview shows Liberal leader wouldn't be able to manage economy, Harper says

Toronto Star - A broadcast interview showing Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion struggling in English to grasp a question about the economy shows Dion is unfit to lead the country, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said last night.

Harper moved quickly to exploit what the Tories said is a damning, embarrassing piece of tape.

The party arranged for a TV so that party officials and the travelling media could view the scene.

Then, in a first for a campaign in which Harper has only made himself available once a day, the campaign delayed its flight, and the Prime Minister met reporters to say the fact Dion could not grasp a simple economic question betrays his inability to manage the economy.

Mark Dunn, a spokesperson for Dion, said it was noisy in the room and Dion, who divulged at the beginning of the campaign that he has a hearing problem, didn't understand the question.

"It's shameless, what they are going to do, to make fun of a man who said he had a hearing problem," Dunn said of the Conservative reaction. "It just shows how low Harper will go."

The interview was aired by ATV, CTV's Atlantic affiliate, and later on the national political show Mike Duffy Live. In it, host Steve Murphy asks Dion: "If you were prime minister now, what would you have done about the economy and this crisis that Mr. Harper has not done?"

Dion struggles to understand the question's conditional subjunctive tense, before attempting to answer, stumbling as he describes his 30-day, five-point plan for post-election consultations.
more at the link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Not that the NDP wants a coalition either.....

Chronicle Herald -Stephane Dion said Thursday that he would not form a coalition with the NDP to stop Stephen Harper from becoming prime minister. even if the two parties have more seats than the Tories — because NDP Leader Jack Layton wants to raise corporate taxes.

A Liberal-NDP coalition government has come to seem more likely in the past few days, since the polls have flatlined with the Conservatives ahead of the Liberals, but not so far ahead that they are sure to win more seats than the Liberals and the NDP combined.

"I don’t want to explore these scenarios, but I don’t see how I can govern with somebody who came with such a platform," Mr. Dion told The Chronicle Herald.

"He disqualified himself. This disqualification should be in the mind of the voters before Tuesday," said Mr. Dion, who was in Halifax to speak to a chamber of commerce luncheon at Pier 21.

The centrepiece of Mr. Layton’s campaign is reversing a planned $50-billion corporate tax cut because the NDP wants to address the concerns of average families, not corporations.'I can’t govern with somebody who wants to raise the taxes by $50 billion," said Mr. Dion, who believes Mr. Layton’s plan is a job killer.

But Mr. Dion might well have to reconsider after the election, says Independent MP Bill Casey, who says voters are talking about the possibility.

"I think there will be pressure for them to do it," he said. "I hear it every day now."

"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert

('This is a stick-up market transaction', he continued: )

Globe and Mail - Ottawa's $25-billion backstop for Canadian banks drew fire from the NDP and Liberals shortly after it was announced Friday morning, with Conservative Leader Stephen Harper maintaining the plan is not an American-style rescue of financial institutions and will ultimately cost taxpayers nothing.

“This is not a bailout of banks. This is a market transaction that will cost the government nothing,” he told reporters.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion says Stephen Harper's critical reaction to Dion's interview foul-up says more about the Conservative leader's attitude than anything else.

"He is ready to go very low in order to win an election, when I call for civilized debate because the stakes for Canadians are too big," said Dion in his first statement on CTV's controversial airing of the Liberal leader's botched interview segment.

"We are speaking about our economy, our jobs and for that we need to have a prime minister ready to act right now as I am," Dion said this morning on CBC-TV.

Explaining his hesitant, mixed-up reaction in the interview on Thursday with CTV Halifax, Dion said he was confused about whether the interviewer was asking him what he would do about the economy now or what he would have done had he been prime minister some time ago.

"I wasn't sure about the timing (implied in the question) and so on, and the reaction of Mr. Harper is saying more about him than about me," Dion said. More

Duceppe defends Dion in botched interview flap

Duceppe called Harper's comments a "low blow" during a radio interview in Montreal.

The Bloc leader says Harper's comment only illustrates the ``double standard" that exists in Canadian politics that requires French-speaking politicians to be fluently bilingual while English-speaking politicians can get away with mangling French.

"I think it's just unacceptable to criticize Mr. Dion's English," Duceppe said.

"I think when we compare Mr. Dion's English with the French of other English leaders or ministers . . . I think he's getting better."
More

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

OTTAWA – As leaders converge on the Toronto area on the eve of a holiday weekend, a new poll suggests Ontario has become the principal focus in the campaign's final days.

The latest Canadian Press Harris-Decima poll had Tory support firming at 34 per cent nationally, followed by the Liberals at 26 per cent, and NDP fortunes fading at 18 per cent.

The Green party had 12 per cent and the Bloc Quebecois nine per cent.

In Ontario, home to one-third of the seats in the House of Commons, the Liberals had 33 per cent, the Conservatives 31 per cent and the NDP at 21, with the Greens at 14.

The Tory-Liberal battle for second place in Quebec was also narrow: the Tories had 24 per cent to the Liberal 22, behind the BQ with a commanding lead at 40 per cent.

The latest sample represents 1,284 interviews conducted Monday through Thursday and is considered accurate to within plus or minus 2.7 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, although the margin is higher for regional results. Source

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

is exactly what I thought after viewing a reader's comment in a letter to the Editor in today's Ottawa Citizen. The man is absolutely stunned that Canadians are seriously considering voting anything but Conservative during this economic uncertainty. Duh!

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

_{Harper shows his prize for economic exit strategy:-)}


Liberals maintain lock on Toronto while 905 may deliver more seats for Conservatives, polls find

Bruce Campion-Smith | Oct 11 | Ottawa

Toronto Star - Liberals are poised to keep their stranglehold on Toronto while strong Conservative support in the 905 region could deliver more seats for Stephen Harper, a Toronto Star /Angus Reid poll reveals.

A separate poll shows that, as stock markets plunge, the economy tops the list of Canadians' concerns, introducing an election wild card that appears certain to influence Tuesday's vote.

"The economy is key," said Mario Canseco, vice-president of public affairs for Angus Reid Strategies.

While Canadians have more faith in the Conservatives to handle the economy, that trust has dropped four points in recent weeks, to 32 per cent. A third of voters do not think any of the parties is a good choice to manage the worsening economic situation, the nationwide poll found.

"It's not about who do you trust the most but who do you dislike the least," Canseco said.

more at link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

THE CANADIAN PRESS

OTTAWA – Prime Minister Stephen Harper appears to have survived the Conservative campaign's moment of crisis and is again knocking on the door to a majority government mere days from Tuesday's vote.

The latest Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey suggests the Conservatives stretched their lead over the Liberals to 10 points – more than doubling the gap that separated the parties as recently as four days ago.

The poll had the Tories at 35 per cent, followed by the Liberals at 25 per cent, the NDP at 18 and the Green Party at 11.

In Quebec, the poll put the Bloc miles ahead with 41 per cent support, well clear of the Conservatives and the Liberals.

"The Conservatives enter the weekend with some clear momentum in Ontario, which has the potential to greatly affect the outcome," said Harris-Decima president Bruce Anderson.

The survey results represents 1,273 interviews conducted Tuesday through Friday with a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
More

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

(and from a Conservative paper, no less:-) )

Vancouver Sun - Artists don't like Stephen Harper. Despite the fact that he plays piano, people who create Canadian television, movies, music, theatre, dance, books and art are worried that when it comes to culture, the ReformaTory leader's views are out of tune.

Artists traditionally aren't fans of Conservative governments and vice versa, but with Harper the fight seems more personal. On both sides.

Harper's shots at the cultural "niche" didn't seem random. Harper's not a random, off-the-sweater-cuff campaigner. Either Harper, or somebody in his war room, saw culture not as a niche issue, but as what Yankee strategists like Karl Rove call a "wedge issue." Apparently the idea was that getting into a fight with Margaret Atwood would play well with voters who still have nightmares about doing book reports on The Edible Woman.

And while some voters may be a bit twitchy about a hidden Tory agenda, the cultural community suspects that if Harper gets a majority, the end of Canada as we know it is nigh. The fear is Tory arts policies aren't motivated by economics, but by ideology -- and cuts so far seem to confirm that.

Although it's apparently passé to mention the Reform Party, that's the party Harper helped found, that evolved into the Alliance, that took over the Tories. Reform critic Murray Dobbin told me Reformers never had an official cultural policy but, "Reform Senator Stan Waters constantly attacked the CBC and the Canada Council -- once to thunderous applause at a Reform convention where he attacked the CC for 'funding books that shouldn't be read and music that shouldn't be listened to.' "

So when Harper took office, people who work in Canada's cultural sector braced for the end of the CBC, Telefilm, the Canada Council and funding for any visual artist who wasn't painting bunnies on black velvet. The Artpocalypse didn't arrive, but neither did a Tory majority.

This week the Tories released their platform and, in theory, artists should throw galas to celebrate. The Tories killed the controversial clause in Bill C-10 and committed to, "maintain financial support for arts and culture at or above existing levels, while continuing to improve the effectiveness of allocations wherever possible." It's the last half of the line that should keep people who care about culture from voting for the man in the fuzzy sweater.

None of the people protesting C-10 was in danger of losing their own tax credits if the bill passed, the fear was the idea of establishing the Minister of Heritage as a censor who could arbitrarily pull funding based on what was "contrary to public policy," a policy no one could cite or define.

Heritage Minister Josée Verner claimed the clause was never intended as a form of censorship. "Nothing could be further from the truth," she told the House of Commons. "Our government continues to passionately defend freedom of expression."

But Verner's reassurances sounded pretty hollow when her government axed PromArt -- a program that funded international travel grants -- and an unnamed government official told Canwest News Service the program was cancelled because money, "went to groups that would raise the eyebrows of any typical Canadian."

more at link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

OTTAWA - On the eve of election day politicians make a frenzied pitch for votes while Green party Leader Elizabeth May makes a statement that has Liberal Leader Stephane Dion giving thanks on the holiday weekend.

In order to stop vote splitting, May said voters may want to check Liberal or NDP on their ballot in tightly contested ridings to prevent the Conservative candidate from winning.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion saw her statement as an endorsement and called May a "courageous Canadian."

Dion told a cheering crowd in Vaughan, Ont., last night that the Liberals will do everything they can to help May win in her riding of Central Nova.

"Because Canada will be better off with Elizabeth May than Peter MacKay," Dion said of the Conservative cabinet minister who currently holds the riding.

He said by coming together May and Dion will give Canada the greenest prime minister ever.

"So go green, vote (Liberal) red," Dion told the cheering crowd.

May later issued a statement saying she had not called on voters to abandon Green party candidates.

Both Dion and Prime Minister Stephen Harper travel from coast to coast today lobbying undecided voters.

A Harris-Decima pollster suggested as much as 18 per cent of the population was undecided about their vote just a week ago.

Harper starts his day in P.E.I., where Conservatives haven't won a seat since the Brian Mulroney era 24 years ago.

He travels on to Fredericton, New Brunswick, and then completes his campaign in Vancouver.

Dion will also be in Fredericton and will have whirl-wind stops in Quebec, Manitoba, and B.C..

Layton, who has been one of the most well travelled candidates with almost 56,000 air miles logged, is sticking close to home with numerous whistle stops close to his Ontario riding of Toronto Danforth.
Source

_{Tolerating prostitution is tolerating abuse and torture of women and children.}

OTTAWA (AFP) — Canadians on Tuesday began voting in the country's third election in four years, likely to return the Conservatives to office in the first G7 ballot since the start of a global financial meltdown.

Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper is predicted to win his second mandate since January 2006, with the latest polls giving him a five percent lead over his main rival, Liberal leader Stephane Dion.

But with one-third of voters still uncertain, and three other mainstream parties nipping at the frontrunner's heels, a Conservative victory is by no means assured.

"The number one job of the next prime minister of Canada is to protect this country's economy, our earnings, savings and jobs at a time of global economic uncertainty," Harper said Monday in the town of Cornwall, Prince Edward Island.

"If you give me the honor of re-electing me as your prime minister, I can assure you that I will make it my top priority to protect Canada's economy and Canadians' stake in it," he said.

In his final campaign tour, Harper urged supporters to push hard to the finish line.

"In this close election , there is no guarantee we will win," he said before flying to Fredericton in easternmost Canada and then ending his day in Vancouver on the Pacific Coast.

Dion meanwhile called on voters to "Stop Stephen Harper," saying the incumbent prime minister "has no plan" to safeguard Canada's economy from the worldwide woes provoked by a collapse in the US subprime mortgage market. more

Ottawa pledges to backstop banks

Eoin Callan
Canwest News Service

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

As Canadians go to the polls, the Conservatives have privately told the country's biggest banks they are ready to step in and guarantee new borrowing because of fears financial institutions will be frozen out of international credit markets for "months," according to people familiar with the discussions.

The extraordinary pledge was made behind closed doors after Canada's banks disclosed they were being starved of desperately-needed financing and could not continue to fund normal operations without government help, despite signs of a rebound in stock markets.

The plans were developed over the weekend after world leaders committed to a radical new wave of state intervention to halt a collapse of the financial system.

Confirmed on the eve of the election, the implicit public guarantee of private debt by the Conservatives represents a historic departure from free-market principles and signals a profound loss of confidence in the global banking system.

It means Ottawa is prepared to publicly guarantee repayment of any new money banks borrow from each other and from foreign banks, to make sure Canada's financial institutions do not fall behind their peers.

Stephen Harper, the Conservative leader, is reluctant to officially declare this policy, but is likely to do so if Washington moves first because of the detrimental impact a U.S.-only guarantee could have on Canada's financial institutions.

Before pulling the trigger, the Conservatives first aim to try and meet the funding needs of Bay Street directly by aggressively expanding a scheme to buy up mortgages from banks.

After initially putting up $25 billion of public money to buy mortgages, the Department of Finance is prepared to increase that limit as needed up to $225 billion, at which point the risk of taxpayer losses starts to rise sharply.

This avenue is viewed as more politically palatable and easier to square with Harper's ideological outlook. more

CTV.ca CTV is projecting a Conservative victory tonight, but with the dust still settling it's unclear whether the party will see its strength grow in the House of Commons, or be left with another minority government.

The Tories had won or were leading in 110 ridings across the country, out of a possible 308, shortly after polls had closed at 10 p.m. ET.

The Liberals had 68, the NDP 25 and the Bloc Quebecois 33.

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper will need at least 155 seats to form a majority government. But the final weeks of the campaign saw him make missteps in Quebec, where he needed a boost in support.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

ZenMaster Coltrane's Kos election liveblog
here

Some of the national Canadian sites, though, like
CBC and
Elections Canada

can time out (remember the Clinton/Obama primaries)

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Campbell Clark | Ottowa | October 15

Globe and Mail - Stephen Harper's Conservatives have won a stronger minority government on the strength of gains in Ontario and British Columbia.

But the Tories paid dearly for campaign missteps in Quebec, as their failure to make gains there was a big reason they fell short of outright control of the Commons.

In two and half years of minority government, Mr. Harper had sought to woo Quebeckers, seeing them as the path to a majority government.

With almost all of the results in, the Tories lost one of their 11 seats there. The Bloc Québécois again defied early-campaign predictions of collapse, winning almost two-thirds of the province's seats.

Mr. Harper pledged to fulfill his party's election platform, but also to govern for Canadians who had voted for other parties, too — and at a time when a faltering economy poses challenges for any government, offered co-operation with opposition MPs.


more...

By Rob Gillies, AP
Wednesday, 15 October 2008

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the first major world leader to face voters since the global financial meltdown, led his Conservative Party to victory yesterday's election but fell short of a majority in Parliament.

The election agency reported on its website that the Conservatives had won or were leading in races for 143 of Parliament's 308 seats, an improvement over the 127 seats the party had in the previous Parliament.

But with nearly all the returns in early Wednesday, it was clear the Conservative Party would not win the 155 seats needed to govern on its own. That would force it to again rely on opposition support to pass budgets and legislation — as it has had to do since a 2006 election victory.

Harper had called elections early in hopes of getting his party a majority, but the Conservatives sought to put a good face on the results, pointing to their increased number of seats.

"Our party is bigger, our support base is broader and more and more Canadians are finding a home in the Conservative Party of Canada," Harper said early Wednesday. "We have shown that minority government can work and at this time of global economic instability we owe it to Canadians to demonstrate this once again."

The Liberal Party, long Canada's top party, suffered a severe drubbing, dropping to 76 seats from 95 in the previous Parliament, according to the election agency. Bloc Quebecois led for 50 seats, the New Democrats for 37 and independent candidates 2.

Liberal Party leader Stephane Dion conceded to Harper earlier Wednesday.

"I have talked to Prime Minister Harper to offer him congratulations and my full cooperation in these difficult economic times," Dion said.

The party winning the most seats generally forms the government, with its leader becoming prime minister. The opposition parties could unite and topple Harper if they won enough seats for a majority, but analysts said that was unlikely because the parties have no tradition of forming such coalitions.

The opposition Liberals have typically been the party in power, forming the government for most of Canada's 141 years. But the left-of-center vote was divided among four parties, giving an edge to the Conservatives.

more

Firedoglake Canadian Election thread

with lots of comments, mainly from US types. My favorite:

"If you have any questions about Canada, please ask me. Being from NH, a US state with a border with Canada makes me an authority."

You can also check in at http://www.pogge.ca/ and http://www.rabble.ca, as well as http://www.thestar.com/election blogs to peruse any
later "meaning of the Canadian election" posts.

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

in the meantime, the Liberal party must replace Dion as their leader. As an employee of Elections Canada and taking an oath to not make political statements, it was my decision to abide by the oath. Now I'm free to make whatever comments I want and take this opportunity to say, "The voters spoke with their ballots."

Next time round perhaps this Conservative government meets defeat? All I can do is keep working to achieve precisely that result. Read the acerbic comments following Canadian news articles about the result of the election and you'll find deep divisions exist among the voters.

Harper did not achieve a majority!!! Much work remains doing before he's ousted from office. Tories may find victory carries risk With a Liberal leader more acceptable to voters, ballots get marked differently. Canada remains a very, very complicated country to govern federally. In each province, no problem really exists.

There was a time when there were too many right-winged parties--that's shifted to presently being too many left-leaning causing vote splitting to occur. The Liberal party needs to figure that out and present voters with an acceptable alternative. Until that happens, voters temporarily vote for a series of minority governments.

CTV.ca - Liberal Leader Stephane Dion is still weighing his options following Tuesday's election defeat and will not step down today, CTV News has learned.

CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife, reporting from Ottawa Thursday, said reports that Dion will step down today are false.

"I spoke this morning with two people who are very close to Mr. Dion and they say he will not be resigning today or announcing his plan to resign today," Fife told CTV's Canada AM.

"He is still weighing his options, there will be no decision until early next week or perhaps a little later."

Although an announcement is not expected this week, Fife said Dion really has no other choice than to eventually step down. more

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Fred Wilson | October 15

rabble.ca - Enough already with the “if only we had PR…” We don’t and won’t anytime soon. The election results are completely understandable when 37% vote for one party, and no other party is within 10 points of that. But it still didn’t produce majority government – thanks to Quebec.

It is likely too soon to really comprehend what happened yesterday. The best we can do today is to begin asking good questions.

How do we explain the extra 3 points that the Conservatives gained in the last couple of days after the ABC campaign had them trending downward? Those gains were to some extent matched by a corresponding softening of the NDP vote (if we can rely on Nanos’ numbers) to the point where it exceeded the 2006 result by just one percent – in spite of Layton’s effective campaign and country-wide impact. Was there an invisible strategic vote that cost the NDP? It doesn’t appear so, because neither Liberals nor Greens were the beneficiaries.

Perhaps those additional NDP votes that did not materialize were another dimension of the low voter turn out. I think we need to know who didn’t vote, and how much that drop affected outcomes.

more at link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Advisers warned their leader against his risky plan, which only made a rough campaign more painful

Kenneth Kidd | October 18

Toronto Star - Some Liberal strategists had argued fiercely against running on the Green Shift. It all looked too much like Tory Robert Stanfield's gambit in the 1974 campaign – unveiling, as an opposition party, a detailed program (price and wage controls) that seemed a little too much like Buckley's cough syrup.

Where Pierre Trudeau could mockingly dismiss the Stanfield program with "Zap! You're frozen!" Harper would be able to demonize the Green Shift as a "risky carbon tax."

Senior Liberals wanted a more traditional campaign, running against the government's record. "Dion wouldn't do it," says one insider. "He didn't want to campaign with photo-ops. He believes that this is a very important election for the future. He put his heart and soul into this platform."

"He's been driving the bus, no doubt about that," concedes Smith. "And we're supportive, though it was never viewed or thought of as a one-string violin, the single-issue campaign."

Smith, who was a big organizer for Michael Ignatieff's leadership bid, says he's grown to admire Dion's integrity, his commitment to public policy. But he concedes the challenge. "Not everyone connects with him. I'm just hoping that people will appreciate those strengths that he has and also the fact that we have a very, very, very strong team."...

"We're under no illusions about it. Stéphane is a very, very decent person. I just hope more people understand that."
more at the link

_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

Ottawa Bureau | October 18

Toronto Star - After several days clinging to hopes that he could find a way to stay on as Liberal leader, Stéphane Dion will emerge from his post-election seclusion on Monday, when he is expected by Liberal insiders to announce his exit plans.

Dion, who presided over a bruising slide in Liberal fortunes in Tuesday’s election, has been closeted in his residence ever since, conducting round-the-clock discussions with MPs and senior Liberals about his future amid calls that he must depart as leader.

At 2 o’clock Monday afternoon, Dion will make his first public appearance since election night.

Traditionally, Liberal leaders have been given two chances to lead the party through elections. But the caucus is smarting from Tuesday’s loss, in which the party suffered a sharp drop in popular vote and the loss of 19 House of Commons seats, including the defeat of many well-liked incumbents.
_{"The mythical John McCain is an affable, straight-talking, moderately conservative war hero who is an expert on foreign policy" - Bob Herbert}

You leave the country for a couple of weeks and LOOK what happens!!