Hypocricy Is A Virtue When You're A Leftist

Much ado about no Parliament: Blizzard

And all of this ruckus puts Premier Dalton McGuinty in a curious position

By Christina Blizzard

My, I’ve ruffled feathers with a recent column that suggested Bob Rae is being hypocritical in his attack on Prime Minister Stephen Harper for proroguing Parliament.
I spent some time in the library at Queen’s Park recently, checking Rae’s record as NDP premier.
I called Rae the King of Prorogues, having suspended Parliament three times — and for much longer periods than Harper has done.
He prorogued three times in a four-and-a-half year mandate. In 1991, 1992 and 1994, Rae prorogued from mid-December to April. In 1994, he shut down the Legislature on Dec. 9 — and the House did not return. Parliament was dissolved April 28, 1995, for an election without Rae delivering a budget.
Why? Because his government was in tatters and he wanted to play for time. How’s that for a slap at democracy?
Yet Rae now has the nerve to talk about Harper’s “assault on democracy”?
My column ignited a firestorm. I’ve received countless e-mails and on-line comments ranging from the very kind to the bizarre — to the downright disgusting.
Some angry people think Rae was justified in proroguing because he had a majority and Harper is in a minority situation.
That’s nonsense. In fact, it makes it worse. If you have a majority government and you’re still afraid to face question period, what kind of a coward are you?
Others pointed out that, just as Rae ran double-digit deficits, so Harper is now. That’s true. And why is Harper in deficit territory?
Because in late 2008, one Bob Rae put together a coalition of Opposition parties that threatened to bring down the government when the economy started to tank. Why? Because Harper wasn’t planning to go deep enough into debt to stimulate the economy.
It was Spend-Your-Way-Rich-Bob up to his old tricks again. It would have been the third minority Parliament he’d toppled. Didn’t anyone teach him to play nicely with other kids? Minorities can work well, with a little co-operation and a lot less ego all around. It would have been a de facto coup by Rae.
That’s not to say Harper isn’t incredibly ham-fisted in the way he’s gone about this. He could have waited until this week to prorogue, and saved a lot of grief.
All of which puts Premier Dalton McGuinty in a curious position.
He would, I suspect, love to prorogue. This session has dragged on far too long.
It’s customary at this point in a mandate to prorogue and come back with a Throne Speech. It’s a way to change channels — and set out your government’s agenda in the run-up to an election.
I suspect McGuinty fears if he prorogues, he will simply underscore that prorogation is a perfectly legitimate tool used by all parliaments. What he’ll likely do is quietly prorogue one day — and come back with a Throne Speech the next.
The provincial Tories would like him to end this current session because it’s the only way they can get their two bad boys back in the Legislature. Bill Murdoch (Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound) and Randy Hillier (Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox & Addington) were tossed for defying the Speaker late last year. Unless a deal is struck, they can only return with a new session.
If I were Harper, I’d tell the Liberals and the New Democrats if they want democracy, they can have it — and call an election.
It’s the last thing the Liberals want right now — so call their bluff. Enough of this nonsense. Take it to the people.
christina.blizzard@sunmedia.ca