Friday, September 28, 2007

Liberal Revolt: The Knives Come Out for Dion

















We interrupt this program to bring you the latest news from the Liberal Party. And it's not good.The ship is sinking.

But instead of manning the pumps they're fighting on the bridge.

Stephane Dion's palace guard was under siege today by members of his own party who are calling on the Liberal leader to dismiss one of his closest aides over alleged remarks about Quebec.

And in the engine room.

Why doesn't Dion fall on his sword and resign, then have an emergency meeting of the executive and install Ignatieff as interim leader?

Soon they'll be in the lifeboats fighting over who gets to eat Jason Cherniak.

In short, I suggest that everybody just calm down and wait. The world will not end if you go to sleep tonight without blaming somebody for something.

You KNOW the situation is desperate....when Jason says it isn't.

Although you don't have to tell this guy. I guess when reality bites....it hurts.

But what can the Liberals do about it? Nothing. Nada. Fuckall.

They've run out of time. If anyone still thinks that Stephen Harper isn't going to go for an election as soon as he can... after dangling this carrot. They must be delusional.

Harper blew his first chance to get a majority and it still smarts. Does anyone really think he's going to blow it again... when the planets are aligned as they are...and everything is coming up smelling like roses?

Afghanistan is in neutral, the economy is booming, Dion is a dud in English Canada. Harper is fooling a lot of Canadians into believing he's a Liberal. And in Quebec .....where only one out of ten francophones now supports the Liberal Party .....it just keeps getting worse.

Paul Leduc, a three-term mayor of a large Montreal suburb, says that he's changed his mind about running for the Liberals and that one of the party's household names provided him with phone numbers for journalists and urged him to go public with his story.

If you were Stephen Harper wouldn't YOU strike now? All he has to do is battle to a draw in English Canada...by bribing them with tax cuts. And scoop up his majority in Quebec.

Which leaves the Liberals facing some really hard choices. Knife the leader in the back now and go into an election campaign bitterly divided. Or put on a show of unity and throw themselves into a campaign many of them secretly want to lose....and spend the next few years blaming each other.

Or cave on the Throne Speech, look weak, and be left propping up the Harper government.

Which right now looks to me like a choice between a quick death, and a slow lingering one.

Of course it's not ALL their fault. Power did corrupt them absolutely. But they are also the victims of history.

They've been left holding the bag for Trudeau's vision of a strong central government. It worked for them when separatism was a threat. But now that it isn't.... it doesn't win them any votes in English Canada. And they can't offer Quebecers ANYTHING.

While Harper, who believes in slashing the power of the federal government ,can offer Quebecers EVERYTHING. And reap the rewards.

Whether the Liberals are running out of time or history remains to be seen.

They desperately need some new grand national vision if they are going to resuscitate their brand.

I'm not saying that Dion couldn't surprise people during an election campaign.

But unfortunately for the Liberals and the rest of us nothing they do....short of promising to abolish the monarchy...will help in Quebec. All THEY want is Dion's head on a plate.

The moment the party chose Dion....thinking they were doing Quebecers a favour... was the imbecile moment. The moment they hit the iceberg.

Now all they can do is rally around the leader and try to keep the rest of the sinking ship afloat.

Before the boilers blow up...

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