June 10, 2012

Whether you believe the Republicans are engaging in purposely destructive fiscal behavior or are simply fiscally incompetent, it almost doesn’t matter. It most certainly is bad economic policy and that should be part of any national debate not only on who is to blame for the current economic mess, but also what steps should be taken to get out from underneath it.

But don’t hold your breath on that happening. Presidents get blamed for a bad economy; and certainly, Republicans are unlikely to take responsibility for the country’s economic woes. The obligation will be on Obama to make the case that it is the Republicans, not he, who is to blame – a difficult, but not impossible task.

More here.

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Filed under: GOP Republican America austerity measures austerity economic economy jobs politics Obama election 2012 
March 5, 2012
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The Conservatives are often aided and abetted by an opposition gang that overreaches, tossing out references to Watergate, Vladimir Putin and fixed elections and muddies the waters itself with charges of late-night prank calls that have been the hallmark of campaigns since the invention of the ballot.

Conservatives don’t want a public inquiry because they need only look to Paul Martin and the quick demise of the Liberals for a reminder of what happens when you cede control to a public entity.

They want to keep this in the hands of Elections Canada, try to keep the damage localized, admit irregularities in Guelph but nowhere else, and keep their argument focused on a pristine national operation.

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— Tim Harper: Robo-calls: Conservatives roll the dice again with Elections Canada - thestar.com

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Filed under: Conservatives Conservative Party of Canada Watergate Vladimir Putin election gang Liberals public inquiry Elections Canada robo-calls Guelph Paul Martin 
February 27, 2012
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Voters in ridings across Canada have reported receiving automated and non-automated calls, purportedly from the Conservatives, that gave out erroneous information.

Some of the calls told voters their polling stations had changed, while others allegedly impersonated Liberal candidates and deliberately called at inconvenient times.

NDP Pat Martin said on Sunday he knew of 34 riding that received calls advising people that their voting station had changed. He said he expected the number to grow.

Under the Elections Act, it is illegal to tell voters to go to a wrong or non-existent polling station. Another woman from Thunder Bay, who also worked for the call centre during the election campaign, said she called voters who were expecting a ride to pick them up and take them to a polling station.

Many of those rides never showed up, she said.

“Part of our script was to see if they needed a ride arranged,” said the woman, who also asked not to be named.

The woman said her script directed her to say she was calling on behalf of the Conservatives.

Upon discovering the information they were giving out was false, the two women and other employees started telling the people they called to confirm their voting station location directly with Elections Canada.

“I just remember coming home and feeling frustrated,” the first woman told the National Post. “It’s a very hard place to work. Any call centre is a hard place to work. They say ‘hang your soul at the door.’”

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— Robocalls: Staff knew voters were being directed to wrong voting stations | News | National Post

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Filed under: Canada Conservative Conservative Party of Canada Liberal NDP Stephen Harper democracy election politics