The landscape is shifting

And I'm not just talking about the political EARTHQUAKE in Quebec, where now THREE pollsters, CROP, EKOS, and Nanos all show the NDP in either first or second place... AHEAD of even the Bloc!

No, I'm talking about the reality on the ground in local ridings. An interesting and almost unheard of phenomenon is going on... there are Liberals in our campaign offices.

No, not spies... long-time Liberals, who are showing up one after another, taking signs, putting up signs, stuffing envelopes... WORKING for the local Tory candidate.

I was briefly in the Guelph campaign office of Marty Burke, another place where this is occurring. There seems to be two major factors driving it... dislike of Michael Ignatieff, and an extreme dislike of Frank Valeriote, the local MP. (even amongst his own extended family... the Italian vote isn't rock solid Liberal anymore!!!)

I've been hearing the same story from contacts in other ridings too... where traditional Liberal voters are "crossing the floor" to support us. And you know what the number TWO comment from them is? (with Michael Ignatieff being number ONE)

They quote Mr. Harper... "It's time for a MAJORITY."

LINE OF THE DEBATE goes to... LAYTON!!!

No question about it, Jack Layton had the line of the night with this barb he threw at Michael Ignatieff, over his lack of attendance in the House of Commons.

And now we juxtapose: "Kissing Babies"

Harper:

Ignatieff:

Micheal Ignatieff's Contempt of Parliament

In an ironic twist, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has today called on Prime Minister Harper to show contempt for Parliament!

Yes, you heard that correctly... Michael Ignatieff actually WANTS the Prime Minister to do something that would be in contempt of Parliament! First, Iggy falsely accuses the PM of acting in contempt, and with his Opposition allies forces an election over his false accusations. But today, he's flip-flopped on that position, and now wants Mr. Harper to directly interfere with a report from an independent Officer of Parliament, and usurp the prerogative of the House of Commons by making her report public before the House has had the opportunity to see it first.

Which is it, Mr. Ignatieff? You can't have it both ways... you can't falsely accuse him of contempt, and then actively encourage him to do something that would in fact BE an act of contempt. That's what we call "Hypo-Grit-cy".

The ironic thing is, if he hadn't forced this unnecessary election, the AG would today be issuing that report that Mr. Ignatieff so desperately wants to see...

"The Last Liberal" - Inside the Liberal War Room

Almost forgot about all these videos... but this last one is SOOOOO appropriate right about now!!! If you remember the final scene from "The Last Starfighter", here's a more modern interpretation... in the context of Ignatieff and the Liberal election campaign...

Iggy "Goes Negative"... and falls FLAT

Well, so much for his promises to "take the high road". Iggy has officially flip floped on "going negative", trying to personally insult Harper during a press scrum... but his flip flop, well, flopped. And then backfired, HUGE.

The CPAC Twitter feed reported this from Iggy's scrum on Tuesday...
"PM’s answers on Elections Canada charges make him the “Charlie Sheen of Cdn democracy”"

Seriously Iggy? The "Charlie Sheen of Canadian democracy"? Does that even make any sense? I mentioned the statement to a few folks, and they just all screwed up their faces, trying to figure out how on earth that even makes any sense!

Except a few of us have made an altogether different connection between Harper and Charlie Sheen than Iggy was trying to imply, thanks to Sheen's new favorite word... "WINNING!!!" That's right Iggy, looks like Stephen Harper IS the "Charlie Sheen" of Canadian politics...

"WINNING!!!"

You kinda gotta feel bad for Ignatieff... he tries to "go negative", and he can't even manage to do THAT right without screwing it up!!!

Another Tory ad blitz underway

Is there any doubt that we're ready to go to the polls if the Opposition forces an election?

And once again, leading off with a GREAT positive ad...


...followed up by a hard hitting ad on the insane tax policy positions of Michael Ignatieff.

Ignatieff Rally: Liberal supporter shouts "KILL HIM!" when Iggy mentions John Baird?!?!?

Are you kidding me? At Iggy's first rally of the year, not even a week after the reprehensible shooting of a US Congresswoman, a Liberal supporter shouts "KILL HIM!" when Ignatieff mentions The Hon. John Baird, Member of Parliament for Ottawa West-Nepean.

Don't believe me? SEE IT FOR YOURSELF... start at the 0:30 second mark, and listen for the disgusting comment at 0:46 seconds.



Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff MUST be called on to distance himself from that reprehensible comment IMMEDIATELY, especially after the shootings in Arizona. While the common barbs and thrusts of politics are to be expected, calls for the death of an opponent ARE BEYOND THE PALE.

UPDATE: Video clip has been downloaded, just in case the Liberals pull the clip down.

Tories launch pre-emtive strike in hopes of avoiding a spring election

Why are we launching ads now? "Spending our money, so THE OPPOSITION won't spend yours" is probably the best way to sum it up for Joe Canadian.

By launching these attack ads now, we're hoping to drive Ignatieff's numbers down a little further, thus giving the Liberals pause before they decide to bring down the House over the next Budget. By spending a little bit of our own Tory war chest now on these ads, I believe the hope is that we'll help taxpayers avoid spending $350+ MILLION dollars on an unwanted and unnecessary premature election this spring.

How's that for a responsible political Party? We're actually spending a little of OUR OWN MONEY, in order to save taxpayers MILLIONS. The Liberals? They want to blow your money on an election that will change nothing (other than their leader), and to hang on to the MILLIONS they're getting in political subsidies, again from the taxpayer's pockets.

So check out the ads for yourself... and I suppose I should say, "You're Welcome Canada!".

Iffy playing Chess while Harper's playing "Global Thermonuclear War"

Hope you all catch the "WarGames" reference, and I hope no one accuses me of inciting someone to drop a nuke on Iggy's head...

Gerry Nicholls, whom I've disagreed with in the past on a fairly regular basis, has a FANTASTIC article in today's Globe & Mail, and has summed up my long-held belief on what needs to happen for Canada to truly grow and prosper... the destruction of the ideological J-E-LL-O Party, the Liberal Party of Canada.

Here's his intro...

Here’s some free advice for Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff: Be afraid, be very afraid.

Okay, that’s more like a warning than advice, but it’s a warning Mr. Ignatieff should heed. He needs to understand that while he’s playing political chess, his opponent, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, is waging total war.

To be blunt, Mr. Harper’s ultimate strategic goal really isn’t to win a majority government – it’s to eradicate the Liberal Party as a viable political force.

Sound overly dramatic? Well, consider the well-documented ruthlessness of Mr. Harper’s political style. Consider, too, that he’s a master tactician who likes to concoct long-term strategies. And, finally, consider the fact that he just doesn’t like Liberals. It all adds up to a prime minister who’s capable, willing and able to take out Canada’s “natural governing party.”

UPDATE: The campaigning begins?

Liberal Senator to Iggy: "Go fly an F-35"

Liberal Senator Colin Kenny says that the Harper Government is making the correct decision regarding the procurement methods for the F-35... and that Iffy's position on trying to secure a lower price by opening up the bid to competition "doesn’t make sense". (and that's a DIRECT quote, for my Liberal readers)

And just in case anyone's wondering about his credentials, he's the former chair of the Senate’s National Security and Defence Committee... for eight years.

Young Liberals posing with wooden posts

Well, I'm back from vacation! Looks like I didn't miss much... still a lot of censeless chatter out there from the media, and more goofy photos of Michael Ignatieff on the FailBus Express.

Personally, I like this one... a bunch of Young Liberals posing with some wooden posts...

Warren on Iggy calling Harper the Devil: "Not a good idea"

Another reason I've always liked the guy... he's honest, doesn't pull any punches, and will give an honest evaluation of a political situation... in this case, Iffy's "Sulphur-gate" GAFFE. A good overall analysis of Iggy's overall campaign thus far.



Care to offer an apology yet Mr. Ignatieff?

Iggy's LiberalExpress bus fixed by... HARPER!!!

Oh how the twists of irony just won't stop for the poor "Just Visiting Express"... it turns out that poor Ignatieff's stricken bus was towed to and repaired by "Harper Diesel" in Cornwall, Ontario.

Yes indeed folks, Iggy's tour is cursed...

Harper saves Liberal bus
By Brian Lilley, Parliamentary Bureau

When Michael Ignatieff’s Liberal Express bus broke down on the first day of his cross-Canada tour, he had to call on Harper for help.

The bus overheated on Hwy. 34 just outside of Hawkesbury, Ont., leaving Ignatieff joking to supporters that “A guy named Stephen Harper was seen running away from the bus with motor oil on his hands.”

While Stephen Harper had no part in the breakdown, a Harper was hired to repair the bus.

Once a second bus arrived to carry passengers, supplies and luggage to Cornwall for a late event Tuesday evening, the Liberal Express was towed to Harper Diesel, a garage specializing in engine parts and repairs for buses and transport trucks.

An employee with Harper Diesel’s Cornwall service centre would only confirm the Liberal Express had been fixed there, adding the irony of Harper fixing Ignatieff’s bus hadn't dawned on him until contacted by QMI Agency.

h/t to Wilson (via the comments)

Ignateff under the curse of the "Devil-gate"?

Who knows... Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff was forced to abandon his "Just Visiting Express" bus today after it decided to do its impression of his most recent poll numbers... DOA, dead, stuck in the mud, going nowhere, in the ditch, "insert your analogy here", etc.

Not even a full day into his "cross Canada tour" (maybe they'd better scale back their expectations to something more manageable, like "cross-city tour, we hope..."), Michael Ignatieff's tour bus has broken down, forcing him to abandon some reporters at the side of the road. Apparently the transmission has died.

Perhaps some might say it's karma? (if you believe in that sort of thing, that is...)

UPDATE: Looks like I'm not alone with the whole "karma" thing...

Kelly McParland's SCATHING opinion on Ignatieff's GAFFE

WOW, and you thought I was being harsh... the National Post's Kelly McParland has written the most scathing article to date on Ignatieff's latest GAFFE... and points out that this isn't an isolated incident for "the Arrogant Minded Professor".(TM)

Well folks, it looks like the wheels have fallen off the "Just Visiting Express" tour before Micheal Ignatieff has even boarded the bus.

h/t to Alberta Ardvark

Michael Ignatieff may not be the worst Leader of the Opposition in history — it’s a big field and there are lots of candidates — but he’s certainly in the running for most disappointing. [...]

The Liberal leader’s latest boneheaded move — comparing Stephen Harper to Satan — is more than just a stupid remark. It’s the umpteenth stupid remark, uttered just as he’s setting off on his umpteenth effort to remake his image and win over Canadians. The whole point of the Liberal bus tour, which set off today from Ottawa, was to expose voters to the real, informal, ordinary-guy Ignatieff in hopes they’d warm to him. “Hey look, our leader isn’t really the stiff-assed academic snob he appears to be in Ottawa — that’s all spin invented by the mainstream media and their corporate backers. Mike’s a nice guy when you get to know him! Really.”

So what’s he do? Before he even gets on the bus he heads off to Calgary — Calgary! — and informs everyone who voted for Harper (i.e. all of Alberta) that they’re such total dunderheads they cast their votes for the Prince of Darkness. Here he is in the heartland of Conservatism, Stephen Harper’s adopted home town, trying to lure just a few voters to his party, and the best tactic he can think of is to insult the entire province. What next: Head off to St. John’s and suggest that everyone who votes Tory is a dumb Newfie?

It’s hard to figure this guy. He’s made mistake after mistake after mistake. He signs the coalition pact, insists he’s on side, then repudiates the whole thing later. He stokes a phony election threat, insists he means it despite all common sense, then retreats in embarrassment when it falls flat. He raises issue after issue as a line in the sand, then does nothing when the Tories step over the line and kick sand in his face to boot. His own caucus ignores him, his supposed pal Bob Rae embarrasses him, he fires his advisers to get better advice, and then makes the same dumb mistakes under the new advisers.

He doesn’t seem to learn.

TorSun, NP, CTV, CBC all reporting on Ignatieff's GAFFE, approaching "GATE" status

It's official... with most of the major MSM players reporting on Ignatieff's "devilish" GAFFE at the Calgary Stampede, what was initially a low-blow attack on the Prime Minister has now worked it's way up to a "GATE" status... which is it folks? "Devil-gate", "Satan-gate", or "Sulphur-gate"?

Credit goes to the first out of the gate Toronto Sun on this one, can't wait for SunTV News. Second was the National Post, who had "the quote" on their front page today. As a result, CTV was forced to question him on it when he appeared on Canada AM (see video), where he tried to simply dismiss the comments as "a joke". (Canadians aren't laughing at your negative, attacking, Republican-style humour, Mr. Ignatieff). With many of the major players having commented on it, the CBC was, of course, left to play catchup, unable to defend Ignatieff's gaffe by simply ignoring it any longer.

Let's review what we've seen so far... first was the Toronto Sun:

"Ignatieff kicked off his summer tour in Calgary by touting the Liberal’s “positive message” and then compared Prime Minister Stephen Harper to the devil, "You know you smell the whiff of sulfur coming off the guy.” In literature, the whiff of sulfur is often used to describe the devil and someone as well read as Ignatieff should know to choose his words more carefully."

National Post, today's front page:

Political rhetoric burns with fire and brimstone
Joe O'Connor, National Post · Tuesday, Jul. 13, 2010

There will be no retraction, no apology offered and no backing down for Michael Ignatieff, who kicked off a cross-Canada tour in Calgary by likening Prime Minister Stephen Harper to the devil.

Speaking to an audience of Liberal supporters at a Stampede breakfast on Saturday the official leader of the Opposition let fly, saying Canadians "can smell the whiff of sulphur" coming off the Conservative PM, a putrid scent most often associated with rotten eggs and — in Christian theology — Satan himself.

Michael O'Shaughnessy, Mr. Ignatieff's press secretary, stuck by his boss's verbal blast on Monday when pressed to elaborate. In an email, he said that the whiff of sulphur is "quite evident when one faces the Conservative government on a daily basis."

CTV - Video only, in which he tries to simply dismiss his blunder, can be accessed here.

And finally, the CBC:

However, political observers say Ignatieff's 2010 bus trip might not move his poll numbers much and come with risks, such as gaffes by the leader or, even worse, no one showing up.

Ignatieff already generated controversy over the weekend at the Calgary Stampede when he was quoted as comparing Harper to the devil, saying "Canadians can smell the whiff of sulphur coming off this guy."

And if he's just apologized on Sunday, when it was first reported, it would have been a non-issue... but now we're into DAY THREE of reporting on this gaffe, and the chorus is only growing louder.

Way to draw attention to your bus tour Mr. Ignatieff... making absolutely sure that everyone knows you blew it right out of the gate. Just issue an apology, (or a typical political "non-apology" apology) and get it over with.

UPDATE: The National Post's Kelly McParland has chimed in over the brewing controversy... "Maybe Ignatieff's just not that smart".

"The Liberal leader’s latest boneheaded move — comparing Stephen Harper to Satan — is more than just a stupid remark. It’s the umpteenth stupid remark, uttered just as he’s setting off on his umpteenth effort to remake his image and win over Canadians. The whole point of the Liberal bus tour, which set off today from Ottawa, was to expose voters to the real, informal, ordinary-guy Ignatieff in hopes they’d warm to him. “Hey look, our leader isn’t really the stiff-assed academic snob he appears to be in Ottawa — that’s all spin invented by the mainstream media and their corporate backers. Mike’s a nice guy when you get to know him! Really.”

So what’s he do? Before he even gets on the bus he heads off to Calgary — Calgary! — and informs everyone who voted for Harper (i.e. all of Alberta) that they’re such total dunderheads they cast their votes for the Prince of Darkness. Here he is in the heartland of Conservatism, Stephen Harper’s adopted home town, trying to lure just a few voters to his party, and the best tactic he can think of is to insult the entire province. What next: Head off to St. John’s and suggest that everyone who votes Tory is a dumb Newfie?

It’s hard to figure this guy. He’s made mistake after mistake after mistake. He signs the coalition pact, insists he’s on side, then repudiates the whole thing later. He stokes a phony election threat, insists he means it despite all common sense, then retreats in embarrassment when it falls flat. He raises issue after issue as a line in the sand, then does nothing when the Tories step over the line and kick sand in his face to boot. His own caucus ignores him, his supposed pal Bob Rae embarrasses him, he fires his advisers to get better advice, and then makes the same dumb mistakes under the new advisers.

He doesn’t seem to learn.

Ignatieff GAFFE gets bigger, Liberal spokesman now calls ALL Conservative MP's "devils"!

Somehow, the Liberals find a way to make a small problem even WORSE... Ignatieff spokesman Michael O'Shaughnessy now says that ALL Conservative MP's are "devils"!!!

Michael O'Shaughnessy, Mr. Ignatieff's press secretary, stuck by his boss's verbal blast on Monday when pressed to elaborate. In an email, he said that the whiff of sulphur is "quite evident when one faces the Conservative government on a daily basis."

Unbelievable... once again, the Liberals manage to turn a one day story into a two or three day story!

It was low-blow, Republican-style gutter politics when the Leader of the Opposition alluded to the Right Hon. Prime Minister being Satan himself... but now to turn around and imply that ALL the MP's in the Government are the "spawn of Satan"?

Talk about being completely out of touch with reality, or the views of Canadians in general... before this incident, only the extreme lunatic left-wing would stoop to such rhetoric. Very few Canadians would echo these outlandish sentiments, or even consider agreeing with the comparison. But now they seem to be making it part of the "official" Liberal platform... "The Harper Conservatives are not only mean-spirited people with a hidden agenda, but they're the spawn of Satan himself!!!"

Hey, haven't we seen this one before? Oh yea, we have... remember Rick Mercer's spoof ad from the 2006 election? (not on YouTube anymore!)
"Stephen Harper owns a dragon... he keeps it in a shed"
"Stephen Harper drinks his own blood... we saw him"
"We're not making this up... we're not allowed to make things up"

Yea, we're really not making this up... these aren't the funny spoof comments of a CBC comedian. These are the kinds of things that a man who wants to be Prime Minister of our great nation says of his opponents. So here's my question... do you really want that kind of guy running the country? Someone who will figuratively, and quite literally it would seem, demonize his opponents?

I don't think Canadians are up for that. Mr. Ignatieff, your attack was DISGUSTING. It's time to apologize.

UPDATE: First, Ignatieff spokesman Micheal O'Shaughnessy tried to pass off the comment saying Iggy was talking about "rotten eggs" when he said "smell of sulfur". Ammm, RIIIIIGHT... you're telling me a "learned" Harvard professor didn't understand the implications of the analogy he was using? I find that hard to believe.

And besides, if that's true Mr. O'Shaughnessy, why did your Leader feel the need to tell Canada AM that his comment was "just a joke"??? (looking for footage)

MSM reports on Ignatieff gaffe, said Harper is "Satan"

The Toronto Sun has reported on Ignatieff's "devilish" attack on PM Harper on Saturday, where he likened Mr. Harper to Satan himself. Still no apology from Mr. Ignatieff for perhaps the lowest blow ever struck in Canadian politics. Glad to see that at least on MSM outlet has picked up on this serious gaffe that was reported yesterday.

From today's Toronto Sun:

Ignatieff kicked off his summer tour in Calgary by touting the Liberal’s “positive message” and then compared Prime Minister Stephen Harper to the devil, "You know you smell the whiff of sulfur coming off the guy.” In literature, the whiff of sulfur is often used to describe the devil and someone as well read as Ignatieff should know to choose his words more carefully.

Why rookie Liberal leader Michael Ignetieff has decided to take a play out of Venuzeulan dictator Hugo Chavez's book, I have no idea. But what we do know is this... it is perhaps the first time a Canadian politician has stooped so low as to publicly accuse his opponent of being evil incarnate.

More to come as this serious gaffe gets more coverage.

UPDATE: Liberal peons are already trying to defend their hapless leader's remarks... this, amm, not so clever response from Harper hater Jennifer McMackon's Twitter,

Jatsimpleposie @ChristianConsrv Maybe you're just so accustomed to the smell of #cpc you don't notice it. #cdnpoli

Ignatieff compares PM Harper to Satan?

In parroting leftist dictator Hugo Chavez, rookie Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has made perhaps his biggest political blunder EVER, when he on Saturday pulled a "Hugo Chavez" and made allusions to Mr. Harper being the Devil incarnate.

Ignatieff's quote from the Toronto Sun:

The Liberal leader said his party is the only one that owns the centre of Canada’s political spectrum, noting Canadians can “smell the whiff of sulfur coming off” of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper

Why on earth is Iffy taking a page out of Hugo Chavez little red book?

If you recall, Chavez made the same comparision to George W. Bush, stating "I can still smell the sulfur up here", in reference to the fact that Chaves made his speech to the UN from the same spot, shortly after Bush did.

Canadian politics, of course, is a rough and tumble game. But I don't recall a Leader of any policital party publicly stating that the Prime Minister is the embodiment of evil itself. Wrongheaded, stupid, narrow-minded, mean-spirited, these are all terms that have been used of Leaders in the past, and are of course subject to opinion and debate. But calling someone "the Devil"? That's unheard of in Canadian politics. Some might say it's a more Republican style of attack... maybe Iggy picked it up from his buddies south of the border?

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff owes our Right Hon. Prime Minister a public apology, for his despicable, baseless, and out-of-bounds personal attack on Mr. Harper.