Quebec's Hockey Dreams May Give Harper His Majority

Quebec Colisee

From The National Post:

This week's federal byelections, in which the Conservatives grabbed a seat away from the Bloc Quebecois, will be analyzed for what portent they may hold in a future general election. But such tea leaf reading is an uncertain endeavour for a variety of reasons -- not the least of which is the ridiculously low voter turnout. It's hard to predict what most people think when most people didn't vote.

In any case, those gazing into the electoral crystal ball should probably focus more on a part of la belle province where people weren't voting this week: Quebec City. With Quebec being one of the keys to a Tory majority, the government is on the cusp of a winning plan in the province's capital.

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My Comment: For an outsider .... the common remark is .... "you got to be kidding". But for people in the region .... this is a very important issue. Will support from Ottawa for an NHL team have an impact .... definitely. For Conservatives in the region, this will be a feel good issue, one in which they cannot lose.

Looking at it from an economics point of view, supporting an NHL team does not make sense. The market is not big enough to accommodate a new team. But hey .... when did politicians care about economics.

Quebec's ADQ Leader Blames Other For His Misfortunes

Photo: ADQ Leader Gilles Taillon, left, announced his resignation Tuesday. (CBC)

ADQ Leader Blames Tories For His Undoing -- CBC

MNA Gérard Deltell still thinking about a run for party leadership.

One day after announcing his resignation, Action Démocratique du Québec Leader Gilles Taillon says he was the victim of a putsch organized by the former "owners" of the party.

Taillon settled his accounts in an open letter distributed to the media Wednesday, accusing former leader Mario Dumont, other influential members of the ADQ, and the federal Conservative Party.

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Update: Outgoing ADQ boss blames federal Tories for his party's internal shenanigans -- Canadian Press

My Comment: What a mess .... and Action Démocratique du Québec Leader Gilles Taillon has no one to blame but himself. But what is going to happen is that this mess is going to smear others .... including other members in the ADQ and the Conservative Party In Ottawa.

Quebec's ADQ Party Is Imploding

Gilles Taillon. Photograph by: Mathieu Bélanger, Reuters

ADQ Leader Wants Police Investigation, New Leadership Race -- CTV News

QUEBEC — Action democratique du Quebec Leader Gilles Taillon wants provincial police to investigate what he calls "troubling aspects" in the party's finances.

Taillon also told a news conference in Quebec City today he wants the beleaguered party to hold another leadership race after less than a month on the job.

Taillon's comments on the ADQ financing come a few weeks after the party announced it would cut off ties with members of the Conservative party, including Senator Leo Housakos.

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More News On The Demise Of The ADQ

ADQ leader Gilles Taillon calls for new leadership race -- Montreal Gazette
ADQ leader resigns -- CBC News
Quebec political scandals rock ADQ & Liberals, federal Tories refuse comment -- Canadian Press
ADQ RIP SVP -- Macleans Magazine
Show us the money, say ADQ defectors -- Montreal Gazette
Beleaguered ADQ chief wants out -- Globe And Mail

My Comment: This situation provides an opportunity for the Federalists in Quebec, and the Conservatives in particular. The ADQ have always split a good portion of the Federalist and soft nationalist vote to their cause .... thereby permitting the PQ to come into the middle to win elections.

The demise of the ADQ will now end this. The key now is how will the Federalists take advantage of this situation. The Conservative win in yesterdays byelection in the rural riding of Quebec may give an indication on where this may be going.

Conservatives Win 2 Byelections, 1 At Bloc's Expense

Photo: Four ridings were up for grabs in Monday's federal byelections — one each in British Columbia and Nova Scotia and two in Quebec. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

From The CBC:

Bloc holds on to Montreal riding, NDP wins in B.C.

The Conservatives scored two federal byelection wins Monday, upsetting the Bloc Québécois in eastern Quebec and cruising to an easy victory in Nova Scotia.

The Bloc easily retained the riding of Hochelaga in Montreal's east end, while the New Democrats had no trouble holding on to a seat in British Columbia.

Conservative Bernard Genereux, the former mayor of La Pocatière, scored an upset in Montmagny-L'Islet-Kamouraska-Rivière du loup in eastern Quebec, taking more than 42 per cent of the vote, ahead of the Bloc's Nancy Gagnon, with just under 38 per cent.

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My Comment: This is an unexpected surprise for the Conservatives .... especially in Quebec. They also did better in the Montreal riding, as well as finishing a respectable 2nd in B.C.

The Bloc did a heavy push in support of the gun registry which clearly flat in Eastern Quebec.The NDP won in BC opposing the Harmonization tax .... which worked for them even though they are in favor of raising the GST. The message from the Conservatives could have been better refined .... but it was not.

The big losers were the Liberals .... their popular vote went down, and the Green party was non-existent in the vote count.

I will comment more on the Liberal loss of popular vote in the next few posts.

Lawyers Dominate Politics, But Not One Running In Monday's Byelections

Parliament Building

From The Canadian Press:

Monday's federal byelections will choose four new members of Parliament from a list of candidates that includes three farmers, four municipal politicians, a principal, a plumber, and an engineer — but not a single lawyer, a profession that dominates Canadian politics.

Since Confederation, 1009 lawyers have sat in the House of Commons, nearly twice as many as politicians from any other profession, according to data collected by the Parliament.

Fifteen of Canada's 22 prime ministers have practised law. Stephen Harper, an economist, is the country's first non-lawyer leader since 1980.

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My Comment: No lawyers .... I feel better already.

Bloc Hopes Gun Registry Triggers Byelection Win

From The CBC:

The Bloc Québécois is using gun control to curry favour in a pair of federal byelections Monday that are seen as mid-term popularity contests for the sovereigntist party.

The Bloc is fighting to hold on to the Hochelaga riding in east-end Montreal, and the Montmagnuy-L'Islet-Kamouraska-Rivière-du-Loup riding in eastern Quebec, two regions where its candidates face close races with their opponents.

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My comment: the opposition is split, and 40% of the riding who are separatists .... and they are going to vote for the Bloc.

Tories Position By-Elections As Test Of Ignatieff

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff speaks with reporters on Wednesday, November 4, 2009, after the party's caucus meeting on Parliament Hill. The Canadian Press

From Globe And Mail:

In votes across the country Monday, race for second place is in many cases just as important as winning.

Liberals expect to be shut out of four federal by-elections and their rivals are already positioning Monday's results as a rejection of Michael Ignatieff's shaky leadership.

The contests will most likely amount to a confirmation of the status quo, with the Bloc Quebecois hanging on to two ridings in Quebec, New Democrats holding on to another in British Columbia and the Tories reclaiming a Nova Scotia riding that had been a longtime stronghold until Bill Casey, a former Conservative MP, captured it as an independent in 2008.

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My Comment: The Liberal Party is probably coming in second in two of these byelections, third in the other two.

Lax Laws In Canada Allow Corruption To Flourish

From The Montreal Gazette:

Politicians of all stripes continue to protect a corrupt system.

The allegations concerning Montreal city politicians and officials accepting gifts and donations from companies that deal with the city, along with similar scandals across Canada, reveal the loopholes in ethics laws that continue to undermine our democracy.

Every government in Canada should have long ago passed laws that:

Prohibit donations by corporations or organizations (because these entities don't vote);

Limit donations or gifts by individuals to any party, candidate or official to a combined total of no more than $500 a year;

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My Comment: Money is the mother's milk of politics .... this is something that they will never change.

The Perils Of Politicizing A Pandemic

From The Globe And Mail:

1. The politics of H1N1. Did the Ignatieff Liberals really plant one of their own to complain on national television about the shortage of vaccine? Indeed, the accusations are flying today with the Harper PMO sending out an alert to all of its MPs, Senators and staffers urging them not to respond or comment about a news story on CBC's The National last night “in which an employee of Michael Ignatieff’s office appears in a ‘street interview’ as an ordinary citizen concerned about the supply of H1N1 vaccine.”

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My Comment: This is stupid. Let the crisis run through its course. Exploiting it for political reasons will only get you burned.

Liberal Fundraising Takes A Plunge In Third Quarter

From The Edmonton Sun:

OTTAWA — Liberal fundraising took a nose-dive in the third quarter after a near invisible summer for Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff and after threats that he would force an election battered the Liberal brand.

Numbers published by Elections Canada reveal the Liberals only took in $1.94 million in donations in July, August and September compared to the $3.87 million they attracted in the three previous months.

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My Comment: Liberal supporters are clearly not happy. This is a reflection of what the money people are thinking about when it comes to Mr. Ignatieff's leadership.

Winning An Election Can Be Harzadous To Your Helath

Photo: Pierre Lambert died of a heart attack Sunday night moments after finding out he had been re-elected as a city councillor in Notre Dame des Prairies, located about 70 kilometres northeast of Montreal. Photograph by: ., Photo courtesy of the Town of Notre Dame des Prairies

Quebec Politician Dies Seconds After Learning He's Re-elected -- Toronto Star

MONTREAL – One minute, popular local politician Pierre Lambert was revelling in his re-election to town council.

The next, he was sprawled on the floor of city hall, supporters trying feverishly to revive him from a devastating heart attack without success.

Lambert's death after a close-fought election has stunned the community of Notre-Dame-des-Prairies, 65 kilometres northeast of Montreal.

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My Comment: What happens now?

Montreal Municipal Elections -- Complete News Roundup

Gérald Tremblay (left), Louise Harel (centre) and Richard Bergeron
fought a tight race for mayor in Montreal. (CBC)

Tremblay Wins Montreal Mayor Race -- CBC

Gérald Tremblay won a third straight term as mayor of Montreal despite a campaign dominated by allegations of corruption involving the Mob and construction companies.

Tremblay, who leads the Union Montréal municipal party, beat rivals Louise Harel and Richard Bergeron in a tight race Sunday.

The mayor said he is "conscious that the confidence of Montrealers has been put to the test."

"The citizens want change and we will incarnate that change," Tremblay said.

Read more ....

More News On Yesterday's Elections

Complete Election Coverage From The Montreal Gazette -- Montreal Gazette

Montreal Mayor Tremblay wins third term -- Montreal Gazette
Montreal mayor keeps his job -- Toronto Star
Tremblay re-elected mayor -- CTV
Voters' message is clear as mud -- Montreal Gazette
Projet Montréal shines in Plateau -- CBC
Harel: I'll continue to fight corruption -- Montreal Gazette
Tearful Forcillo thanks army of volunteers -- Montreal Gazette
Ex-cop poised to take over troubled part of city -- Montreal Gazette
For the most part, no serious delays in casting ballots -- Montreal Gazette
Harel after-vote party fizzles -- Montreal Gazette
Gerald Tremblay vows to rebuild public trust after narrow election victory -- Canadian Press

Round-up of suburban races -- CTV
Three mayors ousted -- Montreal Gazette

Beaconsfield voters boot Benedetti from office -- Montreal Gazette
Benedetti falls in West Island election -- CBC

LaSalle's Barbe rides apparent landslide -- Montreal Gazette

Steinberg clear winner in bitter race -- Montreal Gazette

Former Bloc MP elected as Longueuil mayor -- CBC
St-hilaire upsets in Longueuil -- Montreal Gazette

Vaillancourt wins 6th term as Laval mayor -- CBC
Vaillancourt sweeps council in repeat landslide -- Montreal Gazette

Labeaume cruises to mayoral victory in Quebec City -- CBC
Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume re-elected -- CTV

Sherbrooke has first new mayor in 15 years -- CBC

Gatineau Mayor Marc Bureau wins 2nd term -- CBC

Blame low turnout on cynicism - or disconnection -- Montreal Gazette
Get out your broom Mr. Mayor -- Montreal Gazette opinion
Rebalancing of power -- Montreal Gazette
Let's hope Tremblay is committed to reform -- Montreal Gazette