Harper is definitely out in the cold, but he’s hoping this break will let him ignite the Conservative pilot light.

PM Stephen Harper asked Santa for a prorogation of parliament and he got it… Well actually he asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean but either way, he will be having a long Christmas holiday.

For those of you who are not up to date, firstly, take a look at Michael’s post regarding the Liberal and NDP alliance. To summarize, the Liberals and NDP decided that they were sick and tired of Harper’s inability to take action to save the economy so they decided that if they formed a coalition, then their combined seats would give them a majority. It is important to note that the Bloc Quebecois support the coalition in the no confidence vote, but they are not technically part of it.

On Wednesday at 7pm, the prime minister delivered a short speech to the country regarding what he was planning to do. Well actually he didn’t say much that we hadn’t heard already other than saying that he will use all ‘legal means necessary’ to stay in power. That and he constantly referred to the Bloc’s role in this coalition as dealing with ‘separatists’. The intriguing thing is that his speeches in English and French were identical, word for word, in translation, except in the French speech he referred to them as ‘sovereignists. ’According to Peter Mansbridge of CBC, it seems that the term separatist carries a bit of a punch in Quebec. Hmm…. I wonder why….

Stephen Harper met with the Governor General this morning after she cut her European visit short to deal with this crisis. After a lengthy period of time, the podium was brought out for a speech, and Harper emerged successful in his endeavours to postpone parliament for six weeks.

Harper was down to his last bastion, he even had to divide the Francophones and Anglophones within our dear country. He did have one last ace up his sleeve which he successfully played. The Liberals and NDP were planning to vote him out of power, but by suspending the vote, Harper was able to jump the gun until January 26th, 2009. At that time, he will release his budget; the budget that will make or break his political career. It will then be voted on by the House of Commons and we shall see if he sinks or swims.

Many political correspondents are calling Harper’s move underhanded and dirty, but personally I support it. Stephen Harper has been bombarded since just after the election. He did a decent job for us in his previous term so I don’t see why we can’t let him collect his thoughts (which seem to be strewn across the floor of the House) and see what he has to offer. Understandably, Dion is outraged, but let Harper use his home field advantage. Personally, I think this is the most democratic thing we can do. We did, after all, vote him into power, so why not give him a fair chance? If he can’t deliver, then the gates of 24 Sussex Drive will be open for Dion’s Liberal successor. Some Canadians voted for the Liberals, and some voted for the NDP, but would all of these voters support a coalition?

Harper was fine for us a few years ago when all economies were doing well, but ever since the ground floor of America collapsed, the Canadian ceiling is starting to cave in. Commenting after his good tidings were delivered, Stephen Harper invited the opposition to work with him in the next six weeks on their ideas. He said, “The public is very frustrated with the situation in Parliament, and we are responsible for that. We are all responsible for that.” I think that Harper hasn’t been the problem for the recent economic downturn so let’s stop blaming it all on him. His re-election happened to be at a pretty bad time. For those who say he’s already had his chance, the rate of demise of the economy has been unpredictable for the last little while so hopefully it will settle long enough for him to analyze the situation and choose his direction.

Harper knows the gravity of his situation and understandably will not take it lightly. Michaëlle Jean entrusted him with this responsibility, and personally I don’t know if he will be able to deliver, but at least he deserves a fair chance. Parliament can handle a six week break. Lord knows, Dion’s vocal cords need rest.

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Tags: coalition, conservative, harper, prorogation, prorogue, suspend parliament

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 4th, 2008 at 9:20 pm and is filed under Economy, Federal Government. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.