Bad vibes
April 3 (Dan Leger, The Chronicle Herald) The secret world of Stephen Harper
The prime minister perceives a pressing need for control over the words and actions of his government. His team is inexperienced and largely untested. Could it be that Mr. Harper canât trust his ministers to stick to the game plan? It would seem that way.
Yet Mr. Harper himself has shown a distinct willingness to depart from his stated political credo and veer off into the bad old ways of practical politics. He lured a Liberal to cross the floor and rewarded him with a cabinet post (David Emerson) and appointed an unelected Tory to the Senate and made him a minister, too (Michael Fortier).
Then in a Paul Martin moment, Mr. Harper fueled up the government jet and flew to New Brunswick, dispensing $210 million in promises to help his pal Bernard Lord prepare for an election. Brian Mulroney would be proud.
This behaviour emits bad political vibes.
Two wrongs don’t make a right, even for the right-wing.