The Common Sense Conservative

The place for common sense conservative talk. Conservative way of thinking should not be looked upon by the masses and especially by the mainstream media as some evil. In fact most people still believe they are conservative in nature but do not align themselves with the far right agenda that has crept into our political systems. Nor do they feel they fall under the far left agenda, so a new way of thinking is emerging, called Common Sense Conservatism!

Showing posts with label Prime Minister Harper. Show all posts

Thursday, 6 June 2013

Federal Conservatives Unraveling?

Is this the beginning of the end for the federal Conservative party as it currently sits? Is this going to be the start of calls made quietly for Harper to step down and have a new leader for the next election?

Having met Mr. Harper and finding him a very sincere person I think it may be time for the conservative movement to look for a successor. Although getting no kudos from the left leaning media for guiding Canada through some very rough waters the past 5 years or so, Prime Minister Harper has done a great job. Our country is strong coming out of the world wide recession that still grips most of Europe and our neighbours to the south. Though not helped by provincial governments here, looking at you BC, Quebec and Ontario! Were it not for these three governments fighting anything the Harper government put forth to move our country forward I think we may have been in an even better position than we currently are.

So, what do we need in a new leader? Well, one that is more open to the media for starters! You know that any conservative leader will be vilified via the media, you still need to be able to get your message across and let the voters decide who to believe. So a more outgoing leader is a must in my opinion.

Our next leader should also work on transparency within government and stick to it, meaning if we elect you to clean up government, do so! This is where this conservative party has failed us. We want a clean, lean government and they have failed to provide us with one.

Cut spending, our next leader needs to sign onto deep cuts in government spending. We do not need the federal government creating an economy with spending. Mr. Harper buckled under pressure by the EU and President Obama to turn the taps on and spend out of recession. Although not going as far as some would have liked I feel we spent and continue to spend too much.

Our next leader should start to move the Canadian economy away from depending on resources and into the new era of technology. We need to foster growth in this industry as it is the way of the future and we currently are being left behind. We need to entice companies to set up her, develop here, we need to have our universities involved in the science, we need more in order to remain relevant in the world. Our dependence on resources as a major driver of the economy although has served us well in the past should not be looked at as a leader in our future. Most resources are finite and if we do not move on to a more technology based economy I fear for our nation's future. Our next leader should call on companies, universities, provinces and more to invest, foster and make our nation attractive for businesses to come to Canada, this is the future.

Our new leader must tackle immigration as well. Our immigration system is so flawed that a complete tear down may be required. We have provinces(Alberta & Saskatchewan) that desperately need immigrants but are being handcuffed by the federal limits. While provinces such ad Ontario, Quebec and BC have much higher unemployment numbers and continue to take in their quota of immigrants. Either raise the quota for the provinces that need more or have an overall quota for all of Canada and limit areas with higher unemployment. Makes sense doesn't it? I mean do provinces with over 7% unemployemnt and much large under-empoyment rates really need to bring in more immigrants while other provinces are crying for help, help that would drive growth across the nation and help out the "have not" provinces?

Is it time for a new leader, I think it is, but feel Harper is content trying his hand at the next election. This I feel will be a terrible mistake and hand the country over to Trudeau who has proven time and time again that he is not a person capable of leading a nation.

Dismayed Conservatives confront news that MP Brent Rathgeber has quit Harper’s caucus

BY MIKE DE SOUZA & MICHAEL WOODS, POSTMEDIA NEWS JUNE 6, 2013 11:08 AM

Conservative MP Brent Rathgeber

Photograph by: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick , Postmedia News

OTTAWA — Alberta MP Brent Rathgeber’s decision to quit the federal Conservative caucus over what he believes is a lack of commitment to transparency by the government left his Tory colleagues in turmoil Thursday.

Several said they were disappointed by the news. Rathgeber announced his decision late Wednesday, saying the government was trying to dilute a private member’s bill he has introduced on financial disclosure of senior public service salaries. He fears the government is not living up to its own rhetoric on transparency and openness in government.

Conservative government whip Gordon O’Connor disagreed, saying Rathgeber would have to explain himself.

“We are open and transparent,” O’Connor said. “We provide all the financial information. Every day we explain what we’re doing. We have announcements here all the time. There’s no secrets going on. People know what’s going on in the government.”

Some Conservative MPs, including John Williamson, a New Brunswick MP and former head of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation which supports more transparency, declined to comment.

Ontario Tory MP Larry Miller said he had supported the intent of a financial transparency bill for public servants that Rathgeber has been trying to have passed, but had concerns it could actually drive up wages of some senior government officials.

“At the same time, if his bill was totally gutted, which it sounds like that’s what he’s ticked off about, then I have some concerns. But until I actually see what came out of the committee or whatever, I can’t really comment,” said Miller.

Rathgeber tweeted his decision to sit as an independent from the Conservative caucus after the governing party rewrote his legislation designed to improve transparency about federal records and information.

“My decision to resign from the CPC caucus is because of the government’s lack of commitment to transparency and open government,” the Edmonton MP wrote on his Twitter account late Wednesday.

Thursday morning, in an extensive blog post, he called it the “straw that broke the camel’s back.”

My decision to resign from the CPC Caucus is because of the Government’s lack of commitment to transparency and open government.

— Brent Rathgeber, MP (@brentrathgeber) June 6, 2013

The government had just voted major changes to his bill, which would be similar to “sunshine” laws in some provinces by requiring highly paid public servants to disclose their salaries at federal departments and agencies as well as Crown corporations such as the CBC. The Conservatives amended it so that the minimum salary that would trigger public disclosures would be more than $444,000, not the $188,000 level Rathgeber proposed.

A spokesman for the prime minister’s office confirmed via Twitter that Rathgeber had resigned from caucus, and said the MP should resign from the House of Commons. “The people of Edmonton-St. Albert elected a Conservative Member of Parliament. Mr. Rathgeber should resign and run in a by-election,” Andrew MacDougall wrote.

The people of Edmonton-St. Albert elected a Conservative Member of Parliament. Mr. Rathgeber should resign and run in a by-election. (2/2) — Andrew MacDougall (@PMO_MacDougall) June 6, 2013

“It really smacks of hypocrisy,” Rathgeber told the CBC, referring to MacDougall’s comments. “It’s a little rich.” He pointed to the example of David Emerson, who quit the Liberal caucus after the 2006 election to join the Tories. The Conservatives did not suggest he should run in a byelection.

In his blog entry posted, entitled “I Stand Alone,” Rathgeber outlined the rationale for his decision.

“Clearly, the Government’s decision not to support my Private Member’s Bill on CBC and Public Sector disclosure and transparency in Committee was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back; however, this decision and my comfort level in caucus has been evolving for at least a year.”

“Recent allegations concerning expense scandals and the Government’s response has been extremely troubling. I joined the Reform/conservative movements because I thought we were somehow different, a band of Ottawa outsiders riding into town to clean the place up, promoting open government and accountability. I barely recognize ourselves, and worse I fear that we have morphed into what we once mocked.

“My constituents demand better. My constituents simply do not care what somebody, who they hope will never become Prime Minister, did or didn’t do seventeen years ago. They do care, however, about the relations between a sitting Senator and Langevin Block (PMO). For a government that was elected on a platform of accountability, my constituents are gravely disappointed.

“I still support and greatly respect the Prime Minister; I continue to question the decisions and actions of many of his advisors. I will continue to support the government generally, but not unequivocally. I will deploy my independent vote on a case by case, issue by issue basis.

“I can only compromise so much before I begin to not recognize myself. I no longer recognize much of the party that I joined and whose principles (at least on paper), I still believe in. Accordingly, since I can no longer stand with them, I must now stand alone.”

Tory MP Mark Warawa responded to Rathgeber’s announcement via Twitter on Wednesday, saying, “Brent, you are a man of integrity and will be missed.”

@brentrathgeber Brent, you are a man of integrity and will be missed.

— Mark Warawa (@MPmarkwarawa) June 6, 2013

Two days before the amendments to his bill were made, Rathgeber had recommended a sweeping review of existing laws granting people access to government records, saying that Canada is a “laggard” in making information available to taxpayers.

He made the comments this week as a parliamentary committee continued its review of the private member’s bill which would expand the existing federal access to information law.

NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice said Thursday that the resignation from Tory caucus shows that Conservatives, who had come to change Ottawa, were being changed themselves. He also said some Tory MPs are privately complaining that they no longer have the freedom to speak freely without permission from the prime minister, and are warning opposition members to be careful they don’t suffer the same fate.

But Miller rejected Rathgeber’s suggestions that the Conservative party had changed.

“That’s totally wrong,” Miller said. “I’m sure that Brent said some things when he was not in very good humour and that’s fine. But I totally disagree with that and that’s all I’m going to say.”

NDP leader Tom Mulcair said Rathgeber’s frustration was part of a pattern of behaviour with the Harper government that incuded recent events in the Senate.

“That’s the reality of Ottawa. These are people who got themselves elected on a promise of transparency and accountability.

Rathgeber has argued his government’s suggestion of a high baseline salary to trigger public disclosure was too high and would only allow for information on salaries of some CEOs at Crown corporations, chairs of boards and commissions or a few judicial appointments, while excluding information on salaries of deputy ministers across government.

Wednesday, 5 June 2013

Transparency In Government....What A Neat Idea!

Although this is just a ploy by Mr Trudeau to grab some headlines I do think it may be a good idea to have complete transparency within government. I mean should we not know as taxpayers who is spending our money and on what? Just how many Bev Odas and Mike Duffys do we have within our elected officials?

I would like to call on the Harper Government to enact such transparency but also to make all upper and middle government employees fall under the same scrutiny. I would suggest we start at the CBC and work from there. If we want to cut government waste, let's get at it and do the job properly! Within our ministries there is countless billions wasted and I think a government that came to power under with aspirations of cleaning up government should get on with the job and start cleaning. Some will say they have, but let's face it, they really haven't. The conservative government I think has been so scared to be labelled extreme that they have gone soft in the areas that the country elected them for. Government waste needs to stop and stop now! In fact it may be time for the federal government to enact a LEAN program developed by Toyota and generally accepted as the guiding principle for most fortune 500 companies and many government organizations around the world.

From the National Post...

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau made the announcement in Ottawa Wednesday, laying out a proposal to boost transparency in government at a time when, he says, questions about Senate expenses have shaken Canadians’ faith in the system. It extends rules that currently apply to cabinet ministers.

“Over the past weeks, we’ve seen a tremendous level of cynicism increased and a level of disenchantment with both our parliamentary institutions and the people who serve them. It is our sense that the proposals…. are going to go a long way toward restoring Canadians’ confidence in institutions we believe in,” Mr. Trudeau told reporters.

The data will be released quarterly in searchable formats so that people can “search, play with, utilize, share and actually get to the heart of concerns anyone might have,” Mr. Trudeau said. Presently, some Senate expenses, for instance, are published in a series of PDFs that are cumbersome to compare.

Mr. Trudeau has been under fire from Conservatives for defending the Senate, saying it’s to Quebec’s “advantage,” and for not immediately passing a Conservative motion for an audit of all Senate expenses. Senator James Cowan, the Liberal leader in the Senate, said he expects that motion will pass Wednesday.

The Wednesday announcement was interrupted by a small group of roughly one dozen protesters, who appeared to target Mr. Trudeau’s support for the Senate by chanting “Trudeau loves the status quo, what about the average Joe?” Mr. Trudeau stopped his speech, watched them, and then suggested the group was sent by Conservatives.

“One can see why the Conservatives are so worried that the openness and the transparency that the Liberal party is demonstrating and is serious about demonstrating. They want to change the channel, they want to talk about anything else, but we are going to talk about how we’re restoring Canadians’ confidence in the Senate,” he said.

The group of people, all young adults and most of them male, did not identify themselves, and left Parliament Hill once approached by reporters. They declined to say their names, whether they work on the Hill or for the Conservative party. One said he was unemployed. Photos suggest that person is a former employee of the Conservative Resource Group, a research agency serving the Tory caucus. An RCMP officer said the group had no permit but was not asked to leave.

Mr. Trudeau’s move to announce the disclosure of expenses was applauded by former Liberal MP Michelle Simson, who served from 2008 to 2011 and voluntarily disclosed her own. “At last, a party leader leading by example,” Ms. Simson wrote on Twitter, adding: “Shame on all other MPs that don’t follow suit.”

The Liberal proposal also includes a bill, due in the fall, to make the House of Commons’ secretive Board of Internal Economy meetings open to the public in most cases. The Conservatives would have to support that bill for it to pass. Mr. Trudeau also called on the House and Senate boards of economy to work with the Auditor General to develop mandatory performance audits.

Before the announcement, however, Mr. Cowan, the top Liberal Senator, said it’s a “cop-out” to blame rules and that audits would not have caught a $90,000 cheque from the Prime Minister’s former chief of staff to Senator Mike Duffy. “I don’t think the real problem we have here [are] the rules. I think it’s the lack of respect that some people have for the rules. That’s the problem,” he said.

Senator Claude Carignan, a Conservative appointed by Mr. Harper, said the cases of Pamela Wallin and Mike Duffy are “exceptions” to the performance of the Senate.

“We are very good senators, we are here to serve citizens and not the inverse,” he said.

Monday, 8 August 2011

Brazil-Canada move to strengthen commercial ties

With the global turmoil I think this is a very wise move by Canada. The next 100 years belong to India, China, Russia and Brazil(BRIC) The BRIC countries are leading the way economically and for Canada to take full advantage of their booming economies we must strengthen ties politically and economically.

Brazil-Canada move to strengthen commercial ties

BY MARK KENNEDY, POSTMEDIA NEWS AUGUST 8, 2011 2:18 PM

Prime Minister Stephen Harper attends a signing ceremony with Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff at Planalto Palace in Brasilia on August 8, 2011.

Photograph by: Ueslei Marcelino, Reuters

BRASILIA — A group of senior Canadian and Brazilian business leaders has been established to provide governments in both countries strategic advice on how to strengthen commercial ties.

The announcement was made Monday after a meeting of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.

"We have both been successfully weathering the headwinds of the global economy due to strong fundamentals," Harper said in a prepared statement he delivered while Rousseff stood nearby. "And while we compete, we also understand that trade is a vital tool for our mutual goals of greater security, expanded wealth and more jobs."

Harper said he and Rousseff had "cordial, productive discussions on Brazil-Canada relations and global concerns."

He said that included in-depth discussions of the global economic and financial situation that is currently drawing concerns worldwide. He said they will work together as members of the G20 to "push forward global stability and the global economic recovery."

In her own statement Rousseff was critical of the report issued last Friday by Standard & Poor's which downgraded the United States credit rating from its traditional triple-A status. That move has caused jitters in stock markets around the world, leading to a sudden decline in stock values as the markets opened in New York on Monday morning.

Rousseff said she thought the Standard & Poor's report was rushed and was based on inaccurate information.

For his part, Harper made no immediate comment on the economic problems faced by the United States or the European Union, although he was expected to provide his own observations at a news conference later Monday afternoon.

Harper is in Brazil at the start of a week-long trip to Latin America to boost trade, promote democracy, and fight against the security threats posed by organized crime in the region.

His main priority in Brazil is to boost trade with the country which is already the seventh largest economy in the world and is viewed as a burgeoning economic player.

"Your remarkable emergence as a global economic power and your embrace of democratic freedoms after many years of autocratic rule are an inspiration to struggling peoples everywhere," Harper told Rousseff in his statement, delivered in front of journalists.

He promised that while this is his first visit to Brazil, it won't be his last — as he continues to push forward with a strategy to improve relations in Central and South America.

"Brazil, with all its vitality and its enterprising spirit, is a tremendously important part of our plans. We share the fundamental values of democracy, diversity and human rights. We both strive for peace and prosperity at home while accepting global responsibilities."

Harper and Rousseff announced the launch of the Canada-Brazil CEO Forum, which they said is designed to "strengthen the economic and commercial relationship" between their two countries.

"Our government recognizes Brazil as an important economic and strategic partner and is committed to opening up new opportunities for Canadians and their business," said Harper. "The creation of the CEO Forum will expand our commercial ties, create more jobs, and ensure our long-term prosperity."

According to a background paper provided by the Canadian government, the forum will bring together influential business leaders from both countries who will "provide input into the policymaking process of both governments."

Its members will meet "on the margins" of high-level political meetings between Canada and Brazil. The group will be co-chaired by "highly respected and forward-looking Canadians and Brazilian leaders who understand the imperative of working in a world connected by global commerce, opportunity and shared values," according to a Canadian statement.

Two co-chairs appointed by the governments will then be responsible for identifying other CEOs to participate in the forum, which will be tasked with providing "joint recommendations on strategic priorities" for how Canada and Brazil can strengthen their "international competitiveness."

Also Monday, Canada and Brazil signed a bilateral Air Transport Agreement to provide tourists and businesses more choice in airline services, destinations and lower prices, and inked a deal on social security which will bring benefits to Canadians and Brazilians by co-ordinating pension benefits between both countries.

As well, the two nations signed a memorandum of understanding that will involve Canada sharing its "recent experience" in hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics. Brazil will be hosting the summer Olympic games in 2016 and is seeking helping on how to organize the event.

mkennedy@postmedia.com

Wednesday, 3 August 2011

Harper praises Toronto mayor for cleaning up 'NDP mess'

BY NATALIE ALCOBA, POSTMEDIA NEWS AUGUST 3, 2011 4:53 PM

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance and Regional Minister for the GTA, TTC Chair Karen Stintz, and Metrolinx Chair Rob Prichard pose for a photo as they tour of the subway system, Wednesday afternoon, August 3, 2011 at Union Station in Toronto.

Photograph by: Aaron Lynett, National Post

TORONTO — Toronto Mayor Rob Ford traded quips with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, his newly minted fishing partner, during a Tuesday barbecue bash at the Ford family homestead in honour of Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.

When introducing Harper, the mayor boasted about catching the largest fish of the day, a 39 centimetre bass, during their recent trip up north.

"I love to fish, so if anyone wants to take me out, let's go fishing," he told the Conservative crowd gathered in his mother's backyard.

Harper corroborated the mayor's prowess at the end of a fishing line.

"But the difficulty, where . . . he didn't live to his reputation, is he refused to kill it and eat it," the prime minister remarked.

The speeches were captured on video and posted to YouTube. The Fords' friendship with Flaherty dates back to his years with the Ontario Progressive Conservatives, and his friendship with their late father and former member of provincial legislature Doug Ford Sr.

Harper also noted that the mayor's endorsement of him in the federal election "helped a lot" and praised his work "cleaning up the NDP mess here in Toronto."

He added: "We started cleaning up the left-wing mess federally in this area, Rob's doing it municipally and now we've got to complete the hat trick and do it provincially as well."

Video:

Thursday, 28 July 2011

Canada's New Lustre in the World

Opinion: Canada's new lustre in the world

Once harsh critics, American conservatives now look north for ideas on governance and public policy. But we shouldn't be smug

BY ADAM DAIFALLAH, SPECIAL TO THE GAZETTE JULY 28, 2011 11:01 AM

Karen Hale waves the flag as she walks along the parade route during Canada Day festivities in downtown Vancouver.

Photograph by: Stuart Davis, PNG

About 10 years ago, the American conservative magazine National Review ran an issue whose cover featured some Mounties with the word "WIMPS" printed across the page. The cover and the accompanying article by Jonah Goldberg, "Bomb Canada: The Case for War," was a semi-satirical attack piece, taking Canada to task for its perceived anti-Americanism and lack of contribution on the world stage.

Making fun of Canada has long been a U.S. national pastime. Recall the contest held by Michael Kinsley, then editor of the New Republic, to find the world's most boring headline. The winner? "Worthwhile Canadian Initiative." As recently as 2006, Goldberg, writing again about Canada, called us "arguably the most deluded" industrialized nation in the world" because "elite Canadians" think "being different than the U.S. and sucking up to the United Nations will buy them grace on the cheap."

Today, no one is laughing at the Great White North - especially Americans - and certainly no one would accuse the Harper government of kowtowing to the UN.

As economic confidence south of the border plunges to a 15-year low and the debt-ceiling fiasco edges toward catastrophe, many U.S. experts are praising Canada as an attractive low-tax environment and a beacon for sound fiscal policy and good governance. The opportunities before us are immense - and the last to take note, as usual, are Canadians themselves. This week, for example, Canadian business titan Peter Munk said that Canada now has the same opportunity to do with the mining sector what Britain did with the financial sector at the turn of the last century - that is, to become its global centre.

What's most surprising about all the plaudits is that much of them are coming from the heretofore most critical corners - particularly from U.S. conservatives.

Fred Barnes, editor of the Weekly Standard, recently took to the pages of the Wall Street Journal to argue that the government of Jean Chrétien set the example on how to right an economically failing ship: cut government spending and do not raise taxes. As Barnes noted, between 1995 and 1998 Canada turned a $36.6-billion deficit into a $3-billion surplus.

(The Wall Street Journal was a fitting avenue for the article; in 1995 that newspaper ran an editorial suggesting that Canada was close to bankruptcy. Many credit the attention the editorial received for jolting Chrétien and then-finance minister Paul Martin into action.)

Meanwhile, a surprising new article in Maclean's notes that Canada is emerging as the go-to destination for the world's wealthy. Tax specialists apparently now refer to Canada as the "Great White tax haven" and the "Switzerland of the North." The inflow of high-net-worth individuals to our country (last year, 12,000 people moved here under a special immigration program for the wealthy) is giving Canada a net economic boost of roughly $2-billion a year - and the trend is likely to continue.

The U.S. conservative movement is also looking to the Harper Conservatives for ideas. A consensus has emerged in the U.S. that Canada handled the 2008-2010 economic crisis better than any other western country, and conservatives there have been particularly impressed with the Harper government's campaign strategies of microtargeting defined blocs of voters to broaden its support.

At the moment, everything from our immigration laws to the GST is being praised by Americans as examples of good public policy.

A quick pat on the back is more than deserved, and we should give credit to our successive national governments for the sound economic policies that have led us to this place. But we shouldn't get caught up in self-congratulation either.

It wasn't that long ago that we were battling the brain drain (which has now effectively reversed direction) and paying $1.45 to buy a U.S. dollar.

Canada seems to perform well when the global economy doesn't. Europe and the U.S. are in the gutter, but we are holding our own. When things are going well elsewhere, Canada is perceived as an overregulator, and to a great extent that perception is true.

Canada-enviers ought to tread carefully. They should look to Canada as a model in terms of outcome, not of process. In the past we have too often drifted into over-regulation of the economy. With the continuing emergence of the dynamic and risk-prone economies of the group known as BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China), this is not the time to take the safe route by turning to increased red tape, particularly in the U.S.

We obviously have many challenges ahead of us, but let this international admiration remind us that things in Canada are going extremely well - though we have to work hard to hold on to our status as an enviable economy. That status is, for lack of a better term, worth something.

Adam Daifallah is a partner at Hatley Strategies, a montreal public-affairs firm,and a lecturer at McGill University's Department of North American Studies