Congratulations are called for given the “secret” post-campaign marriage of Rahim Jaffer and Helena Guergis. Mr. Jaffer has also recently conceded the election to Dipper Linda Duncan.
Jaffer Severance Pay:
Don’t cry a tear for Mr. Jaffer and his campaign loss. He will collect $77,700.00 severance pay complements of the Canadian taxpayer. He will have to wait about 20 years to collect his $53,000.00 per year pension.
Senator Jaffer?
In the meantime it would not be a surprise if the Harper Party appointed Mr. Jaffer to the Senate. Jaffer would have to move to Ontario permanently because there are no Senate vacancies in Alberta right now, but Ontario has two openings. How hard will that be to relocate to become an Ontario Senator, especially since his wife is from Ontario?
Senator Jaffer will collect a basic entitlement of $134,400 per year for almost 40 years - until he is 75. If he takes on another role in the Senate he will get a significant top-up in the pay envelope. Dirty work but someone has to do it.
Senate Reform - Bert Brown is now Cool to the Idea!
I wonder if part of the Senate appointment will require Jaffer to support Harper’s campaign promise to institute 8 year term limits for the Senate. Bert Brown is the other Alberta Senate Reform champion but he is reported to be cool to Harper’s ideas on Senate reform all of a sudden. Brown was recently and finally appointed to the Senate as an “elected Senator” from Alberta. Newspaper reports indicate Mr. Brown is now cool to the idea of term limits but he still supports provinces electing Senators. Is anyone surprised?
This seems to put Mr. Brown totally off side with the Harper Party on Senate Reform. Brown does not want to see Harper unilaterally impose term limits because it would create a Constitutional crisis – likely lead by Quebec with Ontario and Atlantic Canada support. That would cause a provincial court challenge and further divide the country. But would Harper care if he is not going to stay in politics much longer than the life of his minority government?
Would Harper want to give up the discretion for Senate appointments to a bunch of wild-eyed reactionaries who might get elected from Provinces who would expect Harper to honour that democratic process? I think not.
Senate Reform is going to be a political sideshow given the serious economic, environment and social issues Canada really faces these days. That does not mean Senate reform will be ignored by the Harper Party. It is still a handy bone to throw to the radical right base that Harper still needs…even more than he needs Quebec…for the short term anyway.
Senate reform was something championed by the Reform party. It is long overdue.
ReplyDeleteYour noted comments do not surprise me. It is easy to critisize the senate until you are entrenched in the public trough.
ReplyDeleteThe "cooling" in ideology does not surprise me in the least.
The real story will be on Monday. When the disgraced and ineffectual liberal 'leader' will step down.
ReplyDeleteThat is what you get when you are insincere and all you want is power. Canadians rejected him and the liberal party.
Dion insincere??? This is just more Conservative misleading messaging. You lack a generous spirit Anon and that seems typical of the Con-Trolls who comment on this Blog.
ReplyDeleteDion's loss is due to many factors. One of them is the Harper Party deceit trumping the personal decency of Dion.
Sad for Dion. Sad for Canada. Particularly because you are the kind of people who now going have power over our lives. It is time for Harper's Party to govern the country instead of politicing with personal attack ads on Dion. Are you up to it?
Harper HAS been governing - you just don't like the direction (maybe you should move to Europe or something).
ReplyDeleteDion is insincere. He verbally attacked a CTV reporter after his blundered interview. He then continued with attack ads and ended by calling Harper a liar. That is just unbecoming. Now he is being stubborn and waiting until Monday to quit. He is only doing this so he can transfer his personal debt to the LPC. I would be upset at that approach if I were a liberal.
Dion has no personal decency - all he wanted was power and was willing to do anything to get it. He will go down in history as such - a shameful disgrace.
I don't like the way Harper has been governing. So I ams supposed to move to France and eat "freedom fries" because I disagree?
ReplyDeleteA multimillion dollar character assisination on Dion in the television campaign for over 2 years using taxpayer subsidized funds to escape election campaign accountability was acceptable to Harper and his supporters! This is decency and fairness?
Besides Harper did lie and the truth is the truth about Harper in that regard.
Anonymous...how dare you suggest that Mr. Dion has/had no decency? All HE wanted was power? (as opposed of course to Mr. Harper who just called the election for 'clarity' - not because he wanted the power of a majority). Mr. Dion has more decency in his pinkie finger than you -'Anonymous' - have in your whole body. People of integrity and decency post with their real name or run for office. Which exactly have you done?
ReplyDeleteKen, why do you allow these partisan hacks on your blog to spout these lies? The Conservative way is to just repeat a lie often enough and people will believe it. I, for one, am sick of this.
Karen - it is about time that reasonable people like you started to engage with the same dedication to enlightenment and fairness as the Con-Trolls do with their misleading positioning.
ReplyDeleteI used to sit back and do nothing because the positions of the Reform/Alliance types was so absurd. Letting them have all the air time by disengaging on thier efforts that made their positions normalized through repetition and media coverage.
A lie said 7 times becomes normalized and takes on an aura of true. McCain is doing that with allegations of Obama's relationship with an "unrepentant domestic terrorist."
Harper did it with the "dysfuntional Parliament" ruse to call an unnecessary election in breach of his own fixed election laws.
Thx for speaking out and keep it coming Karen. It is the only way to defeat this kind of deceit.
Two things:
ReplyDelete1. Do you have a link to Bert Brown's 'cooling' on senate reform?
2. I can't believe relatively how many conservative trolls you get on here. They love you. What's your secret? My guess is the problem is that some of your posts acknowledge your identification with the federal Liberals. I'm thinking we don't really get any on our blog because we are pretty nonpartisan, and the trolls are unable to attack ideas unless they can link them to a specific party, and therefore a specific set of CPC/Blogging Tories talking points.
CH - Bert Brown reference is Globe and Mail story right after the election. Search his name 15-16
ReplyDeleteConTrolls don't like that I am a PROGRESSIVE Conservative more than they have for distain that I support Liberals federally - due to Anne McLellan mostly when she was my MP.
I actually blame the egos of Chretien and Martin fo rhte mess we are in with Harper's Party today. They were so bad with internal crap they made Harper look viable as an alternative
When will Micheal Fortier resign from the Senate?
ReplyDeleteIt would be utterly disgusting to make Jaffer a senator. It would cost Harper and the Cons way too much political credibility.