Isn't having a minority government that knows it will never get a majority neat? Aside from the image of a runaway train clattering towards the disaster of earning the label "arrogant" faster than any government in Canadian history, it is a real lesson in the actual division of powers within the Parliamentary system of democracy. Yesterday's action was a classic:
Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said Tuesday he was powerless to block the impending extradition of Karlheinz Schreiber to Germany, even though Parliament's main lawyer said he has the authority to amend the federal order. Lacking guarantees that Mr. Schreiber will be able to appear before a parliamentary probe, the Speaker of the House issued a rare "Speaker's warrant" to force his appearance before MPs this week.For a government that has made the insane choice to label itself as "clean" (never minding that everyone has skeletons) the prospect of the a very public and opposition controlled discussion of why Mulroney was brought back into favour and even why a letter to the Privy Council conveying bad news about said elder statesman did not into the hands of the pan-centric PMO is just delish.
The point is not that this may be all political maneuvering. It that all this political maneuvering is just turning out to be so gosh darn fun. So, as the wheels do or do not come off, whose power play do you want to see? The Liberals actually play their card and pull the rug on Parliament? Maybe a coalition going to see the GG and get anointed this ousting Mr. Grumpy? Perhaps the Supreme Court ordering that a Senate reorg get passed by the provinces for approval? What should it be?
Comments
Ben (The Tiger) - November 28, 2007 9:58 am
It's definitely fun to watch. And an education -- I mean, the May 2005 budget crisis taught us more about confidence than any number of academic articles had done. (Answer: confidence is what you can get away with.)
I thought we might get to October 2009 before the next election, because the polls are hovering in the sweet spot -- Conservative re-election with less than a majority -- but who knows, the other parties may have enough of it before then...
sean liddle - November 28, 2007 10:06 am
Speakers Warrant.. Cool.
As Ben said, this is fun to watch. Sure from the POV of a Lib it is snicker inducing but really, as soon as anyone claims they are clean and pristine, I am immediately hoping for said closet to open and said skeletons to march out just because I dislike people spreading political misinformation. I am hoping for a full blown no holds barred shout-fest and as far as the predictable "just you wait we'll drag in (insert name of targetted ex-Lib-MPs or PMs) and do the same" retorts from the Reformadroids, I don't care if they do. Anything is more interesting than news clips of John "Puddy" Baird yabbling away on yet another topic he knows naught of.
Hans - November 28, 2007 11:54 am
I would like to see some parties cobble together a shakey coalition forcing the GG to call on the PM to dissolve parliament and call an election or failing the PM agreeing to do that calling on the leader of the coalition to form government. I would then like to see the parties with seats in parliament cobble together some variation of the original shakey coalition to form a coalition majority government.
David Janes - November 29, 2007 5:49 pm
Not as classic as today's action though.
Alan - November 29, 2007 7:22 pm
"Yorkers about"! Yorkers! I see strangers! War of the Roses! Division and intrigue. It is all coming together. And I would say it is a classique, if you please.
Sean Liddle - November 29, 2007 7:55 pm
Today was a fine day to be a poli-hack.
It was supposed to be $500K but he (snicker snicker) didn't do anything!