Ranting ensues. 1/17
The role of Her Majesty's Official Opposition in the Westminster Parliamentary System we have in Canada is to hold the government to account, and to contribute to policy making by offering a different viewpoint on pressing matters of the day.
The role of Her Majesty's Official Opposition in the Westminster Parliamentary System we have in Canada is to hold the government to account, and to contribute to policy making by offering a different viewpoint on pressing matters of the day.
A well-functioning government and opposition can be a very positive thing because, working together, policy can be informed by a variety of viewpoints and thus be both strengthened and more responsive to a larger number of citizens. 2/17
That is not what is happening now. 3/17
The role of Her Majesty's Loyal Official Opposition is not to nay-say every single thing the government proposes, automatically and arbitrarily. 4/17
The role of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition is not to mock the Prime Minister, nor to create garish memes about the PM's wardrobe, lifestyle, or family. 5/17
The role of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition is most certainly not to just make stuff up to make the sitting PM and government look bad. 6/17
And yet, this is what is happening. 7/17
Leader of the Opposition, Andrew Scheer, and several members of his caucus felt some public backlash after a number of stunts, including Scheer going to the UK to pretend he is the PM and meeting with British officials about post-brexit trade with Canada. 8/17
Other gaffes and over-steps included going to the US to meet with officials, as though the CPC were the party forming government, also appearing on right wing US programs slagging off the actual Canadian government. 9/17
Now, apparently having been told in no uncertain terms that the Canadian public will not tolerate Scheer and the CPC breaking ranks and siding with the American Administration, Scheer has been engaging in a painful penny-pinching exercise. 10/17
This past week, Andrew Scheer has been rabbitting on about a swingset. He says the Trudeaus (silverspoon, elite, yadda, yadda) have swindled the Canadian taxpayers for the cost of some new playground equipment for the PM's official country residence at Harrington Lake. 11/17
He urges us to be outraged about a $7,000+ playground set-up. Turns out, the Trudeaus paid for the playground equipment with their own money. In effect, they GIFTED the people of Canada a nice playground for one of our national, publicly owned properties. 12/17
This was known, even as Scheer posted memes and announcements on social media worthy of Weekly World News and the National Enquirer, encouraging Canadians to be enraged. 13/17
If there is nothing of any substance, or reality, for the opposition to criticise, perhaps they should be getting down to the business of co-operating with the government to draft better policy, improve & innovate on responses to major issues of the day. A swingset? Really? 14/17
Also, Scheer/CPC have been busy sending out ads saying the federal carbon tax is a huge cash grab & is going to cost the average Canadian family $1,200. Except, the financial analysts say that it is going to cost the Canadian families earning > $600,000 a year about $1,200. 15/17
If that is what the CPC thinks the "average" Canadian family income is... well, who is out of touch here? The average Canadian family can expect a cost of about $110 a year, largely offset for lower income families by rebates. 16/17
If I wrote a report card for the CPC, it would include "Peevish", "Talks out of turn", "Shows poor self-regulation", "Tells whoppers", "Math skills poor", "Does not play well with others." I would probably recommend holding them back a term, until they show some maturity. 17/17
