THIS WEEK … in BC Politics

Wow what a week it’s been --- and I’m talking about the weather --- it’s probably been the biggest news story in the past seven days.  That aside, there has been much going in and happening in the world of BC politics.  If you missed some of these stories, or would like a refresher, well read on …

An opportunity to enact real health-care reform

… the 2004 health accord did nothing to improve access to medical services or help governments attain a sustainable level of health spending … may have worsened the health-care landscape in Canada … failed to create any incentives for provinces to introduce meaningful reforms … simply relied on the feds to bail them out with more cash …

BC announces $40-m funding hike for disabled adult services

… following widespread criticism of its operations, the BC governmental organization that provides services for disabled adults will receive a $40 million funding hike … Christy Clark … acknowledged it fell short of the $70-million some critics, including client families, have called for …

• You can read the BC Government media release by clicking HERE

Presto change-o and poof! Christy Clark is practically a Conservative now!

… once national director of the Young Liberals of Canada. Forget her work for a federal Liberal cabinet minister. Disregard how she used to trash Harper on her radio show … all just her caterpillar phase … has emerged from her cocoon as a glorious Conservative butterfly … that’s the message Clark hopes will get through to angry voters flocking to John Cummins and the B.C. Conservative party …

Even Alberta gets confused on whats Liberal and Conservative

Alberta Liberals are being turned into Conservatives -- Alberta Progressive Conservatives are Conservatives – the Wildrose Party are conservatives -- the BC Liberals are conservatives -- and the BC Conservatives are conservatives.

I came across a story in Rabble.ca this morning, and I have to say it sure grabbed my attention … it seems even Alberta's Liberals aren’t sure if they are Liberals -- or Conservative.

The story is called “Alberta Liberal Conservative appoints conservative Liberals to battle progressive conservatives, true conservatives”

Here’s a couple of paragraphs from that story, which like me, will probably have you understanding why no one seems to know what it means to be a Liberal in the west:
Until a few days ago, the Liberal caucus had nine members, but Bridget Pastoor, an MLA from Lethbridge, crossed the floor to join the Conservatives. So now she's a traditional Liberal who has become a Conservative, under a Conservative Party led by Premier Alison Redford, who some Albertans accuse of being too liberal. But let's not worry about that right now.

The BC Liberals, by the way, really are Conservatives, and have been for years.

Change doesn’t happen in a vacuum -- it needs people to make it happen.

Often times I wonder what thoughts people have as they read the opinions I post -- which is why I have said, "I welcome your thoughts and opinions"

Occasionally I do get the odd comment, and they are appreciated ... whether you agree with me or not.  I appreciate them as I would like this to be a bit of a sounding board for me, and for you.  The other thing is, it gives me the opportunity to take a fresh look at what I think, and why.

Today, someone took a quick moment to drop me a line with regards to a post I had a couple of days ago ... that was; The argument of last resort … the one of desperation … “Don’t split the vote".

This person posted their comment anonymously, and so I have no idea who they are.  Regardless, in their comments, they made a very valid and important point ... we are not always going to agree 100% with the policies of any political party.  Here is what they had to say:

I'm a libertarian Conservative and am proud of my leader. Not religious at all. In fact, I initially only joined the party for a year in order to determine, whether or not, it was too far social right for me.

My interactions with and the statements from our party leaders led me to signed up for the full 5 year program and get directly involved with the New West CA.

I'm with Alan on this. i.e.  Do I agree with every direction he takes our party? Nope. (The only person I agree 100% with is my wife. Even when I don't, she reminds me I do.)

Right wing? Left Wing? You need both wings to fly!

It's funny (sort of) how things seem to never change in BC politics.  In 2005, Will McMartin wrote an article in the Tyee entitled, "Feeling Polarized"

In this piece, the one thing really jumped out at me, it was his statement that:

"Polarization satisfies both right and left, business and labour. For the right, polarization means that parties favourable to business usually form government. The left, meanwhile, can utilize its legislative strength to exert moral suasion and influence public policy, with the added bonus of being available to assume power when a government of the right fractures or becomes unpopular with the electorate."

Did you see the words I saw? Polarization satisfies "business" and "labor".

Where are the words that government satisfies the people of BC?  I think it would be safe to say that even now, 7 years later, we know which political parties (in the words he wrote) were intended to represent business and labour; the BC Liberals .. and the BC New Democrats.

Even 7 years later, with some changes to the policies and platforms of the party, the NDP still strongly comes down on the side of labour.

While the BC Liberals do not come out and say they support business, it has been shown over and over again that they certainly do not represent the men and women ... and families ... of BC.  

So who, and what, do they then support? Well that's a good question.

Was his hiring as Chief of Staff in the interests of BC … did the bloated Premiers Office need another political appointee paid for by the taxpayers of BC?

In recent days, John Cummins, leader of the BC Conservative Party has raised a number of questions, and points of concern, regarding Christy Clark’s new soon to be Chief of Staff, Ken Boessenkool

BC Conservative Party
Leader John Cummins

While Christy Clark has publicly stated she is against using a per-capita basis for health care transfer payments, as Cummins pointed out, that very idea was championed by Ken Boessenkool.

“Ken Boessenkool championed the idea of transfer payments being allocated on a per-capita basis, the very idea his new boss is campaigning against,” said John Cummins, Leader of British Columbia’s Conservatives. “Mr. Boessenkool was a super-lobbyist with significant influence in Ottawa – so it was no surprise that the move to per-capita funding was included in the 2007 federal budget.”

A Toronto Star story in December of 2010 in the Toronto Star had the following quote from Boessenkool … “If the past is any guide, this meeting will quickly degenerate into provinces begging the federal government for more money to fund their own programs. This makes sense: Wouldn’t we all want to spend someone else’s money?”

That being the case, Cummins has rightly asked, “Does he still stand by what he wrote … has Mr. Boessenkool already lost his first battle in the Premier’s office before he has taken office, or will the Premier’s position change when he becomes Chief of Staff in February?”

What is the answer to this question? Yesterday, John Cummins asked another important question of the Premier:

"Why did Premier Clark appoint a Chief of Staff who in her words 'share[s] a lot of views in common' with Quebec separatists?  Does Premier Clark still believe that standing up for provincial rights is the same as Quebec separation? Has she discussed these views with Mr. Boessenkool … how does Mr. Boessenkool feel about his new boss lumping him in with the Bloc Quebecois?"

Again, these are important questions, and it appears only one person is asking them … the leader of the BC Conservative Party, John Cummins.

Like Quebec, it has also been a long time since a Conservative MLA sat in BC’s legislature assembly -- not for much longer however

A CBC News story today says that a “group of former Conservative MPs and their allies are hoping to revive the provincial Conservative Party in Quebec.”

The story went on to say that the leader of the party is former Quebec city Conservative Party MP, Luc Harvey.  Harvey stated, "For the last two years we were thinking about this opportunity to start our party."

"We think it's much better to move on the right and to make the modifications that will give the opportunity to the province of Quebec to continue to support [all of the] people in the province."

(Click HERE to listen to a Daybreak Montreal CBC Radio interview with party leader Luc Harvey)

Others who back the party include another former Harper MP Daniel Petit ... and Jean-François Plante, who was a leadership candidate for Action Démocratique du Québec.

According to the story, 1935 was the last year a Conservative member sat in Quebec’s legislative assembly. 

Do I have to be ‘cranky’ and ‘angry’ to support these principles and goals?

Okay I made a mistake … it wasn’t “cranky old men” that former Reform MP Chuck Strahl said the BC Conservative Party with filled with … here is what he actual said:

“ … adding that the BC Conservative Party is riddled with “cranky ... angry” people who have no credible policies to govern the province.”

This is me (Alan Forseth) -- does this look like the
face of anger and crankiness?

Now I ask, does this look like the face of someone cranky and angry?   Okay I admit I do have a bias – it’s me, and I  obviously do not agree with Chuck Strahl.

Still, for the life of me, I cannot understand why he, along with other Reformers like Preston Manning and Stockwell Day seem to have nothing but glowing comments to make about Christy Clark.

The BC Liberal government, led by Christy Clark, is in many ways everything the Western led reform movement was against – and why it actually came about.   

Let’s take a quick trip down memory lane

In the late 1980s and 1990s, federal conservative politics became split by the creation of a new western-based protest party, the populist and social conservative Reform Party of Canada created by Preston Manning

Federal conservatives became split (sound familiar on the provincial level?).  And this was created by who? Preston Manning!  And yet he speaks out against BC Conservatives who are led by a former Reform MP; John Cummins.

Hiring Ken Boessenkool is for the partisan purpose of making the BC Liberal government look good

Is the Premiers Office a non-partisan part of the government of BC --- or is it an extension of the BC Liberal Party?  I ask this question because it is becoming increasing unclear what it’s exact 'political' purpose is.

Ken Boessenkool -- Christy Clark's new Chief of Staff

A story in the Globe and Mail on Friday, stated that:

 …. Ms. Clark has announced that, effective Feb. 15, Ken Boessenkool will take over the job … As chief of staff, Mr. Boessenkool will lead day-to-day operations at the Premier’s Office. Mr. McDonald will become principal secretary. “Ken brings a ton of skills as a manager, and he brings a lot of skills in terms of the relationships he has right across the country, so I think his addition could make a real difference for us,” Ms. Clark said in an interview.

There is no denying that Christy Clark needs and should have someone at the top, in her office, directing operations. But, what exactly are the operations of the office to be?  It is very vague and hard to find out, but here is a bit of insight from an official BC Government document.

The argument of last resort … the one of desperation … “Don’t split the vote”

Randy White speaking to BC Conservatives

The Saturday, Parksville Qualicum News had a story from writer Neil Horner;  one he had written after spending time in an interview with former Reform MP Randy White. 

With Randy Whites reform background, the following observation from Mr. Horner came as no surprise to me:

Like the NDP, he (Randy White) said, the B.C. Conservatives have come to a point where they can no longer act as a protest vote, but rather, must come across as a government in waiting.

Randy White also commented on vote splitting during the interview say;

“The people have lost confidence of the people, so in desperation, what you have is Liberal supporters saying we are splitting the vote, in an effort to hang on at any cost, but it’s not going to happen for them. It’s just not there. The days are gone where you can scare someone into voting for you.”

Reporter Tom Fletcher posted a link, on Facebook, to the Parksville Qualicum Beach News story – and included this quote from Randy White:

“I had some surprising calls over Christmas and I can say with some assurance it is very likely the Conservatives will be a party in the legislature before the next election.  I think there are enough disgruntled members in their caucus and I don’t know if Christy Clark can hold all that together.”

That led someone to ask … “Are they actively promoting an NDP government or are they so sure there is going to be one that they've moved on to competing with the Liberals for who comes next as right of centre?”

Here is what I believe … even without the emergence of the John Cummins led BC Conservatives, Christy Clark's Liberals would have lost the next election.