“On any day, [Harper] has a choice, he can do the big conservative thing that would be the end of his career, or he can do some of the small conservative things that won’t.” I’ll save you the trouble of reading the rest of this book review – if you
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Calgary Grit: Bart’s Books: The Michael Ignatieff Experiment
“I had made myself into a politician, and I didn’t much like what I was becoming.” On my Christmas reading list this year was Michael Ignatieff’s latest book, Fire and Ashes, which takes the reader from the moment “the men in black” recruited him to come back to Canada, to
Continue readingCalgary Grit: 2014: Year in Preview
We don’t know what will make headlines in 2014. After all, most political predictions are about as accurate as a Forum poll. So I won’t try to guess how 2014 plays out, but here are a few things we can reasonably expect to see this year: With the new electoral
Continue readingCalgary Grit: 2013: Year in Review
January: SunTV applies for corporate welfare, arguing that they cannot survive unless the government forces people to watch them. Later this year, they would give Rob and Doug Ford their own show…before cancelling it faster than Lucky 7. Whoever could have guessed this fine young man would find himself at
Continue readingCalgary Grit: The Year in Photos
You know what they say: Dress for the job you want, not the job you have Those left-wing media elites at the Toronto Sun have always had it in for Ford. Tim Hortons provides the ultimate pick-me-up for a normally subdued Rob Ford Harper deals with the Senate scandal. Even
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Quotes of the Year
Scroll to the bottom to vote on your favourite quote… “I am Conservative. I am a traditionalist. I wish I left Cabinet in the traditional way – with a sex scandal!” –Stephen Fletcher, after being removed from Cabinet “When I stand back and look at the cast of candidates, even
Continue readingCalgary Grit: What’s a 9-letter word for obsessive preoccupation with one’s self?
Behold, the taxpayer-funded, Brian Jean crossword puzzle!
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Persons of the Year
Every December, I like to name a “Person of the Year” – the individual who left their mark on Canadian politics over the past year. The only rules are that the PM is too obvious a choice, and that lame picks (“You!”) are strictly verboten. The Person of the Year
Continue readingCalgary Grit: The Best Intentions
Michael Chong is one the most respected people in the country when it comes to democratic reform. He quit his cabinet position on principle, and proposed a series of thoughtful Question Period reforms in 2010, which seem all the more overdue after the Paul Calandra show we saw last week.
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Liberals: The Next Generation
The Liberal Party is old. I’m not talking about its history, but about the faces it puts before Canadians. The average age of Liberal MPs in Ottawa is 56, with Scott Andrews their youngest at 37. The second youngest is some kid named Justin, but at 41, even he’s old
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Margin of Error
They were up late counting the votes in Brandon-Souris Monday night. That, despite the fact that the final poll of the campaign showed the Liberals with a commanding 29-point lead. In the end, the Liberal vote was 16 points lower and the Tory vote was 14 points higher. It would
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Wheat Kings
Trudeau was so confident in the wake of the Forum poll, that he started waving “Vote PC” signs on the campaign trail. On the surface, nothing really happened last night. The Liberals held two safe seats and the Conservatives held two safe seats. Yes, they were counting ballots until late
Continue readingCalgary Grit: He sees nothing
Stephen Harper adds “Sargent Schultz” to his list of impersonations PM didn’t know staff asked Conservative Party to pay Duffy’s expenses: spokesperson Prime Minister Stephen Harper had no idea his staff had asked the Conservative Party to pay Sen. Mike Duffy’s ineligible expenses, his spokesperson said Sunday. In an interview
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Joe Who?
“I don’t know, just use a name that nobody has ever heard of” Spotted by alert reader RC in a Boston Staples.
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Let he who is without sin…
“You know what, I’m not perfect.. Maybe you are, but I’m not.” -Rob Ford Rob is right. We should all cut the guy some slack. After all, who among us hasn’t smoked crack and lied about it, been charged with drunk driving and lied about, continued to drive drunk after
Continue readingCalgary Grit: The 2015 Tory Playbook
Step 1: Inherit igloo in working orderStep 2: Break roofStep 3: Write compelling narrative about how you fixed igloo We got a good reminder today of why it would be foolish to write off the Conservatives in 2015: Conservatives’ new surplus forecast: $3.7-billion for election year Ottawa’s fall economic update
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Remember when the big Rob Ford controversy was that he talked on his cell phone while driving?
Warning – very graphic language.
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Great Moments in Scandal Management
Ford makes Torontonians long for the statesmanlike leadership of Mel Lastman. “Yes, I have smoked crack cocaine. But no, do I, am I an addict? No. Have I tried it? Probably in one of my drunken stupors.” -Rob Ford
Continue readingCalgary Grit: The vast left-wing media conspiracy against Rob Ford grows
Yes, the news is bad for the mayor, but c’mon, the Sun has always had it in for him…
Continue readingCalgary Grit: Trick or Treat
New Liberal fundraising tactics Yeah, so it likely wasn’t the most exciting political news of the day, but the quarter 3 fundraising numbers are out, and the story is all good for the Liberals who have had more unique donors than the Conservatives since Trudeau took over. Yes, they’re still
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