The 2013 Harbour Grace Affray #nlpoli
Kathy Dunderdale told reporters on Tuesday, while the polls were still open mind you, that the by-election results would be no big thing. Life would go on. The world would…
Kathy Dunderdale
The Old Fraudsters #nlpoli
There’s no greater fraud, former Premier Danny Williams once said, than a promise not kept. In the House of Assembly on Monday, his successor claimed that Conservatives “do as we…
Softball #nlpoli
No wonder the Conservatives are smiling a lot these days. Not only have the New Democrats imploded as an effective political force but their leader has decided her job is…
Firm and Unfirm #nlpoli
With the House of Assembly open again, the major topic of Question Period was Muskrat Falls and the second version of the deal to ship power to Nova Scotia. Premier…
Talking down to people #nlpoli
A very smart guy scolded someone in a Twitter exchange recently with the observation that people don’t like it when others – especially politicians – talk down to them. Well,…
Governing by polls: fracking version #nlpoli
There’s something wonderfully cute about the blind, unquestioning boosterism you get from some of the more aggressive groups of young political party supporters. All parties have them: the L’il Liberals,…
Delusional Hat Trick: Lorraine, Trevor, and Ryan #nlpoli
No sooner had Lorraine Michael pronounced the New Democratic caucus back together again than two of its members announced that they would leave and sit in the House of Assembly…
Vale delays Long Harbour smelter… again #nlpoli
Earlier this year, mining giant Vale was saying they’d start production at the new Long Harbour smelter in 2013, but after a meeting with Premier Kathy Dunderdale in Brazil, the…
Conservative Confusion #nlpoli
When they were high in the polls it was because they were making the right decisions. Now that they are in the political polling basement it is because they are…
So the photo ops were a deception? #nlpoli
Reporters asked the premier on Wednesday about comments by Nova Scotia premier-elect Stephen McNeil about Muskrat Falls. Here’s what CBC reported: "Our contract — our agreement — is with Emera.…
Truth and Fiction #nlpoli
If you take Jerome Kennedy at his word on Wednesday, here’s what is going on.Since he wasn’t planning to run in 2015, he decided that he would leave politics on…
Negotiating from Weakness #nlpoli
Markets in northeastern North America are already awash in cheap electricity, thanks in large part of the discovery of massive amounts of natural gas in the United States. They’ll be…
The Bunker Door is Welded Shut #nlpoli
Kathy Dunderdale cannot quit as leader of the provincial Conservative Party, says Fairity O’Brien in an interview with NTV. He stresses it over and over. The caucus is solidly behind…
The Importance of Appearing Earnest #nlpoli
Once upon a time, not so very long ago, your humble e-scribbler noted the importance the provincial Conservatives placed on the appearance of things. The idea came together neatly in…
Osborne joins the Liberals #nlpoli
Not surprisingly, long-serving St. John’s South MHA Tom Osborne has joined the Liberals. Forget all the stuff about what party he fits with. Forget all the foolishness coming from the…
So what’s Kathy’s problem? #nlpoli
So if Stephen Harper’s staffing problem is that “all the good ones quit”, what is the story on the staffing problems in Kathy Dunderdale’s office? -srbp-
Fluidity #nlpoli
As a rule, cabinet ministers should be able to tell you exactly what government policy is on any given subject. They all sit at the same table and they each…
Off track betting #nlpoli
That big, ginormous phone-banging-up, trade dispute thingy with evil Ottawa? So not happening any more. "We seem to be back on track. We have alignment," Premier Kathy Dunderdale told reporters…
Familiar tunes amid the Shifting Balance of Power #nlpoli
All the talk the past week or so about negotiations between the crowd in Confederation Building and the crowd in Ottawa brought out the conventional wisdom about premiers using fights…
If they, do it is wrong #nlpoli
On Monday, Kathy Dunderdale said it was wrong for the federal government to try and jam her up by connecting the federal loan guarantee on Muskrat Falls to free trade…