Jan 27 2009
To Topple or Not Topple
After several weeks of waiting, the fifteen Canadians or so who still care are on the edge of their seats today waiting to hear what the long awaited budget will bring. Once the budget is delivered, the real fun will begin, as all parties will retreat to their caves to see what it all means.
The NDP have already come out to say they will vote against any budget that the Conservatives bring forward, as it is a vote of confidence and the NDP have none in the government. Fair enough, I guess. Even with a delivered budget, there’s no saying that everything that is promised in it, will be honoured, which is the point the NDP are trying to make.
The Liberal Party, which while under Stephane Dion, seemed pretty excited about the prospect of taking down the PM, now seem to have more of a wait and see attitude. While I’m sure the idea of ousting Stephen Harper is appealing to Mr. Ignatieff, the fact that the Governor General may choose to dissolve parliament for another election, rather than allowing a coalition to slide into power has certainly given him pause for thought.
One thing that Stephen Harper was counting on which seems to at least partially happened is that many Canadians have made it loud and clear that they do not want yet another freaking election. Many people would be so annoyed by it, that they might give the Tories enough support to give them a majority government - something that the Liberals in particular would not want to see.
It will be an interesting couple of days for Canadian politics. At least for those of us watching.
