As most know, Garth Turner joined the Liberal caucus yesterday. No complaints from me on that. I think MPs are free to sit in whatever caucus they please and whenever they want. And I don't think that they should have to run in by-elections to do it.
That said, Turner's position is too cute by half. After taking Emerson out to the Blogshed in January for not running in a byelection after he joined the Tory caucus, he now says that he'd be willing to run in a byelection in Halton if Stephen Harper called it. But obviously Stephen Harper can't call it, as Turner has not resigned. Now, Turner claims that were he to resign he doesn't trust that Harper would call a prompt byelection (it can effectively be delayed for a year) . And that's fair enough. It's Harper's prerogative and I am not sure I would call one either. But that is totally beside the point that Turner could at least hold up his end of the bargain: he could resign and put Harper's feet to the fire to call the byelection. But he is unwilling. And by his standards do you know what that makes him? It makes him just another heart-breaking politician. And to think that a lot of us thought this guy was different.
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2 comments:
wow. peter loewen. there's a name i didn't think i'd ever hear again :)
Hi Peter. it's Costa. We took European politics together at Mount A. I hope you are doing well. I don't think it's right for elected MPs to jump from one party to another. The way Canada's system is set up, many people vote for what the party as a whole stands for and what the leader wants to do. For example, if I vote Conservative because I strongly agree with the 2% reduction in GST over X amount of years and suddenly the MP I voted for decides to jump ship and join a party that's completely against that initiative, I would feel robbed, betrayed, and that my democratic country failed me. Ok, maybe I'm being slightly dramatic. Although I support the liberal party, the bottom line is that the people spoke last election, and I don't want my party to be full of opportunists who were given self-serving incentives to join the party. On another note, unlike the previous comment, I'm not surprised to hear your name again.
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