maplesyrup

Belinda leads in the latest opinion poll. Northstar Poll: Stronach 41% Harper 28% Clement 19% This is hardly surprising as Canadians are looking for something new, finally a fresh face to lead the Conservative party. I expect though that Tony Clement's campaign will pick up steam, and he should end up wining the Conservative leadership race.

When President Bush assumed the presidency with less than 50% of the popular vote, and a little help from his Republican appointed Supreme Court, one would have thought that Bush would have had the wsdom to not go to extremes because of polarization of American society. No such luck. Now finally his extremist policies are coming back to haunt him. Problems mount for Bush as election season looms President tries to mend fences with UN as approval drops, cabinet shows cracks http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/Art...04/National/Idx His approval rating is slumping; a cabinet minister is straying; the hurry-up plan to hand Iraq back to the Iraqis is slipping, and an inquiry into his reasons for ousting Saddam Hussein looms. If that weren't enough, old claims about whether he shirked military service have resurfaced just in time for election season.

Money is going to have an impact as well on election results as well. Won't the NDP have a reasonable amount of money for this election campaign for once, because of the new government political party financing law? Strategic voting might not be such a good idea any more, especially if it going to cost the party you really support funds from the governemnt, which is now going to be based on each party's percentage of the popular vote.

The Compas/National Post latest opinion poll that was released yesterday is bizarre in more ways than one: Survey taken Jan 26-28, 2004 with 500 Canadian citizens. National Bloc ? Con 19% Lib 49% NDP 17% BC Con 18% Lib 27% NDP 17% AB Con 42% Lib 16% NDP 11% SK/MA Con 17% Lib 26% NDP 26% ON Con 15% Lib 46% NDP 13% QC Blo 36% Con 3% Lib 41% NDP 6% AT Con 24% Lib 56% NDP 10% For example Compas shows the Maritimes with only 24% support for the Conservatives, while the Ipsos-Reid poll released not that long ago showed 37% support for the Conservatives. That's quite a difference. Could the Conservative support have dropped that much so quckly?

Have the Tories jumping ship impacted things in the Maritimes for the Conservatives? The reason I ask is that the Cons have gone from 37% support to 24% support there.

Obviously Bush is in trouble, his ratings have never been so low. If I were Republican I would want a leadership change.

The Democrats after tonight will be in a two person race for the Democratic presidential candidate, John Kerry and John Edwards. Things have shifted in the past 24 hours and John Edwards has the momentum at the moment. Keep an eye on Oklahoma, Edwards wasn't a factor before but he is now. If Kerry wins it will be because of his military background, a major weakness for Bush.

KK.........Lieberman is not even a factor in the Democratic leadership race. Bush is tanking in the polls. He has gone from 60% to 49% support in one month. Is it too late for the Republicans to change their leader before the next election?

Bush is tanking in the polls. He has gone from 60% support to 49% support in one month. Is it too late for the GOP to change their leader before the next election? Why is this happening? Is it the lack of jobs? Is it the US soldiers continuing to die in Iraq? Is is the manipulation of intelligence about WMD?

theWatcher......fascinating research, thanks. If the Liberals were that concerned about the Conservatives, Martin would not have pulled that fake left with the throne speech. The Liberals are looking over their left shoulder.

Bill Blaikie's (NDP) response to throne speech: good fake left

NDP at 17% pulls even with Conservatives at 19% within margin of error. Poll points to Liberal landslide http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpos...81-88981a2f3f5e 'The biggest gainers appear to be Mr. Layton's New Democrats, who have posted increases in a number of recent opinion polls. "The growth is all NDP," Mr. Winn said. "They're almost certainly heading to increase their seats in the next election."' Bloc ? Cons 19% Lib 49% NDP 17% I must admit to being a bit confused by the interpretation of some of these results. Quebec for example, just doesn't make sense to me. If Liberals only have a 5% lead over the Bloc, that liberals will make a sweep here is confusing, because of the demographics.. However I'm not the expert, Mr Winn is.

The Guardian Newspaper has an article today concerning a North Korea shocking gas chamber horror gulag. It is called Camp 22 http://www.guardian.co.uk/korea/article/0,...1136483,00.html Canada needs to immediately push the members of the United Nations to address this horrific situation.

Trouble Ahead for PM Paul Martin Yesterday was a very bad day for PM Paul Martin. And it is only going to get worse. First, due to the pressure generated by Canada's opposition parties, and mounting public criticism, Martin had to reverse his decision on Maher Arar, and set up a public inquiry, in order to try and get it out of sight, to avoid questions, prior to the rumoured upcoming election. Second, Martin ran from the politically divisive same-sex issue, and referred it to the Supreme Court, once again attempting to get it off the front burner, for the probable spring election. It was interesting watching Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan, and Justice Minister Irwin Kotler, twisting and turning in the wind, as they both tried to explain the rationale for their respective portfolio decisions. Third, Martin again was rebuffed in his efforts to manipulate former Deputy Prime Minister Sheila Copps, into toeing the line in the new world order of the Martin Liberals. Martin's putsch which dislodged former Prime Minister Jean Chretien, followed by Martin's continuing efforts to rid the Liberal Party of anyone that was supportive of Jean Chretien, continues to build resentments, and enemies, for himself. Instead of being magnanimous in his victory, Martin is showing his meanness and arrogance, a side of himself unfamiliar to most Canadians. Well known Toronto Star national affairs journalist Chantel Hebert, suggested yesterday that Martin could have difficulty surviving as prime minister, if he ends up with a minority government, in the next election. The real reason for all this busyness on Capital Hill yesterday however, was an attempt by Martin to create a smokescreen for the release of the money details, that Martin's company Canada Steamship Lines (CSL), had received from the Canadian government, while Martin was the Finance Minister. CSL received over $160 million over the past 11 years, not the $137,000. that was initially reported. Will anyone's head roll for originally providing such a misleading figure. I doubt it. Now at least Canadians are afforded a rare glimpse, into some of the reasons, why people go into politics. Should there be an independent investigation into this? Absolutely. Will it happen? Fat chance.

Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq. Rumsfeld - wrong! Powell - wrong! Cheney - wrong! Bush - wrong! Why don't these men do the honourable thing and resign?

FastNed......of the mainstream Democratic candidates Dean is the one who first started attacking the war in Iraq. Dean also didn't vote for it, or for funding the war effort like the others did. The body bag count. So far 527 Americans killed, and over 20,000 injured since March, if it continues, will be a crucial factor. No weapons of mass destruction, the pretext for the war. Republicans hate Dean with a passion so that is a definite sign they feel threatened by his candidacy. I don't know if he will win the nomination, but I think he is the only one who has a chance to defeat Bush.

Exit polls are showing Kerry with 36% and Dean with 31% in New Hampshire, so the Republicans must be pissed that Dean is back in the race. The latest national polls are showing that Kerry would beat Bush, and Kerry hasn't even got the nomination yet. This is a very good sign for the Democrats but it doesn't surprise me,seeing as there are no WMD, the supposed reason for going into Iraq in the first place.

Belinda will be on Don Newman's CBC show Politics this afternoon. Let's discuss her performance after the show.

What's the big deal, do you want to win or not? Harper is damaged goods, just like MacKay. They both should have stayed out of the race. If Harper wins I predict that the PC Party of Canada will revive and the whole merger will have been be a waste of time. EDITORIAL: The Tory Trudeau? http://www.squamishchief.com/madison%5CWQu...A4?OpenDocument By Tim Shoults 'The race to play sacrificial lamb to Prime Minister Paul Martin just got a little more interesting — to the point where this spring’s anticipated federal election might end up becoming a contest after all. The emergence of auto parts magnate Belinda Stronach as a candidate for the Conservative Party of Canada is good news not only for the fledgling party, but for our democratic system. With apologies to supporters of former Canadian Alliance leader and front-runner Stephen Harper (including local MP John Reynolds), his victory would sound the death knell of the newly-united right before it can even contest an election. The former Preston Manning policy man, who not long ago called for a “firewall” around his native province of Alberta to shut out the federal government, has about as much Prime Ministerial potential as former Bloc Quebecois leader Lucien Bouchard. If the right is content to give up on Eastern Canada — and therefore, any hope at power — merely consolidate its shrunken western base and hope for better luck or more Liberal arrogance next decade, then Harper is the man to lead it. But if the Tories want a real shot at power, it’s time for a completely new face. In fact, a new face may make all the difference. Paul Martin can try to rejuvenate the Liberal party after a decade of Jean Chrétien, but he can’t erase his connections to that past — nor can he turn back the clock on his own age after being spitefully denied his chance for so long. Running against a fresh-faced leader, free of the taint of political strife, Martin could see his cakewalk turn into a fight for survival. If Stronach can successfully make it out of the backrooms of conservative politics to take the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada this spring, she certainly fits the bill. Remember, the last federal leader to come out of the political wilderness was also relatively young, also came from a fairly tony family background, and, while interested in politics for many years, never sought the hurly-burly of elected office before emerging from nowhere to claim the top job. That young man’s name was Pierre Elliot Trudeau. The comparison is far from perfect — but at this first impression, she has at least the potential to be the same kind of breath of fresh air that helped propel Trudeaumania in 1968. You never know…'

Successful politics involves the art of compromise, but every political party has its challenges The NDP had the Waffle movement a while back, and the Liberals right now have the Copps-Valeri fight, and the BC problem on their hands. So the Conservatives aren't the only one with issues to sort out.

Canadians have been asked to register firearms. 85% of firearms in Canada have already been registered Why is this a problem? What does it matter whether you live in a urban or rural area, as far as the registration process goes? Perhaps there is more use for rifles in the country than the cities by civilians, but what does this have to do with the gun control registry?

Morgan....I agree with you that Martin knows exactly what is what about the Arar case, but I doubt very much that Maher Arar, or the Muslim community, is involved in some wrong doing. I rather doubt that Maher would be suing US Attorney General John Ashcroft if he had done something wrong himself. And today we had the police raids on Janet O'Neill's office at the Ottawa Citizen and her home. And this evening on the CBS 60 Minutes show apparently US officials again reiterated that they got their info on Maher from Canada's police forces. All very intriguing.

'Something wicked is coming for the Liberals' by Paul Sullivan Globe and Mail http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/Articl...omething+wicked 'For some reason, B.C.'s latest scandal prompts memories of Something Wicked, maybe because the scandal, like the novel, is spooky and mysterious. Since Dec. 28, when RCMP and Victoria police raided the offices of a number of high-ranking political operatives working for, or linked to, the B.C. and federal Liberal parties, the fog of mystery has grown only thicker. The RCMP investigation hints at scary things in the fog: organized crime, drugs, money laundering and political corruption. But so far, B.C. Supreme Court Associate Chief Justice Patrick Dohm has refused to take the wraps off any of the documents associated with the raids, and Liberals, both federal and provincial, are keeping their traps shut, in order not to jeopardize the investigation, to say nothing of their hold on power. As in a gripping novel, the clock is ticking, the action rising, the suspense unbearable. How long will it be before the caul of corruption wraps its inky folds around them all? Judge Dohm will again hear media lawyers' arguments to release the documents on Thursday. Meanwhile, Victoria, which is really a small town not unlike Green Town, the mythical burg in Something Wicked, leaks like a sieve, and people whisper their secrets. Many of the secrets involve Dave Basi, ministerial assistant to B.C. Finance Minister Gary Collins. Mr. Basi was fired immediately after the raid. So far he and fellow functionary Bob Virk (who has been suspended with pay) are the only casualties of this carnival macabre, but if half the whispered secrets are true, more than a few careers will be ruined.' Later on today, a dozen lawyers, representing the media, the Liberal Party of Canada, and mystery clients, will be trying to get the warrants unsealed. Last week the media was turned down for the same request. The media seem to have a very close relationship with the police these days, being present for the RCMP and Victoria police raid on the BC Legislature last December, and at former Premier Glen Clark's house a few years ago. (No charges have been laid)

Quite frankly I am disappointed with our moderator for not having stepped in here, maybe he is on holiday or something. Any posts I have read written by Michael, although I don't necessarily agree with his point of view, have always been totally appropriate. Mapleleafweb would suffer quite a bit if he decides he has to leave. I think other people should keep their nose out of things that are not their business, and not only that, they are trying to distort what is going on. Once again, would the moderator please intervene here.

SirRiff....why I said Martin is because the buck stops here. He's in charge, is the prime minister, and has the power. Martin has blocked an inquiry. Why? Martin said he was going to getto the bottom of it. The next thing you know we have this police raid today. There was nothing wrong with our relationship with the Americans. All this hoopla is pure Martin spin. Now Martin is running around changing our foreign policy, changing our defence policy, star wars, etc., with no mandate at all from the Canadian people. Let's have an election before we start atoning for our sins by not having sent troops to Iraq with the Americans. I agree with you, let's get our own act together securitywise.