BQ Tory Thingy

August1991 · June 2, 2004

Si le Parti conservateur forme un gouvernement minoritaire, il risque d'avoir toutes les difficultés du monde à séduire le Bloc québécois.

I'll go with a word-for-word translation:

If the Conservative Party forms a minority government, it risks having all kinds of difficulties in the world to seduce the Bloc Québécois.

La Presse on BQ with CPC

This is a news item but not a forum item. (Now, there's a new idea. What's the media talking about - and what are forums talking about. See below.)

The La Presse article goes on to say that the BQ will not compromise on certain basic points. Reading it, honest to God, many socially Liberal Canadians would be happy to have a BQ standing on guard over the Tories. (If your French is distant, avortement = abortion.)

Canada, what a country!

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My French Forum top five threads now:

1. A BQ candidate who ripped off the system (thread on track, sort of)

2. Sharia law in Canada (generally anti- multi-culti)

3. Call for Marijuana Party votes (posts are a joke)

4. Religious orders getting special treatment (thread turned into anti-religion then how the tax system gives special favours...)

5. "Not Easy" (this long thread started with US actuaries (hein?) and has morphed into the general, never public Quebec conversation of la question nationale.)

Some journalist is going to pick up on what I just did and make it into a regular feature. You read it first here.

maplesyrup · June 2, 2004

Layton warns voters of Tory Bloc alliance

Liberals are panicking and Conservatives are set to make deals with the devil, NDP Leader Jack Layton said Tuesday.
Layton said Quebecers and voters in the rest of Canada should be equally offended by open talk among Conservatives of an alliance with the sovereigntist Bloc Quebecois. "We would have a Conservative party that wants to take the country apart joining with a party that actively wants to split the country apart," Layton said. "How can that be good for building the Canada that Canadians want?"

I think Peter MacKay got the ball rolling on this issue, by musing on the possibility.

takeanumber · June 2, 2004

It spells a new election in under 6 months if there's a Conservative minority.

Their most natural ally is of course the BQ, which, for longevity purposes, can't be seen to be too cozy with the Federalist Conservatives.

Plus, you have this massive flank of the Conservative party that are already pretty much anti-French / anti-Quebec at most, and pro-Equality at the very least.

If Harper starts decentralizing massive parts of the federal government to all the provinces, it might not be seen purely as 'decentralization', worse: it might be seen as 'selling out'.

The BQ tends to be very much to the left, the Conservatives to the right. It could degenerate into a case-by-case basis in which the Conservatives try to find a wedge issue that they figure they can get 51 percent of the seats on.

Of course, maybe that would be the price Liberals pay...sit in opposition as the Conservatives play footsie with the Bloc, wait out public anger at Martin, and then pounce after 6 months.

Interesting times.

Argus · June 2, 2004

Layton warns voters of Tory Bloc alliance
Liberals are panicking and Conservatives are set to make deals with the devil, NDP Leader Jack Layton said Tuesday.
Layton said Quebecers and voters in the rest of Canada should be equally offended by open talk among Conservatives of an alliance with the sovereigntist Bloc Quebecois. "We would have a Conservative party that wants to take the country apart joining with a party that actively wants to split the country apart," Layton said. "How can that be good for building the Canada that Canadians want?"

Gee, what's Layton afraid of? That the Tories would let themselves be blackmailed by the Bloc into doing things which would make it easier to have Quebec seperate? Like, uhm, say, repealing the Clarity Act? I'm sure Harper would never be dumb enough to do something as stupid as that. No federal leader who was against seperatism would. Right?

August1991 · June 3, 2004

It spells a new election in under 6 months if there's a Conservative minority

Maybe, but not obvious.

The BQ tends to be very much to the left, the Conservatives to the right. It could degenerate into a case-by-case basis in which the Conservatives try to find a wedge issue that they figure they can get 51 percent of the seats on.

What a misunderstanding of Quebec. Jacques Parizeau? Left?

Gee, what's Layton afraid of? That the Tories would let themselves be blackmailed by the Bloc into doing things which would make it easier to have Quebec seperate?

The BQ is much more afraid than the Tories.

The Tories will likely get the most seats in parliament. Harper will be asked to form a government. After several months (September, October) when he faces a confidence vote, who will vote in favour?

On a case-by-case basis, Harper will have the choice of the BQ, NDP or Liberals. Any one of these parties will provide a majority vote in the House - and they will.

My Point? The Tories CANNOT be social conservatives. (They will get no House support.)

But depending on the issue, the Tories will be able to be fiscal conservatives because they'll find a party to support their spending or taxing measure. Ontario (English-Canadian?) voters understand this perfectly. The BQ is the insurance. And Charest is double insurance.

Last point: Someone should ask the GG - a CBC journalist, after all - how she'll decide who to ask on 29 June to form a government. (Note: She was a TV 'head' appointed by Chretien. IOW, she'll say off mike but still desiring promotion (?), "Stevie here got the most seats. Sorry Paul, but your NDP dealies don't count.")