Harper and his Boys' Night Out

[Nocrap]

So Harper has shown Canadians what it really means to be accountable. Using his clout he was able to secure tickets for a sold out game 7. I can live with that.

Assumed that only the 'Boys' needed a night out and that women don't like hockey or a night out. I can even almost live with that.

But using a luxury government jet at taxpayers' expense to chauffer his cronies.

Link

No way.

Just one more example of the wide gap between what he says and what he does. If anyone else tried something like that he'd be on it like the CPC on the oil industry payroll.

This was not about showing support for a Canadisn hockey team. I believe there are lots of flights into Edmonton. This was simply Harper being Harper. He must have felt like George Bush on Airforce One.

Ironic that he can take a defense department jet to a hockey game but can't drive a few miles down the road to honour fallen Canadian soldiers as they arrived in Trenton. So glad he's got his priorities straight and that his defense department spending is going to good use.

[August1991]

When I saw that Harper went to the game in Edmonton, I wondered about this. I thought: I'll bet Harper will pay for this somehow.

The prime minister was already planning to fly west by Challenger for a speech at the World Urban Forum in Vancouver on Monday, so it was convenient to stop in Edmonton en route, Harper's communications director, Sandra Buckler, said.

''The prime minister and all MPs paid for their own tickets,'' she said. ''We make no apologies for cheering on a Canadian team.''

The tickets were arranged with help from Lake, who worked in ticket sales for the Oilers before entering politics, and were purchased directly from the team.

The PM and family have to have security guys at all time. (Imagine for a moment that you have two guys in suits with you at all times and the two guys need to eat and sleep somewhere.) The PM has to have a communications person any time she/he is in public where there are journalists, to have a record of what exactly was said. The PM is wise to have a gofer or two also. I note that the newspaper link above said nothing about tickets for Harper's security guys, PR guy or gofers.

Look, the Prime Minister of Canada cannot go down to the corner store and buy a pack of smokes like the rest of us. And if the PM goes to a televised hockey game in a Stanley Cup series, I think that's public business but I'll trust Harper's judgment on this. In political terms, if this is Harper's LAX haircut moment, then it's better now than later. As Clinton said, "I'm not that kind of guy." Nor is Harper.

Nocrap, there were some 20,000 people watching the game in Edmonton. Most of these people paid for their ticket with their own money - even Harper. By all accounts, everyone enjoyed the evening.

Harper then flew on to a UN convention in Vancouver. Several thousand were in attendance and not one of them paid the convention fees, hotel costs or airplane ticket out of their own pocket. For many of these people, it was a free vacation to Vancouver.

I'm certain more was accomplished in Edmonton than in Vancouver, where frankly, I think nothing was accomplished other than some people having a nice vacation.

I don't know how Harper is going to do it but I won't begrudge him a flight or two if it means he can make Edmonton events more likely and cut out the waste of Vancouver events.

[Nocrap]

When I saw that Harper went to the game in Edmonton, I wondered about this. I thought: I'll bet Harper will pay for this somehow.

The prime minister was already planning to fly west by Challenger for a speech at the World Urban Forum in Vancouver on Monday, so it was convenient to stop in Edmonton en route, Harper's communications director, Sandra Buckler, said.

''The prime minister and all MPs paid for their own tickets,'' she said. ''We make no apologies for cheering on a Canadian team.''

The tickets were arranged with help from Lake, who worked in ticket sales for the Oilers before entering politics, and were purchased directly from the team.

The PM and family have to have security guys at all time. (Imagine for a moment that you have two guys in suits with you at all times and the two guys need to eat and sleep somewhere.) The PM has to have a communications person any time she/he is in public where there are journalists, to have a record of what exactly was said. The PM is wise to have a gofer or two also. I note that the newspaper link above said nothing about tickets for Harper's security guys, PR guy or gofers.

Look, the Prime Minister of Canada cannot go down to the corner store and buy a pack of smokes like the rest of us. And if the PM goes to a televised hockey game in a Stanley Cup series, I think that's public business but I'll trust Harper's judgment on this. In political terms, if this is Harper's LAX haircut moment, then it's better now than later. As Clinton said, "I'm not that kind of guy." Nor is Harper.

Nocrap, there were some 20,000 people watching the game in Edmonton. Most of these people paid for their ticket with their own money - even Harper. By all accounts, everyone enjoyed the evening.

Harper then flew on to a UN convention in Vancouver. Several thousand were in attendance and not one of them paid the convention fees, hotel costs or airplane ticket out of their own pocket. For many of these people, it was a free vacation to Vancouver.

I'm certain more was accomplished in Edmonton than in Vancouver, where frankly, I think nothing was accomplished other than some people having a nice vacation.

I don't know how Harper is going to do it but I won't begrudge him a flight or two if it means he can make Edmonton events more likely and cut out the waste of Vancouver events.

I agree that he needs a small entourage, but give me a break. How many of those good old boys would be going to the conference and how many were just looking for a night out at Canadians' expense. And his PR people only said that the tickets were paid by the PM's office. I'd like to see the cancelled cheques. I'll bet we forked out for those too, although I'm sure somebody is scrambling as we speak to cover it up.

Same old, same old. Get caught with your hands in the cookie jar and start singing 'Oh, Canada'.

This was what it was and no amount of backtracking will convince us that Harper was only trying to be patriotic.

[Charles Anthony]

Trudeaumania is incredible, is it not?? It can produce generations of people who can (after AdScam and Shawinigate and Bombardier-handouts and SeaKing helicopters crashing from the sky) look at our Prime Minister attending a Stanley Cup final and say:

Same old, same old.

I do not think it is the same old thing in the very least.

I would rather take the hotels and golf courses in Shawinigan over a seat in the playoff finals!

[MightyAC]

Politics is such dirty game. Our country is run by people who are in a perpetual popularity contest...sad.

In general, I'm not a fan of Harper but in this case there is no story. He was flying out West anyway and all the MPs purchased their own tickets. The fact that other MPs came with Harper is irrelevant because the plane was flying anyway.

''The idea that you can take a private jet and get tickets to Game 6, that's a pretty incredible thing to be able to do,'' said Ontario Liberal MP Mark Holland. He noted the coveted seats to the sold-out game were unavailable to the average person.

Harper is not the average person and the tickets he bought would never be sold to the general public anyway. If I had any clout or fame whatsoever I would have used it to get a ticket to that game as well. There are many legitimate reasons to criticize Harper, MP Mark Holland and others should stick to those instead inventing mini-scandals.

[sharkman]

A PM goes to a hockey game in Edmonton on his way to Vancouver. Not a big deal. Now if he bought 2 brand new jets with taxpayer money when there were perfectly good ones in service already like Chretien, then you've got something. Until then, you've got nothing.

[Johnny Utah]

So Harper has shown Canadians what it really means to be accountable. Using his clout he was able to secure tickets for a sold out game 7. I can live with that.

Assumed that only the 'Boys' needed a night out and that women don't like hockey or a night out. I can even almost live with that.

But using a luxury government jet at taxpayers' expense to chauffer his cronies.

Link

No way.

Just one more example of the wide gap between what he says and what he does. If anyone else tried something like that he'd be on it like the CPC on the oil industry payroll.

This was not about showing support for a Canadisn hockey team. I believe there are lots of flights into Edmonton. This was simply Harper being Harper. He must have felt like George Bush on Airforce One.

Ironic that he can take a defense department jet to a hockey game but can't drive a few miles down the road to honour fallen Canadian soldiers as they arrived in Trenton. So glad he's got his priorities straight and that his defense department spending is going to good use.

If Martin went to the Hockey Game you wouldn't have made this thread meltingdown would you? It just eats up people like you that Harper is the Prime Minister..

For the record if Martin as Prime Minister came to the Hockey Game as a Conservative I would have been cool with that, after all having a Prime Minister attending a Hockey Game like game 6 was good for the Edmonton Oilers and good for Hockey in Canada, to bad you can't see that..

[Black Dog]

If Martin went to the Hockey Game you wouldn't have made this thread meltingdown would you? It just eats up people like you that Harper is the Prime Minister..

For the record if Martin as Prime Minister came to the Hockey Game as a Conservative I would have been cool with that, after all having a Prime Minister attending a Hockey Game like game 6 was good for the Edmonton Oilers and good for Hockey in Canada, to bad you can't see that..

I don't care who it is: I don't like hockey turned into a ploitical prop. Thing is, if Martin had gone, he would have been up in the Skybox, away from the great unwashed. It's Harper's calculated, transparent attempts to foster a "regular guy" image that rankles.

[Hicksey]

If Martin went to the Hockey Game you wouldn't have made this thread meltingdown would you? It just eats up people like you that Harper is the Prime Minister..

For the record if Martin as Prime Minister came to the Hockey Game as a Conservative I would have been cool with that, after all having a Prime Minister attending a Hockey Game like game 6 was good for the Edmonton Oilers and good for Hockey in Canada, to bad you can't see that..

I don't care who it is: I don't like hockey turned into a ploitical prop. Thing is, if Martin had gone, he would have been up in the Skybox, away from the great unwashed. It's Harper's calculated, transparent attempts to foster a "regular guy" image that rankles.

Maybe to you, but to me a PM that isn't as much a pointy-headed-elitist is refreshing.

[scribblet]

Politics is such dirty game. Our country is run by people who are in a perpetual popularity contest...sad.

In general, I'm not a fan of Harper but in this case there is no story. He was flying out West anyway and all the MPs purchased their own tickets. The fact that other MPs came with Harper is irrelevant because the plane was flying anyway.

''The idea that you can take a private jet and get tickets to Game 6, that's a pretty incredible thing to be able to do,'' said Ontario Liberal MP Mark Holland. He noted the coveted seats to the sold-out game were unavailable to the average person.

Harper is not the average person and the tickets he bought would never be sold to the general public anyway. If I had any clout or fame whatsoever I would have used it to get a ticket to that game as well. There are many legitimate reasons to criticize Harper, MP Mark Holland and others should stick to those instead inventing mini-scandals.

I knew this would be used against him, even though he is required to travel with security etc. and was going out there anyway, as were the MP's. etc. Harper paid for his own tickets, and somehow that's a bad thing !

The CPC are obviously held to a higher standard than other parties.

What is noticeable is that there is little for the opposition to rant about, therefore they have to really nitpick, not to mention that the liberals in opposition seem to be floundering. They've lost their 'entitlements' and are no longer ruling with some 'divine right' .....

[Black Dog]

Maybe to you, but to me a PM that isn't as much a pointy-headed-elitist is refreshing.

Somewhere, Harper's image team is smiling.

[geoffrey]

Oh boo hoo, couldn't get the tickets and you complain that the PM paid for his? Come on, grow up. Is Harper not allowed to go out with his friends on his own dime? Do you expect that the RCMP would allow him to go without security even if Harper insisted?

Be realistic.

[Johnny Utah]

Oh boo hoo, couldn't get the tickets and you complain that the PM paid for his? Come on, grow up. Is Harper not allowed to go out with his friends on his own dime? Do you expect that the RCMP would allow him to go without security even if Harper insisted?

Be realistic.

Harper needs RCMP protection he doesn't have that Kung-Fu Grip Chretien has when he grabbed that protester by the throat..

[geoffrey]

Oh boo hoo, couldn't get the tickets and you complain that the PM paid for his? Come on, grow up. Is Harper not allowed to go out with his friends on his own dime? Do you expect that the RCMP would allow him to go without security even if Harper insisted?

Be realistic.

Harper needs RCMP protection he doesn't have that Kung-Fu Grip Chretien has when he grabbed that protester by the throat..

One of the few times I liked Chretien, the protestor deserved it.

[Michael Hardner]

Politics is such dirty game. Our country is run by people who are in a perpetual popularity contest...sad.

In general, I'm not a fan of Harper but in this case there is no story. He was flying out West anyway and all the MPs purchased their own tickets. The fact that other MPs came with Harper is irrelevant because the plane was flying anyway.

Good for you. The CPC set the bar pretty high when it comes to accountability and so forth, but surely some of these types of trips are going to happen. During the Chretien era, as we now know, there was a luxury box at the Molson Centre filled with bureaucrats and ad-men who were PAID to be there.

This is much better.

[geoffrey]

Most exec's would have expensed the tickets, Harper is clearly more ethical as he paid for them himself. And in Ottawa, no one would have flinched to see a few MP's out to a game discussing business on a credit card bill.

It's sad that he can't treat himself to the occassional team building exercise.

Seriously though, I'd be less concerned about things like this if I were more confident in the controls Ottawa has in place over my money. Grey area expenses make up a few hundred thousand a year, pennies per Canadian. Mismanagment and poor spending account for billions. I know what I'm concerned about, and sadly, Harper's government has still not done enough, despite improvements over the prior governments.

[killjoy]

I note that the newspaper link above said nothing about tickets for Harper's security guys, PR guy or gofers.

I agree with Augusts view. I would also add he was in 'regular' seats instead of a luxury sky box like Cretchien used when he showed up at games.

.

[Johnny Utah]

I note that the newspaper link above said nothing about tickets for Harper's security guys, PR guy or gofers.

I agree with Augusts view. I would also add he was in 'regular' seats instead of a luxury sky box like Cretchien used when he showed up at games.

That was the shocking thing seeing Harper the Prime Minister of Canada in the regular seats with regular fans. That could be the reason why Liberals are pissed off at Harper going to the game as he wasn't doing it the Chretien, Martin way..

[geoffrey]

Even the PM can't afford seats in a box at an oilers cup game.

[scribblet]

Even the PM can't afford seats in a box at an oilers cup game.

He's not a wealthy man, unlike many other PMs, he's middle class with regular suburban upbringing.

[Black Dog]

Most exec's would have expensed the tickets, Harper is clearly more ethical as he paid for them himself. And in Ottawa, no one would have flinched to see a few MP's out to a game discussing business on a credit card bill.

According to the original article, the PMO paid for the tickets. IOW, this wasn't out of Harper's pocket, but ours.

He's not a wealthy man, unlike many other PMs, he's middle class with regular suburban upbringing.

Um...he may not be a millionaire a la Martin, but don't delude yourself about Harper's class affiliation. The "regular guy" stuff is just a schtick.

[August1991]

According to the original article, the PMO paid for the tickets. IOW, this wasn't out of Harper's pocket, but ours.

Huh? From article linked in the OP:

Harper and the MPs all paid for their hockey tickets.

He's not a wealthy man, unlike many other PMs, he's middle class with regular suburban upbringing.

Um...he may not be a millionaire a la Martin, but don't delude yourself about Harper's class affiliation. The "regular guy" stuff is just a schtick.

Harper's father was an accountant at Imperial Oil. Harper himself never really held a job outside of politics except when he was head of the NCC.

We don't know his assets because he chose to declare them confidentially to the ethics commissioner.

Harper is not a wealthy guy, by any stretch of the imagination.

----

Chretien was the son of a pipefitter and did nothing but politics all his life. In the period of 1985-1990, when he was a lawyer for Heenan, Blaikie in the private sector, he was still doing politics and any money he made then was due entirely to his political connections and the chance he would have power some day. Chretien is very wealthy. I suspect the golf course and hotel are the tip of the iceberg, but who knows.

Mulroney, as he put it himself, lives in the house at the highest point of Mount Royal in Westmount. The son of a plant foreman, Mulroney was wealthy before becoming Tory leader in 1983, having been CEO of Quebec Iron Ore, an American branch plant. (Mulroney got the position because he was a good labour lawyer - the Americans hired a guy to deal with the unions.) Mulroney has never really explained the story of Schreiber's cash.

Martin was the son a senior cabinet minister and got all the breaks possible in life. In fairness, he never bungled the chances - except of course the last one. Paul Desmarais gave him CSL and then Martin didn't lose it. He is probably the wealthiest PM we have ever had. (RB Bennett was very wealthy too.) Martin's not a billionaire but he can see there from here.

Harper is simply not in the same league as any of these guys. If Harper gets to live in 24 Sussex for a few more years, the interesting question will be to see his lifestyle afterwards. If I had to pick a model, I'd say Harper resembles Pearson in lifestyle.

----

That was the shocking thing seeing Harper the Prime Minister of Canada in the regular seats with regular fans. That could be the reason why Liberals are pissed off at Harper going to the game as he wasn't doing it the Chretien, Martin way.

My recollection is that Pearson and Trudeau always sat in the regular seats. Maybe, Chretien and Mulroney, as small town kids on the make, needed the reassurance of a box. I think Martin was more of a Ken Thomson type. He could have bought the stadium but preferred to be simple.

I was struck by something else. I think Harper genuinely enjoyed attending the game. Trudeau only did it for political reasons and I suspect that out of office, he never went to any hockey match nor even watched it on TV. When scheduling an important political event, Trudeau used to go around the table and ask if there was an important hockey game conflicting the same night - he himself didn't know. Chretien, Mulroney and Martin were no different. Political animals.

I'll bet Harper caught some of the last game in Raleigh on TV because he wanted to, not because he had to.

[Black Dog]

Huh? From article linked in the OP:

Harper and the MPs all paid for their hockey tickets.

Same article:

Harper sat in the 15th row of the ''Gold Club'' section, near the visitors' blue-line, in one of two seats that sold for $390 plus taxes during the final and were purchased by the Prime Minister's Office. The MPs sat in a section higher up in the Rexall Place, but took turns sitting beside Harper, across from the television cameras.

[August1991]

BD, what did you expect Harper to do? Pull out his American Express card at the ticket window? The PMO pays on Harper's behalf for lots of things. Just think of how the accounts at 24 Sussex work. (Hilary Clinton said once that the White House operates like a hotel, with room service. That's a very apt analogy.)

If the journalist wrote in the article that "Harper paid for the ticket" it means that Harper's press guy expressly said that, and Harper's not a Clinton type to fool around with language.

In any case, the ticket price is purely symbolic. The Challenger trip across the country alone cost in the tens of thousands.

And more broadly, getting back to your original point about Harper's "average guy schtick", this is politics. Harper's public persona is connected to a real person, but it's also an invention. Harper and Canadians are in the process of creating it. As usual, there will be two: one in English and another in French.

[Kindred]

Most exec's would have expensed the tickets, Harper is clearly more ethical as he paid for them himself. And in Ottawa, no one would have flinched to see a few MP's out to a game discussing business on a credit card bill.

I think we all know they didnt come out of Harper's personal pocket, but the tax payers. Maybe the problem is that too many people think our Government should be run like a business, and the PM is the head CEO with an unlimited expense account.

When it comes to Public Office you should be accountable to the people who's money you're spending on your perks, just as in business you are accountable for your expense account.

More than a few business people have found themselves unemployed because of padding their expense accounts.

This kind of joy riding on the Tax Payers tab has become far too common and its time to put a stop to it, and make Politicians accountable for their actions. People who can barely feed their families should not be picking up the tab for Politicians fun and games. Hell forget the poor, they arent important, your average working slob shouldnt be picking up the tab ..

Liberal, NDP, Conservative, God himself, I dont care who it is, no free rides on the back of Canadians.

A dangerous person is one who worships "his leader" and considers he or her can do no wrong, never questions anything they do but follows blindly and mutely believing they are perfect in all that they do. A dangerous leader is one who fosters this kind of blind adoration and compliance from his supporters.

I do believe you just got your first "f**k you Canada" from Harper