Canadian federal elections

[bookie71]

After 10 years governing the Conservatives needed the boot; too arrogant, mean spirited and divisive (coming from a conservative).

The nice thing about "democracies" is that you have a revolution without anyone getting murdered.

[cwericb]

Is there not a flaw in a system where one individual can cause a party to lose an election primarily because that person is so arrogant and oblivious to public opinion that he did not have the good grace to resign two years ago before some of the best people left the party? While he could have left with some dignity back then, he let himself become reviled and fired by the voters. Unfortunately he took a lot of good people with him.

 

Voters need to have more say in who becomes the prime minister. Had the Conservatives acquired a new leader a couple of years ago I would be willing to bet that the election results would have been quite different.

 

But now Mr. Harper is gone and we will see what we have in Mr. Trudeau. I do like his planned Infrastructure spending. Some of our roads, bridges, sewer systems are in deplorable shape and rectifying the situation is quite labour intensive and should give a boost to employment.

[Cardboard]

"more of a "Cretien Liberal" vs "Pierre Trudeau Liberal" Government, but we'll see."

 

You bet! And with a finance minister like Paul Martin who reduced the capital gains inclusion rate to 50% from 75%. He has to be a hero for people on this board.

 

As an investor with a fair amount in oil & gas currently, I am quite worried when I hear things like we support the Keystone XL pipeline but, not Northern Gateway. Although, no stance on Energy East yet.

 

Not in my backyard attitude is not what we need IMO. I suspect that he will have a better relation being a Liberal with the guy in the U.S. who is hell bent on destroying the oil & gas industry and prefers Lac Megantic`s people blood on his hands than allowing safer pipeline transportation but, there will be no Keystone XL until Clinton or someone else takes over.

 

"Best looking first lady anywhere:"

 

Ever seen Bashar Al-Assad`s wife?

 

Cardboard

 

 

[bizaro86]

If you have oil stock, the Liberals promise to eliminate CEE for successful O&G exploration (while maintaining it for Toronto/Vancouver headquartered mining firms!) is not a good thing.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-election-2015-oilpatch-1.3268951

 

[SharperDingaan]

Nice to see. We can finally start making some progress again.

 

One also has to think that the folks around him are extremely good, & that they have a very deep bench.  Goodale, McCallum, are very much in the Paul Martin mold …. & it goes on across the spectrum. The god fathers of Cretien & Lalonde also love a good street fight – so probably a good 2-3 year run to come with little interference.

 

SD

 

[netnet]

Ok, speaking as an interloper from south of the border (49th parallel), I must say that I heard M. Trudeau for the first time today.  My, my at least our princelings down south here, don't sound so posh. Of course our most recent, shrubby, dynastic pretender came from a long line of syntax manglers, this has been the third generation worth. (The Bushes, Prescott (grandpere, Senator), George, (pere), George,(fils, president) and the current shrub Jeb, the most well spoken of the lot.)

 

My wife and I looked at each other hearing Justin Trudeau for the first time and said, he would not have made it down here with that upper class affect, but you northerners are so forgiving and fair minded!

[augustabound]

Ok, speaking as an interloper from south of the border (49th parallel), I must say that I heard M. Trudeau for the first time today.  My, my at least our princelings down south here, don't sound so posh. Of course our most recent, shrubby, dynastic pretender came from a long line of syntax manglers, this has been the third generation worth.

 

My wife and I looked at each other hearing Justin Trudeau for the first time and said, he would not have made it down here with that upper class affect, but you northerners are so forgiving and fair minded!

This vote was as much an "anybody but Harper" vote as much as a vote for Trudeau.

 

Harper's campaign was painfully awful from day one. His attack ads at Trudeau were extremely tame compared to previous years. The ads ended with the apparently undecided voters sitting around a lunchroom table saying he's not ready. Then one lady would say, "I'm not saying no forever, just not now".

A conservative ad against a liberal implying he would be ready in the future to govern?

 

My wife laughs that I remember the ads against Stephane Dionne, "Not a leader" with the soundbite of Dionne saying in parliament with his heavy French accent, "Do you think it's easy to make priorities?!"

Or Michael Ignatieff, "Just visiting".

For those in the U.S., Dionne was leader of the party while they transitioned between (real) leaders. He bought them time until they could fly in Ignatieff from Harvard and find a solid riding for him to win.

 

Trudeau didn't take the bait like (I assume) the conservatives thought he would. He ran a clean campaign focusing on a couple of key issues and staying on message. Some say the conservative message played right in the liberals hands.

The 11 week campaign was by design since the conservatives had the most money. The liberals spent wisely it seems and made a push the last couple of weeks.

 

I'm not sure if it's the same in the U.S. but in Canada, conservatives vote every election and vote for conservative no matter the issues/past.

Liberals vote when they absolutely need change and are tired of the current government.

This vote got 68% of eligible voters out. That's the most since '93 when the country voted out then 3 term conservative PM, Brian Mulroney.