-- OTTAWA -- Pumping almost all of the $14-billion surplus into debt-reduction rather than investing in Canadians is the kind of rigid conservatism that makes it likely the NDP will vote to topple the government next month, Jack Layton said Thursday.It's true, this kind of windfall could put safe-injection sites in every city in Canada.
It could set up government inspected brothels for every sex-trade worker in East Van.
We could send every violent convict in maximum security to a fresh round of anger-management classes.
We could double up the cash-for-life to all those welfare moms who clog up the airwaves every time some kid gets smoked at an after hours club.
Is that what the majority of Canadians want?
I think not.
**********
RELATED: Steffi, meanwhile decides to fall back...
On the tired old "Boogie Man" defense.
When Paul Martin realized he wasn’t going to be able to waltz to a majority government in the spring of 2004, he turned to one of the Liberals’ most reliable and effective weapons: a smear campaign accusing Stephen Harper of harbouring a “secret agenda.”**********
It might not be surprising, then, that Stéphane Dion reached for the same weapon this week as he sought a lifeline to drag himself out of the swamp he’s stumbled into.
“This hidden agenda will be stopped,” he vowed, fresh from three disastrous byelections in his home province.
UPDATE: Liberal largesse bled us dry
"Even Jean Chretien himself famously admitted, and I quote, 'We left the cupboard bare,'" said Mulroney, who pointed out that Chretien served as a finance minister under Trudeau and knew of what he spoke.**********
"That was his only understatement," added Mulroney, to much laughter.
"The day I was sworn in as Prime Minister the government was spending $1.23 on programs for every dollar it took in in taxes," he told the attentive crowd. Under Trudeau, the debt grew by 1,100% and interest rates peaked at 22.75%.
By the time Mulroney left office, program spending was reduced to 97 cents for every dollar of revenues.
In other words, the only reason there was a large deficit, was because of the huge interest payments (33 cents on every tax dollar) Canada had to pay to service the enormous debt Trudeau built up.
LAST WORD: Speaking of bad budget skills
An urgent plea from the political party that used to accept brown envelopes stuffed with cash: "The Liberal Party's Quebec wing has warned Leader Stéphane Dion that it needs a quarter million dollar cash injection by Friday or it will have to close its Montreal office and lay off staff."**********
POSTSCRIPT: Welcome readers of Canadian Cynic
CC has once again directed you here... after calling me a silly name. I will return the favour by urging you to peruse some of CC's "collected wisdom".
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