Friday, May 06, 2016

Joe Slept Though The Verdict


If you want to know what the Conservatives have learned since their election defeat, Michael Harris writes, you should read the op-ed which Joe Oliver recently penned for the National Post:

Oliver tried to make the argument that the Trudeau government is overturning all the wonderful things done by Side Door Steve (he doesn’t sit in Parliament — he lurks there). Take the Office of Religious Freedom (ORF). Joe sees this Harper-era initiative as a giant step forward for mankind. Others, whose comfort zone isn’t necessarily the Middle Ages, prefer the separation of church and state — a secular approach to governance. (Yes, Joe, it’s a radical thought. But a lot has happened since the Battle of Hastings.)

Joe also slammed the Liberals for scuppering such Conservative initiatives as increasing the OAS retirement age from 65 to 67. And yes, Trudeau did reverse that in his government’s first budget, as promised.

What Joe neglects to mention is that Side Door Steve once promised to never touch Canada’s pension system. Then, one day, he woke up on the other side of the bed and did just that. He even made the announcement in Davos, Switzerland, rather than in Parliament. There was no supporting Finance Department white paper to justify the move. That sent coffee rockets jetting out of Kevin Page’s nostrils. It was Steve in communion with his belly-button — again.

Oliver argues that the Trudeau government is overturning all the brilliant things the Harper government did:

We should have kept those bombers bombing in Iraq, we never should have imposed all those pesky environmental restrictions on pipeline projects, we should carry on stripping citizenship from convicted terrorists and we should have invested $3.2 billion on military spending right away, instead of delaying it.

And he neglects to mention all the things the Harper government overturned:

The Law Reform Commission, disbanded. Katimavik, obliterated. The National Roundtable on the Economy and the Environment, abandoned. Kelowna, dumped. Kyoto, ditto. The Wheat Board, sold. The long-form census, cancelled. The convention on fighting drought in Africa, defenestrated. CIDA, castrated. Priceless diplomatic assets such as Strathmore in Ireland and the Canadian High Commissioner’s residence in the U.K., auctioned off for short-term gain.

There is still some of Harper's legacy which Trudeau hasn't overturned -- the Saudi arms deal, and the Trans Pacific Partnership. So the jury is still out on Mr. Trudeau. But the jury came to a decision on Harper last October.

Joe slept through the verdict.

Image: calgaryherald.com

8 comments:

the salamander said...

.. Stevie/Ray Harper/Novak chose wisely pimping Joe millionaire Oliver to replace Saint Jim Flaherty. No better n no worse than any of Harper's ship of fools Joe toes the party line on cue.. and sorry to say.. truly rang the bell re Harper's odd Jewish vote affectation.. I know - guilty now of anti-semantic vitriol am I .. but just walkin down the street I'm guilty of anti-cement behaviour.. or glancing however briefly at 10 yr olds not looking both ways .. I may have hugged a tree in the last 40 or so years... But just to be sure will do so today.. And will with malice n aforethought, loudly say 'bite me Joe Oliver' ..

Owen Gray said...

I suspect that the general reaction to Joe matches your reaction, salamander. Joe keeps repeating his talking points.

The Mound of Sound said...


Joe Oliver was my least favourite Harper minister. I thought of him as "old leatherback" in honour of a grizzled sea turtle. He was an automaton in the cause of partisanship. What I despised him most for was his denunciation of environmentalists as "inimical" to the future of Canada. He used that word in the sense of "enemy of the state." A creepy, utterly amoral bastard like that, given free reign, could have crippled any democracy.

Joe proves the old adage that "beauty is only skin deep, but ugly can go straight to the core."

Owen Gray said...

I too, will remember Joe for his characterization of environmentalists, Mound. He was a failure at all of his portfolios.

Dana said...

Investment banker turned politician.

Nail meet hammer.

Owen Gray said...

Agreed, Dana. A man with one solution -- only one solution.

Steve said...

How this guy made money is beyond me?

Owen Gray said...

Like many Harperites, Steve, he confused luck with competence.