It has not been a good week for Stéphane Dion.
Already left reeling from having his secret plan to impose a permanent new ‘carbon’ tax on gas, electricity and everything else leaked to the public, Mr. Dion has subsequently had to cope with a rash of out-of-control statements from his own caucus and colleagues.
First there was senior Dion Liberal MP, John Godfrey who, in speaking of Mr. Dion’s new tax grab said:
“You cannot have both a fight against climate change and cheap gas. This is not possible. You have to pick one.” (Toronto Sun, May 11, 2008)
Mr. Godfrey is himself a product of power and privilege. For him to speak so dismissively of a new tax that would punish everyday truckers, cabbies, commuters and everyday Canadians who drive reveals just how out of touch the Dion Liberals have become.
Then there was Mr. Dion’s deputy leader and ‘Red-Green’ alliance partner Elizabeth May. Already on the hot seat for labeling those who disagree with her as being worse than Nazi appeasers, Ms. May went even further and told an international audience that:
“I am ashamed to admit the Canadian government is now the worst in the world” (The Toronto Star, May 8, 2008)
Ms. May’s comments not only disrespect her own country, they also show a shocking ignorance of the deplorable human rights situations faced by other people around the world.
Then there was senior Stéphane Dion Liberal Senator Romeo Dallaire who, testifying to a Parliamentary committee accused Canada of sinking to the moral equivalent of Al-Qaeda.
"The minute you start playing with human rights, with conventions, with civil liberties in order to say you are doing it to protect yourself … you are no better than the guy who doesn't believe in them at all." (Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, May 13, 2008)
And then there is outspoken Dion MP Garth Turner, who, in order to score points with a local audience, said the following about the brave men and women of the Canadian Forces.
“We don’t have funding for youth centres but we do have $150,000 for every shell bought for the sole purpose of destroying a village in Afghanistan.” (Milton Canadian Champion, May 2, 2008)
In a time when Canadians should be rallying behind our men and women in uniform, it is ignorant and outrageous for an opportunistic Opposition MP to instead accuse them of targeting and killing civilians.
Mr. Dion’s loose-lipped, out-of-control lieutenants are just one more sign that he cannot be trusted to run a government. The Liberals remain out-of-touch with Canadians, with no new policies, no new ideas, and no new solutions for the challenges facing the country. Now Canadians know they have no judgment either and Stéphane Dion is too weak to contain them.
Stéphane Dion. Not a leader. Not worth the risk.