Action Democratique du Quebec is collapsing

A few days ago I commented that I thought the ADQ was doomed. Well one more nail was stuck into the coffin by the leader, Gilles Tallion, who resigned after less than a month as leader.

It could be viewed as a good thing. A controversial leader stepping down, and his controversial opponent promised not to run according to the Globe & Mail. This gives an opportunity for a compromise or peace making candidate to arrive on the scene. Perhaps someone who has stayed out of the recent conflicts. Mario Dumont himself put forth the name of Gerard Deltell.

The problem is, according to the same Globe & Mail article, that the ADQ does not have the money for a new leadership race. They are even considering the executive appointing a leader as a cost saving measure. You know you are in trouble when you are seriously considering abandoning democracy to cut costs.

Plus the wounds are still sore from the last leadership race. I know how bloody such races can be and usually they need a cooling down time. But the turmoil in the ADQ ranks has prevented people from cooling down. If anything heads have gotten hotter. It is possible, even by the admittance of ADQ members, that a new leadership race would rip the party apart.

The ADQ once gave me hope that a small government party could win in Quebec. That hope has not been completely dashed. I still think that there is an oppertunity in Quebec for a Mike Harris type politician to arise. I just don't think that politician will be a member of the ADQ.

The Wall

George Smitherman will run for mayor of Toronto

This is not exactly surprising but now it is finally official, Mr. Smitherman has announced that he is going to be a candidate for mayor.

I'm going to watch this campaign closely to decide who will get my support, but I like what I'm hearing so far from Smitherman. Along with his announcement Mr. Smitherman attacked tax increases and spoke of governing within "fiscal reality."

Certainly he is no right wing lunatic such as myself, but beggars can't be choosers in the city of Toronto. Besides he would certainly be better than David Miller.

There are still lots of candidates considering a run who haven't announced yet. So I'm going to wait and see how the race takes shape.

CFS in trouble?

Stelmach's victory is good for the Wildrose Alliance, but there is still a long road to travel

Mathew Johnston of Western Standard rightly points out that Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach's political survival this weekend is a good thing for the upstart Wildrose Alliance. The PC Party of Alberta may have doomed itself by deciding to continue to back their unpopular leader.

It has been the pattern of Albertan politics to elect powerful party dynasties. Then to have those dynasties suddenly collapse and have its place taken by a new dynasty. Signs of such collapse is everywhere in Alberta and there is much talk of the WA receiving the "Mandate of Heaven."

That being said, people should keep in mind that historical patterns don't work as predictions. Just because the Social Credit collapsed and was replaced by the PC Party doesn't mean that the WA is going to replace the PCs in the same way. We could be looking, for the first time in a century, at a real party competition in Alberta.

There is no guarantee that the WA will win that competition. I must caution my fellow Smith enthusiasts against setting their expectations too high. I believe that she will be premier one day. But it may take several elections and we shouldn't allow ourselves to be disheartened if it takes longer than we hope.

Gordon Brown's international tax

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown wants an international tax on the financial transactions. His argument is that it is bad that the rewards are given to so few and the costs of failure is borne by so many. That is perhaps a fair argument, but here is a novel idea, let's not bail out people who mess up.

Seriously, I agree with Gordon Brown that socialized risk and privatized rewards suck. But the solution is not to socialize rewards but to privatize risk. That way bankers actually have an incentive not to do something so risky that it would put them out of business. This "too big to fail" concept is ultimately going to destroy our economy. The mind set that a company that is big enough can do whatever it wants and if it screws up the government will come to their rescue is going to bring down the capitalist system.

I'm glad that Jim Flaherty was among those that gave Mr. Brown's proposal a flat no.

Republican victory in Virginia and New Jersey a message to Obama?

McLaughlin and Associates have released a poll that shows the results of the Governor races in Virginia and New Jersey was at least partially a message to President Obama. The Republican victories there may be a prequel to the 2010 Congressional elections.

You can look at the full results here.

Question: Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: One of the reasons I voted for (Christie/McDonnell) is to send a message to the Obama administration that I am unhappy with the direction they are taking Washington and the country

New Jersey: 68% agree 23% disagree
Virginia: 74% agree 22% disagree