New Canadian Conservative Party to lose another MP

[Screaming Lord Byron]

Canadian Alliance MP Keith Martin (Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca)is likely to announce at a press conference tomorrow (Weds) that he will sit as an Independent while he seeks the Liberal nomination in his riding. In related news, Quebec MP Andre Bachand who resigned from the Conservatives to sit as an independent has announced his retirement from Federal Politics.

[SeveneightyWhoa]

1. The bad thing about this is..

..most of the rightwingers leaving the Conservative Party are heading straight for the Liberals. That doesn't say anything positive about which direction the Liberal Party is being taken.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

4. The question is for what reason is Martin moving to the right.

Is it a tactical move to soak up former Progressive Conservatives and kill the CPC at birth, or is this a strategic direction based on Martin's personal beliefs. It's looking increasingly like the latter.

[Holly]

6. I'm not totally convinced

that Martin is moving to the right. Let's not forget that he has always been fiscally conservative...and his economic policy happened under Chretien's watch. He is going to re-introduce pot reform, and same-sex marriage will be re-introduced. It may be amended slightly, and I'm not convinced that it would pass in it's current form. Right or wrong, we must face facts..Canadian's are divided on some issues.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

9. The pot reform, AFAIK, is to be substantially watered down

the only real change is that being in possession of a very small amount of pot will not lead to criminal charges. As for Same-Sex marriages, I expect nothing more than a civil-union package.

[Holly]

10. I think that your right

in your prediction about same-sex unions. Although I personally don't agree with changing the proposed legislation, I do think that they will. It's unlikely to pass otherwise. I would rather have seen it defeated (or passed hopefully) and everyone's cards laid on the table, but I'm a realist. Many, Canadians won't remember but, it's similar to abortion legislation of the past. The only reason that I'm drawing a comparison between same-sex marriage and abortion rights is, that they are wrapped up in some people's religious beliefs. At one time , in order for a women to get an abortion in Canada, her doctor had to appear before a hospital committee to justify performing an abortion. IMO, as a women that law violated my civil rights, and interfered with my control over my health issues. What a humiliating and degrading experience for women. It was however the first step in giving women rights over her own body. Unfortunately, unless they make alterations to the proposed same-sex marriage bill, it may not pass. It's not right, but that’s reality.

[Holly]

2. any info

on Keith Martin, don't know much about him....why would he see himself as a Liberal, seems a big stretch from Alliance to Liberal.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

3. Keith Martin is an odd fish. He's on the extreme left of the CA.

I'll find some info for you.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

5. This is what the Globe and Mail has to say on the subject of Keith Martin.

http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040112.wharp113/BNStory/National/

'Dr. Martin, a onetime Alliance leadership candidate who was long considered one of its most left-leaning MPs, plans to announce tomorrow that he will quit the Conservatives to sit as an independent in the coming session of Parliament, sources said. At the same time, he intends to run for the Liberal nomination in his Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca riding.

Although sources said Dr. Martin discussed the move with Mr. Martin's team, including B.C. campaign organizer Mark Marissen, the Liberal nomination is not guaranteed. Instead, Dr. Martin is expected to face at least one local Liberal.'

[Holly]

7. Thanks n/t

[Minstrel Boy]

8. More evidence that the right has united, and it's called

the Liberal Party of Canada. The "Conservative" Party is to be the playpen of neocons and fundamentalists.

Thanks for the news about Keith Martin. I'd heard he was expecting a strong challenge for the Conservative nomination in his riding, so it's not totally unexpected. Many Alliance supporters have been uncomfortable with him for some time. Not that it matters, but it matters to the core contingent of the party, Martin's too sexually ambiguous and socially moderate for them.

[Tommy_Douglas]

11. The Libs have been centrist for a long time...

Jean Charest was a Conservative party member before leading the Liberals to victory in the Quebec provincial elections.

Most of these PC guys that will be quitting will be doing so because of their moderate standing and dislike for the radicalism of the new party.

Of course Martin kind of scares me because he is a conservative. He canned all of Chretiens left leaning libs and he's real tight with the B.C. liberals which are more or less in the same boat as Ralph Klein and his wacky conservatives in Alberta.

[Minstrel Boy]

14. And look at what's happening in Hamilton East-Stoney Creek,

with Sheila Copps fighting for her political life in a nomination battle with Martin-supported Tony Valeri.

I'm not a Copps fan, but she is a standard bearer of the left-wing of the Liberal Party. That she's gone from a senior cabinet minister (Deputy PM at one time even) to backbencher is one thing, but that Martin is trying to banish her from parliament altogether is something more.

[Frederic Bastiat]

12. Bachands seat will most likely go Liberal

[Screaming Lord Byron]

13. 2000 Results for Bachand's seat

André Bachand (PC) - 18,430(37.20%)
Aldéi Beaudoin (Lib)-10,416(21.02%)
André Bellavance (BQ)- 18,067(36.47%)

It's winnable for the Liberals, but it all depends on the breakdown of the PC vote. If we consider the BQ to be on a downward trend, then this seat may well go Grit.

[Minstrel Boy]

15. I've seen at least one recent poll showing the Conservative vote

in Quebec now trailing the NDP. (Conservatives in single digits, with NDP up to 10%.)

[Screaming Lord Byron]

16. Good to see Layton's work in Quebec paying off

Due to the NDP's low base in the province, it's difficult to tell where the areas of support will be, I'm guessing the greater Montreal area.

[Minstrel Boy]

17. 10% in Quebec is something like a ten-fold increase over 2000,

where in some ridings we trailed the Marijuana Party. And it even surpasses our national popular vote in 2000, which was down to 8% or 9%.

Pierre Ducasse is running in Manicouagan. He won a lot of hearts at the leadership convention, and even though Manicouagan isn't a natural seat for targetting, it's his home, and longterm success in Quebec must have strong local roots. It's held currently by the BQ, a 65 year old two-term MP, Ghislain Fournier, who's apparently facing a tough nomination battle. And interestingly, it's Mulroney's former riding. It's a long longshot, but if Layton runs a strong campaign, and lifts the national popular vote up to at least the 20% mark we had in 1988 (and that's not such a longshot), then this could be a pleasant surprise.

[SidDithers]

18. Jeez, better run a candidate with the initials AB...

or apparently, you're not allowed to run in that riding :)

Sid

[Screaming Lord Byron]

19. Dammit! There go my chances of a career in Quebec Politics!

[Screaming Lord Byron]

20. Andre Bachand used to be mayor of Asbestos, QC

I've always wanted to be mayor of a toxic substance.

[iverglas]

21. heh ...

My long-ago québécois boyfriend once stopped in mid sentence (I have no idea how the issue arose) and said: What do you call that stuff in English -- amianthe? Asbestos, I said. No, he said, not the place, the stuff. Asbestos, I said. No, he said, ... .

I finally persuaded him that the stuff was called asbestos, which would be why the place is called Asbestos. News to him.


A couple of years ago Canada put up a big WTO international-trade-tribunal fight against France's ban on asbestos imports, alleging that it was an impermissible non-tariff barrier to trade rather than a genuine health-protection measure. We lost that one on some sort of technicality (literally: the ban in question wasn't a "Technical Barrier" to trade ... a very technical point indeed, that I understood at the time but that now escapes me ...). I don't think we were the good guys.