Harper promotes Canada's emmission reduction plan in Europe
May 29, 2008 - Prime Minister Harper promotes Canada's plan for reducing greenhouse gas emissions at the Canada-UK Chamber of Commerce in London, England.
CNN - Obama jumping in polls
Barack Obama's poll position against Hillary Clinton is on the rise, but they both are equal against McCain. Hillary's arguments fading fast.
Amid Further Uproar, Obama Resigns From Church
Barack Obama has resigned his 20-year membership in Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ. A move that follows inflammatory remarks by the Reverend Jeremiah Wright and more recent fiery remarks from a visiting priest.
Update: A decision is expected to be reached today in Washington, DC on the status of the delegates in Florida and Michigan. Analysis to come following the decision by the DNC rules committee...
Update 2: Sources indicate that a deal has been reached that would divide the Florida delegation in half and allocate the delegates according to the primary results. Michigan is up in the air. The central issue is what to do about the roughly 40% who voted "uncommitted". Should those votes go to Obama or should Obama get zero delegates from the state (and in Hillary's popular vote formula) despite the fact he followed the rules and took his name off the ballot in the state. Regardless of what is decided, Obama will maintain his delegate lead after today and likely wrap up the nomination Wednesday or shortly after. The big question is will Hillary take this fight to the convention floor?
Update 3: Compromise reached that will allow Michigan and Florida delegations to be seated with half votes. Allocations for Obama took place in Michigan regarding the uncommitted votes. Today there will be some anger and division, but hopefully eventually there will be unity. Obama needs just over 60 delegates to clinch the new number and will likely do it Tuesday following the last primaries or shortly after when the remaining super delegates announce their preferences. Hopefully Hillary has the class to recognize defeat on Tuesday night and avoid taking this fight to the convention.
Update 4: Statement from Clinton campaign:
***
Harold Ickes and Tina Flournoy made the following statement:
Today’s results are a victory for the people of Florida who will have a voice in selecting our Party’s nominee and will see its delegates seated at our party’s convention. The decision by the Rules and Bylaws Committee honors the votes that were cast by the people of Florida and allocates the delegates accordingly. We strongly object to the Committee’s decision to undercut its own rules in seating Michigan’s delegates without reflecting the votes of the people of Michigan. The Committee awarded to Senator Obama not only the delegates won by Uncommitted, but four of the delegates won by Senator Clinton. This decision violates the bedrock principles of our democracy and our Party. We reserve the right to challenge this decision before the Credentials Committee and appeal for a fair allocation of Michigan’s delegates that actually reflect the votes as they were cast.
***
Reform Party of Ontario?
I never received this email, but I understand thousands of other PC members did. It looks like some disgruntled PC Party members are attempting to increase their base. Earlier in the year there were rumors that Randy Hillier was a possibility to lead this group.
-Darryl
***
From: exec dir 1 [mailto:ontario.reform.party@gmail.com]
Sent: Thursday, May 29, 2008 10:58 AM
To: ontario.reform.party@gmail.com
Subject: June Meeting
Fellow Ontarian;
Mike Harris brought sanity to Ontario with two majority governments.Sadly, since Iron Mike retired, we've seen Ontario slide badly.The province that once led Canada with it's industrial might has been diminished.
We now lead elsewhere:
-Job Losses
-Tax Hikes
-Government Growth
The Liberals, bolstered by the ineffectual opposition of John Tory and Howard Hampton will continue to bring Ontario more of the same.
There is an alternative.
The Common Sense Revolution didn't die.It just has a new home.....The Reform Party of Ontario.
Join us June 21 in London to plan a better future for Ontario...........or attend one of the other meetings scheduled across the province as we build for 2011.
For ticket information, visit www.newcanada.ca or call 519-293-1019
Together we can return sanity to our province with the common sense of the common people.
Please forward this to anybody you know who is worried about Ontario's future.
Thank you.
***
The fledgling Reform Party of Ontario is appealing to Progressive Conservatives disillusioned with party leader John Tory to join their right-wing ranks.
In an email appeal apparently sent to thousands of Tories in recent days, the new party claims Reform is "the new home" for people who support the policies of former premier Mike Harris.
"Mike Harris brought sanity to Ontario with two majority governments. Sadly, since Iron Mike retired, we've seen Ontario slide badly," says the missive, which invites people to a June 21 meeting in London.
"The Liberals, bolstered by the ineffectual opposition of John Tory and (NDP Leader) Howard Hampton, will continue to bring Ontario more of the same," it continues.
"There is an alternative. The Common Sense Revolution didn't die. It just has a new home ... the Reform Party of Ontario."
A source close to Harris emphasized the former premier has nothing to do with the group and did not give permission for his name to be used.
"During the early 1990s, when Reform was growing federally, Mike Harris was successful in keeping Reform out of provincial politics," noted the Harris confidant.
Reform takes its name from the defunct Western-based party that splintered from the federal Progressive Conservatives and enabled the Liberals to govern for 13 years until Prime Minister Stephen Harper's reunited Conservatives took power in 2006.
Andrew Long, the party's chief financial officer, said he is not worried about the same thing happening in Ontario. Long said the party is home to former federal Reformers as well as provincial Tories and Liberals, and members of the radical rural group, the Ontario Landowners Association.
"I am not happy with John Tory whatsoever," he said, noting Tory "single-handedly lost the election" last Oct. 10 with the controversial pledge to expand funding of faith-based schools.
While Reform ran two candidates in that election, the party hopes to field a larger slate in the 2011 vote.
Party leader Brad Harness, a former federal Reform member, said yesterday word of the burgeoning movement has spread through the Internet.
"We're really pleased by the response," said Harness.
That’s the subject line on today’s e-mail from the Republican Senatorial Committee. The text is worth a look:
Dear Republican Supporter,
I have a real fear of waking up to this headline after the elections this fall. Make no mistake about it: If our grassroots teams fail to come together and work as hard as they did in 2000, 2002 and 2004, that headline could very likely be the result!
In key states, news accounts indicate Democrats are outpacing Republicans registering voters. We also know Barack Obama’s campaign is utilizing the Internet to raise record amounts of money to support his campaign and Democrats nationally … all in the hope that new voters and record resources will produce a Democrat landslide victory this fall.
There’s so much at risk, and conservatives I talk with from all across the country are feeling the rumblings of “what could be.” But we must urgently realize that is “what WILL be” if we don’t energize our grassroots and get to work right away.
Do you want a sound policy to bring about long-term stability in Iraq? Then I ask for your immediate help in supporting Republican candidates running for U.S. Senate by making a contribution of $10, $25, $50 or even $100 to the NRSC.
Do you want lower taxes, less regulation and an economy that empowers small businesses to create new jobs? Then stop what you are doing right now and take 2 minutes to help support Republican candidates running for U.S. Senate by making a contribution of $10, $25, $50 or even $100 to the NRSC.
Do you want Supreme Court justices and federal judicial nominees confirmed to the bench who practice judicial restraint and don’t use the courts for implementing their own radical agenda? Then join me now and help support Republican candidates running for U.S. Senate by making a contribution of $10, $25, $50 or even $100 to the NRSC.
There is no time to waste. Your support is critical.
When I was Chairman of the NRSC, we liked to say that early money wins campaigns. Senator John Ensign, the new NRSC Chairman, agrees and has been working overtime on behalf of our Republican Senate candidates. Over the last 48 hours, hundreds of grassroots supporters like you have chosen to support his efforts and are helping demonstrate that Republicans will have the financial strength necessary to win competitive Senate seats and challenge vulnerable Democrat senators. However, the NRSC is still short of their goal. Please support Senator Ensign and the NRSC today.
Remember, your support will strengthen their nationwide efforts to organize grassroots activists, communicate with voters like you online, and highlight the strong positions our Republican Senate candidates are taking on the issues that matter most: reforming our tax code, cutting wasteful spending, securing our borders and maintaining a strong national defense.
The e-mail is signed by
Bill Frist, M.D.
Fmr. U.S. Senate Majority Leader
****
Darryl --
You'll like this.
This morning someone forwarded me an email sent by the arm of the Republican Party that raises money for their Senate candidates.
The subject of the message was "Democrats Win Landslide Victory," and the writer, Republican former Senator Bill Frist, admits: "I have a real fear of waking up to this headline after the elections this fall."
He goes on to explain fears among Washington power brokers about Barack Obama's grassroots support and voter registration efforts.
He's right to be worried -- we're bringing new people into the process, and Obama supporters are organizing in communities across the country like never before.
You've gotten their attention by being one of the 1.5 million donors who have gotten us this far. But Frist was raising money ahead of tonight's financial reporting deadline -- the same deadline we face.
This is the last opportunity to have your donation counted for May, and the last chance to have a meaningful impact on the final three primary contests.
Will you step up again and make your donation of $25 count right now?
https://donate.barackobama.com/maydeadline
Here's a little bit more from Frist's email:
From: Senator Bill Frist, M.D.
Date: Thu, May 29, 2008 at 3:59 PM
Subject: "Democrats Win Landslide Victory"Dear Republican Supporter,I have a real fear of waking up to this headline after the elections this fall. [...]In key states, news accounts indicate Democrats are outpacing Republicans registering voters. We also know Barack Obama's campaign is utilizing the Internet to raise record amounts of money to support his campaign and Democrats nationally ... all in the hope that new voters and record resources will produce a Democrat landslide victory this fall.There's so much at risk, and conservatives I talk with from all across the country are feeling the rumblings of "what could be." [...][...] I ask for your immediate help in supporting Republican candidates running for U.S. Senate by making a contribution of $10, $25, $50 or even $100 to the NRSC [...]What's amazing about this message referencing Barack Obama is that it's not from the McCain campaign. It's not even about the presidential race.
It's about the forces of the status quo, who don't want to change the way Washington works, worried about the prospect of ordinary people taking their rightful place in a political process that is too often dominated by lobbyists and special interests.
They've seen the writing on the wall, and they know that when Barack is the nominee, we're going to continue building a movement for change to elect Barack Obama and bring about change from the bottom up at every level of office.
There are only a few hours left before tonight's reporting deadline, so please give whatever you can now:
https://donate.barackobama.com/maydeadline
Thank you,
Steve
Steve Hildebrand
Deputy Campaign Manager
Obama for America
Ron Paul - Won't campaign for Bob Barr, Staying in Republican race
Paul would make a better candidate than McCain in my opinion
-Darryl
Europe wants Obama to win
Anyone care to speculate why Russia seems to be the most pro-Republican of the countries surveyed? Otherwise this poll is no surprise and similar to Canada.
-Darryl
The poll also found a striking level of anti-American feeling in every country. A clear majority of Russians - 56 per cent - believe the US is a "force for evil" in the world. In Britain, only 33 per cent see America as a "force for good".
Opinion towards America has become steadily more hostile throughout the presidency of George W Bush, with the Iraq war probably being the single most important factor.
Mr Bush's unpopularity appears to have rubbed off on Republican presidential candidates in general. This might explain why Mr McCain, a strong supporter of the Iraq war, is the least popular potential president in all the countries surveyed.
Meanwhile, Mr Obama, the only consistent opponent of the Iraq war in the race for the presidency, commands a clear lead. He is especially popular in Italy, where a remarkable 70 per cent would vote for him if they could.
In France, historically the European country with the strongest anti-American sentiment, 65 per cent would back Mr Obama. In Germany, the Democratic Senator would get 67 per cent of the vote - while Mr McCain would receive a derisory six per cent.
Mr Obama appears to have made less of an impact in Britain than elsewhere in Europe. A relatively modest 49 per cent of Britons would vote for him, while 14 per cent would back Mr McCain - twice the totals favouring the Republican candidate in Germany or France.
Another 13 per cent of Britons would not vote for either man and 24 per cent "don't know".
The only country where Mr McCain can rival his opponent's popularity is in Russia, where anti-American feeling is strongest. The Republican appears to have made a striking impression on Russians, with 24 per cent saying they would vote for him if they could - a mere seven points behind Mr Obama.
Meanwhile, more Russians trust Mr McCain to "lead the global economy out of its current difficulties". His economic policy skills have the support of 36 per cent, compared with 28 per cent who back Mr Obama.
Historically, Russians have tended to favour Republican presidents and conservative leaders in the West in the general. Both Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher enjoyed considerable popularity in the former Soviet Union in the 1980s.
While Vladimir Putin, the former president who now serves as prime minister, confronted the West on a series of issues, he frequently spoke of his personal regard for Mr Bush, calling the American leader a "decent and honest man".
But the Telegraph.co.uk poll found that only 16 per cent of Russians see America as a "force for good" in the world. In Britain, the total was 33 per cent and in France, only 28 per cent. As recently as 2000, a global attitudes survey found that 83 per cent of Britons and 62 per cent of the French had a "favourable" view of America.
The Telegraph poll found that Italy has overtaken Britain to become the most pro-American country out of Europe's four largest nations. Almost half - 49 per cent - of Italians see America as a "force for good" with only 27 per cent believing Washington is a "force for evil".
- This research, commissioned by Telegraph.co.uk, was carried out online between May 23 and 29 by YouGov plc. The total sample was 6,256 (broken down into Britain 2,241; France 1,005; Russia 1,001; Italy 1,004; Germany 1,005).
Does McCain really understand the Iraq War?
May 30, 2008
MSNBC Keith Olbermann
Photos of Harper in Europe
With the Bernier affair consuming the press, I can't blame people if they failed to notice that our PM is overseas meeting with our allies in Europe. Courtesy of NB Tory Lady, here are some photos of Harper meeting with leaders of France, Germany, Italy and the UK. Harper will be at a G8 meeting in July and also plans to visit Israel and Jordan next.
-Darryl
Updated Fri. May. 30 2008 12:57 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
The Montreal Climate Exchange began trading carbon emission credits on Friday, less than two years before many Canadian industries have to start cutting their greenhouse gas emissions.
The exchange will allow industries that do not yet have the technology to begin cutting emissions to buy carbon credits so they can meet government-mandated targets.
Companies that can meet emissions targets will get credits, which they will be able to trade at market value on this new exchange.
By 2010, industries will have to start reducing their greenhouse gas emissions, and they will have a decade to reduce emissions by 20 per cent.
Luc Bertrand, president and CEO of the Montreal Exchange and chairman of the MCeX, said that MCeX is the first of what will soon be many environmental markets across the country.
At a press conference, Quebec Premier Jean Charest said that trading carbon credits makes sense given governments are starting to legislate when and by how much industries must cut their carbon emissions.
"I think we're a year and a half or two years away because the main factor in all this will be the election of a new American president. It's that simple," Charest said.
"And all three candidates have all made a commitment towards capping trade and legislating greenhouse gas emissions. So that's where the world is going."
The Montreal Climate Exchange (MCeX) is the first regulated environmental trading market in Canada. It is a joint venture of the Montreal Exchange (MX) and the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), which was the world's first greenhouse gas emissions reduction and trading system.
Ron Paul Book: The Revolution - A Manifesto
Presidential candidate Ron Paul's as yet unreleased book The Revolution: A Manifesto has stormed into the Amazon top five today rising from number 629 in a matter of hours.
The book, published by Grand Central, is not due out until April 30th, yet is already selling in the thousands, giving a stark indication of how popular the Congressman's message has become.
The Manifesto is Ron Paul's first original book in over twenty years and contains all his now familiar policies on the economy, war, terrorism, civil liberties and the restoration of the Constitution.
The phenomenal rise of the book in the amazon bestsellers list has been assisted by a new grassroots effort at the website www.RonPaulBookBomb.com.
The site is aiming to help Dr. Paul's manifesto debut at number one on the New York Times bestseller list in addition to reaching #1 on Amazon and on BarnesandNoble.com, as well as reaching 1 million Americans with Dr. Paul’s message.
The publicity gained from such achievements will be invaluable to the Ron Paul campaign, whether that still be on the Republican ticket or as a independent come April 30th.
The site is taking pledges from readers committing to buy the book on its release date, a now familiar format from the previous money bomb donation day sites.
In the last couple of days the site has racked up over 3200 pledges, sending the Manifesto from unranked on Amazon.com to positions #629, #516, #345, #193, #102, all the way up to its current top five ranking.
Here is Ron Paul's Preface to the book:
Every election cycle we are treated to candidates who promise us "change," and 2008 has been no different. But in the American political lexicon, "change" always means more of the same: more government, more looting of Americans, more inflation, more police-state measures, more unnecessary war, and more centralization of power.
Real change would mean something like the opposite of those things. It might even involve following our Constitution. And that’s the one option Americans are never permitted to hear….
With national bankruptcy looming, politicians from both parties continue to make multi-trillion dollar promises of "free" goods from the government, and hardly a soul wonders if we can still afford to have troops in – this is not a misprint – 130 countries around the world. All of this is going to come to an end sooner or later, because financial reality is going to make itself felt in very uncomfortable ways. But instead of thinking about what this means for how we conduct our foreign and domestic affairs, our chattering classes seem incapable of speaking in anything but the emptiest platitudes, when they can be bothered to address serious issues at all. Fundamental questions like this, and countless others besides, are off the table in our mainstream media, which focuses our attention on trivialities and phony debates as we march toward oblivion.
This is the deadening consensus that crosses party lines, that dominates our major media, and that is strangling the liberty and prosperity that were once the birthright of Americans. Dissenters who tell their fellow citizens what is really going on are subject to smear campaigns that, like clockwork, are aimed at the political heretic. Truth is treason in the empire of lies.
There is an alternative to national bankruptcy, a bigger police state, trillion-dollar wars, and a government that draws ever more parasitically on the productive energies of the American people. It’s called freedom. But as we’ve learned through hard experience, we are not going to hear a word in its favor if our political and media establishments have anything to say about it.
If we want to live in a free society, we need to break free from these artificial limitations on free debate and start asking serious questions once again. I am happy that my campaign for the presidency has finally raised some of them. But this is a long-term project that will persist far into the future. These ideas cannot be allowed to die, buried beneath the mind-numbing chorus of empty slogans and inanities that constitute official political discourse in America.
That is why I wrote this book.
Two expansion teams in Quebec City and Winnipeg? Potential to move teams to Halifax or Hamilton? At this point there is no longer an argument not to bring more NHL franchises to Canada.
-Darryl
Canadian NHL teams mean money
Canada's six clubs are responsible for bringing in almost one-third of NHL's entire ticket revenue
May 30, 2008 04:30 AM
Rick Westhead
Sports business columnist
A secret NHL report detailing the ticket revenues of its 30 teams reveals what Canadian hockey fans have long suspected and offers a compelling case for putting more teams north of the border.
The six Canadian teams account for 31 per cent of the $1.1 billion (U.S.) in league ticket revenue, and have gone through league-leading double-digit increases over last season, according to the internal NHL report.
Overall, the league has seen its ticket revenue rise almost 10 per cent, but 11 of the 24 U.S.-based clubs were either revenue-flat or lost ticket income.
Atop the list of income winners is the Maple Leafs, who nudged out the Montreal Canadiens to lead the league this past season with $1.9 million worth of ticket revenue per game. Based on 41 home games, that's $77.9 million a year – not counting revenue from pre-season games. A year ago, the Leafs generated $1.5 million a game, according the report obtained by the Star from several league sources.
The increase in the value of the Canadian dollar may be responsible for as much as half of the league's revenue gains since the NHL went through the lockout of 2004-05, say several sources familiar with NHL finances.
"If you take out the Canadian teams, which have done so well since the lockout largely because of the Canadian dollar, the league's revenues are actually only growing at a 2 per cent clip per year," says an executive with a U.S.-based NHL team, who requested anonymity.
"It's not enough. We're not really growing as a sport, and we're still invisible in the U.S."
The figures are sure to embolden Research In Motion co-founder Jim Balsillie in his efforts to add another Canadian-based team to the NHL. He has been stymied twice by the league in attempts to buy a U.S. club and bring it to southern Ontario.
"This really makes the case for another team in Canada, whether it's Hamilton, Winnipeg or Quebec City," says former Vancouver Canucks owner Arthur Griffiths.
"I think Hamilton has the best facility, but obviously faces challenges in what it would have to pay Toronto and Buffalo. Winnipeg is a good possibility, but the market there has shown a resistance to paying top dollar for tickets, and you wouldn't want to add a team that was going to be in the middle-of-the-pack for revenue, while Quebec City needs a huge infusion of investment for a new facility."
The NHL has refused comment on the internal report.
NHLPA executive director Paul Kelly has reviewed the document and said it highlights the importance of placing more franchises in Canada, instead of potential expansion cities such as Las Vegas, Houston or Kansas City.
"I think it would be a huge error not to relocate one of the existing franchises to Hamilton or Winnipeg," Kelly said.
The union chief added the league should embrace Balsillie's entreaties, not "shunt him off."
"This is a guy who has a true passion for the game and has vast resources," Kelly said. "He built his company from nothing into an $80-billion company. We would be foolhardy not to see his efforts happen."
Kelly said the soonest the league could realistically consider relocation or expansion is in time for the 2009-10 season.
The most interesting league data may concern the sad-sack Coyotes, who were last in ticket revenue at $450,000. The team is losing more than $30 million a season and was contacted over the past season by six potential buyers, including Balsillie's lawyer, Richard Rodier.
"We're substantially more optimistic about next year," says Jeff Shumway, a senior Coyotes executive. "Last year we had internal issues about where the franchise should go. We weren't all on the same page. Everyone is now committed to a youth movement."
Unlike other pro sports leagues such as the National Football League, which generates billions of dollars in revenue from huge TV and sponsorship contracts, the NHL is a so-called "gate-driven" league, accounting for almost half of the league's total revenue.
The league has said its attendance has hit records in each of the past three seasons. Trouble is, that's based merely on tickets distributed, not overall revenue from ticket sales.
In fact, eight U.S. teams – the Coyotes, the Florida Panthers, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Islanders, Atlanta Thrashers, Washington Capitals, Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues – generated less than half the amount of ticket revenue this season of the Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators. At $1.2 million in ticket revenue per game, the Oilers and Senators garnered the least amount of ticket money among Canadian clubs.
The league's overall revenue this season is estimated to be as much as $2.56 billion, 10 per cent more than last year's $2.31 billion and 22 per cent more than the $2.1 billion generated in 2005-06, the first season played under the current labour contract.
Purple States, Red States and Blue States
Good November election analysis from the Economist magazine...
-Darryl
May 29th 2008 | LOS ANGELES AND WASHINGTON, DC
From The Economist print edition
BARACK OBAMA hopes to wrap up the Democratic nomination next week, as the three last primaries, combined with an expected slew of superdelegate announcements, carry him over the threshold of victory. Already, his team is focusing on winning the White House. With an electorate sick of war, costly petrol and George Bush, the odds favour him. Intrade, a betting site, puts his chances at 58%.
If he (or, should a miracle occur, Mrs Clinton) stumbles, however, it may be because the electoral college has worked against the Democrats. With five months of campaigning still ahead, all predictions should be taken with a fistful of salt. Nonetheless, it is at least plausible that he (or she) might rack up pointlessly large majorities in liberal states while narrowly failing to carry enough swing states to win.
Geography, as so often in history, is key. The electoral map did not change much between the last two presidential elections. Only three states, all small, switched sides between 2000 and 2004: Iowa, New Hampshire and New Mexico. But this year could be very different. John McCain is an unusual Republican, distrusted by the party's evangelical base but popular with independents. Mr Obama's prospects are even harder to discern, since no black American has ever come this close to the presidency and people may lie to pollsters about his candidacy.
How, then, might the electoral map be redrawn this year? A good place to start looking is California. Most analysts say that this is probably not a swing state: John Kerry carried it by ten points. But since it is the biggest prize, with 55 electoral votes out of the 270 needed to win, it cannot be ignored. California's Latinos like Mr McCain's pro-immigration stance, but many of them loathe his party. The California Republican Party is a mess, stuffed with nativists and managing to be simultaneously chaotic and doctrinaire. Mr McCain's age may also count against him in a state where youth is worshipped.
On the plus side for Mr McCain, his defence of free trade will hurt him less in the Pacific West than in the rustbelt, since the region visibly benefits from trade with Asia and Mexico. Coming from next-door Arizona, he has a feel for Western issues, such as water and public-land use, which Mr Obama lacks. And California's popular Republican governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, will lend Mr McCain some star power on the hustings.
In Florida, with its crucial 27 electoral votes, the picture is reversed. Even though he cannot take anything for granted, Mr McCain is roughly eight points ahead in the polls. Mr Obama has serious problems in the Sunshine State. He struggles to woo elderly voters. His idealistic approach to tyrants strikes Cuban-Americans in Miami as naive. What is more, if the Democratic Party cannot find a way to make the votes cast in Florida's Democratic primary this year count, many Florida Democrats who supported Hilary Clinton will still be seething in November.
Another point in Mr McCain's favour is that Florida's governor, Charlie Crist, who is even more popular and perma-tanned than Arnie, backs him whole-heartedly. There is talk of Mr McCain picking Mr Crist as his running-mate—he was one of three possibles invited to the senator's ranch last week. Mr Crist's current bachelorhood may count against him with socially conservative voters, but Mr McCain really needs to win Florida.
The closest battles in big states could be in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Both states have a lot of white working-class voters who think the economy is in terrible shape and foreign trade is much to blame. Their protectionism pulls them to vote for Democrats. But their love of guns and distaste for abortion pull the other way.
Mr Obama simply has to hold Pennsylvania. Polls show him six points ahead of Mr McCain, but his thrashing by Hillary Clinton in the primary should give him pause. He might woo her supporters by choosing Ed Rendell, the governor of Pennsylvania and a long-time Clintonite, as his running-mate. Doing so, however, would prevent him from picking the governor of Ohio, Ted Strickland, another Clinton loyalist whose help he might well need. Ohio, with its 20 college votes, single-handedly tipped the 2004 election to Mr Bush.
A poll of polls by RealClearPolitics.com shows Mr Obama only a whisker ahead of Mr McCain in Ohio. Voters there tend to prefer Mr Obama's economic populism, but to think Mr McCain would be a more reliable commander-in-chief. Mr McCain could perhaps blunt Mr Obama's advantage on economic issues by picking Rob Portman, a former head of the Office of Management and Budget, as his vice-presidential nominee. Not only is Mr Portman widely admired; he is also from Ohio.
Mr Obama faces several challenges in his own backyard. Across the lake from his home state of Illinois lies Michigan, a Democratic state whose 17 electoral votes are up for grabs. As luck would have it, Michigan is the other state where Democratic primary votes seem unlikely to count this year, leaving many Hillary-loving locals angry. Polls show Mr Obama and Mr McCain neck and neck there, though Mr Obama's NAFTA-scapegoating is an easier sell than Mr McCain's blunt assertion that “some of the jobs that have left the state of Michigan are not coming back.”
Three more states that border Illinois will be fiercely contested: Missouri, Iowa and Wisconsin. Missouri went for Mr Bush by seven points in 2004, but turfed out a Republican senator in 2006. Because eastern Missouri touches Illinois, people there have been able to watch Mr Obama's TV adverts since before he was nationally famous. And sizeable black populations in St Louis and Kansas City will flock to him. Many in Missouri are culturally conservative, however, and Republicans will remind them of Mr Obama's ultra-liberal voting record in the Senate.
Wisconsin, with ten electoral votes, narrowly backed Mr Kerry in 2004. Mr Obama, who did well in the Wisconsin primary even among groups he normally fails to excite, such as white blue-collar workers, hopes to do better. The polls are all over the place.
Iowa is smaller, with only seven electoral votes, but the terrain favours Mr Obama. Mr Bush won there by a single point in 2004. Mr Obama kick-started his national career by winning the Iowa caucuses in January. Mr McCain, who resists showering corn farmers with subsidies, lost miserably there.
Mr Obama hopes that the vast enthusiasm for his candidacy among African Americans will translate into electoral votes. It will help, of course. But unfortunately for him, America's black population is concentrated in the South, most of which seems impregnably Republican. Some 30% of Georgians, for example, are black, but even a huge increase in black turnout will be hard pressed to overturn the 17-point margin by which Mr Bush won there in 2004. Mr Obama's chances are better in the upper southern states of North Carolina and Virginia. Both voted for Mr Bush, but both are becoming more liberal as yuppies move in. A combination of blacks and college-educated whites has given both states Democratic governors.
Mr Obama is six points behind Mr McCain in North Carolina and only one point behind in Virginia. Armchair strategists urge him to pick a Virginian running-mate. Tim Kaine, the governor, is often mentioned. So is Jim Webb, Virginia's junior senator and a former secretary of the navy. Mr Webb would shore up Mr Obama's perceived weakness on national security. But some harsh things he once said about women in combat will upset a lot of former Hillary voters.
Among Mr McCain's targets is Minnesota, which has not voted Republican in a presidential race since 1972 but is turning purple. Mr Kerry won the state by three points. Mr Obama's poll lead is larger, but fragile. The Republicans will be holding their convention in Minneapolis-St Paul this year. And Mr McCain might pick Minnesota's governor, Tim Pawlenty, as his running-mate. Party insiders warm to both Mr Pawlenty's record and his humble roots. His mother died when he was 16. He says he wants the Republicans to be “the party of Sam's Club [ie, people who shop at Wal-Mart], not the country club”.
The final battleground will be in the Mountain West, where libertarian voters like their taxes low and their government unpreachy. This makes Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico all “purple” states, which is why Mr Obama visited all three this week and the Democrats will hold their convention in Denver.
Colorado voted for Mr Bush by five points but elected a Democratic governor in 2006. Nevada backed Mr Bush by two points but constantly re-elects the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid. New Mexico backed Mr Bush by one point but has a Democratic governor, Bill Richardson.
Mr McCain will make much of his local-boy status, since Arizona touches all three states. Were he to pick the conservative Mike Huckabee as his running-mate, however, he would alienate the Mormons in Nevada, who resented the former Arkansas governor's unsubtle digs at their faith during his Republican primary tussle with Mitt Romney, a Mormon. But even winning all three would not compensate Mr Obama for a loss in Pennsylvania.
The sheer number of battleground states plays to Mr Obama's strengths. He will have much more money than any previous presidential candidate, and will be able to unleash a barrage of ads on every battlefield. He can fight hard for every remotely winnable state and force Mr McCain to spend time and money defending supposedly safe ones. Both candidates' vice-presidential picks will be endlessly scrutinised. Seasoned observers say running-mates seldom affect the final result. But if the race is close, both sides will look for any advantage they can find.
Obama's church back in the News
“As I have traveled this country, I've been impressed not by what divides us, but by all that that unites us. That is why I am deeply disappointed in Father Pfleger's divisive, backward-looking rhetoric, which doesn't reflect the country I see or the desire of people across America to come together in common cause.”
-Barack Obama
Who are the remaining super delegates?
Distinguished Party
Leaders (DPLs)
Jimmy Carter (GA)
Al Gore (TN)
Fmr. Senator and Majority Leader
George Mitchell (NY)
Fmr. DNC Chair Bob Strauss (TX)
Senators
Ken Salazar (CO)
Joe Biden (DE)
Tom Carper (DE)
Tom Harkin (IA)
Mary Landrieu (LA)
Ben Cardin (MD)
Carl Levin (MI)
Max Baucus (MT)
Jon Tester (MT)
Harry Reid (NV)
Frank Lautenberg (NJ)
Sherrod Brown (OH)
Ron Wyden (OR)
Jack Reed (RI)
Jim Webb (VA)
Herb Kohl (WI)
Governors
Bill Ritter (CO)
Steve Beshear (KY)
Brian Schweitzer (MT)
John Lynch (NH)
Phil Bredeson (TN)
Joe Manchin (WV)
Add-Ons
Terry Goddard (AZ)
Alex Sink (FL)
Steve Geller (FL)
Jay Nixon (MO)
Rusty McAllister (NV)
Jerry Lee (TN)
32 Unnamed Add-Ons,
including 2 from M
Representatives
Bud Cramer (
Gabrielle Giffords (AZ)
Nancy Pelosi (CA)
Jerry McNerney (CA)
Mike Honda (CA)
Sam Farr (CA)
Bob Filner (CA)
Susan Davis (CA)
Mark Udall (CO)
John Salazar (CO)
Allen Boyd (FL)
Tim Mahoney (FL)
Ron Klein (FL)
Jim Marshall (GA)
Rahm Emanuel (IL)
Nancy Boyda (KS)
Dennis Moore (KS)
William Jefferson (LA)
Charlie Melancon (LA)
Don Cazayoux (LA)
Rep. Michael Michaud (ME)
John Sarbanes (MD)
Steny Hoyer (MD)
Chris Van Hollen (MD)
John Olver (MA)
Niki Tsongas (MA)
John Tierney (MA)
Edward Markey (MA)
Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (MI)
Rep. Bart Stupak (MI)
Collin Peterson (MN)
Gene Taylor (MS)
Rep. Travis Childers (MS)
Rep. Rush Holt (NJ)
Rep. Bob Etheridge (NC)
Rep. Mike McIntyre (NC)
Rep. Tom Udall (NM)
Charlie Wilson (OH)
Marcia Kaptur (OH)
Rep. Zack Space (OH)
Rep. Dennis Kucinich (OH)
Rep. Dan Boren (OK)
Bob Brady (PA)
Jason Altmire (PA)
Tim Holden (PA)
Rep. Mike Doyle (PA)
John Spratt (SC)
Rep. Jim Clyburn (SC)
Bart Gordon (TN)
Nick Lampson (TX)
Jim Matheson (UT)
Alan Mollohan (WV)
Governors
Bill Ritter (CO)
Steve Beshear (KY)
Brian Schweitzer (MT)
John Lynch (NH)
Phil Bredeson (TN)
Joe Manchin (WV)
Add-Ons
Terry Goddard (AZ)#
Alex Sink (FL)#
Steve Geller (FL)#
Jay Nixon (MO)#
Rusty McAllister (NV)#
Jerry Lee (TN)#
32 Unnamed Add-Ons,
including 2 from
DNC Members
Joe Turnham (
Nancy Worley (
Don Bivens (AZ)
Lottie Shackleford (AR)
Art Torres (CA)
Hon. Carole Migden (CA)
Bob Mulholland (CA)
Christine Pelosi (CA)
Robert Rankin (CA)
Steve Ybarra (CA)
John Perez (CA)
Nancy DiNardo (CT)
Donna Brazile (DC)
Christine Warnke (DC)
John Daniello (DE)
Harriet Smith-Windsor (DE)
Karen Thurman (FL)
Rudolph Parker (FL)
Terrie Brady (FL)
Mitchell Ceasar (FL)
Diane Glasser (FL)
Janee Murphy (FL)
Jon Ausman (FL)
Andrew Tobias (FL)
Richard Ray (GA)
Edward Smith (IL)
Vacant (IL)
Helen Knetzer (KS)
Jennifer Moore (KY)
Nathan Smith (KY)
Chris Whittington (LA)
Claude "Buddy" Leach (LA)
Elsie Burkhalter (LA)
Sam Spencer (ME)
Jennifer DeChant (ME)
Hon. Heather Mizeur (MD)
Susan Turnbull (MD)
John Sweeney (MD)
Belkis Leong-Hong (MD)
Debra Kozikowski (MA)
James Roosevelt Jr (MA)
Arthenia Abbott (MI)
Elizabeth Bunn (MI)
Debbie Dingell (MI)
Joyce Lalonde (MI)
Jeffrey Radjewski (MI)
Michael Tardiff (MI)
Richard Wiener (MI)
Mark Brewer (MI)
Lu Battaglieri (MI)
Hon. Kwame Kilpatrick (MI)
Mayor Brenda Lawrence (MI)
Richard Shoemaker (MI)
Carnelia Pettis Fondren (MS)
John Temporiti (MO)
Yolanda Wheat (MO)
Leila Medley (MO)
Hon. Robin Carnahan (MO)
Hon. Maria Chappelle-Nadal (MO)
Dennis McDonald (MT)
Margarett Campbell (MT)
Sam Lieberman (NV)
Hon. Yvonne Gates (NV)
Hon. Catherine Cortez Masto (NV)
Philip D. Murphy (NJ)
Raymond Buckley (NH)
Irene Stein (NY)
Ralph Dawson (NY)
David Parker (NC)
Muriel Offerman (NC)
Carol Peterson (NC)
David Strauss (ND)
Hon. Chris Redfern (OH)
Ronald Malone (OH)
Patricia Moss (OH)
Hon. Joyce Beatty (OH)
Ivan Holmes (OK)
Jim Frasier (OK)
Jay Parmley (OK)
Frank Dixon (OR)
Hon. Bill Bradbury (OR)
Eliseo Roques-Arroyo (PR)
Hon. Gilda Cobb-Hunter (SC)
Cheryl Chapman (SD)
Gray Sasser (TN)
Dr. Inez Crutchfield (TN)
Boyd Richie (TX)
David Hardt (TX
Denise Johnson (TX)
Betty Richie (TX)
Linda Chavez -Thompson (TX)
Helen Langan (UT)
Jim Leaman (VA)
C Richard Cranwell (VA)
Hon. Alexis Herman (VA)
Jerome Wiley Segovia (VA)
Howard Dean (VT)
Ed Cote (WA)
Sharon Mast (WA)
David McDonald (WA)
Nick Casey Jr. (WV)
Alice Germond (WV)
Paula Zellner (WI)
Cynthia Nunley (WY)
Marylyn Stapleton (VI)
Vacant - 1 (At-large)
Vacant - 2 (At-large)
Credit: http://demconwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/superdelegates-who-havent-endorsed.html*Note: for the time being Michigan and Florida super delegates do not count. According to Blackstar News survey, 90% of remaining delegates are likely to back Obama.
CARLSBAD, CALIF. — News Corp. chief executive Rupert Murdoch on Wednesday predicted a Democratic landslide in the U.S. presidential election against a gloomy economic backdrop over the next 18 months.
Mr. Murdoch has yet to endorse a U.S. presidential candidate but considers Barack Obama very promising, the media magnate said in an interview by two Wall Street Journal reporters at an annual conference for high-tech industry insiders.
News Corp. recently acquired ownership of the Journal and its parent company Dow Jones & Co.
“You have got the Obama phenomenon. You have got, undoubtedly, a recession ... The average American is really getting hurt financially and that all bodes well for him (Obama), Mr. Murdoch said.
“You have probably the making of a complete phenomenon in this country,” Mr. Murdoch said in describing what he predicted will be a sweeping victory for Democrats in November.
The recent special election for a U.S. Congressional seat held by Republicans in Mississippi showed how powerless that party may be in the face of a rising political tide, Mr. Murdoch said. Democrat Travis Childers won the seat this month.
Mr. Murdoch said Mr. Obama and John McCain, the expected nominee of the Republican Party, both have a lot of problems, but Mr. McCain will be hurt by his party and his close ties to Washington. Race will be an issue for Mr. Obama, who would be the first black U.S. president, but “it looks like he overcomes that, overcomes that totally.”
Mr. Murdoch is associated with conservative political views but has a reputation for a pragmatic streak in major national races where he has shown a willingness to switch sides when he detects major political changes afoot.
“I think it (a recession) is one we will be coming out of for quite some time,” Mr. Murdoch said. “In the next 18 months, this country is going to be in for a very hard time.”
In the 2008 U.S. Presidential race, Mr. Murdoch said he is not yet backing anyone, but then quickly added: “I want to meet Obama. I want to know if he is going to walk the walk.”
Mr. Murdoch said he had played a role in the endorsement by the New York Post, one of his global stable of papers, in endorsing Mr. Obama during the Democratic primary with Hillary Clinton in New York.
I am glad to see Canada signed on to this treaty and that wording was modified so that it does not disrupt NATO peacekeeping missions in places such as Afghanistan. There is no justification for these types of weapons.
-Darryl
DUBLIN–Diplomats from 111 nations have agreed on a treaty to ban current types of cluster bombs – including Britain, which the United States had counted on as an ally to fight a ban on the munitions.
The talks, which also produced a pledge to destroy cluster bomb stockpiles within eight years, did not involve the biggest makers and users of them: the United States, Russia, China, Israel, India and Pakistan. The pact leaves the door open for new types of cluster bombs that could pick targets more precisely and contain self-destruct technology.
Cluster munitions, fired by artillery or dropped from aircraft, scatter dozens or hundreds of "bomb-lets" across an area as big as two football fields to attack concentrations of troops and vehicles.
They've been used with devastating impact on battlefields around the globe. But critics complain the explosives often fail to detonate and later inflict a terrible cost on civilians, from farmers who strike bomblets in their fields to children who mistake them for playthings.
The breakthrough on a ban capped more than a year of negotiations begun in Norway and pressed home here over the past 10 days.
Lead sponsors plan to unveil the treaty tomorrow after it is translated into several languages.
A draft obtained by Associated Press declares that a signatory nation "undertakes never under any circumstances to use cluster munitions" nor "develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile, retain or transfer to anyone, directly or indirectly, cluster munitions.''
Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin said the 111 participating nations, which include Canada, agreed to the draft wording of a treaty in a move he called "a real contribution to international humanitarian law." Martin said it "is a very strong and ambitious text, which nevertheless was able to win consensus among all delegations."
Participating countries will not have to formally endorse the wording of the text until tomorrow, and will not be locked into the treaty until they attend an official signing ceremony in December in Oslo.
Martin predicted that the widespread support within the world community would put pressure on the United States and the other leading cluster-bomb makers to give them up, too.
In Washington, State Department spokesperson Tom Casey said such weapons are an important part of the American arsenal.
"While the United States shares the humanitarian concerns of those in Dublin, cluster munitions have demonstrated military utility and their elimination from U.S. stockpiles would put the lives of our soldiers and those of our coalition partners at risk," he said.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown welcomed the treaty, saying it was "in line with British interests and values, and makes the world a safer place."
Brown helped propel negotiators to a speedier deal by confirming earlier yesterday that Britain would discontinue its use of two cluster munitions: one an Israeli-designed artillery shell, the other a U.S.-made rocket system for use on Apache attack helicopters. Britain previously had sought an exemption to continue using the helicopter-based weapon in particular.
Nonetheless, the draft treaty contains several concessions sought by the United States – a key absentee that still cast the biggest shadow over deliberations.
The pact will allow countries that sign the treaty to keep co-operating militarily with those that do not. Earlier drafts sought to prohibit such co-operation, but the United States and its NATO allies opposed that idea on the grounds it would complicate joint peacekeeping operations.
Harper Meeting with Ukraine President Victor Yushchenko
Prime Minister Harper and Ukraine President Victor Yushchenko hail strong Canada-Ukraine relations
Great comments from Glenn Beck on "Rise of the Rest"
Glenn Beck: the rise of the west, now the rise of the rest
Scott McClellan: Bush not "open and forthright" on Iraq
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan has written that President Bush relied on a propaganda campaign to sell the Iraq war in the place of honesty and candor.
It's being reported that an upcoming book by McClellan says Bush "veered terribly off course" and was not "open and forthright on Iraq."
According to the report on the Web site Politico, McClellan wrote that some of his own words from the podium in the White House briefing room turned out to be "badly misguided." He says his words were sincere at the time.
McClellan blamed many failings on what he described as a government that was run as a permanent political campaign.
Obama: McCain's Private Fundraiser with Bush
Las Vegas, NV
May 27, 2008
(CNN) -- President Bush Tuesday will travel to Arizona for a fundraiser for Sen. John McCain, the first time the unpopular president will appear with the man he hopes will succeed him in over two months.
President Bush endorses Sen. John McCain during a Rose Garden ceremony in March.
Bush, acting has his party's fundraiser-in-chief, will fly to Phoenix, Arizona, after attending fundraisers for Republican candidates in New Mexico.
Tuesday's event will be the first time Bush and McCain will appear together since the president endorsed the Arizona Republican in a Rose Garden ceremony at the White House on March 5.
Bush, who remains popular with the Republican party base, has been one of the Republican Party's most prolific fundraisers, and McCain will need help to keep up with Democratic fundraising this fall.
But Bush also suffers from some of the highest disapproval ratings for a president in history, which makes any any joint appearances with the president a potential political liability for the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
Nearly three quarters, 71 percent, of those polled in a CNN survey released on May 1 disapproved of the president. The poll's margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.
The Phoenix fundraiser was originally to be held as a public event at the Phoenix Convention Center but was later moved to a private residence.
The McCain campaign said the fundraiser was moved to the residence for privacy's sake.
But the Phoenix Business Journal said the event was moved from the convention center due to lackluster ticket sales and concern over anti-war protesters. A McCain aide denied the report on poor ticket sales.
The aide also denied that the event wasn't moved to the private residence to avoid having the senator and president appear together on camera.
"We have a policy that fundraising events are closed events," the aide said, adding that any confusion about the fundraiser originally being open to the press should be chalked up to the campaign "working out the kinks" on its first event with Bush.
Because the fundraisers will be closed to press coverage, Bush and McCain will rarely be seen in public together on Tuesday.
The press will only have one opportunity to photograph the candidate and the president together at the Phoenix airport when Bush heads to Colorado Tuesday evening.
McCain consistently has trailed the two remaining Democratic presidential candidates in fundraising. The $17 million McCain raised in April was dwarfed by the nearly $31 million by Sen. Barack Obama and the $21 million by Sen. Hillary Clinton.
McCain also trails both Democrats in the amount of cash on hand. He had nearly $22 million in the bank at the end of April, while Obama had more than double that amount -- nearly $47 million -- and Clinton had nearly $30 million.
The political history between Bush and McCain has been a complicated one. In 2000, the two engaged in an at times bitter contest for the Republican presidential nomination.
Over the last eight years, however, the two have closed any political rift that emerged in 2000. McCain campaigned for Bush's re-election in 2004, and the Arizona senator has also become one of the strongest advocates for the war in Iraq, the thing that is most likely to define President Bush's legacy.McCain on Saturday Night Live
From May 17th's SNL, the fake John McCain commercial
Consumer Confidence at 16-year Low
Soaring gas prices and weakening job prospects left shoppers gloomier about the economy in May, sending the Consumer Confidence Index to its lowest point in nearly 16 years. (May 27)
CNN - Cuban dissidents back Obama
Many Cuban dissidents back a call by Barack Obama for direct talks with Raul Castro.
Pres Jimmy Carter Confirms Israel has 150 Nuclear Weapons
I am not sure how Carter got this information or why he is revealing it now; but one thing I do know is that this nuclear policy in Israel is ridiculous. Obviously Israel has nuclear weapons and might as well just come clean about it. This information was already public after whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu went public in 1986.
-Darryl
Israel: Carter Offers Details on Nuclear Arsenal
By REUTERS
Published: May 27, 2008
Former President Jimmy Carter said Israel held at least 150 nuclear weapons, the first time a current or former American president had publicly acknowledged the Jewish state’s nuclear arsenal. Asked at a news conference in Wales on Sunday how a future president should deal with the Iranian nuclear threat, he sought to put the risk in context by listing atomic weapons held globally. “The U.S. has more than 12,000 nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union has about the same, Great Britain and France have several hundred, and Israel has 150 or more,” he said, according to a transcript. The existence of Israeli nuclear arms is widely assumed, but Israel has never admitted their existence and American officials have stuck to that line in public for years.
Maxime Bernier resigns as foreign affairs minister
Disappointing. Maxime Bernier was clearly a rising star and a strong cabinet minister from Quebec. His service in the Industry portfolio and his commitment to the free market principles will be missed. In foreign affairs he stumbled quite often in Afghanistan, on Burma, in the Middle East and now with these details that have emerged today. Bernier is young and has many good years ahead of him in the Conservative Party. He was the strongest MP from Quebec and a future leadership contender in my opinion. I respect him for taking responsibility for leaving sensitive files in a non-secure location and look forward to the day in the future where he returns to cabinet in an economic role. While these past few weeks have been dark for Bernier, I am sure there are brighter days ahead.
A taped interview with Bernier's former girlfriend Julie Couillard was also about to air raising additional questions about the Conservative foreign affairs minister. Opposition parties were already planning on calling for Bernier's resignation before these events came to light.
David Emerson has done a great job in the international trade portfolio and will serve as foreign affairs minister for the time being. Today's events are likely to provoke another cabinet shuffle this summer and comes right after the resignation of Ian Brodie, Harper's Chief of Staff. Jason Kenney, Stockwell Day, Jim Prentice and Peter MacKay are being suggested by some as possible replacements down the road.
While today's events are unfortunate, upcoming changes in the PMO and cabinet may give the government an opportunity to refocus and get back in control of the agenda. Foreign affairs is a crucial role and it will be important to have a strong experienced hand in the position following the next cabinet shuffle.
-Darryl
***
The Right Honourable Stephen Harper
Prime Minister
Room 313-S, Centre Block
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6Prime Minister,
This is to inform you that I am resigning my post as Minister of Foreign Affairs, effective immediately.
I informed you late this afternoon that last night I became aware that I had left behind classified government documents at a private residence.
Prime Minister, the security breach that occurred was my fault and my fault alone and I take full responsibility for my actions.
I have asked the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade to conduct a thorough review of the situation.
Thank you for the trust you have shown in me. I will do everything I can to serve the government well in my capacity as Member of Parliament.
Yours truly,
Maxime Bernier
Credit: Stephen Taylor
****
Foreign Affairs Minister resigns over security breach
The Conservative government was shaken to the core Monday after Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier resigned over a security breach involving classified documents.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper told an extraordinary evening news conference on Parliament Hill that Mr. Bernier's controversial relationship with a woman linked to the Hells Angels was not a factor in the decision.
He said it was prompted by an error involving classified documents and sources say they included briefing material for his trip to the NATO summit where Canada announced it would remain in Afghanistan.
“This is about one thing and that is a failure to uphold expected standards on government documents,” Mr. Harper said in the Commons foyer.
“It is a very serious mistake – regardless of who the minister is, regardless of personal life – to leave classified documents in an unsecured location.”
The resignation announcement came a scant two hours before Julie Couillard was broadcast on French-language television network TVA telling viewers her former lover left documents at her house.
She refused to say what they were. She said they were left over at her place last month, and that she returned them to the Foreign Affairs department several days ago on the advice of her lawyer.
A source told The Canadian Press that the package included a mix of classified material and other briefing notes publicly available through the Access to Information Act.
The package, he said, was preparation material for Mr. Bernier's trip to the NATO summit in Bucharest – where Canada announced the extension of its military mission in Afghanistan until 2011.
Ms. Couillard's interview with TVA was laden with insights into the couple's relationship – from a description of the time they dined with the Harpers, to their brief encounter with George W. Bush where the U.S. President complimented Bernier on his consort.
She says Mr. Bush told the ex-foreign minister: “Well, well, well, haven't you been keeping good company.”
Ms. Couillard's interview also suggests she and the minister were an item as recently as last month – and she says she told him early on about her past ties to criminal bikers.
“Right from the start,” she said, “Maxime was well aware.”
Just hours before the axe fell on Mr. Bernier, the Prime Minister had dismissed the whole affair.
“I have no intention to comment on a minister's former girlfriend,” the Prime Minister said to wrap up a news conference earlier Monday with visiting Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko. “I don't take this subject seriously.”
He's taking it seriously now.
The Prime Minister has lost a minister once described as a rising star and touted as a future leader. Mr. Bernier was exceedingly popular in Quebec and he romped easily to victory in Beauce.
Mr. Bernier's departure makes it a near certainty that the Prime Minister will have to shuffle his cabinet.
Mr. Harper announced that the foreign affairs portfolio will be handled on an interim basis by David Emerson – the ex-Liberal and current Conservative Trade Minister. He dropped the bombshell before leaving the country late Monday night on a European diplomatic trip.
Opposition MPs were baying for further details that could prove extremely embarrassing for the Conservative government.
Liberal MP Ralph Goodale said Mr. Harper has been “very dismissive” of the Bernier-Couillard affair for weeks.
“That raises some questions about his judgment,” Mr. Goodale said of the Prime Minister.
Mr. Bernier has been under fire for a series of gaffes in his role as Canada's top diplomat, and the revelation that his girlfriend of the past year had once been romantically linked to several men with links to the Hells Angels had security experts – and political opponents – asking whether she had undergone a security check.
The question remains unanswered.
NDP Leader Jack Layton said the latest revelation was “the straw that broke the camel's back” for Mr. Bernier's cabinet career.
It was with great fanfare that Mr. Bernier was sworn in last summer to a cabinet portfolio once held by Lester Pearson, Joe Clark and Jean Chrétien. Accompanying him to the traditional ceremony was his new girlfriend, Ms. Couillard, and images of the photogenic couple were splashed across the nation's newspapers.
But when he was moved from an economic portfolio at Industry to a post that required diplomatic finesse and a grasp of global issues, Bernier's gaffes began piling up.
Mr. Bernier met the Haitian president and then got his name wrong. He helped quash efforts to replace the governor of Kandahar by publicly disclosing those efforts. He promised aid for Burma on a plane that wasn't available.
Other ministers were sometimes asked to speak on sensitive foreign-affairs issues while the minister was sidelined.
A Conservative staffer recently said there were concerns immediately after the House of Commons returned from the 2007 summer recess that he was in over his head.
But the Prime Minister always defended him with vigour – and came to his defence several times as stories about his relationship with Ms. Couillard began raising eyebrows.
As late as Monday afternoon, he was brushing aside the latest twist in the Ms. Couillard saga.
Federal records show that a security firm linked to Ms. Couillard bid for two federal airport contracts – one to monitor the activity of screening personnel, and another to install software at walk-through metal detectors.
That Mr. Bernier's ex-girlfriend was married to one biker and lived with another tied to the Hells Angels has been known for weeks.
It had since been reported that a more recent boyfriend who ran a security firm committed suicide while he owed money to the Hells Angels.
But the latest report in Montreal's Le Devoir – that she and her former boyfriend sought contracts to install airport security software – was dismissed as inconsequential by the prime minister on Monday.
The government has said Ms. Couillard carried no security risk, but it has steadfastly refused to say whether security checks were ever even conducted.
In his first Parliament Hill press conference in months, the question was put to Harper and he blew it off.
“I have no intention to comment on a minister's former girlfriend,” the prime minister said to wrap up a news conference with visiting Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko. “I don't take this subject seriously.”
Harper then spun on his heels and exited the room with his guest.
A spokesman at CATSA said there was no record of any contract bid by the Montreal-area security firm reportedly owned by Mr. Couillard, Itek Global Solutions.
But she reportedly played an active role in her late ex-boyfriend's company – D.R.P. Investigation and Security Agency – which bid unsuccessfully on two airport contracts.
CATSA spokesman Mathieu Larocque confirmed that the company would have had access to federal documents with basic information about airport security.
He said that kind of information would have been provided to all contract bidders, and to members of the public who filed an Access to Information request.
“They're not security sensitive,” Mr. Larocque said of the documents.
He said D.R.P. bid unsuccessfully on a pair of contracts in December 2004 and February 2005 to install airport software.
One would have helped monitor the activity of screening personnel at locations across Canada, and recorded the time spent by employees at those various locations.
It also bid to install equipment at walk-through metal detectors that would gather data on passenger traffic at various times of the day.
The opposition said there's no reason to suspect Ms. Couillard – who has never been charged with a crime – of any wrongdoing.
But they said they have a right to ask questions about ties between a drug-dealing criminal network, firms with an interest in airport security, a minister's ex-girlfriend, and the Canadian government.
They reacted indignantly to the suggestion that they're gossip-mongering about Mr. Bernier's love life.
“The Prime Minister says he is not taking it seriously. Well, I'm starting to have difficulty taking the Prime Minister seriously,” said Liberal MP Michael Ignatieff.
“I don't care about [Ms. Couillard's] skirts, I don't care about her cleavage, I don't care about her past. I don't care about any of it, it is none of my business quite rightly – but this stuff is not only my business, it is the business of all Canadians.”
Ms. Couillard did not respond to an interview request. She says her name has been unfairly dragged through the mud and that the public humiliation has been devastating.
Today, Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko is visiting Canada. While here he will meet with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and address Parliament.
President Yushchenko’s visit serves to highlight the special relationship between Canada and Ukraine. The roots of this relationship were formed when Ukrainian immigrants first flocked to this country in the late 1800s. Over time, more enterprising Ukrainians made their way to Canada in search of a better life for themselves and their families. With determination and a strong work ethic, these new Canadians significantly contributed to the fibre of the Canada we all know today.
Today, more than 1.2 million people of Ukrainian descent live throughout Canada. These families hold great pride in both their traditional heritage and their adopted home, and through their efforts have forged a strong bond between our two countries that continues to this day.
After the fall of the USSR in 1991, Canada was the first western nation to recognize Ukraine when it declared its independence. As Ukraine transitioned to a vibrant, free and democratic society, Canada has been there to lend a hand every step of the way.
Real leadership is measured not just by words alone but by real action, standing up for Canadian values and priorities and working closely with our allies and partners around the world.
As our two leaders meet today and discuss how best to foster even closer relationship between our two countries, Canadians, both of Ukrainian descent and otherwise, can look forward to a strong bond between our two nations in years to come.
Hillary drinking beer and dancing in Puerto Rico, Clinton unloads on media again
Sen. Hillary Clinton drinking a beer and dancing while at Puerto Rico.
Bill Clinton's Warning - Media Bias Against Hillary
Russia & China sign nuclear deal
Russia and China have signed a billion dollar nuclear deal, in another sign of strengthening relations. The agreement was announced shortly after Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Beijing, as part of his first overseas trip as president.
Russia to boost trade with China
Russia and China could increase their bilateral trade to $US 70 billions per year. That's according to Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev ahead of his trip to China. Currently, energy accounts for the bulk of trade, but both governments are keen to diversify their economic relationship.
Conservative Leader David Cameron Claims New Labout Is Dead
Conservatives Overturn A Big Labour Majority To Win The Crewe And Nantwich By-Election.
Tory Leader David Cameron Claims New Labour Is Dead And A Senior Back Bencher Calls On A Cabinet Member To Challenge Prime Minister Gordon Brown For The Labour Leadership.
NASA - Phoenix landing
Monday, May 26, 2008 - 07:27 AM
By: Jaime Pulfer and The Associated Press
A Canadian-made weather station is part of a mission to Mars that will search for evidence of life.
The Phoenix Mars lander made the first successful soft landing on the red planet in more than 30 years, Sunday.
Phoenix plunged into the Martian atmosphere after a 10-month voyage through space.
The pictures show parts of Mars no one has ever seen before, such as the horizon at the North Pole.
Phoenix, along with the weather station, will begin its three-month mission detecting signs that life once existed on the planet.
The weather station is worth almost $40 million -- the size of a shoebox -- and is a huge part of the mission, according to Steve MacLean, the Canadian Space Agency's chief astronaut.
The station, which is wrapped in a thermal blanket bearing a tiny Maple Leaf flag, is to help in the water search. It's the first Canadian science instrument to land on the surface of an alien world.
A Canadian scientific team hopes to spend 90 days studying data sent back from Mars. The daily weather reports will include temperature, atmospheric pressure, cloud height, humidity and wind speeds.
A specially developed Canadian laser instrument known as a lidar will be used to track clouds around the landing area.
The weather station Canada built for the mission is able to provide regular readings on the temperature on Mars, atmospheric pressure, cloud height, humidity and wind speed.
NAFTA-gate Obama Leak Report Clears Prime Minister Harper's Chief of Staff Ian Brodie
The Canadian Government investigation into the NAFTA-gate leaks to the press found no wrong doing by the Prime Minister's Stephen Harper's Chief of Staff Ian Brodie.
The full report can be found at http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/index.asp?Language=e&Page=information&Sub=publications&Doc=iudsdi-rednards/report-rapport_e.htm
-Darryl
HBO Films: Recount Trailer (HBO)
Starring Kevin Spacey, Bob Balaban, Ed Begley, Jr., Laura Dern, John Hurt, Denis Leary, Bruce McGill, and Tom Wilkinson, Recount brings viewers behind the scenes at the controversial Florida recount. Premieres May 25, 2008 on HBO. For more information about HBO Films, log onto HBO.com
A Look Inside Barack Obama's Politcal Team
Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler gives a rundown of presidential candidate Barack Obama's closest political advisers, and what roles some of them could play in the future. (May 25)
Keith Olbermann Rants on Clinton's RFK Remarks
I think the comment was overblown, but a good rant none the less. I am not sure what Hillary was thinking when she made these comments. This might be the final nail in the coffin leading until June 3.
-Darryl
Hillary's original comments:
Olbermann's rant:
Obama's Response:
On his way to Chicago, Sen. Barack Obama discusses the delegate battle, Clinton's RFK statement and the G.I. bill.
A record fo McCain's Gaffes
There's no question John McCain is getting a free ride from the mainstream press. But with the power of YouTube and the blogosphere, we can provide an accurate portrayal of the so-called Maverick. We can put the brakes on his free ride!
Since we first released The Real McCain a year ago, our REAL McCain series has garnered close to 2 million views, with over 13,000 comments and tens of thousands more in petition signatures! Clearly, John McCain's record is something the public wants to discuss, and yet the corporate media is doing NOTHING to present the truth. We feel obliged to continue countering the mainstream media's love of McCain. And so we thought it was high time for a sequel: The Real McCain 2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEtZlR3zp4c
Candidates Give Puerto Rico Moment in the Sun
With 55 delegates at stake in the Puerto Rico primary, the U.S. Caribbean Territory has suddenly become a critical race late in the campaign season. Both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton held campaign events there over the weekend. (May 25)
Barack Obama in Bayamon, Puerto Rico
Veterans Town Hall
Bayamon, PR
May 24, 2008
Obama: Renewing U.S. Leadership in the Americas, Policy on Cuba
Cuban American National Foundation
Miami, FL
May 23, 2008
John McCain rejects endorsement of Hagee and then Hagee withdraws endorsement of McCain
It seems Wright has cut both ways now. More of this type of thing to come...
-Darryl
Is Sen. McCain Narrowing His VP Choices?
Is Sen. McCain Narrowing His VP Choices?The Associated PressSen. John McCain says the invitation of several prominent Republican leaders to his Arizona home this weekend is nothing more than a social gathering. Some had questioned whether McCain was using the time to narrow his vice presidential possibilities.
CNN: Obama VP search begins
Sen. Barack Obama's campaign begins the hunt for a running mate. CNN's Jessica Yellin looks at possible contenders.
Minister of Health Visits Southlake
Pictured above: Dan Carriere, Southlake CEO, The Honourable Tony Clement, Minister of Health, and Lois Brown, Conservative Candidate for Newmarket-Aurora.
Also Pictured:
Ten years ago, Tony Clement, as the Provincial Minister of Health, was involved in the plans to transform the then small community hospital into what is now the Southlake Regional Health Centre.
Now, as federal Minister of Health, he recently accompanied Lois Brown on a tour of Southlake.
The hospital's size, staff, and number of surgical procedures have nearly doubled in ten years. Chemotherapy treatments have more than tripled and outpatient visits have soared from 41,000 to 248,000.
Southlake Regional Health Centre is the only
Dan Carriere, Southlake's President and CEO, reported that lives of local residents have been saved because of the expansion of available services at Southlake Regional Health Centre. In the past, valuable time was lost in the transporting of local patients whose needs could only be met by downtown
Minister Clement commented on how pleased he was to see the transformation of the hospital. As the expansion nears completion, residents of Newmarket Aurora will have a facility capable of delivering top-of-the-line health care.
Lois Brown said, "The families of Newmarket Aurora are very proud of the Southlake Regional Health Centre."
May 22, 2008
OTTAWA -- Stephen Harper's plan for an elected Canadian Senate will receive a boost from a third province this spring when Manitoba launches provincewide hearings asking residents how such votes should be held.
The NDP government of Gary Doer is moving toward elections as an improvement to the status quo.
"We support abolition of the Senate," said Jonathan Hildebrand, a spokesman for the Premier. "However, the next-best option is to elect senators if abolishing the upper house isn't in the cards. So, in Manitoba, we're simply moving forward on a process to elect senators."
Both Alberta and Saskatchewan support an elected Senate, with Alberta having already held elections. Saskatchewan said it plans to set up an election process as well.
That leaves British Columbia, which has called for the Senate to be abolished, as the only western holdout. But B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell told The Globe and Mail yesterday in an e-mail from China that he could support the Prime Minister's model - provided B.C. doesn't have to pay for it.
"Frankly, how we select senators is very, very low on our priority list but if the federal government wants to elect senators, they should put in place a national regime for doing that and ensure they cover all the costs," he wrote.
Until recently, the Prime Minister has failed to interest the provinces in Senate reform.
But the government's Senate Appointment Consultations Act, Bill C-20, is focusing the attention of at least some provinces. The bill would set up a national system whereby each province elects a list of senators from which the prime minister could choose to fill Senate vacancies.
The House of Commons committee studying the bill has asked the provinces to make submissions, which are now trickling in.
Prince Edward Island is taking a close look at the recent developments in the west. Officials there are researching the process Alberta uses to elect senators and Premier Robert Ghiz is drafting a brief for the Commons committee.
"The Premier has an open mind on senatorial consultation, so we'll be refining our position in the very near future," said Sandy Stewart, the province's deputy minister of intergovernmental affairs.
But the idea of Senate "consultations" will not be an easy one to sell, as Canada's two largest provinces strongly oppose the idea.
The current effort at reforming the Senate is fraught with logistical difficulties. For example, the government has yet to define the powers of a reformed Senate, nor has it laid out the number of representatives per province.
Various levels of support
A good number of provinces support reforming the Senate. The devil, however, is in the details.
Newfoundland
and Labrador
Not against Senate reform, but opposes the Tory plan for elections as too piecemeal.
Nova Scotia
Supports the federal bills for term limits and elections, but the Progressive Conservative Party of Premier Rodney MacDonald shot down the idea at a convention in October.
Prince Edward Island
Premier Robert Ghiz is drafting a paper for the federal committee studying the bill and his officials say he is keeping an "open mind."
New Brunswick
Not against electing senators, but the proposal must be comprehensive and have support of the provinces.
Quebec
While not explicitly against some type of Senate reform, the province opposes "backdoor" federal efforts.
Ontario
Premier Dalton McGuinty has called for the Senate's abolition.
Manitoba
Premier Gary Doer supports abolition, but has concluded that isn't going to happen and has accepted consultation elections as the next best thing.
Saskatchewan
Preparing legislation for an election.
Alberta
Already has held elections. Two winners of those votes, Bert Brown and Stanley Waters (who has since died), were appointed to the second chamber.
British Columbia
Premier Gordon Campbell is fine with the federal government's plan provided Ottawa picks up the cost of the elections. The issue is low on the province's priority list.
Northwest Territories
The NWT has declined to attend Senate hearings about the election bill.
Yukon
Premier Dennis Fentie has said he has little interest in Senate reform discussions.
Nunavut
Not available.
Peace talks between Israel and Syria, deal in Lebanon
May 21, 2008 BBC World
I am pretty sure Stephane Dion has a lower job approval rating than George Bush within Canada. These numbers must be pretty scary for Liberals despite the most recent poll that has both parties locked in a statistical tie.
-Darryl
OTTAWA–A caution to federal Liberals who thought their fortunes had hit rock bottom: It has become worse.
Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion's approval rating has sunk to its lowest level yet, with nine of 10 Canadians saying they disapprove or are not sure of his performance as the head of the party, according to the latest Toronto Star/Angus Reid opinion poll.
Not since former Liberal leader John Turner bottomed out with a 14 per cent approval rating shortly after losing the 1988 election have things been so bad for the head of Canada's most successful political party. Just 10 per cent of those surveyed stand behind Dion's leadership, the poll shows, compared to 32 per cent for Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
What's worse is that the number of people who said they were unsure about Dion's performance has dropped from 46 per cent at the end of last summer to 30 per cent this month, meaning that Canadians are making up their minds about a leader who has had difficulties rallying his party behind him as well as communicating his party's positions to potential voters.
"What's really disheartening is it's almost as if everyone's made up their minds already," said the polling firm's Mario Canseco. "Those who actually have something to say about Dion are saying negative things."
The online poll of 1,004 Canadians is considered accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times in 20.
Overall, 34 per cent of respondents said they would vote Conservative if an election were held tomorrow, compared to 27 per cent who would vote Liberal. The New Democrats were in third place with 18 per cent support.
Meanwhile, 42 per cent of Canadians think the country is on the "wrong track," up from 29 per cent in March. Canseco said this is a reflection of mounting concern with the economy.
Dion, however, is seen as lacking economic competence, as well as being a weak and indecisive leader, compared to Harper.
"The fact that Dion is at 8 per cent as a strong and decisive leader and 16 per cent as someone who can manage the economy effectively, this is only helping Harper," Canseco said.
Liberals are expected to release Dion's proposal for a federal carbon tax soon and spend the summer trying to sell the complex concept. "It has to be all about policies (this summer), but policies that can be explained in a fairly simple manner," Canseco said.
"A carbon tax may be a little bit difficult to sell in a moment like this when Canadians want to drive, when they're unhappy about the cost of gasoline."
Dion is also rolling out the main plank in an environmental policy at the same time as the environment has started to recede as the most pressing priority of Canadians, eclipsed once again by health care.
Ottawa — Democrat Barack Obama would crush Republican John McCain in the U.S. presidential race by an almost four-to-one margin — 56 per cent to 15 — if it were up to Canadians.
That's the conclusion of a new Canadian Press-Harris-Decima poll that, for the first time, gauges Canadian opinion on a head-to-head contest between the Republican candidate and the presumptive Democratic nominee.
The same survey suggests Canadians consider the current occupant of the White House, George W. Bush, among the worst presidents ever — if not the worst.
Forty-two per cent of respondents called Mr. Bush one of the worst presidents in U.S. history, 23 per cent said he was the absolute worst.
Only 4 per cent said he was among the better ones, and less than 1 per cent called Mr. Bush the best ever.
Pollster Bruce Anderson says the survey results are surprising even in a country that traditionally favours Democrats.
“While Canadians generally tilt more towards the Democratic Party than the Republican Party, this degree of disaffection is quite remarkable,” said the head of Harris-Decima.
“It cuts across the political spectrum. Very few Conservatives in Canada are prepared to say they have been satisfied, let alone enthusiastic about the accomplishments of Mr. Bush.”
While some of that antipathy toward the incumbent Republican could explain Canadians' overwhelming support for the presumed Democratic nominee, Mr. Anderson says Canadians like Mr. Obama for other reasons.
He says the candidate's three main promises are in lock-step with Canadian public opinion. His public declarations that he would renegotiate NAFTA appear, so far, to have ruffled few Canadian feathers.
Mr. Obama has said his first priorities in office would be expanding public health care, ending the war in Iraq, and creating an integrated environmental-energy policy.
“They're pretty consistent with Canadian values,” Mr. Anderson said.
The results were similar among different age groups, gender's, income categories, and in every province.
Even in the province where Mr. Obama was least popular — Alberta — respondents favoured him by a 28-point margin over McCain. Fifty-one per cent of respondents there supported Mr. Obama, and 23 per cent preferred McCain.
Mr. Obama was most popular in Quebec where 61 per cent of respondents favoured him, and was almost equally popular in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia.
While the Illinois senator has struggled somewhat with lower-income and female voters in his primary contests against Hillary Clinton, the survey suggests he would not have no problem with them in Canada.
He received statistically identical support levels from men and women, and from respondents in different income categories.
The survey of 1,000 Canadians was conducted May 15-18 and is considered accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times in 20.
Still think a carbon tax is a good idea my Liberal friends?
-Darryl
The chances that the price of gasoline will hit the $1.40 to $1.50 a litre range this summer have increased now that crude oil has surged past $133 (U.S.) a barrel, analysts say.
The price at the pump averaged around $1.27 (Canadian) a litre across Canada this week, but the combination of a usual summer spike and high crude prices will likely cause a further jump of at least 10 to 15 cents a litre, said Cathy Hay, senior associate at MJ Ervin & Associates Inc., which tracks gas prices.
"What we haven't seen yet is that seasonal rise in gas prices related to supply and demand," she said.
In the early summer, prices usually jump along with demand, as drivers head out on vacation trips, Ms. Hay said. In most years, this adds about 10 to 15 cents to the price of a litre of gas. The price then tends to slip back as the summer progresses.
Last year, the jump was as much as 25 cents a litre because gasoline inventories were low, but this spring "what will serve to moderate the spike is the fact that we are entering the peak gasoline demand season with inventories in quite good shape," she said.
Others think prices could go even higher. Jason Toews, co-founder of the gasbuddy.com website, said he expects prices to hit $1.50 to $1.60 a litre in Canada this summer, and possibly more if crude oil continues to rise.
He thinks prices will peak around Labour Day, then slip in the fall. "I don't think we'll see 99 cent per litre gas, but it certainly is possible to see $1.10 or $1.15 as a national average."
Rising gas prices were the main factor behind yesterday's jump in the annual inflation rate to 1.7 per cent. Without the rise in gasoline, the consumer price index would have risen only 1.3 per cent.
A few weeks ago, CIBC World Markets Inc. chief economist Jeff Rubin raised eyebrows by suggesting oil would hit $150 a barrel by 2010 and $200 by 2012, with Canadian gasoline reaching $2.25 a litre within four years. Less than a month later those forecasts don't seem nearly as bold.
"We're going to see $1.50 gasoline this summer," Mr. Rubin predicted yesterday.
When it costs as much as $140 or $150 to fill up a large vehicle, an owner's other purchasing patterns could change, he said.
At those prices, "you start to impact economic behaviour," he said. Consumers may cut back on eating out and make fewer discretionary purchases. "It'll be very interesting to note this summer whether people across North America drive less on the holidays."
Soaring gas prices are reflected in the types of new vehicles Canadians are buying this year. Sales of small, fuel-efficient cars were up 19 per cent last month and 17 per cent during the first four months of 2008, even though such vehicles are already the dominant segments in the Canadian market.
"It is entirely possible that sales of every segment except small, fuel-efficient vehicles (subcompact, compact, compact SUV, compact pickup) could be down in 2008," auto industry analyst Dennis DesRosiers, president of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc.,said in a report yesterday.
Separately, Ford Motor Co. confirmed that it will shut a plant in Michigan that assembles full-sized sport utility vehicles for three weeks in June as high U.S. gas prices take a bite out of SUV sales. Another Ford plant in Kentucky will cut output in half in June by reducing production to one shift.
Asked yesterday whether the federal government would step in and try to reduce Canadian gas prices, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the government's ability to affect gas prices "is so small that it's not worth doing," he said.
Broader tax cuts, such as the 2-per-cent reduction in the goods and services tax are better ways to provide savings to consumers, he said.
With files from Greg Keenan and Canadian Press
Dion and Rap Master Iggy
Dion is becoming more and more of a joke each day. This is my second favorite post from Conservative.ca. The best one is here in my opinion...
Full credit to the graphic designers and whoever put together that audio track.
-Darryl
**
RCMP says no Conservative bribery
I suspect Liberals will apologize soon or will face some stiff legal penalties for what appeared on their website. I suspect some Liberal bloggers have egg on their faces in light of the RCMP findings. I predict the Elections Canada raid will also amount to nothing.
-Darryl
Obama Criticizes McCain on Lobbyists
At his rally in Tampa Sen. Obama talks about removing the dominance of the special interests in Washington.
| Wednesday, May 21, 2008 8:19 AM |
Democrat Barack Obama has opened an 8-point national lead on Republican John McCain as the
Obama, who was tied with McCain in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup last month, moved to a 48 percent to 40 percent lead over the
The
The poll also found Obama expanded his lead over
"Obama has been very resilient, bouncing back from rough periods and doing very well with independent voters," pollster John Zogby said. "The race with McCain is going to be very competitive."
The poll was taken Thursday through Sunday during a period when Obama came under attack from President George W. Bush and McCain for his promise to talk to hostile foreign leaders without preconditions.
Obama's gains followed a month in which he was plagued with a series of campaign controversies and suffered two big losses to
The poll was conducted after Obama denounced his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who made a series of public appearances that rekindled a controversy over his inflammatory comments on race and religion.
Obama also survived a furor over his comments about "bitter" small-town residents who cling to guns and religion out of frustration over their economic concerns.
Obama edged closer to clinching the Democratic nomination on Tuesday when he split two nominating contests with
The results put him within easy range of the 2,026 delegates needed for the nomination. Just three Democratic nominating contests remain before voting concludes on June 3.
OBAMA BETTER ON ECONOMY
The poll found Obama was seen as a better steward of the economy than McCain, leading 48 percent to 39 percent. McCain led Obama by 3 points last month on an issue that is certain to be crucial in their campaign.
Obama led McCain among independents, 47 percent to 35 percent, and led among some groups of voters who have backed
McCain led among whites, NASCAR fans, and elderly voters. McCain led with voters who believed the
"Clearly voters are looking for change. Every problem Obama has had in consolidating his base and reaching to the center, John McCain has the same sort of problem," Zogby said.
"It's McCain's lead among voters over the age of 65 that is keeping him within shouting distance of Obama," he said.
The poll found Clinton, who has shrugged off calls to quit the Democratic race, tied at 43 percent with McCain in the national poll. She led McCain by 47 percent to 40 percent on who would be the better manager of the economy.
Obama and Clinton have refrained from attacking each other in recent weeks as Obama has turned his focus to McCain.
But Zogby said the attacks on Obama by Bush and McCain, who have been critical of his willingness to talk to leaders of countries like
"The president is so unpopular. To inject himself into a presidential campaign does not help John McCain, particularly when McCain is tied to Bush," Zogby said.
The national survey of 516 likely Democratic primary voters had a margin of error of 4.4 percentage points. The poll of the national race between McCain and the two Democratic contenders surveyed 1,076 likely voters with a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
Potential VP choice for Obama, or just simply a man disgruntled with the views of his own party? Ron Paul holds similar views. The Republican brand is in big trouble.
-Darryl
Chuck Hagel is quickly becoming Barack Obama's answer to Joe Lieberman.
The Republican Senator from Nebraska was a political thorn in McCain's side on Tuesday night, repeatedly lavishing praise on the presumptive Democratic candidate and levying major foreign policy criticisms at the GOP nominee and the Republican Party as a whole. At one point, Hagel even urged the Arizona Republican to elevate his campaign discourse to a higher, more honest level.
"We know from past campaigns that presidential candidates will say many things," Hagel said of some of McCain's recent rhetoric, namely his policy on talking to Iran. "But once they have the responsibility to govern the country and lead the world, that difference between what they said and what responsibilities they have to fulfill are vastly different. I'm very upset with John with some of the things he's been saying. And I can't get into the psychoanalysis of it. But I believe that John is smarter than some of the things he is saying. He is, he understands it more. John is a man who reads a lot, he's been around the world. I want him to get above that and maybe when he gets into the general election, and becomes the general election candidate he will have a higher-level discourse on these things."
Hagel, speaking to a small gathering at the residence of the Italian ambassador, took umbrage with several positions taken by the McCain campaign, including the Arizona Senator's criticism of Obama for pledging to engage with Iran. Engagement is not, and should not be confused for, capitulation, he argued.
"I never understand how anyone in any realm of civilized discourse could sort through the big issues and challenges and threats and figure out how to deal with those without engaging in some way...."
Hagel then offered a wry tweak of his GOP colleague. "I am confident that if Obama is elected president that is the approach we will take. And my friend John McCain said some other things about that. We'll see, but in my opinion it has to be done. It is essential."
Hagel, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, went on to belittle the tendency for some within his own party to disparage those who tout diplomacy. "You take some risks in talking about this," he said, "especially in the Congress, because you can immediately be branded as an appeaser."
And when asked to respond to rumors circulating within political circles that the Bush administration was ginning up the possibility of war with Iran, the Senator even raised the specter of impeachment.
"You've got the power of impeachment, now that is a very defined measure if you are willing to bring charges against the president at all. You can't just say I disagree with him, let's impeach him," said Hagel. An attack on Iran without Congress' consent, he added, "would bring with it... outstanding political consequences, including for the Republican Party."
Finally, he charged that if the preeminent foreign policy objective is to achieve security in Israel and stability within the broader Middle East, then the Bush track -- which McCain has endorsed -- is ill-advised.
"If you engage a world power or a rival, it doesn't mean you agree with them or subscribe with what they believe or you support them in any way," he said. "What it does tell you is that you've got a problem you need to resolve. And you've got to understand the other side and the other side has got to understand you."
Much of Hagel's address, hosted by the Ploughshares Fund, was spent weaving between Obama praise and McCain quips. He urged the media, for example, to focus on important policy issues an "not just why Barack [doesn't] wear flag pins on his lapel."
Asked whether he would be open to serving as Secretary of Defense in a hypothetical Obama administration, Hagel demurred. But in the process, he praised the Illinois Democrat for being open to a bipartisan cabinet.
"Take me out of the equation," he said, "I do think that the next president and Obama has talked about this, and McCain not as much, I think he is going to have to put together a very wide, smart, experienced, credible, bipartisan cabinet. And that is going to be required absolutely."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/20/chuck-hagel-takes-on-mcca_n_102775.html
(CNN) — John McCain needs to cool his rhetoric attacking Barack Obama over foreign policy, one of the Arizona senator's good friends in the Senate said.
According to a report on Huffingtonpost.com, Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel, a Republican and long time friend of McCain, said Tuesday he is "very upset" with some of the things the party's presumptive presidential nominee has been saying as he campaigns for the White House.
"We know from past campaigns that presidential candidates will say many things," Hagel reportedly said. "But once they have the responsibility to govern the country and lead the world, that difference between what they said and what responsibilities they have to fulfill are vastly different."
"I'm very upset with John with some of the things he's been saying," Hagel added. "And I can't get into the psychoanalysis of it. But I believe that John is smarter than some of the things he is saying. He is, he understands it more. John is a man who reads a lot, he's been around the world. I want him to get above that and maybe when he gets into the general election, and becomes the general election candidate he will have a higher-level discourse on these things."
Hagel, who is not running for reelection in November, has become an outspoken critic of the War in Iraq and he said in April he is open to the possibility of endorsing Obama's candidacy.
Barack Returns to Iowa
Barack Obama speaks in Des Moines, Iowa on the night of the Oregon and Kentucky Democratic Primaries.
Hillary Clinton Victory Speech Kentucky
Updated Tue. May. 20 2008 6:24 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
The Toronto Stock Exchange closed the trading day by setting a new record Tuesday.
It surpassed 15,000 points for the first time in its history.
The S&P/TSX composite index ended the day at 15,047.34, up 63.14 points.
Business News Network's Michael Kane said the TSX got off to a strong start only a few minutes into the day's trading session.
Oil also rose dramatically on Tuesday -- nearing $130 per barrel at the end of trading. That helped fuel the TSX's new record.
"There was some economic data coming from the U.S. today suggesting they may be in a bit of an inflation situation, and that's driving the U.S. dollar down -- which operates inversely with the price of oil and gold," Kane said.
BNN's Michael Hainsworth told CTV Newsnet that in addition to increasing oil prices, the tech sector is helping the TSX.
"We've also been seeing a lot of strength in base metals -- zinc, copper -- all of these kind of products that the world needs to build out their infrastructure," he said.
The TSX, overall, is now up about 24 per cent from the low reached in January when the U.S. sub-prime mortgage troubles first became evident.
The Canadian economy, however, has weathered an economic downturn better than the U.S. The Dow-Jones industrials dropped Tuesday by 199.48 to 12,828.68.
Although, the TSX appears to be heading on an upward path, Bell Canada Enterprises stock -- among the most influential in the TSX -- took a tumble.
There is uncertainty surrounding a planned corporate takeover -- the largest in Canada's history.
BCE stock was hurt by a Monday report in The New York Times that said major banks funding the $52 billion takeover were thinking about amending the terms of the financing with the buying groups -- led by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan.
"When they got together and hammered out the terms of the deal things were actually doing quite well in the credit markets over all," Hainsworth said.
"But since things have tightened up and the lending restrictions have increased these banks are saying you know what we need a little bit more money, first of all. We need higher interest rates on this."
In addition, a similar U.S. deal with Clear Channel Communications resulted in a drop in that company's shares.
Some of the lenders in the Clear Channel deal are also involved in the BCE deal.
Polls open in Kentucky and Oregon:
Not sure how much longer Clinton is going to drag this thing on. Clearly the press has moved to Obama vs. McCain set for this November. Obama will be speaking in Iowa tonight while Clinton will speak from Kentucky. Regardless of what the results are tonight, expect this contest to finish out on June 3, the date of the last primary. Expect a Clinton win in Kentucky and an Obama win in Oregon.
For full results: http://www.cnn.com/politics
-Darryl
Oregon Primary Could Shape Race
Clinton Favored As Kentucky Heads to Polls
(CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama is expected to take a majority of the pledged delegates in the Democratic race after primary voters weigh in Tuesday in Kentucky and Oregon.
Sen. Barack Obama campaigns Monday in Montana, while Sen. Hillary Clinton seeks votes in Kentucky.
Obama's campaign sees the two contests as a milestone in the protracted fight for the Democratic presidential nomination with Sen. Hillary Clinton, who continues to campaign hard.
There are 3,253 pledged delegates, and Obama, even with a poor showing Tuesday, should easily top the 1,627 delegates needed to gain a majority.
A candidate needs 2,026 delegates to win the Democratic nomination. Going into Tuesday races, Obama has 1,909 delegates, while Clinton has 1,718.
The Kentucky and Oregon primaries hold 103 delegates combined. Obama needs 15 more to achieve a majority of the pledged delegates -- the delegates won either in state caucuses or primaries.
Clinton appears to be the overwhelming favorite in Kentucky. CNN's "poll of polls," which averages the latest public opinion surveys in the state, suggests the senator from New York leads Obama by 30 percentage points. The last polls in Kentucky close at 7 p.m. ET.
Obama is the favorite in Oregon, where a CNN poll of polls indicates he has a lead of 10 percentage points. Oregon's primary is a mail-in only contest, which means voters must mail in or hand in their ballots in person by 8 p.m. PT (11 p.m. ET). I-Reporters: Send us your voting experiences
Both Kentucky and Oregon's primaries are closed, so only registered Democrats can vote in the Democratic contests.
"We still have some contests left, but if Kentucky and Oregon go as we hope, then we think we will have a majority of pledged delegates at that point, and that's a pretty significant mark," Obama told supporters at a rally Sunday in Oregon.
"That means that after contests in every state, or almost every state and the territories, that we have received the majority of the delegates that are assigned by voters."
Obama also leads Clinton in the number of states won and in the popular vote in the primary and caucus contests so far this campaign season.
Obama has been careful not to declare victory in the Democratic contest, but he has focused much of his attention in recent weeks on Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. 
Watch an analysis of the Obama-McCain dispute on Iran »
Obama doesn't have enough delegates to capture the nomination outright; Clinton still has a chance, if a slight one, to win the nomination if enough of the roughly 800 superdelegates were to back her.
Superdelegates are elected and party officials who have votes at the national convention. They are not bound by the primary or caucus results from the states they represent.
If the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination is almost over, Clinton isn't acting like it.
"I'm going to make [my case] until we have a nominee, but we're not going to have one today, and we're not going to have one tomorrow and we're not going to have one the next day," Clinton said Monday in Kentucky.
She argues that she leads in the popular vote. "Right now, more people have voted for me than have voted for my opponent," she said. "More people have voted for me than for anybody ever running for president before. So we have a very close contest."
But her argument is debatable. For Clinton to claim such a lead, primary states but not caucus states -- which Obama mostly won -- would only be counted, plus the popular vote totals in Florida and Michigan.
Florida and Michigan were stripped of their delegates for scheduling their primaries too early, in violation of Democratic Party rules. Obama's name wasn't on the Michigan ballot, and he received no votes in that state's contest.
Clinton also argues that she's won the states that she contends would stack up stronger against McCain in the general election.
"The states I've won total 300 electoral votes. If we had the same rules as the Republicans, I would be nominee right now," she said. "We have different rules, so what we've got to figure out is who can win 270 electoral votes. My opponent has won states totaling 217 electoral votes."Moveon.org’s new controversial ad against McCain
John McCain's chief adviser, lobbyist Charlie Black, worked for some of the world's worst dictators -- mass murderers, terrorists, and tyrants. McCain should fire Charlie Black.
http://www.moveon.org
Wholesale Inflation Up, Oil Trades Above $129
Wholesale Inflation Up, Oil Trades Above $129Wholesale Inflation Up, Oil Trades Above $129The Associated PressThe Labor Department reported Tuesday that wholesale inflation increased by 0.2 percent in April following a 1.1 percent jump in March. Outside of food and energy, prices rose by 0.4 percent in April. (May 20)Wholesale inflation increased by two-tenths of a percent in April. Outside of food and energy, prices rose by four-tenths of percent for the month and 3 percent for the past 12 months.That's the fastest increase for a 12-month period since 1991.The report on the Producer Price Index - which measures price pressures before they reach consumers - followed news last week that food costs in April soared by the largest amount in 18 years. Oil prices, meanwhile, have spiked to a new trading high, sweeping past $129 a barrel. This latest surge comes after OPEC's president was quoted as saying his organization won't increase its output before its next meeting in September.
Obama draws 75,000 in Portland
75,000 people at Waterfront Park in Portland.
White House attacks JPost's Iran story
Talkbacks for this article: 319
The White House on Tuesday flatly denied an Army Radio report that claimed US President George W. Bush intends to attack Iran before the end of his term. It said that while the military option had not been taken off the table, the Administration preferred to resolve concerns about Iran's push for a nuclear weapon "through peaceful diplomatic means."
A US Navy aircraft carrier.
Photo: AP
Army Radio had quoted a top official in Jerusalem claiming that a senior member in the entourage of President Bush, who concluded a trip to Israel last week, had said in a closed meeting here that Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were of the opinion that military action against Iran was called for.
The official reportedly went on to say that "the hesitancy of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice" was preventing the administration from deciding to launch such an attack on the Islamic Republic for the time being.
The Army Radio report, which was quoted by The Jerusalem Post and resonated widely, stated that according to assessments in Israel, the recent turmoil in Lebanon, where Hizbullah has de facto established control of the country, was advancing an American attack.
Bush, the official reportedly said, considered Hizbullah's show of strength to constitute evidence of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's growing influence. In Bush's view, the official said, "the disease must be treated - not its symptoms."
However, the White House on Tuesday afternoon dismissed the story. In a statement, it said that "[the US] remain[s] opposed to Iran's ambitions to obtain a nuclear weapon. To that end, we are working to bring tough diplomatic and economic pressure on the Iranians to get them to change their behavior and to halt their uranium enrichment program.
US President George W. Bush during his Knesset address.
Photo: AP
It went on: "As the President has said, no president of the United States should ever take options off the table, but our preference and our actions for dealing with this matter remain through peaceful diplomatic means. Nothing has changed in that regard."
In an address to the Knesset during his visit here last week, Bush said that "the president of Iran dreams of returning the Middle East to the Middle Ages."
"America stands with you in firmly opposing Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions," Bush said. "Permitting the world's leading sponsor of terror to possess the world's deadliest weapon would be an unforgivable betrayal of future generations. For the sake of peace, the world must not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon."
Warren Buffett endorses Obama
Warren Buffett, the world's richest man, is backing Barack Obama in the White House race, as he tells CNN's Becky Anderson.
McCain Hits Obama on Cuba Policy
McCain Hits Obama on Cuba PolicyMcCain Hits Obama on Cuba PolicyThe Associated PressRepublican presidential candidate John McCain spoke in Miami Tuesday at a Cuban Independence Day event, where he assailed against Barack Obama's stance on Cuba, while vowing himself to maintain the U.S. trade embargo. (May 20)This video contains ONLY natural sound. No script is available.
OTTAWA — Saskatchewan will follow Alberta and become the second province to elect senators, giving Prime Minister Stephen Harper a major boost in his decades-long campaign for an elected second chamber of Parliament.
Officials in Saskatchewan are drafting a bill for the election of senators during elections for the provincial legislature. Premier Brad Wall's Saskatchewan Party government hopes to introduce the legislation this fall.
“We've made the decision that we support Senate reform,” Bill Boyd, provincial Intergovernmental Relations Minister, told The Globe and Mail. “Regardless of what other provinces are doing, we certainly want to move in this direction.”
The change is seen as a way of altering the Senate without opening the Constitution, because the Prime Minister would still technically appoint senators – although he would be choosing from a list of people elected by Canadians.
News of the Saskatchewan legislation comes amid increasing criticism over Mr. Harper's refusal to fill Senate posts. There are now 14 vacancies in the 105-seat chamber. Senators and constitutional experts warn it will be almost one-third vacant by the end of next year, a situation that could lead to lawsuits against Ottawa alleging lack of representation.
Even some of Mr. Harper's own Senate reform supporters say he risks shrinking the Senate so much that its members will not be able to adequately fulfill their roles. The Senate will soon vote on a Liberal-sponsored bill that would force the Prime Minister to fill appointments within six months of a vacancy.
Mr. Harper has made only two appointments to the Senate since taking office: Michael Fortier from Quebec and Bert Brown of Alberta, Canada's only elected senator.
During the last election, the Prime Minister said appointments would be considered only under unusual circumstances, such as rectifying regional cabinet imbalances. Mr. Fortier is from Montreal, where the Tories lack representation.
With the Prime Minister's blessing, Mr. Brown has been touring provincial capitals since January, lobbying for Senate elections.
“This comes down to basically 14 people and their legislatures,” said Mr. Brown, referring to the 13 premiers and the Prime Minister.
Mr. Brown, who was elected through Alberta referendums in 1998 and 2004 but was not appointed to the Senate until 2007, is aware of Saskatchewan's plans and hopes for more. “I think once one more province comes on side, inevitably they will all come on side.” But with the growing number of vacancies, he said, provinces are running out of time.
“The provinces need to make some kind of a decision in the next 18 months. It can't go on forever. It's obvious. Either the Senate will have no seats at all … or [the Prime Minister will] give up and say, ‘Okay. Appoint them all.' There's basically the only two options he could possibly have.”
Fellow Conservative Senator Hugh Segal said Mr. Brown's tour of the provinces has a good chance of creating a model that even future Liberal federal governments would have to follow.
“When it was just Alberta – Liberals having no prospect to speak of in Alberta at that time and perhaps since – they could have well concluded there was no risk to them of turning their back on that democratic option, but if it spreads, it's pretty hard to say as a general principle we're not going to take seriously those people chosen through an open, democratic election,” he said.
But while Alberta and Saskatchewan are on side, other crucial provinces, such as Ontario, have refused to elect senators, saying they prefer that the Red Chamber be abolished.
Ned Franks, a constitutional expert at Queen's University in Kingston, said the lack of representation could eventually spark a province or an individual to launch a constitutional lawsuit.
“I believe that is possible and would work,” he said. He added that the Senate could also argue at some point that its numbers have shrunk so much that they can no longer function.
Liberals say they have sympathy for what they describe as overworked Conservative senators, who are stretched thin trying to keep a quorum in committees and debating legislation in the chamber. But they say the proper way for the Prime Minister to reform the Senate is through constitutional talks.
“I don't think he likes the Constitution, quite frankly, and so he's trying to do it through the back door,” said B.C. Liberal Senator Larry Campbell. “That's our major disagreement.”
Roger Gibbins, head of the Canada West Foundation, agrees the shrinking Senate may prompt a lawsuit, and that a crisis is looming.
Prof. Gibbins, whose foundation is a strong promoter of an elected Senate, also said it is a risk for Mr. Harper to not appoint senators because the Liberals may return to office and fill the Senate with Liberals. Still, Prof. Gibbins said the Prime Minister should resist any temptation to begin appointing senators because to do so would demonstrate to opponents of an elected Senate that they were successful.
“Canadians don't believe that appointed senators represent them in any way. I think we're moving towards a crisis where we could have a second chamber that is dysfunctional, that can't carry on the work that needs to be done.”
The Harper government has introduced two pieces of Senate reform legislation: One sets up a national system of provincial referendums in which voters would choose their nominees for Senate appointments; the other sets maximum terms of eight years for senators. Both bills have met resistance from the opposition parties.
Obama fires back hard at Bush/McCain
Raw Video: China PM Tours Quake Epicenter
Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao tours the area at the epicenter of Monday's 7.9 magnitude earthquake. (May 16)
McCain Flip Flops on Hamas
In an interview two years ago, Sen. John McCain had a different stance on whether Hamas should deal with the U.S.
McCain on Hamas in 2006: Going to Have to Deal With Them
John McCain on Hamas in 2006
Bush Compares Obama to Nazi Appeasers
While delivering an address before the Israeli parliament commemorating the 60th anniversary of Israel, President Bush said that Sen. Barack Obama and Democrats favor a policy of appeasement toward terrorists. CNN reports that Bush was comparing Obama to "other U.S. leaders back in the run-up to World War II who appeased the Nazis."
In his speech, Bush said, "As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: 'Lord, if only I could have talked to Hitler, all of this might have been avoided.' We have an obligation to call this what it is -- the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history."
CNN's Ed Henry reported that, while "President Bush never uttered the words Barack Obama," his White House sources tell him it was clearly intended to be a partisan shot: White House aides are acknowledging that this was a reference to the fact that Sen. Obama and other Democrats have publicly said that it would be ok for the U.S. President to meet with leaders like the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad.
Biden calls Bush's comment "bullshit"
CNN - Obama camp responds to Bush
The Obama campaign responds to President Bush's accusations that the senator is trying to 'appease' terrorists.
The Canadian Press
TORONTO -- Ontario's Liberal government confirms it will resume coverage of sex-change surgery under the province's health insurance plan.
Health Minister George Smitherman says the details have not been finalized, but Ontario will soon start paying for sexual reassignment surgery. He says about eight to 10 people each year would qualify for the operation.
Ontario's previous Conservative government cancelled coverage of sex-change operations 10 years ago, leaving some people stranded midway through the process.
Smitherman says people wanting the procedures must first go through "very, very sustained psychological evaluations" and must get approval from the Centres for Addiction and Mental Health.
NDP Leader Howard Hampton says this was a long-standing Liberal promise that the government is finally honouring.
Harper speaks on 60th Anniversary of Israel
PM delivers remarks at a celebration marking the 60th Anniversary of Israel
Barack Obama's campaign is touting a "major endorsement" of his candidacy tonight and the endorser is former Sen. John Edwards, according to people close to the former North Carolina senator and the Obama campaign.
Mr. Edwards, who dropped out of the race for the Democratic nomination Jan. 30, placed second in the Iowa caucuses in early January and was a favorite of the party's liberal wing. In West Virginia, where he appeared on the ballot, and Sen. Hillary Clinton won in stunning fashion, Mr. Edwards garnered 7% of the vote -- a surprise for a candidate who dropped out of the race before "Super Tuesday" voting in early February.
![[Image]](http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OB-BL375_EDWARD_20080514172013.jpg) |
| NBC NewsWire via AP Images |
| Edward and Obama during a New Hampshire debate in September. |
Campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Mr. Edwards will join Sen. Obama at his Grand Rapids, Mich., rally where he will announce his endorsement.
Mr. Edwards could give a boost to Obama's candidacy by attracting the exact sort of voter that has been Sen. Clinton's strength -- white, working-class voters from rust-belt states who are drawn to a populist political philosophy but have mostly rejected the senator from Illinois. Sen. Clinton, vastly outgunned in delegate count and popular vote by Sen. Obama has nonetheless kept her candidacy alive by arguing -- somewhat successfully -- that such voters will be crucial in November.
Mr. Edwards previously declined to back either candidate, both of whom courted his endorsement and promised to advocate for antipoverty issues he has long championed. More recently, he hinted that he might take sides soon.
People close to Mr. Edwards have said that he has found deep flaws in both Sens. Clinton and Obama -- Sen. Obama because he lacked the fire to wage war against special interests in Washington, and Sen. Clinton because she takes money from lobbyists and remains firmly part of the beltway aristocracy, which he considers to be the problem with American politics.
Obama T-shirts Draw Racism Charges
Controversy has broken out in Marietta, Georgia, where a tavern owner has begun selling T-shirts featuring a Curious George look-alike eating a banana, with the caption 'Obama '08.' (May 13)
GATINEAU, Que. - The current slowdown in the U.S. economy makes it all the more important for Canada to negotiate a free trade deal with Europe, says Quebec Premier Jean Charest.
In an interview with Canwest News Service on the eve of a major speech in Ottawa to increase support for the proposal, Charest said free trade with the European Union is an idea whose time has come.
"It is an interesting project in the context of an American economy that is slowing down. It reminds everyone how dependent we are on this economy," he said. "So I am enthusiastic about it. I'm also an optimist. I think there are good chances this will go ahead."
Moreover, the deal Charest would like to see would be one of the widest-ranging deals Canada has ever signed, even further reaching than the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
"I hope it will go further than NAFTA, actually, because we would like to see part of the negotiation address the issue of labour mobility, which we are doing in a Quebec-France negotiation. And we would like to see it deal also with issues that are beyond trade - like cultural co-operation, universities, science and technology, environmental co-operation. What we really want is a new generation of accords that go beyond anything that we have done in the past."
Charest's speech Wednesday, opening a conference on Canada-EU free trade, is the latest step by his government to push for a deal with the European Union.
"(It's) an opportunity to demonstrate that there is broad support for this in Canada," said Charest.
The first step toward a possible Canada-EU trade deal came a year ago when Prime Minister Stephen Harper and German Chancellor Angela Merkel signed a declaration in favour of closer co-operation. At that point they also ordered a series of studies to set the stage for possible formal negotiations.
Quebec's Economic Development Minister Raymond Bachand has been working doggedly behind the scenes to push the file forward.
In October, during a meeting to be held in Montreal, Canada and the European Union are to decide whether to embark on formal negotiations.
A deal with Europe could not only result in greater co-operation but also ease trade and travel between Canada and European countries.
While past trade deals have been largely negotiated by the federal government, Charest said this time provinces will likely play a larger role.
"One of the very important objectives is provincial support because now we are going into areas of provincial jurisdiction in these agreements," he explained. "That may not have been the case when we did the FTA (Free Trade Agreement) or NAFTA. There were some areas but not the majority of them. But in these new agreements we're going into areas of provincial jurisdiction such as labour mobility, government procurement, harmonization of some regulations.
"So the provinces have to be on side. There has to be a broad base of support for this to go ahead and be successful."
Montreal Gazette
Bush - I Gave Up Golf Out of Respect for Troops
You have to be kidding me...
-Darryl
Obama - America Can't Afford 4 More Years of George Bush
Sen. Barack Obama, campaigning in Missouri, says that a McCain presidency would be a third Bush term. This will be a strong campaign message in November. Include the economy and Iraq and I see no way McCain can win.
-Darryl
GOP in trouble in Congressional seat switch
Hopefully a sign of things to come. Regardless of who becomes President, they will be working with a Democratic Congress and Senate
-Darryl
Hillary Clinton Wins West Virginia
Speech after winning last night by a large margin
Bob Barr is running as a Libertarian for president
Not quite Ron Paul, but will at least neutralize Nader
-Darryl
Personally I think Hillary would make a good choice and potentially could shore up areas where Obama seems to be weak. It could also quickly unify the party but of course there are disadvantages as well. My personal pick if I was Obama would be Bill Richardson. Other good choices might include John Edwards, Nancy Pelosi, Michael Bloomberg, Al Gore, Jim Webb, Joe Biden, Chuck Hagel, Wesley Clark, Kathleen Sebelius and several others including potentially a Republican to reinforce his unity message. I think in the end, if Hillary wants the VP spot, she will be able to apply enough pressure to get it given the current circumstances of the Democratic race. Given the situation in
-Darryl
(CNN) – Even as the prolonged Democratic presidential race has become more divisive in its final stretch, a majority of Democrats want Barack Obama to choose Hillary Clinton as his running mate, according to a new poll out Tuesday.
A new Gallup poll shows 55 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents surveyed think Obama should offer the New York senator a spot on his ticket. That number is significantly influenced by Clinton's supporters — close to 75 percent of her backers want the No. 2 spot to be offered, while only 43 percent of Obama supporters feel the same.
The poll comes as some of Clinton's highest profile backers increasingly suggest Obama and Clinton should team up for the general election. Speaking in New York Friday, Sen. Chuck Schumer said he at first didn't think such a team was possible but now believes "it could be."
"Hillary and Barack have both run very strong and great races, and I think they'd be a strong ticket together," he said.
Rep. Charlie Rangel, who also backs Clinton, also put his support behind a joint ticket Monday. Speaking on CNN, the New York congressman said such a scenario would be "terrific," adding "I hope it works out that way."
*****
Newsmax: Huckabee Tops McCain VP List
It is looking more and more like Mike Huckabee could be selected as John McCain’s running mate. Other possibilities seem to include Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Condi Rice, Joe Lieberman, Charlie Crist (
-Darryl
Source: Huckabee Tops McCain VP List | ||
| ||
Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is at the top of the list of John McCain’s possible running mates, according to a top McCain fundraiser with ties to his inner circle.
Economic conservatives are likely to oppose the choice of Huckabee as McCain’s vice presidential candidate, given the populist tone of his campaign and his tax record as governor of Arkansas.
But in his “Capital Commerce” column for U.S. News & World Report, James Pethokoukis points to the fundraiser’s disclosure and cites several factors that could make Huckabee a strong asset for McCain.
For one thing, the former Baptist minister is a great campaigner who could garner support in the South among social conservatives and at the same time appeal to working-class voters in the crucial states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin.
Huckabee would also appeal to many more voters on a “he cares about me” level than millionaire investor and possible vice presidential choice Mitt Romney, especially given all the turmoil on Wall Street this year.
Finally, even economic conservatives who might hesitate to back Huckabee would certainly favor him over the threat of Obamanomics and higher taxes across the board. | ||
Mapping the remaining states elections
Mapping the remaining states elections and what the electoral distribution looks like.
Obama: Vote for Change: National Kick-Off
Across the country on May 10, 2008, Barack Obama's supporters registered voters as part of our 50 state voter registration drive, "Vote for Change."
barackobama.com/voteforchange
Bush heads to Mideast
May 12 - As President Bush returns to the Middle East the prospects for peace look dim with a scandal looming in Israel and Palestinians split.In November, President Bush set the goal of having a framework agreement in place between Israel and the Palestinians before he leaves office in January. Deborah Lutterbeck reports.
China Welcomes Foreign Aid As Death Toll Rises
The Chinese government says it will welcome offers of foreign aid after the country was rocked by a massive earthquake that has killed nearly 12,000 people. (May 13)
We Need To Decriminalize Marijuana: Barack Obama
No arguments from me
-Darryl
No I am not talking about federally, councilor Grace Marsh recently resigned from
(pictured above: Al Gore with Aurora mayor Phyllis Morris taken after her "right to dry" campaign: http://www.phyllismorris.net/righttodry/index1.html )
-Darryl
***
Municipal politicians in Aurora will tonight debate the contentious issue of how to replace a councillor who recently quit, citing turmoil on council as the reason.
Councillors are expected to vote on whether to appoint a successor or hold a by-election to replace Grace Marsh, who resigned last month. They'll probably also vote on whether to introduce a code of conduct to address "inappropriate behaviour," Mayor Phyllis Morris said yesterday.
"I am trying so hard to not go down the road of negativity, and I think it's time that we put the code in place to try and address the type of concerns Miss Marsh raised. I don't doubt that she found it a very difficult experience," Morris added.
Marsh is currently on vacation and could not be reached for comment. But in an unusual letter to the editor in the Era-Banner last month, she apologized to constituents for her decision and explained how the reality of serving as a councillor fell short of her expectations.
"I ... expected an atmosphere of respect for others and their opinions, a working atmosphere similar to most business environments, where discussion can and does take place without anger, threats and insults," Marsh wrote.
"I expected a group of nine (councillors who) could work and would work as a team, without obvious splits ... . I expected taxpayers' finances to be spent wisely and prudently and I expected the professional advice of senior staff to be independent," she continued.
She also wrote that the meeting schedule was unmanageable and that meetings went on too long.
Writing in her online blog, Councillor Evelyn Buck, who admits to being outside the mayor's circle on council, claimed Morris yelled at Marsh the day before the councillor resigned.
"In a public space the mayor was heard shrieking abuse at Councillor Grace Marsh. It's a familiar routine to associates and positively horrendous," she wrote.
Morris denied Buck's account, noting Buck wasn't even there. However, she did acknowledge having a disagreement with Marsh.
"That was not true to say that I shrieked. A lot of angry voices were going on," Morris said.
She said it's for reasons such as Buck's blog that a code of conduct is necessary. "Nowadays if you're going to be out there, saying or writing on a blog or making accusations, we'd like the public to know that there is someone they could go to who would be fair," Morris said, noting that a code of conduct would pave the way to the appointment of an integrity commissioner.
Morris is in favour of appointing a successor to Marsh, noting that a by-election could cost between $40,000 and $100,000. But Councillor Alison Collins-Mrakas said a by-election is more democratic.
