Pork Barrel Spending Isn’t a Tory Problem. It’s a “Stimulus” Problem
True to form, the Conservatives have been unable to sit on a strong lead in the polls for long without bad news. Party logos and MP names on cheques, so-called “stimulus” funds being spent more-often-than-not in government held ridings and a refusal to open up Access to Information laws have produced a waft of foul air about the current occupants of Ottawa’s big offices.
The Liberals have been trying – albiet quite unsucessfully – to pillar the government for these mounting sins. The very thought of the party of Alfonso Gagliano, Chuck Guite & Jean Pelletier trying to take the moral high ground is laughable in the extreme, but that is no excuse for the creeping tendency of the government to let it’s previously shinny armour of accountability rust so quickly.
The current smell of foul play creeping over the government is not a symptom of Tory governance, but of big spending and what it does to the sense of fiscal restraint that the government should have. When a party that sprang from roots that resembled fiscal sanity throws those roots to the fire and “stimulates” that fire with gasoline, it is little wonder that said party begins to loose its ethical bearings.
The arguement that the Conservatives are no worse ethically than Jean Chretien’s Liberals may be accurate, but it is hardly a high bar to judge a government by.
Pork barrel spending and acting as if taxpayers money belongs to a party or MP is not necessarily a reflection of a party or MP’s personally, but a direct result of what happens when any government – Liberal, or Conservative – engages in the kind of spending that we see today.
Liberal attacks on the current “stimulus” fiasco may be hypocritical, but they are half legitimate. The Conservatives should take action on this not by retorting that they will be more ethical managers of out-of-control spending, but that they will get this spending under control.
Cross Posted at taxpayer.com/blog
October 20, 2009
Tags: Economic Action Plan, Gerald Keddy, Party logos, Pork Barrel Spending, Stimulus Posted in: Blog Content
6 Responses
I think for the chattering class this is a great dust-up but phoney cheques don’t add up to Adscam by any measure. Yet, I do believe “rules” could be instituted which governs this process.
And as for Conservative ridings getting more well boy is that a reverse from yesteryear when it was an STOP for the Liberals. Also are you sure the “analysis” is correct> It seems the money is still rolling out. (Lets see Iggy first says moneys not going out fast enough just after he and the rest of the Oppostion says says the amount is not enough, now its too much………….well I think the polls indicate how the population is reading it).
Lost in all of this is the tri spending (Feds-Provinces-Municipalties)til the two or in some cases three get together on what, how much and when nothing goes out. Seems if the Conservatives are tarred with anything we need to look at Provincial leaders as well as some Municipalities!!!
Also not sure if maybe it wouldnt be good for those who vote to have consequences to their vote. It may mean a better considered vote in future!!!!
After all – how many Torie MP were elected?? – how many liberals?? – wouldn’t that mean – there would be more Tory ridings receiving stimulus money anyway – just because of sheer numbers!!…
The only question we should ask is how many stimulus requests from opposition members ridings have been regected.
Maybe the reason that more money is going to conservative ridings is because the consewrvative members have bought into the program a lot more than the opposition members and have worked much harder with the local municipalities and their MPP in their own riding to be succesful . Dont forget that this program is shared between the feds, province and municipalities. Maybe the conservative members are better quarterbacks and harder workers than the opposition members?
The provinces and municipalities submitted their project lists and had to come up with cost sharing for the stimulus plan projects.
Are you saying that they were asking for “pork” and that all of the provinces and municipalities were trying to stack the projects in favour of Conservative ridings?
And that a big poster of the announcements to give the media a visual to announce local projects is corrupt????
Wow!
Lorraine- What I am saying is that the Conservative MPs were approching the municipalities in their ridings and asking them for their list of stimulus projects or reminding them of their availability. This was to the MP’s
credit- this is his job.By doing this he ensured that every municipality in his riding got a shot at stimulus money. I am just saying that we should be asking the opposition members if they carried out their duties as I have never yet heard mention( except Toronto) of any rejections by Public Works.
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