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Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

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    #51
    Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

    I was thinking the same question during the elections.

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      #52
      Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

      Because they weren't willing to then and, more to the point, there was no acceptable constitutional reason to.

      Coalitions are very rare in parliamentary democracies, you can't just do it because you don't like the PM, there has to be an acceptable reason to involve the Head of State (Governor General.) Losing the confidence (ie: trust) of Parliament is such a reason.

      BTW: The name for the coalition: New Libs on the Bloc

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        #53
        Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

        Excellent. Can you claim credit?

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          #54
          Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

          'Fraid not. Nicked it from a reply on someone's blog. Couldn't resist passing it on though.

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            #55
            Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

            The Canadian Dollar is down to $0.792 this morning. My guess is that it will go down a bit further.

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              #56
              Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

              The barrel of oil went down another $2 as well. And as we're a resource based currency...

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                #57
                Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                Because they weren't willing to then and, more to the point, there was no acceptable constitutional reason to.
                But if he's willing to climb down and offer a budget that can be passed, doesn't that mean that the the vote on the budget won't be a no confidence vote and therefore negate the constitutional reason for the opposition parties to form a coalition?

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                  #58
                  Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                  If you accept the idea that this was in the cards long before the budget note was presented, then no budget would be acceptable.

                  But either way, any budget is a confidence vote. If your budget is defeated, you're paying a visit to Rideau Hall.

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                    #59
                    Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                    Curtains Hall for Harper.

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                      #60
                      Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                      Quoi?

                      He's speaking to the nation at 7 tonight. The networks have granted rebuttal time to the coalition.

                      [Sorry. I didn't read my post before yours. Duhr.]

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                        #61
                        Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                        if he's willing to climb down and offer a budget that can be passed, doesn't that mean that the the vote on the budget won't be a no confidence vote and therefore negate the constitutional reason for the opposition parties to form a coalition?

                        The no-confidence vote isn't attached to the budget, it's separate and stands alone. Harper's already withdrawn the contentious issues in the mini-budget that generated the no-confidence vote, but:

                        a) the coalition don't trust him.
                        b) they smell power.
                        c) both of the above.

                        The correct answer is 'c' of course.

                        It looks like he's going to ask for prorogation. So it's down to the GG, which sucks.

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                          #62
                          Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                          I dunno. I am not sure why the GG would grant prorogration, to be honest. I don't think there's ever been a case in canadian history where the house was prorogued specifically to avoid a vote.

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                            #63
                            Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                            I agree, but it's the least messy option at this point — especially for her— that doesn't mean it's the right one though.

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                              #64
                              Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                              Do you think that the GG actually asks the Queen (or her staff) what their views are in a situation like this?

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                                #65
                                Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                I've never even heard that suggested. Apparently she's met with a fair number of eminent constitutional scholars and at least one ex GG.

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                                  #66
                                  Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                  So the "Queen's Representative" is just as much of a misnomer as the "Queen's Speech".

                                  Why bother with the deception?

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                                    #67
                                    Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                    I don't know for sure, but perhaps it's just a holdover from the pre-Constitution repatriation days. (1980? '82?). Gramsci's probably written a book on the topic, so I'll defer to him.

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                                      #68
                                      Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                      Ah:

                                      "In 1947, “Letters Patent Constituting the Office of the Governor General of Canada” (under King George VI), transferred virtually all the roles and responsibilities of the Crown from the Sovereign to the Governor General to carry out, without having to refer matters to the Sovereign."

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                                        #69
                                        Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                        What happens after they prorograte (prorogante? progoqo?) Just sit on their ass for a few years?

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                                          #70
                                          Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                          No. It would be suspended until late January, when Harper would return and present his full, formal budget. (Which would, of course, then face a vote of non-confidence.)

                                          I think the GG will say 'no' today, because she knows she's just delaying the inevitable. You can't use prorogation as a stall tactic.

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                                            #71
                                            Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                            One of the constitutional questions the GG will be wrestling with is whether she can/should set a time limit to prorogation. If she doesn't and the government sits on its hands for too long she could eventually ask the opposition to form a government I think. Much of this is unchartered constitutional territory so who the fuck knows really.

                                            So the "Queen's Representative" is just as much of a misnomer as the "Queen's Speech".

                                            Why bother with the deception?


                                            "The Queen," constitutionally speaking, is a metaphor for the monarchy as an institution rather than a deception. No one expects one of the royal family to prosecute court cases either though it's done in their name.

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                                              #72
                                              Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                              Much of this is unchartered constitutional territory so who the fuck knows really.
                                              True. Kind of neat to be seeing it first hand, though.

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                                                #73
                                                Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                                I know the GG does look at foreign precedents in cases like these, so she may not call Buck House, but I'd bet they're on the line to someone at the Commonwealth to make sure they're on good grounds. Right now this is shaping up a bit like Gough Whitlam in '75 - I'd bet the lines to Canberra have been active.

                                                We have a GG and a Queen because otherwise we'd have to amend our own constitution to make for a local head of state. History shows we aren't very good at amending our constitution. Safer to leave it as it is.

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                                                  #74
                                                  Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                                  He's been with the GG for two hours now. The front door has opened and closed a number of times, but no one's come out.

                                                  Apparently, if it goes well, Harper will speak to the media. If it doesn't, he won't. He's already cancelled his planned trip to Woodstock Ont. today to attend the opening of the new Toyota plant.

                                                  Two friggin' hours? What could they be talking about for so long?

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                                                    #75
                                                    Intrigue in the Canadian Parliament

                                                    And she has agreed to prorogue Parliament. Don't know for how long, but that's what the ticker is saying.

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