By now I'm sure everyone has heard about this, but if not, here's the relevent quotation:
Quote:
I think because [Bill C-38] is only being passed with the support of the BQ, I think it will lack legitimacy with most Canadians. The truth is most federalist MPs will oppose this legislation.
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Do you think Harper is correct that because the bill will only pass with the support of the separatists that it lacks legitamacy with Canadians? Or is he wrong because the elected Bloc MPs have the same voice in Parliament as any other party?
Also, what would your reaction be if in an alternate universe the budget was defeated last month and Martin had said the following?
Quote:
I think because the budget was only defeated with the support of the BQ, I think the vote of no-confidence lacks legitimacy with most Canadians. The truth is most federalist MPs supported the budget, so we will not be dissolving Parliament and calling an election.
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Personally, I think Harper is being extremely hypocritical here. Had he not aligned himself with the Bloc to defeat the government last month he might have had a valid point, but he is in no position to claim any moral superiority over the Liberals and NDP for voting on an issue along with the BQ when he did just that in May.
As an aside, though, I do take issue with the concept of former-BQ MPs receiving generous federal pension for all their years of loyal service trying to break up the country. Unfortunately, there's little that can be done about it, as they are the elected federal representatives for their ridings whether those of us in the Rest of Canada like it or not.