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"A comprehensive, collaborative elections resource."
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How Harper could (and should) have ducked a deficit
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| Contributor | Monsieur |
| Last Edited | Monsieur Nov 21, 2008 10:19am |
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| Category | Editorial |
| News Date | Friday, November 21, 2008 04:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Not long ago, as Canadians were about to vote in the federal election, Prime Minister Stephen Harper was emphatic about his Conservative government not running a budgetary deficit.
Now, barely a month later, he wants us to believe that he's being driven toward unavoidable red ink by sudden international circumstances beyond his control.
It's all the fault of a collapsing U. S. housing market, bank failures, a global credit crunch and continuing turmoil in financial markets world-wide. That's the Conservative spin.
So now, the Canadian government has no choice but to sell off capital assets, or cancel programs and services, or run a federal deficit -- or a combination of all three -- if it's going to safeguard Canadian pensions, salvage jobs in the manufacturing, automotive and forestry sectors and kick-start economic growth.
But wait a minute. This Conservative story just doesn't add up.
Yes, the economic crisis that began in the United States is very real, and it will indeed inflict significant damage in Canada and around the world. But the fact that this country is not in a better position today to weather that storm is entirely Mr. Harper's domestic responsibility. |
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