Tories trying to frame ‘green shift’ as a tax issue, not environmental
Posted on 30 June 2008 by Jack
The governing Conservatives don’t want Environment Minister John Baird as their official spokesperson to speak out against Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion’s new carbon tax plan because the government is trying to frame the issue as a tax policy, not an environmental policy, Conservatives say.
Four Conservative sources told The Hill Times last week that Jason Kenney (Calgary Southeast, Alta.), the secretary of state for multiculturalism and Canadian identity, has been appointed as the government’s point-man against the Liberals “The Green Shift” plan because the government’s strategy is to identify it as a tax policy, and offering Mr. Baird (Ottawa West-Nepean, Ont.) as spokesman on the issue would validate it as an environmental one.
“Don’t make the carbon tax an environment issue. Make it a finance issue,” said one Conservative source, adding that the Tories are stronger on fiscal policy than environmental. “It’s got the word tax in it. They want to tax you more, we want to tax you less.” Added another Tory source: “It makes it more of a political debate about what you pay, as opposed to a policy debate about what is being done on the environment.”
After the release of the Liberals’ Green Shift carbon tax plan on June 19, observers were a little perplexed to see Mr. Kenney, whose portfolio is multiculturalism, respond with a news conference, in which he attacked the plan. Mr. Kenney also answered questions about the issue in Question Period, prompting calls of “We want John!” from the Liberal benches, in reference to the Environment minister.
“We don’t accept that this is an environmental policy. I mean it’s wrapped up in green packaging, but if you read the 42-page document released by Mr. Dion, there’s hardly a word about actual carbon emission reductions,” Mr. Kenney said in an interview with The Hill Times last week, adding that there are no emission reduction targets in the plan.
Popularity: 17% [?]
June 30th, 2008 at 11:29 am
Who could be surprised when a Carbon *Tax* is proposed, that people examine the proposal through a *tax* lens? Oh, a Canadian ‘journalist’ could…
June 30th, 2008 at 11:50 am
The Hill Times, another hard left media arm of the Liberals spinning Carbon Tax as not a tax.
MSM wonders why Harper keeps a tight control over CPC media releases……….. could it be large tracks of MSM media do dishonest or LAZY reporting.
Why is it MSM never reports Power Corp. or Maurice Strong connections to LPoC and Dion, Martin, Old Cretch and PET.
Some reporting is just off limits !
June 30th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Because, timwest, as Jack opined the other day, and I agree with him, they will be fired, or marginalized.
The MSM spin machine is in full damage control right now. The prejudices of the MSM are blinding them to the truth in this case, however, that personal financial security trumps the environment, and in these days, the populace feels that their financial security is significantly threatened. Perhaps the MSM types are so comfortable that they can no longer compute what personal financial security means. Their day is coming. Newspapers have lost the plot, and the sweet spot demographic is no longer watching television. They spin fruitlessly. Lost in their own tangled internal logic. Polls are commissioned - always to their friends, who know it is smart business to tell them what they want to hear.
A truly smart and effective leader wants the hard truth - the heads of this Liberal/MSM cabal are too zoned in to the old gravy train that they just don’t grasp what has really happened. We’re not listening to them.
The spin becomes more shrill.
In times of stress and difficulty, the people want steady, honest leadership that will navigate the troubled waters - the social engineering hot air can wait for another day.
The wonder of this moment is that the Canadian population is flipping the Liberals the bird (returning Trudeaus’ gesture, finally). The MSM will become more shrill - angered with the peasants. As they become more shrill, they will become more insulting to the peasantry. The spiral tightens.
It’s quite a show, as Jack puts it.
June 30th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Couldn’t have said it better myself LG.
Happy Brew
June 30th, 2008 at 11:50 pm
The Tories are trying to discredit Dion’s Green Shaft by telling the truth about it. The Liberals and their lapdog media aren’t can’t handle such concepts as “truth” since it is so remote from their thinking.