Tim Hudak faces PC civil war

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/denounces+rift+Tory+caucus/3921010/story.html

The Landowners are getting loud. The Randy Hillier and Landowner backed Jack MacLaren failed in his attempt to take over the Carleton-Mississipi Mills (where MacLaren is going to be running for the nomination against party stalwart Norm Sterling, with MacLaren apparently dramatically outselling Sterling in membership) but the war of words continues.

Ed Kennedy, a higher-up in the Landowners movement and an exec on Hillier's riding association says:


This all goes to demonstrate that there are red tories in the party pulling strings, in my estimation. The left knows and fears that the landowner movement is and will effect changes for the better that embody rural rights and Conservative values but due to the success of Randy Hillier, they failed to stop his entry. They fear two honest men in the party and the more in line to come.

This was not unexpected, the same thing happened to Shawn [ED NOTE: This is in reference to the controversial disqualification of Shawn Carmichael, a Landowner backed candidate in the Leeds-Grenville PC nomination, which I covered extensively: http://theliberalscarf.blogspot.com/2010/02/trouble-brewing-for-tories-in-leeds.html] and is more of the same old, same old. The party had been giving Jack a hard time all along since it was known he was going to run.

The loser of course is the party, choosing bootlickers of questionable character over honest men.

And Norm Sterling has struck back, accusing Randy Hillier of supporting MacLaren out of his office, and going as far to suggest that Hillier, who was a strong supporter of Hudak for PC leadership and shares his goal of attacking human rights in Ontario, should leave the PC Party:



"I believe that (Randy Hillier) should either fish or cut bait," Sterling said Thursday. "He should either be a member of the team or he should step outside the team and run as an Ontario Landowner under his own party label...
He said Hillier's office was helping Mac-Laren sell party memberships, and thus votes in the riding-association election, in the run-up to Wednesday's meeting. "He's very much involved," Sterling said.

Sterling called Hillier and MacLaren "political opportunists."

"They want to use the good name of the Progressive Conservative party to push their very narrow and right-wing agenda into the provincial arena," he said. "They don't believe in conservation authorities, they don't believe in milk marketing boards, they go so far as to say let's abandon our planning laws in the province of Ontario."

Sterling says an "uncomfortable" rift has now opened up within caucus, given Hillier's continued desire to unseat him and others."


Hudak issued a weak statement calling for party unity, which was promptly rebuffed by Sterling:


"I really believe the party has to deal with this issue," Sterling said in an interview Thursday. "You can't be wasting your energies on annual (riding association) meetings. I understand in a nomination meeting, if someone wants to run against you that's fine and dandy. It's part of our process. But to take over our organization when you haven't really been part of it and turn it into the Ontario Landowners Party under the name of PC? That shouldn't take place."


What will Hudak do, support the radical right tendency that he himself has openly played to and had the support of for leader, or his party's longest serving MPP?

What are they teaching our kids these days? Beth Graham's hidden agenda

A glance at Facebook shows that the Ontario PC Campus Association shows that they are hosting two "Ideological Training Sessions" this Saturday. The one in Ottawa, which is linked a Beth Graham canvassing blitz that evening, has some "special guests", including Derek Fildebrandt of the Canadian Taxpayer Federation, and
Scott Reid, MP for Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox & Addington.

Apparently the speaker from the CTF will give a talk on economics, while Scott Reid will discuss "Political Rights and Values".

Let's take a look at CTFnomics:

-While the McGuinty government has cut billion dollar green tech deals with India, and the Green Energy Act will create thousands of jobs, the CTF refers to "so-called 'climate change'" (CTF commentary, August 19, 2008)

-Opposed Dalton McGuinty standing up for Ontario and demanding the next redistribution of federal seats fairly represent Ontario (CTF commentary, January 10, 2008)

-Loudly supported the reduction of public health care and a greater role for privatization of health services and delivery (CTF commentaries, November 29, 2007, September 17, 2006)

-Opposed in-vitro fertilization treatments, in particular for "single moms and lesbians" (CTF News, September 09, 2009)

-Described Ontario economic policies as "Soviet Ontario" (CTF News, May 5, 2009)

-Advocated for a regressive flat tax, which they have "long supported" (News release, June 08, 2009)

And let's look at the record of MP Scott Reid

-His talk may be about "rights", but that won't include the right of a woman to choose, Reid is vocally anti-choice and supported Bill C-391, a backdoor attempt to criminalize abortion, and served alongside Cheryl Gallant in the Canadian Alliance PC caucus, who compared a woman's right to choose with terrorism, saying it was "absolutely no different". (Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada Report, August 2007)

-We knew the Beth Graham campaign and the PC's had issues with French, but Scott Reid has a long record of anti-bilingualism activism, saying during the 2004 federal campaign that a Conservative government might change the Official Languages Act and weaken bilingualism requirements. (CTV news, June 1, 2004)

-Supported the extremist Randy Hillier for PC leadership, whose policy positions have been outlined many of a time in this blog.

-Was a founding member of the Lanark Landowners Association. Landowners Associations have opposed everything from environmental legislation and action and climate change (the Glengarry area association had a showing of a climate change denial documentary in August 2008) to government action to ensure the food we eat is safe.

Given the total lack of policy and platform Beth Graham has put forward, is the climate change denying, anti-public health care, anti-choice, anti-French positions put forward by the CTF and Scott Reid given to pump up Tory youth her real agenda?

Carmichael not running in Leeds-Grenville

http://recorder.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2443528

Carmichael is out, but we haven't seen the last of him or the OLA...

Carmichael said he will now focus his energies on helping Jack MacLaren, president of the Ontario Landowners Association (OLA), win the Tory nomination in Carleton-Mississippi Mills, the Ottawa riding now held by MPP Norm Sterling, in next year's scheduled provincial election, and to help OLA vice-president Gary Otten win that nomination in his Peterborough riding.

Shawn Carmichael considering independent run for Leeds-Grenville

http://recorder.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2441933

As I have speculated and reported on this blog quite frequently the last few days, Shawn Carmichael, the Landowner backed candidate for the Leeds-Grenville PC nomination, has confirmed that he is considering an independent run for the seat.


Shawn Carmichael said Monday a run as an independent candidate in the March 4 Leeds-Greville provincial byelection is "a viable option."

"I'm giving it my consideration," said Carmichael.

Carmichael was strongly backed by Randy Hillier and the Landowners movement, which has significant strength in the area, and would have to be taken seriously as a candidate if he were to run.

Edit: Didn't even notice this until someone pointed it out to me:

The situation has led to some speculation Carmichael might run as an independent. A blog, The Liberal Scarf, raised the possibility on Sunday, as did comments left on the Recorder and Times website

Leeds-Grenville: The Ontario Landowners Respond

I have been watching the various conservative boards, and I noticed this on FreeDominion, posted by a regional director for the Ontario Landowners:

Shawn Carmichael Stands Tall in Leeds-Grenville

Shawn Carmichael proudly represented himself and and fellow Landowners in the PC Party nomination race to become the PC candidate for the riding of Leeds-Grenville on saturday. He dressed well, spoke well, and presented the OLA's philosophical and policy positions on what government should be in a most professional and articulate manner. He was the most impressive of the three candidates that were in the race.
Alas, Shawn was not the candidate favoured by the Leeds-Grenville PC Riding Association and democracy was not served in spite of his obviously superior qualities. Shawn had the courage to try to seize the opportunity to do what was right. He demonstrated integrity and character and a sincere interest in the betterment of community.
This week the Leeds-Grenville Landowners Association grew a little bit bigger, a little bit better and gained huge credibility.
On behalf of the Ontario Landowners Association, I would like to say thank you to Shawn Carmichael and the Leeds-Grenville Landowners Association. You did us all proud!

Jack MacLaren - president - Ontario Landowners Association 613 832 3201

Make of this what you will. Some speculation says that Carmichael was disqualified on a technicality, and knowing the OLA, they tend not to look so kindly on letting little things like administrative rules get in the way of proving a political point, so talk of them potentially running or backing a run by a like-minded candidate in the by-election at this point seems very much alive.

Trouble brewing for Tories in Leeds-Grenville?

Steve Clark, the former mayor of Brockville has won the PC nomination for the Leeds-Grenville by-election, but not without controversy. Shawn Carmichael, the Vice-President of the Leeds and Grenville Landowners Association, who had been backed by the Randy Hillier wing of the party, had his nomination papers rejected by the party last night. Many have speculated that Carmichael, or one of his kind, could either run as an independent if the party didn't recognize his candidacy, or force Clark, who had been seen as the "establishment" candidate, into tacking to the right, which could hurt the Tories image elsewhere in the province, particularly as they suffered a crushing blow in Toronto Centre finishing a very distant third. The Ontario Landowners Association has already pledged to run "slate" candidates in municipal elections across rural Ontario, so a Landowner camapaign in Leeds-Grenville wouldn't be the most surprising thing in the world. Let's see how things develop.