New Budget–No Poison Pills–For Now

Ricky P is on CJAD live discussing the budget just handed down.  CJAD morning show’s Andrew Carter will be talking to Jimbo Flaherty, hisself!

Like the the Throne speech last night, this budget has no surprises. Not even a poison pill…this time around.

I was kind of expecting Flaherty to bring back that controversial 1.95$/vote cut to the political parties; one element that set off the coalition in December 2008. He didn’t.  However, that doesn’t mean that it will never happen.

No new taxes (yadda yadda yadda). There will, however, be an increase in EI and pension plan contributions. How much does anyone wanna bet that when one makes an EI claim or starts drawing pensions, those benefits won’t go up?  Representatives of small business owners seem to believe this will hamper efforts for job creation as their employer contributions say that won’ t be able to afford to hire them.  I say it depends on the small business owner and how well they do.

Of course, the banks and big oil and other corporations’ tax cuts has not been cancelled.

They’re going to set up a “red tape” committee. Again, falls under the heading of  ‘whatever the hell that means’.  Committees for examining how to cut red tape and committees for changing the national anthem. By the by, them committee members are paid; not volunteers. Ok, there is job creation there…for st-Stevie’s evangelical friends, no doubt.

Jean Lapierre was just on, giving his two cents. He is of the belief that this budget is more of a “transition” budget, meaning that the budget has nothing new nor any poison pills at this time, he is of the belief that this budget is leading up to Stevie engineering his own defeat come this fall.  I guess that Stevie wants to see if  his new Olympic Gold lustre  will continue shining until then.

I agree with Jean Lapierre on this: we have yet to hear the other shoe drop on this one.

Jack Layton says he’s not going to “support” this budget, whatever that means. Mulcair stuck his two cents in, sure enough with a jab to the Liberals, as he seems to always feel a need to do. He gets less and less impressive. He would be a hindrance to a coalition. He has too much of ego.

Gilles Duceppe says he will vote against it.

As for the Liberals, according to the Grope and Fail, Iggy says that Grits will vote againts Flaherty’s plan, but not enough to provoke a crisis. In other words, a few will actually vote. As he told Ricky P, he says the Liberals will vote against the budget, but ‘not enough to provoke a political crisis’.

“Canadians are not ready for an election,” Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff

Iggy also says:

he would concentrate instead in the weeks and months ahead in presenting an alternative to government – “brick by brick, stone by stone.”

Whatever.

Gotta love these nuances from the Liberals and the N.D.P.  Only Gilles Duceppe has clearly made his intentions clear.

Wake up kids!! Many do want an election this spring. Form a coalition: get st-Stevie out of office once and for all!! If the reform and ol’ Prog cons with all their differences can merge, then so can you.

Iggy doesn’t believe the deficit will be paid in the ‘medium term’, he just told Ricky P. It ‘lacks vision for the future.’

Canada Environment Assessment Agency will no longer be responsible for conducting  environmental assessments for energy projects. That is being handed over to National Energy Board. Doesn’t the latter’s group have all of St-Stevie’s big oil buddies in there? Oh boy,  we get to continue to be the dirty old petrol state. Right.

They will be  spending 17 000 000$ more to Olympic pro and semi-pro athletes, in addition to the already 47, 000 000$ they already get and of course, another 11 000 000$ to that damned “Owe the Podium” boosting them up to 22 000 000$. They seem to think Canadians will overwhelmingly support this.  No they won’t!  Oh yeah, many Canadians are morally bankrupt, have A.D.D. and love all that glitters is gold. Ok, as you were.

They say that they are going to cut defense spending. Could that be a small light at the end of  the wasteful, senseless, useless Afghan war?

It is obscene that no new jobs will be created, no programs for seniors and whatever so-called “help” is offered to families is “tokenesque” at best,  no real environmental projects, corporate tax breaks for those who least need them so their executives can continue to earn bonuses and their ridiculous fringe benefits;  but take heart, boys n girls, we’ll continue to beat records winning olympic medals.

Uh, Oh Canada?