Giving a break to Pierre Poilivre, the most public, glib, oleaginous and wholly unconvincing face of the misnamed 'Fair' Elections Act, the Harper cabal tapped good Tory-soldier Paul Calandra to be their point man on Power and Politics to defend the act. There is little doubt in my mind that Calandra has a future in Harper's cabinet, should the unthinkable happen in the next election.
Watch the following video, if you are sufficiently strongly constituted, to get a taste of the servile service he regularly renders to his dark lord:
From: CBC
ReplyDeletePaul Calandra's 'strange' incident
In February (2014), Paul Calandra told the House that in the 2006 election, as a scrutineer for the Conservative Party, he had seen his dead mother's name on a list of voters who were recorded as having already voted.
"She had actually passed away in 2005, and when I asked the person why her name was checked off the list, she assured me that my mother had been in earlier in the day to vote. When I explained to her that was not possible, I was ushered out of the polling station," Calandra said.
Reached by phone late Tuesday, Calandra said he made a mistake when he said he was a scrutineer in that election. He was just a voter, he says. But he noticed his mother's crossed-off name as the poll clerk was about to draw a line though his own name.
"In retrospect do I think there was something fishy about it. Yes. Do I think it was any of the polling people? No," he said.
Calandra, who is parliamentary secretary to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, confirmed he was asked to leave, although not rudely, he says. "I didn't take any offence when they asked me to leave. It's not like they were pushing me out of there because of a coverup."
He conceded "in retrospect" he should have launched a complaint with Elections Canada.
"At the time, I thought it was extraordinarily strange. In retrospect, could it have been an incident of voter fraud? Yeah."
Thanks, Salamander. Lots of those strange Tory 'stories' going around these days, aren't there? Just like Laurie Hawn telling his tale of voter identification cards strewn about in apartment lobbies, and that he was offered them; only problem was,
Delete"Elections Canada told The Hill Times the voter information card was not accepted as voter ID in the 2006 election, when it was used solely as mail-out information to voters about their poll locations and was not required at the polls even as a way to help polling officials direct voters to their polling station ballot box."
Mere details. Who needs them when you're a Tory, eh?
The glib corrections...
DeleteHawn, Butt and all the rest, misremembering..
Their eyes or ears or media played tricks on them..
Calandra is a perfect example.. If he was never a Conservative Party scrutineer.. ever.. How could he misremember being a scrutineer?
Oh ! Maybe he was a scrutineer at some point for another party ?
In which case its understandable.. his confusion..
but surely the public records would clarify this for him..
or has he also misremembered there are public records ?
So should we ask him if he recalls ever piloting an aircraft ?
Did he ever play for an NHL team ?
Does he have a degree from an accredited University ?
Has he ever inhaled marijuana - intentionally ?
Does he suffer from Intermittent memory loss ?
Can he in fact spell 'credibility' correctly ?
Does he believe Canadians are fools ?
Does he recall meeting a man named Dean Del Mastro ?
This is not some minor troll way in the back of the Con war room
photocopying CIMS data.. or trying to enter it on a laptop
Calandra is the Prime Minister of Canada's
chosen Parliamentary Secretary..
and a principal spokesperson..
not to mention an elected MP & public servant ..
So excuse me ..
The Harper talent pool is this thin? Or deemed so inconsequential ?
Did a Canadian electoral riding actually vote for this dullard?
Why ??
Maybe somebody will ask Stephen Harper ..
to explain .. or Rex Murphy ...
Your pungent questions, Salamander, bespeak the terrible depths political integrity has sunk to under Harper's malevolent hand. Someday, I'm sure there will be more than one PhD dissertation written on this era in Canadian politics.
Deletefacts- who needs 'em...i was checking KIJIJI tho' and uncovered a clue for Rajotte re labour/trades shortage in the bitumen fields/ beaches of the Tailings- uh, maybe you guys are pillaging and pumpin it too fast- to dump it at the feet of your gawd- for the market to absorb it. Cuzner- "next we'll be gettting marital & divorce stats from POF ;)
DeleteEverything Paul Calandra says is a lie, including "and'"and "the". With apologies to Lillian Hellman.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure she would more than understand, double nickel.
Deletehis pizza's a lie too. (his eyes scare me)
DeleteLorne, it is a sad state of affairs. Not only Canadians but world scholars are telling us that we are screwing democracy through this 'Fair' Elections Act. Yet Harper is not getting the message.
ReplyDeleteBy the way we are having a very severe storm in the Maritimes. Heavy snow and strong winds. I hope you have a better weather. It is being characterized as the worst storm of the season.
Hi LD. I did see some coverage of the storm that is hitting your neck of the woods. Hope it ends soon, and that it is the last of the season. It is still cold here in Southern Ontario, with a current windchill of -11. It is supposed to start getting milder tomorrow, but i've heard that prediction before.
DeleteRegarding Harper, I think he probably is getting the message but, thanks to his pathological arrogance and hubris, will not be moved by it.
If I were Paul Colandra's mother I'd vote against him.
ReplyDeleteI'm still convinced that the "unthinkable" will happen and that 2015's already been rigged; the "Fair Elections Act" just finalizes and codifies it. Robocalls, gerrymandering riding boundaries to favour the fascists. Harper simply won't allow his vision for a "Conservative Values are Canadian Values" Canada to be overturned and negated by such an inconvenient and pesky notion as democracy. Not him. Not our Stevie "Line the Walls of of the House of Commons Green Room With Pictures of Me" Harper.
There's a storm coming, folks. Keep a clear eye!
N.
I hope you are wrong in your prediction, Neil. Personally, I think the key is to do as much as possible to expose Harper and his agenda so that the indifference so proudly worn by too many Canadians is replaced by a seething anger at the betrayal of our real values at the hands of this cabal since 2006.
DeleteWell, I'm game if you and our fellow ne'er-do-wells are... ;)
DeleteN.
I'm always up for a good fight, Neil. ;)
Delete