Conservatives continue pro-choice stand
...well, pro-choice on the wheat board, at least, by firing the president, Adrian Measner today. I may not be a farmer, but from what it sounds like, the majority of farmers like the board, and want to keep it. Could the Liberals pick up some rural votes by being pro-wheat board?
In other news, Harper said that taxing income trusts has been his hardest decision so far. Nice of him to admit that, although there was some tough competition for the title: getting rid of the Status of Women, not putting out an environmental platform, cutting back the Liberals funding for research and education, and the wheat board decision above were all tough choices to make. Personally, I'd say his toughest choice was the only one he got right. Maybe he should have thought harder on some of the others.
2 comments:
I think supporting the Wheat Board may help gain votes, but I doubt it will translate into many seats considering that most of the rural Prairie ridings went for the Tories in a landslide. If it were an issue angering Rural Ontario, then we might have a great chance to pick up several seats, but the Prairies are a lot more solid for the Conservatives than say Rural Ontario. Besides the farmers in the Prairies are actually quite divided on the Wheat Board. There is strong support for it in Manitoba, Saskatchewan is split down the middle, while most in Alberta are for the dual marketing system. So Harper's position on the Wheat Board should go over well in his home province, although not that it really matters much since it will go Tory no matter what.
In the case of Manitoba, the problem here in Rural Manitoba is quite socially conservative so I cannot see us picking up any of those seats, however I could see us picking up 1-3 Tory seats in Winnipeg.
Lance - Are you talking about votes or seats. If you are talking about votes then Yes, if seats then No. Only 2% of people in the Prairies are farmers and farmers are divided on the issue as well as the Tories won most of these ridings in a landslide so they could lose 10 even 20% in the Prairies and still hold all the rural seats they have now.
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