Af-Danny-Stan, Party Discipline and Senator Duffy

There is no bigger buffoon in Ottawa than the Hon. Michael Duffy.

For him to derisively say "when two men lie down in bed together, one of them gets the shaft" on the floor of the Senate is testament to just how important it is. It was moronic, homophobic, and evidence of his intellect. Follow the story yourself

Mr. Ignatieff, however, did the right thing.

Precedent-smecedent. If, as they say, all the Quebec MPs want to vote against an issue, let them. If all the Saskatchewan MPs want to vote against something, let Ralph do it. Same in Manitoba. Even BC. Hell, let Larry Bagnell vote against it too.

The math just doesn't work for any province. The tories need less than ten votes to pass any piece of legislation - so, even if all of the Liberal MPs from the non-Ontario provinces voted against it, it would still pass.

The only exception is Ontario - and if the budget is bad for Ontario - YOU SHOULD DEFEAT IT. You know, it is a 1/3rd of the economy after all. Christ.

The real issue is "can a Premier dictate terms to an MP from his province." I say yes, but it doesn't mean that he or she is right. That is why we have debate in the House of Commons. US Governors do it ALL THE TIME.

But Danny is special. He can break you - in Newfoundland. He can make life hard for you - in Newfoundland. He spoils all his relationships eventually by acting like a bully. I love him and hate him simultaneously.

However, to suggest that Premier Danny had to instruct MPs is like saying that a kid with a poop filled diaper has to cry in order to be changed - not that we couldn't smell it. There are exactly ZERO Newfoundland MPs who actually wanted to support the budget because of the equalization provisions - they didn't need the leader of the Tali-Dan to tell them. Todd Russell is from Labrador.

My belief about separating the executive from the legislature notwithstanding, I do not believe that party discipline really has a place any more. In a fractured Parliament, I think that legislation has to be build cohesively, LIKE IN THE US CONGRESS, and that a straight thumbs up/down on an omnibus piece of legislation is never going to accomplish anything.

Further, I suggest that a piece of legislation can have monolithic support inside either of the 'big tent' parties in Canada is absurd.