[Bruce_the_vii]

I read Tim Hudak's policy of "Change Book" this morning and it's is middle of the road, big government. It has 13 sections and most everyone of them is we will expand spending. He mentions that McGunity has double the debt in eight years so he will be constrained by that. Infrastructure, education and health care are all earmarked for billions.

He has a couple of ideas like making unions votes secret and bashing McGuinity's tax increases. He says his balanced budget proposal is slightly more aggressive than the Liberal, targeting 2017-18.

He would expand prekindergarden ecudation, eliminate the coal plants and give some gas tax revenues to the cities, like the Liberals. \\

I don't see anything about the Candu and immigration. Immigration rather affects a lot of programs.


I don't see anything really wrong with his spending, it's all like more post secondary eduction. It's typical home office ideas.

His advantage is McGuinty has some expansive spending ideas.

Probably we can't afford him.

http://www.ontariopc.com/issues/

If he get in office he'll simply announce he didn't realize the cupboard was so bare.

[saturn_656]

The PC's could have no platform at all and I wouldn't think twice about voting for them. McGuinty has simply flat out lied too much while in office and the NDP platform sounds like something from an alternate reality.

[BeaverFever]

It's a very clever strategy by the PC,IMO. Although McGuinty is not popular, that has not resulted in firm, reliable support for either the NDP or the PC. Given the now-popular resentment for the Harris-era PCs, and lack of reliable popular support for Hudak, it's smart for his platform to not propose too much dramatic change and to piggy-back on McG's more popular policies. Historically, Ontarians tend to vote against the party that is in Federal gov, which may have some bearing on this decision.

[Bruce_the_vii]

Fair enough

[weaselways]

You got to be kidding Hudak's "not ready for prime time"
After college his only real world experience is two years with Walmart as a Management trainee. The rest of the time he has been in the Queens Park Fantasyland bubble.
In "Changebook" he's spouting off about $35B in infrastuture. Is that in addition to the $35B already budgeted for the next three years or is it new? In either case he should be giving his head a shake, if it is new he should probably be with the NDP, if it is existing why is he parrotting what the Liberals have already budgetted?
He's going to throw another 6.1B/yr at health care over and above what's already budgetted. Another check mark for moving to the NDP.
He's continually yapping about removing the PST portion of the HST (8%) from Electricity bills.Is he going to keep the Clean Energy Rebate(10%)and let it run its course or is he going to kill it?
He wants to kill the Debt Recovery portion of the Electricity bill because he figures the debt was 7.8B and Ontarians have paid 7.8B. He does not take into consideration the additive interest from the debt or if he has I'm assuming he'll just shift into general debt.
He runs runs around with gimmicks eg his "McG tax Roulette Wheel" (even that has screaming errors on it), spouting half truths, generally being uninformed and expects the electorate to swallow it and put him in the Premiers chair. Got some news for him the election over before it starts if he keeps going this way.

[Bruce_the_vii]

Yeah, I noticed it too. His books aren't any better than McGuinty's. I just call that political promises as per normal. He is a bit green and young. Trusting the province to him would be a leap. I thinking of spoiling my ballet.

[scarecrowe]

Bruce_the_vii wrote:

Yeah, I noticed it too. His books aren't any better than McGuinty's. I just call that political promises as per normal. He is a bit green and young. Trusting the province to him would be a leap. I thinking of spoiling my ballet.

... may I then suggest doing a "Trudeauian" pirouette.

[OnTheIce]

weaselways wrote:

He runs runs around with gimmicks eg his "McG tax Roulette Wheel" (even that has screaming errors on it), spouting half truths, generally being uninformed and expects the electorate to swallow it and put him in the Premiers chair. Got some news for him the election over before it starts if he keeps going this way.

Yea, over for McGuinty, not Hudak.

Attack ads work.

Gimmicks work.

Politicians from all stripes use half-truths and twist words during campaigns. Why?

The vast majority of voters don't know any better or care to find out if what's being said is true.

[weaselways]

The problem with Hudak is he doesn't have the panache or skill to pull it off.
He sounds for the most part inadequate, speaking in fuzzy generalizations when should he be speaking specifics. I keep coming back to the word "substance" Hudak shows none.
The PC's made a huge error making him their leader, if Tory was still there it wouldn't be a contest, if Christine Elliot were party leader the PC's would be there, I just don't see it with Hudak the more Ontarians see of this guy the less there is.

[Bruce_the_vii]

I watched "Focus on Ontario" today and the journalists said the election was Hudak's to loose because McGuinty is unpopular. It's the doubling of the debt that is unpopular, the huge spending. Now Hudak's program is similar to McGuinty's but lot's of people perceive him as a right wing cutter. Lots of voters see the $19 billion deficit as unsustainable. A trustable set if hands is not to be had at this time.

[OnTheIce]

weaselways wrote:

The problem with Hudak is he doesn't have the panache or skill to pull it off.
He sounds for the most part inadequate, speaking in fuzzy generalizations when should he be speaking specifics. I keep coming back to the word "substance" Hudak shows none.
The PC's made a huge error making him their leader, if Tory was still there it wouldn't be a contest, if Christine Elliot were party leader the PC's would be there, I just don't see it with Hudak the more Ontarians see of this guy the less there is.

With all due respect, you seem to be out of touch with Ontario voters.

Tory doesn't stand a hope in hell after he shit the bed with offering to promise religious schools....and with all the turmoil in Toronto about Muslim prayer being allowed in schools....he'd get his ass kicked, again.

I like John Tory, but once you shit the bed that badly in politics, you can't take it back.

[weaselways]

You're suggesting Tory's views would have stayed static on the issue. Listening to Tory over the last few years I would suggest that view had changed and homogenized. Whether a majority of Ontarians would accept it is open to discussion.
The complaint about Muslim prayer is that it is happeneing in a Public School a school where you are supposed to hang your religion at the door before entering.
Tory's proposal as I understand it has an academic standard component for all schools and a societial, cultural, religious or creedal component in addition. The school system would run with a Public an RC and a Charter component parents would make a decision where their educational money goes.

[CDN_PATRIOT]

weaselways wrote:

The problem with Hudak is he doesn't have the panache or skill to pull it off.
He sounds for the most part inadequate, speaking in fuzzy generalizations when should he be speaking specifics. I keep coming back to the word "substance" Hudak shows none.
The PC's made a huge error making him their leader, if Tory was still there it wouldn't be a contest, if Christine Elliot were party leader the PC's would be there, I just don't see it with Hudak the more Ontarians see of this guy the less there is.

Waaaaay out of touch. The PC party voted overwhelmingly for him to lead. And on your issue of 'substance'.....take a look at McGuinty. He hasn;t had any substance in years. He spends and taxes when he feels like it. We can all see right through him, and that is why he will get crushed in October.

OnTheIce is right. Tory f**ked himself over royally, and Elliot isn't enough of a player in the party ranks to make anything work.

Hudak was the right choice.

-J.

[OnTheIce]

weaselways wrote:

You're suggesting Tory's views would have stayed static on the issue. Listening to Tory over the last few years I would suggest that view had changed and homogenized. Whether a majority of Ontarians would accept it is open to discussion.
The complaint about Muslim prayer is that it is happeneing in a Public School a school where you are supposed to hang your religion at the door before entering.
Tory's proposal as I understand it has an academic standard component for all schools and a societial, cultural, religious or creedal component in addition. The school system would run with a Public an RC and a Charter component parents would make a decision where their educational money goes.

I honestly think you need to get in touch and inform yourself a little better.

Tory's idea wasn't to set an "academic standard", it was to spend an additional 400 million on funding religious schools and making them part of the public system.

Regardless if his views changed, people haven't forgotten.

[weaselways]

We'll agree to disagree on Tory.