Ottawa snake pit invites cynicism

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/09/2009 (5994 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After a few weeks of federal political shenanigans, I feel I’m drowning in cynicism.

Cynics, according to my dictionary, have a sneering disbelief in sincerity or integrity. That can be applied to all our federal parties. Watching them slither around is like looking at snakes in a pit. You can’t tell who’s doing what to whom. After a while you quit watching because you realize that even if you do figure it out, it will change in a few minutes time.

I was nauseated this month by a federal-provincial-municipal announcement on the spending of $83.2 million in stimulus funds in Manitoba. Why? Because stimulus funds are supposed to be spent as quickly as possible to sop up unemployment. Instead of announcing projects as each one was negotiated, Ottawa saved them up, put them in a big box with a ribbon around it and presented it to the public in the middle of a bunch of election talk.

Now, that’s cynical. One project that did get going this summer was the repaving of the Trans-Canada Highway near Steinbach in the riding of Vic Toews, the Conservative political boss in Manitoba. Just to make sure you know what’s what, a big sign with a smiling Toews on it sits beside the roadwork.

The $83.2-million package sets aside $20 million for bike paths in Winnipeg alone, but only $14 million for much-needed road and bridge repairs in all of Manitoba. Is that because the Tories, who have done nada about global warming, are trying to look like environmentalists? Or, am I just cynical?

But why just pick on Toews? For months, NDP Leader Jack Layton ridiculed the Liberals for supporting the Conservatives. He would never do that. He had lost faith in the Tories. He even brandished a list of the number of times the Liberals had propped up the government. Now that the Liberals have said they will no longer support the government, Layton is singing a new song, and is propping up the government.

In the event, Parliament’s biggest cynic, Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe, broke the tension when he announced his support for the Conservatives on a confidence vote. Duceppe admits he only supports policies that benefit Quebec — and, by extension, himself.

As befits an intellectual, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff’s own musings are causing people to wonder if he’s a cynic. Ignatieff keeps suggesting writers/academics can tell the truth; politicians can’t. In the New York Times magazine, he says politicians must “pretend to have emotions that you do not actually feel.” In a world of “lunatic literalism… all that matters is what you said, not what you meant.”

In more than 30 years in, out and around politics, I have never before heard that from a politician.

All the wriggling of the political snakes is largely meaningless. Both the Conservatives and Liberals agree that it’s key to move towards a balanced budget; that Ottawa should not raise taxes and should not cut transfers to the provinces to achieve it. The Liberals will also probably agree with the Conservatives that employment insurance contributions should be increased at an appropriate time to make up for some of the funds that have been flowing out of the program.

No account of cynicism would be complete without a mention of federal Infrastructure Minister John Baird. He’s Ottawa’s bully boy in charge of bluster and bull. Mr. B and B announced the other day that his infrastructure program was responsible for the economy perking up a bit.

But the Liberals say a survey they did shows few of the organizations that want stimulus funds have actually got any cash. That means Mr. B and B was not spending money during the recession, when we needed it, but will spend money during the recovery, when we don’t.

Yet, more and more economists say our economy has stabilized, and is beginning the long road back to health. How can this be?

Economists offer two reasons. One: Our economy was in good shape just before the recession. Ottawa had delivered a string of surpluses. Our government pension plans were well-funded. Our banks were flush and well-regulated. Two: The Bank of Canada and our chartered banks did a good job of keeping funds flowing in our financial system.

In other words, Mr. B and B and his government’s well-packaged stimulus spending programs may be largely irrelevant. Except in one important instance: Ottawa says this year’s deficit will be about $55 billion (its third try this year at getting that figure right) and $40 billion next. Big government borrowing will compete with businesses who are borrowing to make up for losses suffered in the recession. The result could be higher interest rates — the price you pay for money. That could cause inflation. And that wouldn’t be good for anyone.

In the recent flurry of announcements, there was one that the federal government will spend $18.2 million to help expand Winnipeg’s Kenaston Boulevard. Winnipeg South MP Rod Bruinooge said that “clearly the voters and the people in Winnipeg South will appreciate this important infrastructure.”

Now, there’s a man who knows what Ottawa’s stimulus program is all about.

Tom Ford is managing editor of The Issues Network.