You often hear Stephen Harper's political opponents accuse him of maintain excessive control over the government. Wednesday I read a great quote from our Prime Minister; "I’ve only ever heard two criticisms of prime ministers: They’re either too controlling or they’re not in control. Prime ministers who are not in control don’t last very long". The PM also declared his intention to campaign on eliminating vote subsidies for Canadian political parties, which costs tax payers many millions of dollars.
I have never denied that Harper runs a tight ship, nor have I ever complained about it. In fact, I'm glad he does because in our 24 hour news cycle it can be devastating if you don't centralize the message. If you just let MPs run around and say whatever they want, regardless of the party, you are going to have problems. The Liberals accuse Stephen Harper of controlling the Tory message, then they do the same thing themselves. They have often instructed their MPs not to discuss specific issues. They even told Ross Rebougliatti to avoid talking to the media. The only reason we found out about that was because Mrs Rebougliatti told a journalist calling with a question that they had been told not to talk to the media.
It is better to be in control than out of control.
I chatted with my First Nations friend Ojibway/Elder Duke Redbird (Masters degree in Political Science), mentor at a college, artist, poet, and actor — soon to be seen in a small role in "Casino Jack" with Kevin Spacey. And...
ReplyDeleteDuke said, Prime Minister Harper is a great Prime Minister and the Conservatives will win a majority. Not only is our PM pragmatic but he appreciates the arts. He is not a control freak like the left and mainstream media say he is. He's a leader. However, there is only so much a leader can do. A leader requires a smart and caring administration, and no fear of firing when necessary, which inlcudes bureaucrats. Better with a majority.