Thursday’s vote of confidence on the federal budget was a close call, with a final tally of 153 to 152. In the weeks leading up to the vote, the country saw the establishment of the “NDP deal” between Paul Martin and Jack Layton, while the Conservatives and the Bloc teamed up. In the end, the fate of the Grits came down to the decisions of independents Carolyn Parrish and Chuck Can, and the surprising defection of Belinda Stronach.
On Tuesday, in a press conference alongside Martin, Stronach announced she would be crossing the floor to take up the position of Human Resources Minister. She cited her apprehension at the direction the Conservatives are heading in their alignment with the separatist party as a reason for her move.
What is more surprising, however, is the Conservatives’ reaction to Stronach’s defection. Alberta Conservative Tony Abbott has been quoted and has subsequently apologized for calling Stronach a “little rich girl who is basically whoring herself out to the Liberals.” An Ontario Conservative has called Stronach a “dipstick.” These blatantly sexist comments are telling of the state of politics in Canada and the position of women in the Conservative party. Had the defection been made by a male Conservative, as was the case with Scott Brison in 2001, such commentary would never have taken place. Amidst these gendered attacks, it is also unfortunate that no female Tories have voiced concern and offence to such comments.
Harper has criticized Stronach for being ambitious and opportunistic. These comments are glaringly hypocritical on his part. His repeated attempts to topple the Liberal minority government suggest his motives are not completely independent of his own ambition of coming to power. Stronach’s motives are for her to know and we can only speculate they are a combination of personal ambition and concern at the emerging direction of the Conservative party.
In the end, when all is said and done, the Grits have survived another day. Although the House remains divided, hopefully the Conservatives will keep to their word of not trying to bring about another election any time soon and we’ll finally get some governance from all parties.
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