It must be an exciting time to be an NDP.
I met Stephen Harper once on Parliament Hill while I was lobbying for Working Families. He came across as arrogant and dismissive. I shook his hand. As soon as I identified myself as a labour activist he said, “Oh, you’re one of those.” He ripped his hand from mine, spun on his heel and turned away.
What have you learned campaigning in Leeds-Grenville?
People here are hard-working and they are really struggling to get by.
The NDP this time seems to be running on pocketbook issues, rather than ideals.
I kind of disagree with that question. I don’t think it’s idealistic to put families first. We have always advocated for the services families need to live a good life. That is what the NDP has historically tried to do.
Andrea Horwath gave a good account of herself in the debate.
Absolutely. In terms of a popular summer movie, Andrea has magic, and the other two are Muggles. She is the most down-to-earth and likeable of the three major candidates. She has real leadership qualities and has put forth the most financially responsible platform.
In the September 13th issue of the CCPA Monitor, economist Jim Stanford pointed out that there is a $10 billion hole in the Conservative platform. And not one graphic in the Change Book is to scale.
Now you slag the Liberal platform.
No need. The Liberals are not a factor in Leeds-Grenville.
Which is the more powerful influence on the campaign? Jack Layton or the memory of Bob Rae’s NDP government?
Definitely Jack Layton. People are longing to vote for something positive. At the door I get a lot of: “Are you running a negative campaign? No? Ok we’ll vote for you.”
Jack’s life and especially his letter spoke to Canadians, encouraging them to make a positive choice. Working together we can do better. He gave Canadians the opportunity to make a positive choice.
Campaigning on slurs like “The Tax Man” isn’t educating the public, it’s scaring them. If your platform has real worth, then you should be able to run on it. I’m running on mine.
As of this morning, an aggregation of the polls has the NDP with the support of 25.2% of Ontario residents over the age of 18. Can you get these Ontarians to polls?
That’s always the challenge. The third or fourth most often-heard statement at the door has been, “I don’t vote because things never change and my vote won’t make a difference. These guys all say one thing and do something else.” My response to that has been that by not voting, you are accepting the status quo, and has that worked for you?
If you want things to change, you have to take a chance, get off the couch, go to the polls and have your say. That is the only way we can ever change. Ten years ago in Florida it took less than 700 votes to elect a President. Your vote counts.
With Steve Clark shooting to beat the 67% he got last time?
As we walked out of the meeting with the Ottawa Citizen Editorial Board, Steve turned to me and remarked, “Well, I guess I won’t be mailing this one in.”
On Sunday John Ivison of the National Post called your leader, Andrea Horwath, “the most dangerous woman in Ontario.”
She’s determined, resourceful, capable and likeable. Those are all great attributes which any woman would be pleased to claim as her own, and any man would be pleased to associate with.
I don’t think that’s what he meant. She looks as though she will be holding the balance of power come Friday, October 7th, and that causes Ivison some worry because of her lack of experience at governance.
We are running to win, and we have formed government before.
The Rae crew meant well but were inexperienced.
But when we look at fiscal responsibility across the board at the provincial level, NDP provincial parties have been the most fiscally responsible, while meeting the social needs of the constituents.
What happened to the NDP’s green platform?
We do support green energy as a way to bring jobs, opportunity and money back into rural Ontario. Andrea Horwach is on record as supporting that, as am I.
At a meeting in Crosby last week a Sun Energy representative said that Crosby is about to become the solar panel capital of Canada.
I think it’s great. It will bring jobs, money and opportunities to rural Leeds-Grenville and reverse two decades of zombie economics as practiced by the Liberals and Conservatives which has drained away our youth, our opportunity, and the money that makes our local economy healthy.
How about trees?
Harris dismantled the reforestation program which had served Ontario since 1919. McGuinty replaced it with a privatized shadow of itself which produces approximately a quarter of the seedlings formerly produced.
This is a similar story in far too many government services. Just today we hear on the radio that Hudak is going to dismantle the LHINs and shift responsibility for administration back to the Ministry of Health. But under the Harris Government of which Hudak was a part, Ministry of Health staffing was slashed by more than half. They no longer have the expertise nor the staffing to be able to do that job. Staff went from just over 5000 to less than 2500 now. It’s irresponsible.
Is the welfare state dead in Canada?
If Harper has anything to do with it, yes. I believe, the NDP believes, that everyone should have an opportunity to succeed and to live a life that is as fulfilling and rewarding as possible.
Did Stephen Harper drive a stake through Tim Hudak’s chances when he made his trifecta comment last summer at Rob Ford’s barbecue?
A little bit of the arrogance slipped out. I think he did. Harper is taking Ontario voters for granted.
But this time in Leeds-Grenville they are worried: Tim Hudak has been here twice to prop up Steve’s campaign. Seeing our NDP surge, Andrea Howath has been here to speak to Leeds-Grenville twice. Dalton McGuinty, recognizing the trend, has stayed away.
Property values in Westport are higher than in Smiths Falls.
What’s going on in North Leeds?
Smiths Falls has lost several of their biggest employers. That would probably be the main reason.
Mr. Harper and Mr. McGuinty have jointly created the 13%
Harmonized Sales Tax. Its implementation weighs heavily on voters’
minds. What’s your take on this tax reform?
It is wrong. At a time when Ontarians are being laid off in record numbers and even people that are working are going further in debt, our leaders, Harper and McGuinty increase the people’s cost. To tax hydro, gas and other energy costs is unbelievable. These are items that people have no choice but to purchase. People have to heat their homes and drive to work.
The Progressive Conservatives under Bob Runciman initially supported the HST but then backtracked because of public outrage. Mr. Runciman and the Progressive Conservatives still believe it is a good idea but just not right now because of the economy. That is crazy, if the economy improves, he thinks it is okay to tax the working poor. Despite Mr. Runciman not “following” Mr. Harper’s wishes, he still was rewarded with a Senate job.
The NDP, both federally and provincially, have always stood side by side on this and are against the unfair tax. The least the Liberals and Conservatives could do is exempt items that people have no choice to purchase: hydro, heating fuel, and funerals, to name a few.
Mr. McGuinty’s 50 Million Trees Program sponsors the planting of
trees on privately owned land in Ontario. From your perspective as a
candidate to represent Leeds-Grenville in the Legislature, what do you
think of this and other green-shift plans?
Planting trees is obviously a good idea, but I really do not have enough information on this. I didn’t know that Mr. McGuinty had any green plans.
Should there be a bounty on coyotes?
Generally if coyotes or other wildlife become a problem, the locals (usually farmers) take care of it themselves.
What issues do you see emerging in Leeds-Grenville over the next ten years?
Mostly the lack of good jobs available and our healthcare is continuing to be under funded. Free trade has decimated Leeds-Grenville. As long as the Conservatives and Liberals continue to make new free trade deals, you can bet there will be almost no manufacturing jobs. Without a manufacturing base, Ontario will continue to be a have-not province.
Free trade has eliminated thousands of jobs. It has allowed hundreds of corporations to move to Mexico and the United States. We have to go back to Sir John A. MacDonald’s original rule: if you take natural resources out of Canada and then sell us the finished goods, we are going to put a big tariff on these products. The tariff will be lifted if you build the factories here. That is how all the major US companies came to Canada – Ford, GM, Chrysler, DuPont, Black and Decker, Hersheys, etc.
We had 95% free trade before NAFTA was signed. What this agreement really allowed, was for companies to just leave if they want to. Before, if they left, their products would face a big tariff coming back into Canada. Now, there is no reason for the companies to stay.
We have high waiting times at Brockville General Hospital and high infection rates. Our young people will continue to leave because of the lack of good jobs. Our communities will only be offering low paying service jobs.
An Intervew with federal NDP candidate Steve Armstrong
September 13, 2009
Steve Armstrong, federal NDP candidate for Leeds and Grenville, took time this week to answer a series of interview questions for this column:
How have things changed since the last federal election?
Things have become significantly worse. Just in August of this year 22,000 jobs disappeared in Canada. In the last year we have lost hundreds of jobs in Leeds-Grenville. Manufacturing is the backbone of the Ontario economy, and it is dying.
Gord Brown boasts of $20 million of stimulus money coming to Leeds-Grenville, but ridings in Canada have received an average of $147 million dollars each! And Leeds-Grenville is one of the most hard-hit areas in the country.
Waiting times at Brockville General Hospital (BGH) are horribly long. I recently had to take a friend to Kingston because there was a seven-hour wait at BGH. At BGH the staff are doing their best, but they need more resources.
Why is it vitally important that the NDP form the next government of Canada?
The three most important programs we have in Canada were all because of the NDP – Medicare, Canada Pension Plan and EI. We look after people, especially in bad times.
The NDP is the only party that has as its central goal the helping of Canadian citizens. Our policies are for Canadians, not rich corporations and banks. We have job creation ideas that will add employment in every city and town. Check out our energy retro-fit programs, for example.
The Conservatives and Liberals have destroyed our manufacturing in Canada. They have let our health care standards drop substantially. Free trade with Mexico only benefits corporations. It allows companies to move out of Canada (ie. Hershey’s and Black and Decker). Since the last election Stephen Harper without parliamentary authority has signed free-trade deals with eight countries including Columbia, Chile, and Panama. How can this help Canadians trying to find jobs?
In the 1990’s the Liberal government cut $29 billion out of Medicare. That is the main reason why our health care system in Canada is hurting today. The NDP will restore proper funding for our public health care. This will mean shorter lineups and more doctors and nurses.
People ask where we can we get the money? Somehow Harper found billions of dollars for his stimulus plan to help bail out foreign corporations, so I think we can “find” the money. But there is an easier way: get out of Afghanistan! We spend $200 million dollars a month there! How about spending that money on Canadians?
Does Canada need another general election at this time?
People did not want an election last year. When Harper started to think about it in late August of 2008, 68% of the people said they did not want an election but he called one anyway, breaking his own law.
Everybody seems to have a policy on EI at the moment. Care to comment?
We need to increase the pay! In today’s dollars the maximum EI weekly benefit in 1996 was $607. Today the same benefit is $447! That is crazy! All of the politicians have received substantial increases in pay to cover their costs, so why have they reduced benefits to people who have lost their jobs? Even the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the big banks say the EI benefit should be increased. The current NDP bill C-280 calls for an increase in weekly pay of about $50. That is still too low but they are trying to get the bill supported and passed by all parties. The final reading is on Sept. 28, 2009.
What is one local issue in this campaign?
We are one of only three ridings in Canada without a MRI machine! That is crazy. Every hospital needs one of these. Stop the shipment of money to Afghanistan for one day and we could have an MRI in Brockville.
Why should the voters of Leeds and Grenville choose you as their Member of Parliament?
I have been fighting for worker’s rights and the protection of our Medicare system since 1995. I am not a parachute candidate. I was born and raised in Brockville. The only time I left Brockville was to go to university. I have an honours B.A. in History. I know what mistakes the Canadian government has made in the past and understand what we must do to avoid repeating them.
I am a factory worker. I know what it is like to have a feeling you may lose your job. I work at Invista and they have announced layoffs of up to 240 people. I may be one of them.
The policies of the Liberals and Conservatives have decimated our great country. What future do we have? I know what needs to be fixed – just look at the past to see what has worked before. Get rid of the free trade policies with Third World countries, renegotiate with the US, get out of Afghanistan, create jobs when needed (like the New Deal in the 1930’s), and bring Medicare and EI coverage back to where it used to be.
O Edward, thou art mighty yet.
August 16, 2009
It’s too bad Ed’s around so seldom any more.
the Walnut Diary 