Bourque: Biased Election Coverage ???

Why is Pierre Bourque tilting coverage in favour of the Conservatives throughout Election 2008?

If you have been visiting bourque.org during this campaign, you will have noted the consistent daily prominence of headlines dissing Stephane Dion and the Liberals (see today's batch below) and of headlines favouring the Conservatives. Is this unbiased coverage? Hardly. You have to wonder why.....

"THE IRRATIONAL EXUBERANCE OF DIONMANIA BEGINS TO WANE
DION'S MELTDOWN. LIBERAL COVER UP
TORIES COMMIT MILLIONS TO IMPROVE LUNG HEALTH
Harper growing into the job ......... Dion: Green Shift or bust ......... O'Neill/Mayeda/Johnson: Prime Minister Dion ? .........Martin: Prime Minister Dion ? ......... Lib campaign workers arrested ......... Top Green backer: vote ndp, liberal ......... The numbers game ......... The splintering of politics ......... Vote splits create unexpected results ......... Harper plays the mom card ......... Parties support strong action on lung health ......... Ndp fighting to be official opposition ......... Strategic vote will hurt Greens ......... Should the Green just fade away ......... Which party will cut a deal ......... Yukon Premier blasts Libs ......... Panic politics ......... "
Source: www.bourque.org October 9, 2008 10:30 PM

Liberals in freefall in Quebec

According to CTV, a new poll paints a devastating picture of a Liberal party completely reduced to a rump in Quebec if an election were held today. The Bloc Quebecois, which has been the province's dominant party, is down to 30 per cent support. The Tories are nipping at the BQ's heels with 29 per cent. The Liberals have only 20 per cent support, and the NDP are at 15 per cent. Among francophones, the breakdown was as follows:
Bloc: 35 per cent
Tories: 30 per cent
Liberals, NDP: Tied at 15 per cent



The pundits were quick to pronounce Dion's leadership dead. For details see:



http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080330/libs_dion_080330/20080330?hub=TopStories



These results give reason for despair.

The likely outcome of any election now is another, perhaps strenghthened, Conservative minority. I don't think Harper can make any significant inroads in Ontario notwithstanding speculation to that effect by Mulroney's former toadie, Ian MacDonald.

The Liberals have remained tied with the Conservatives in most recent polls despite the Dion millstone. Therefore, they might as well pull the plug and get on with it. The only alternative is to somehow persuade Dion to graciously vacate the leadership but who will bell the cat and make this happen smoothly. Meanwhile two of the leading candidates to succeed him have different timetables. Ignatieff is eager to get on with it; Bob Rae wants to stall to gain time to build his profile and strenghthen his chances against Ignatieff.

Does Dion face ouster as party leader?

Sun Media reported today ( http://www.ottawasun.com/News/National/2008/03/26/pf-5103291.html ) that Stephane Dion is facing a revolt in Quebec which you could lead to his ouster. Apparently former Liberal candidate Pierre-Luc Bellerose, who ran for the party in Joliette, northeast of Montreal, said dissatisfied members will begin the process to revoke Dion's party membership if he doesn't quit as Liberal leader. Bellerose said he is convinced Dion has lost control over the party in Quebec and the organization is no longer following its leader, and claimed to have widespread support for his claims.

The dissidents are threatening to invoke Article 3.7.1 of the Quebec wing of the federal Liberal party's statutes and regulations to force him to resign. The provisions of this article give the Quebec wing the right to strip a party member of his membership.

Have the mighty Liberals fallen to a new low? While there are no doubt many Liberals who would like to see a new leader take the party into an election, it's hard to see them dumping their newly-elected leader before he has had the chance to lead the party into one election. In my view a public battle and ouster of Dion would be political suicide for the party.

The only way out of this situation would be if Dion took a personal decision to resign graciously as leader for greener pastures, without any bloodbath. Otherwise the Liberals had better unite behind him for one turn at the polls or spend a decade in the political wilderness. Where are the kingmakers like Keith Davey when you need them?