As you know, Elizabeth May has been trying to get a meeting with Jack Layton, but to no avail. She’s of the opinion that politicians need to work together to address the climate crisis, and that it would be helpful for the leaders who want to take action to discuss how to do that in the face of a Prime Minister who doesn’t.
So, last Saturday night at the parliamentary press gallery dinner when Layton (who was not actually on the agenda) stepped up to the microphone and announced that he was auctioning off a dinner date with himself and his wife Olivia Chow for charity, Elizabeth saw her window.
Mr. Layton auctioned off dinner for four with himself and Ms. Chow to raise money for a scholarship in memory of Dennis Bueckert, a respected Canadian Press environment and science reporter who died suddenly this year.
Ms. May said Monday she had already planned to make a $1,000 donation to the scholarship as she and Mr. Bueckert were old friends, so the auction was perfect.
“I decided I’ll go as high as $1,000,” she said. “If anyone goes higher than that, I can’t afford it.”
Funny thing: no one went higher. Oh, and another funny thing: she plans to invite Stephane Dion as her guest, so that they can all sit around the same table together. “That would make a very interesting dinner,” she said. “Who knows, something good could come of it.” Let’s hope.
That’s assuming, of course, that Layton actually honors his commitment:
Polls and election results suggest the Greens pose an electoral danger to the NDP, and Mr. Layton seems unwilling to do anything to lend legitimacy to Ms. May or her party. At the end of the auction, Mr. Layton did not even acknowledge that Ms. May was the winner…
…A spokesman for Mr. Layton, Karl Belanger, did not sound keen on the May-Dion-Layton dinner.
“We didn’t talk about who this person might be,” he said. “She won the auction, so we’ll see, but co-ordinating the schedule of three leaders . . . two leaders is already tricky. Three leaders could be even more tricky. But you know, it looks like the Liberal party would be well-represented at that dinner, since she’s the Liberal party candidate in Central Nova.”
Smooth, Karl. And classy too.
It’s win win for May, at worse they show up and talk and achieve nothing at best Layton and Chow act as obnoxious as they can or don’t show up, either way it makes give May the high ground and gives opportunity show Jack for the fool he is.
someone please mic the table.
Check… mate.
Jack Layton is providing real opposition to Harper while the Dion and May show grinds on providing lots of theatre but zero substance.
Substance. -CT
If indeed Elizabeth May is “of the opinion that politicians need to work together to address the climate crisis” she may want to:
a) explain why she said she “could swallow” Harpr’s throne speech that killed Kyoto in Canada, after only days earlier vowing that an election had to be held as soon as possible;
b) ask her buddy Dion why he and 94 of his best friends sat out the vote on that same throne speech which could have begun the election she said she wanted.
It’s been well documented that if Layton actually wanted an election he could have forced one by voting for the Liberal amendment. Instead, he’d rather appear to want an election.
PS: It’s shameful that May and her friends have politicized a fundraiser in memory of Dennis Bueckert.
As I read the news article, there’s only one partisan shot and it doesn’t come from May. You may also wish to note that “she had already planned to make a $1,000 donation to the scholarship as she and Mr. Bueckert were old friends.”
What became of this dinner anyway?
I asked an update on this from the GPC.
It turns out Jack did follow on the commitment, but brought his executive assistant and other NDPers along. It didn’t turn out to be the tête-à -tête that Elizabeth paid and hoped for. Hence, the GPC was disappointed with the outcome in the end.