Tuesday, March 08, 2005

YES, IT'S A MINORITY PARLIAMENT

I watched Don Newman covering today's vote on the Conservative amendment to the budget, which was defeated handily 205-85. I spent the last 20 minutes trying to come up with some kind of analysis before realizing my inability to do so was likely a result of this being an entirely non-event.

So my only two observations are this:

It was pretty amusing to watch Don Newman speculate about the possibility of a government defeat and potential election, when he knew full well that the opposition was not going to allow that to happen.

It was also pretty amusing to watch the Conservatives hold a dozen members out of the House on a vote for their own party's budget amendment so as to ensure the survival of the government.

Conclusions: Todays Parliamentary intrigue was mildly amusing to watch but seemed largely insignificant.

Update (about an hour later): CBC's banner headline now declares - 'Government Stands.' Whew, that was close, but the status quo continues.

Posted by Matthew @ 6:32 p.m.