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Political Khan job

“What can we do with that idiot?” asks Tony Srnec before launching into a profanity-laced tirade against his MP, Wajid Khan. “I watched the TV and I almost kicked it,” he says in English that is broken, but not as broken as he thinks our political system is.
“Is that how it’s going to be in politics?” wonders the Streetsville resident, who pays $100,000 in business taxes and is still working hard at age 72, 41 years after coming to this country.
“Are they all liars, cheaters and hooligans? I came to Canada but I call it democratic stupidity. It is lying, lying, lying. I am so upset. Another crossing. This is nuts. How are we going to teach our grandchildren if there is no honesty?”
Good questions.
No good answers today.
Not after Wajid Khan did what was long suspected and scurried across the floor of the House of Commons.
Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion forced Khan’s hand, as even Prime Minister Stephen Harper made clear, in the press conference this morning where the MP appeared with new stripes on his back.
Dion undoubtedly feared that, not only did he have a potential spy in his midst but Khan could pull a Right Dishonourable David Emerson — win the seat for the Liberals and then, car dealer that he is, cash in his chips for a shiny new seat on the front benches across the way if the Tories won.
The people of Mississauga-Streetsville have a perfect right to feel the rage that Tony Srnec expresses today. People vote in good faith, weighing their options carefully and voting for people or policies they believe in. To have your MP cavalierly cash in those hopes for personal gain is a disheartening perversion of the democratic process.
So what happens now?
Ironically, the person who may benefit from Khan’s defection is someone who suffered at the hands of another high-profile crossing.
Given the short time frame and the possibility of a quick election, the Liberals may make an appointment for their nomination. There are lots of potential possibilities, such as Bob Rae or Gerard Kennedy. But how about Martha Hall Findlay, the Liberal leadership candidate who almost beat Belinda Stronach in Newmarket-Aurora in 2004 and then resigned as the Grit candidate when Stronach crossed the floor and subsequently took the seat?
Findlay has a couple of fans in two people who know a little bit about bitter nomination contests.
“It would be great to have a smart woman out here,” says former MP Carolyn Parrish and Ward 6 Councillor Carolyn Parrish. “She’s exciting. She’s dynamic and she’s intelligent.”
When Steve Mahoney got out of a meeting this morning, he had some phone messages from Ottawa, including one from a Liberal senator.
“What is it with the water in Mississauga that these MPs think they can do anything they want,” he said of the Khan defection.
He doesn’t answer hypothetical questions, so the new chair of the Workers’ Safety Insurance Board wouldn’t say if he’d be interested in a nomination or in an open race.
“I think there will be a nomination unless there’s a strong female candidate who wants to run out here,” said Mahoney.
The possibility of a Hall Findlay appointment intrigues the former councillor, MPP and MP. “That would be a great appointment here. Why not a quality person like her?”
If you are the Liberals, you have to love the optics. The double-crossing parachute Tory cast against the new parachute Grit, a wronged woman who, despite being victimized once in the same nefarious turncoat circumstances, did the right thing and stepped down for the good of her party.
Talk about your marquee match for floor-crossing fetishists.
No matter who the Liberal candidate in Mississauga-Streetsville is, the federal election here just got a whole lot more intriguing.


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Comments (11)

Alan:

The new Liberal candidate is now Bonnie Crombie:

www.bonniecrombie.ca

And she's from Mississauga.

Abbe:

The rule of thumb is Khan should be liable and have an obligation to mandate the policies set by the Liberal Party subjected under the Equity Laws and Constitution as Chartered by Trudeau.

Since 1950, post war studies by the American Psychiatric Association have documented conservative prejudice towards outside groups and world war conflicts. It’s under the Freedom of Information, the environment, and the HRDC surplus, Khan’s gotten sucked into dropping Napalm from an old Air Bus while the new Environment Ministers juggles portfolios from the Mulroney days.

Stephen Wahl:

Who is Responsible; this is not a question but rather a statement of my opinion.

I heard over the radio this morning there are concerns relating to the stranded debt left behind by the movements of Mr. Khan MP, Mississauga Streetsville.

While the dubious and conveniently confusing Elections Financing Rules were being liberally [Liberally] interpreted to suite the Riding Association and Candidate [Mr. Khan] nobody blinked an eye. My guess is, and I can only guess because nobody’s talking, everyone involved at the time just closed their eyes and dreamed of victory.

So who is responsible now? Nobody. Nobody will take responsibility; therefore everyone is equally irresponsible.

P.S. How do you loan money to yourself? Was this loan given a tax receipt? Is there interest being charged on this loan? If so, is the interest being declared as an election expense or as election income? Does it have to be declared at all?

Contractual Obligation - The money loaned was specifically for the purpose of getting Mr. Khan elected to the Parliament of Canada. This goal was achieved therefore fulfilling the intended purpose of the loan.

Was it absolutely specified that Mr. Khan was to be elected as a Liberal and forever stay a Liberal or was that only ‘understood’ to be the agreement?

If you see an advertisement for a used car that says ‘certified’; what do you think?

If you see an advertisement for a used car that says ‘certifiable’; what do you think and what do you think you know?

Michael Fohr:

I'd throw my hat in the ring. I was born in Erindale, schooled and raised in Mississauga, as well as owning a small business here.

But then again they probably wouldn't want me because I am a white male.

I was furious that they parachuted Khan into our riding, and am now livid that he crossed the floor. I held my nose and voted for him and this is what we get!

OJ:

The liberal blogosphere is already working overtime on who is going to replace khan as the liberal candidate.

What surprises me is that most of the names being bandied around are from outside the city.

Andrew Kania (Brampton),
Khalid Usman (Markham),
Akaash Maharaj (Toronto) Gerard Kennedy (Toronto) and Martha Hall-Findlay (Newmarket) are the names that I see being hurled around the most.

The only local name that I've heard has been Steve Mahoney.


gdt:

I was just reading this morning that Belinda's ex says things are much rosier now in Afghanistan. I'm not a wordly guy, but I see now that young Canadian men should expect to die so Muslim men half-way round the world will allow their women to get an education.
But, I'm wondering, if Wajid looks after Afghanistan (I mean, really, who gives a flying friggin hoot about the place), why is Peter Stronach there?
Maybe he didn't actually go ... maybe he just scalped the key points from Wajid's report to PM Harper.
You think?
Isn't it wonderful? We have Wajid fixing things in Afghanistan and Iraq and we have Hazel solving the AIDS crisis in Africa and there's even a family in Mississauga dedicated to saving Falun Gongers in China.
Things must be perfect on the home front.

- GDT

In this never ending saga “As Our (Muslim) World Turns” caucuses would be further ahead pulling off beauty pageants on legs and Cat Walks.

Not only does Dr. Ruby Dhalla’s profile match a softer diplomatic Canadian approach in the Middle East, in curviest bikini portfolio sizes alone, Belinda’s Pink Book places her ex -foreign affairs with Peter McKay, sleeping in an obvious doghouse on all traditional gender barriers.

We’ve actually witnessed more pots and pans flying into buildings than Bush-league terrorists.

Khan’s strange bed fellowship with Harper and the palimony checks to the 2002 provincial conservatives indicate the new Soap Operas are collecting a lot more trouble with razor stubble and more horse feathers, a little too rich for disclosure!

Stephen Wahl:

Khan Job

I say we are still experiencing the legacy of ‘Team Martin’. I’m referring to the hurried, thoughtless and politically insensitive gaggle of Candidates hurriedly assembled by Paul Martin before the last Federal Election in 2006.

Below are excerpts from letters I previously wrote in the closing months of 2005.

Now as another Federal Election looms, we are again hearing about the ‘Paul Martin’ Liberals. We are also hearing about ‘Liberal’ Liberals; those who truly carry the Party Banner.

All too often, high profile/parachute candidates were selected for Team Martin; then assigned ridings which were deemed as safe bets for the Paul Martin Brand. In nearly all of these situations a hard working, dedicated long time resident, Liberal Candidate or Liberal Nominees, selected by their riding association, were bumped.

As Paul Martin continued to clone his Cabinet out of this gaggle of expatriates, pop stars, sports stars, other parties fading stars and business buddies I wondered how he would ever make inroads into Western Canada (today, in view of the fact that Mississauga is west of Toronto and west of Quebec, I feel as if we are considered by the Liberal Party to be Westerners as well) if he couldn’t even make inroads into the Liberal Party.

For example when Belinda Stronach crossed the Floor of the House of Commons in the spring of 2005, Team Martin did everything but say, ‘nanny-nanny-boo-boo’, and then bumped the Liberal Candidate (Martha Hall Findley) who ran against Conservative Belinda in the previous election.

- end of excerpts –

To make matters even more confusing for the public in general and Liberal Party members in particular; the Liberal Party held a Leadership Convention. We are all too aware of what an incongruous gaggle of wannabe, could-have-been, should-have-been, should-not-ever-have-tried-to-be bunch of flexibly committed personages that put forth their names.

Anyway, here we are now and I know it is cliché to say this, but, “What goes ‘round comes around.”

Post Script: In 2004 the new riding of Mississauga Streetsville is the riding which was the most obvious for Steve Mahoney to run in; but he was not allowed to by Team Martin.

Before the new Liberal Riding Association of Mississauga Streetsville was even officially formed, Mr Khan was listed, on a non-Liberal website, as the Liberal Candidate for the Riding.

As a result of the acrimonious battle for Mississauga-Erindale between Carolyn and Steve the Liberal Party ended up losing two hard working, loyal Party Members, and now have lost a seat in the House of Commons.

I don’t think that people have become so disloyal to the Liberal Party; I think the Liberal Party has become disloyal to the people.

Stephen Wahl

Between this guy, Belinda Stronach and Scott Brison, it wouldn't surprise me if there was a game of musical chairs going on every day up at Parliament Hill.

Alias:

Well, now maybe the good people of Mississauga Streetsville will nominate someone who live and works in the riding.

This act alone shows that Mr. Khan had no reasons but his own to run in M/S

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