PHOTO: Progressive Conservative MPP Lisa MacLeod laughs at Liberal Finance Minister Greg Sorbara, who accidentally glued his fingertips together before the debate.
Sorbara didn't actually glue his fingertips together, but it certainly would've made tonight's Mississauga Matters debate much more interesting.
Instead, the audience was treated to a rather bland, albeit well-executed, debate. I have written a proper story for the website and newspaper, so in this space, let me just gather some bits and pieces.
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There were last-minute line-up changes for the debate. Instead of having local candidates taking part, the NDP and PC parties brought in some heavier hitters to match wits with Liberal finance minister Greg Sorbara and Green Party leader Frank de Jong.
For the NDP, there was Andrea Horwath, the critic for pensions, children and youth issues, WSIB and Women’s Issues and a former Hamilton city councillor.
The Tories brought in Lisa MacLeod, Nepean-Carleton MPP and critic for children and youth services.
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Green Party leader Frank de Jong, discussing the GTAs garbage woes and garbage incineration with Greg Sorbara:
Frank de Jong - God recycles and the devil burns, but the Liberals, we should not be getting into incineration...nothing should be incinerated, nothing should be landfilled.
Sorbara - you see, that's utopia, absolutely utopia...
FD - (interrupting) Eco-topia.
(audience laughter)
S - This is where the world is absolutely perfect - it's where the Green party loses some credibility when it comes to politics and to be frank...
FD - (interrupting) That's me!
(more audience laughter)
S - ...You just lose it. So long as mankind walks the earth there's going to be stuff we throw out.
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Frank de Jong is very tall.
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Re: downloading of services from the provincial government to municipal governments. Sorbara and MacLeod got into a dust-up about who's fault the City's problems are.
Sorbara - Guess who designed the system, the previous Conservative government.
MacLeod - And guess who didn't fix it. And guess who didn't fix it.
S - (Shouting over MacLeod) I think I let you finish - we eliminated pooling...
M - He's just not used to women on the panel, I think. (Audience laughter) I know I should be at home baking cookies, Greg.
This is funny because of this pre-campaign gaffe by veteran Liberal war roomer Warren Kinsella (who did, in his defense, apologize repeatedly).
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Three nearby rooms were set aside as overflow rooms, with the debate playing on large televisions. Turned out they didn't need three rooms. All they needed was seating for nine. It was a bit ridiculous since I counted only 147 spectators in the council chambers, which holds 300.
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Has anyone mentioned recently how well Harold Shipp dresses? It should be mentioned more regularly.
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Though everyone was out to hurt the Liberals, from my seat, Sorbara won the debate. He dominated. He was louder, more fierce, and, in this one instance, absolutely brutal in making his point.
Lisa MacLeod - One thing we will do by 2010 is to eliminate the job-killing capital tax on an accelerated timetable so we can put more money in the pockets of small business owners so they can expand and grow their businesses.
Sorbara - But that's already been legislated. It's already there. It's in law - the capital tax will go in 2010. I don't know why your party keeps saying if John Tory is elected, you'll do things that are already part of the law of Ontario, that's not leadership...
L - Because we can't trust you'll follow through on anything.
S - It's already the law.
L - We can't trust you'll follow through on anything.
S - It's already the law.
L - You broke 50 promises in the course of four years.
S - It's already the law.
(Sudden, awkward silence for two excruciating seconds. MacLeod and the crowd realize she has been beaten, at least on this point.)
S - (slowly twisting the dagger) It's. Already. The. Law. The capital tax is going to be eliminated under the laws of this province in 2010 and for John Tory to stand up and say if I - the guy for who leadership matters - get elected I'm going to eliminate the capital tax by 2010. Biiiiig deal.
Francis DeSouza, CityTV newsman and Mississauga resident, mercifully ended the slaughter.
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Francis DeSouza is pretty cool, and extremely well-groomed.
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The media chairs at City Hall are better than the media chairs at both the Peel District School Board and the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board.
Also, there was a jug of water on the media table. At the public school board, we get a jug of water and a glass but uncomfortable seats. At the Catholic school board, we get good seats but only a paper cup, with no water to fill it with.