Bullsh*tVille
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Updates: At bottom of post...
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Yesterday, two BC Conservative Party dissidents, Allison Patton and Ariane Eckardt claimed that the party's Quilchena constituency association president, David Wilder, had brokered a deal the previous day that would have seen John Cummins step down as party leader.
Soon thereafter, we noted that proMedia reporters Sunny Dhillon (Globe), Jeff Nagel (Black Press) and Cassidy Olivier (The Province) were all indicating that Mr. Wilder was stating that this was not true.
To be even more specific, Mr. Olivier quoted Mr. Wilder as saying it was a 'gross misrepresentation' of what took place when he met with Mr. Cummins and various assorted sundry BC Conservative Party people recently.
Well....
Later yesterday, in a piece first published at ~6pm (the timing matters - see below), the VSun's Jonathan Fowlie had even more details:
...In both an interview and a press release, (BC Conservative Party dissident and Surrey-White Rock CA president Allison) Patton said the backroom deal had been negotiated Wednesday afternoon by retired lawyer and party insider David Wilder.
It’s a suggestion Wilder, president of the party’s Vancouver-Quilchena constituency association, flatly denied.
“Let me make this bloody clear, my name was used in vain. The events of (Wednesday) had very little to do with what was set out in the letter,” Wilder said in an interview.
Wilder agreed he had been a self-appointed “spear carrier” in an attempt to broker peace between the two sides.
He said he met Wednesday with party president Al Siebring, campaign organizer Will McMartin and one other party official. And he agreed he had been giving updates to Patton’s group of so-called dissidents.
But he was insistent that Cummins’ resignation was never on the table.
“There’s nothing that transpired that could have given them any possible hint in that direction. None.”...
It’s a suggestion Wilder, president of the party’s Vancouver-Quilchena constituency association, flatly denied.
“Let me make this bloody clear, my name was used in vain. The events of (Wednesday) had very little to do with what was set out in the letter,” Wilder said in an interview.
Wilder agreed he had been a self-appointed “spear carrier” in an attempt to broker peace between the two sides.
He said he met Wednesday with party president Al Siebring, campaign organizer Will McMartin and one other party official. And he agreed he had been giving updates to Patton’s group of so-called dissidents.
But he was insistent that Cummins’ resignation was never on the table.
“There’s nothing that transpired that could have given them any possible hint in that direction. None.”...
Now, you think that would be the end of it, right?
Well, not so, according to one of the Dissidents-In-Chief, Ms. Patton:
...On Thursday, Patton stuck by her version of events, saying she believes Wilder was used by the party brass to deceive her group of anti-Cummins organizers.
“I think what happened is it was a complete setup,” she said Thursday.
“He was a pawn in their game. I feel bad for the man.”...
The point of this post?
Well, at this point, unless further actual real evidence comes to light, it would appear that the credibility of the 'dissidents' is in complete tatters.
So.....
Given that, why doesn't the proMedia call out the dissidents rather than constantly wurlitzering this he said/she said 'clown/gong show' meme?
I mean, by way of example, the VSun's on Fazil Mihlar was tweeting stuff like the following AFTER Mr. Fowlie's piece had been published in his own newspaper last night:
BC Conservative dissidents say John Cummins was set to resign vancouversun.com/news/Conservat…. The gong show continues!
— FazilMihlar (@FazilMihlar) October 12, 2012
I am not making this stuff up.
If you doubt the veracity of my claim regarding the timing, click the embedded VSun link in Mr. Milhar's tweet and see where it takes you....
Yup.
That's right....
It takes you right back to Mr. Fowlie's piece excerpted above.
Sheesh.
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Oh, and given how various editors appear to have developed a penchant for showing big, bold pictures of Ms. Patton at the top of their reporters' pieces, we thought some of our readers might be interested in another picture of Ms Patton with a couple of (not)BC Conservative Party political luminaries apparently taken earlier this year and posted on BC Blue's website.....Not that it means anything, or anything, because anybody can get their picture taken with both of those folks flanking them whenever they want, right?...
Update #1: Late Friday morning.....Bill Tieleman has more detail on the where and when re: the 'photo' linked to above....He also asks a number of potential 'dot connectorish-type' questions.....Here...
Update #2: Cassidy Olivier, in The Province, has more on the talks between Mr. Wilder and the various assorted sundry party members....Importantly, his report includes names of said sundry who I assume the media will now chase down to get their views/recollections of the matter....Anyway, what Mr. Cassidy has written essentially backs up Mr. Fowlie's story and it also makes it clear that, to Mr. Wilder's understanding, the fact that Mr. Cummins would stay on a leader was a precondition to the talks/discussions even beginning...There is also another bit of discordance between Mr. Wilder's account and the accounts of Ms. Eckhardt and Ms. Patton....Specifically, Mr. Wilder claims he was communicating with the two as the talks with Mr. Cummins et al. proceeded....According to The Province's Mr. Cassidy, the two dissidents have denied this....Now....Please do not forget, when the dissidents first started this wurlitzer wurring, it was they, and they alone, who were claiming that Mr. Wilder had brokered the 'resignation' deal.....OK?
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3 comments:
Here comes the spin cycle.
Ross H...I`m not crystal ball gaxer..However, this ploy was indeed sniffed out by the Straight Goods early on..
Something about walking like a duck..
http://www.theprovince.com/news/Tories+deserve+your+vote/7379663/story.html
Yet the real story lies elsewhere..
http://powellriverpersuader.blogspot.ca/2012/10/a-desperate-government-ploy-unraveled.html
Beans anyone?
Kim--
Ms/Dr Patton has an explanation' (see BMackin-assisted update at the bottom of B.Tieleman's post).
Just like she had an explanation for Mr. Wilder's renunciation of her claim that he brokered Mr. Cummins' resignation.
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