ExpenseAcountVille
So.
Ms. Clark's prop in the pipeline charade game is gone:
Alison Redford has announced that she is stepping down as Alberta premier on Sunday night...
{snippety doo-dah}
...Redford's problems escalated last week when she announced she was paying back the entire $45,000 she spent on first-class tickets and a government plane to travel to South Africa for Nelson Mandela's memorial in December after weeks of refusing to do so.
The next day, Calgary-Foothills MLA Len Webber stepped down from the PC caucus, alleging that Redford treated people poorly and wasted taxpayers' dollars.
On Saturday, Redford met with PC party executives at a closed-door meeting in Calgary. Although she was given a standing ovation, Redford was also grilled and given a "work plan" to follow in order to continue on as party leader.
However, that did little to quell the discontent within the caucus. At least 10 Tory MLAs held a meeting in downtown Edmonton Sunday night to discuss the possibility of quitting the party and sitting as independents...
****
Of course, here in Snookland, $45K spent on questionable flights is, quite literally, chump change.
Bob Mackin had the story back in the fall of 2012 (and brace yourself for the irony of one of the destinations):
...Premier Christy Clark has spent $185,027.86 on 25 trips from March 18, 2011 through Aug. 1, 2012 on a charter airline owned by a prominent BC Liberal bagman...
{snippety doo-dah}
...Cabinet members are allowed to take charter flights if they're on government business, their destination is not adequately served by scheduled service and/or if their schedule dictates they cannot wait for a scheduled flight...
{snippety doodle-dandy}
...Clark made four trips in three weeks for $38,600 on Blackcomb Aviation during July 2012, including a one-day, $15,470.07 trip on July 19 to Regina and Edmonton. She met Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall during the first stop and Alison Redford, the Alberta premier, on the second. The meeting with Redford was called the "Secret Summit," because Clark was whisked in and out of the Alberta Legislature with no notice or fanfare. Along for the ride were deputy minister Neil Sweeney, aide Gabe Garfinkel and the bodyguard.
Such is life aboard charter jets, which use a private terminal on the south side of Vancouver International Airport...
As for caucus revolts of righteousness (and/or even concerted proMedia flashlight shining) 'round here?
Well.
You know...
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Mr. Mackin found out that Ms. Clark and her Wizards were spending ridiculous amounts of money renting the planes of Railgate's big pre-game spender, and even bigger post-game winner, to fly to really hard to get to places like Edmonton by FOI...Is it any wonder that Darth Vader has done his best to shut that teeny-tiny bit of flashlight-shining ability for good?
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20 comments:
Let it be perfectly clear and open that the nefarious 'bagman' is none other than David MacLean who of course recruited the hapless Campbell brother for the sole purpose of obtaining, by hook and by crook, BC Rail.
MacLean wooed and bedazzled the silly boob Campbell with visions of sugar plums until he got his prize and now he continues to bedazzle the simple one with not so free flights via his "family' airline to wherever her fancy flows, leaving us to speculte what is the other bauble he still is being directed to remove from the public larder.
SH:
The devil you don't know...
"Premier Alison Redford’s casual misuse of government aircraft has her standing on the edge of scandal. Albertans will have to decide whether her energetic back-pedalling merits forgiveness, or a long sojourn in political purgatory."
"Over in B.C., by extreme contrast, the government owns no airplanes used by politicians or bureaucrats.
In a province one-third larger than Alberta, and geographically more difficult, they fly commercial, except on rare occasions when a plane is chartered.
Somehow those politicians — including Premier Christy Clark — get the job done."
http://www.calgaryherald.com/opinion/columnists/Braid+Redford+travel+controversy+taken+another+plane/9579321/story.html
Chump change, compared to:
$50 billion for useless IPP power.
$560 million stadium roof.
$1 billion smart grid.
$8 billion Site C (proposed).
etc...
SH:
...more twish from Baldrey:
Keith Baldrey @keithbaldrey · Mar 18
One day into his campaign, Horgan is already tacking green. Likely realizes he has to tack left and green to win NDP leadership. #bcpoli
Many years into his career and Baldrey is increasingly tacking right. Likely realizes he has to tack right to keep his job.
I'd be the last person to argue Ms Redford doesn't (didn't) have a lot to answer for but I think the idea that her downfall stems primarily from her use (misuse) of entitlements (which were, as the evidence shows, pretty minor when compared with our own sparkle pony-lady) is missing the forest for a few trees.
Being married to a highly educated woman who has worked all her professional career in a high profile and stressful job I can say without much fear of contradiction that women in this atmosphere bear incredible burdens of both omission and commission that tend not to be as onerous as the ones men bear.
Ms Redford, if you look at the makeup of the caucus support behind her during the leadership contest to replace Stelmack, had virtually no allies. She got the nomination that Gary Mar obviously felt should have been his and I suspect the knives (all well honed when it appeared she'd go down to defeat in the 2012 general election) have been out and ready for some time.
Hmmm Mike Duffy had a Federal PC insider picking up his $90,000 tab to Refund the public's coffers, and was caught. Ms. Redford put together her Refund of $45,000 without even going to the bank, to take out a loan.
$45,000!! Ah, those dastardly overpaid Progressive Conservatives.
SH @ G West
The only support Christy got during her leadership adventure was from one lone Bloy. Yet she survives.
Is royal jelly all it's cracked up to be?...or, will the juxtaposition of her milfness, against the formidable intellect of Redford have BC back-roomers ready to hit the delete button on the wild card from Burnaby?
SH - who knows? I guess, if I had to put my finger on it, I'd say the big difference (and why she got into trouble) is Alyson Redford's undoubted intelligence, wide experience and education. Ms Clark, of the sparkle ponies, has none of those qualifications - instead of becoming a target of her caucus colleagues she is a puppet of the actual powers which RUN this province - and have run it for most of the past 60 odd years.
WAC Bennett was, as much as Ms Clark is, a creation of the real power brokers put up by them ( in essence) to further their interests AND keep the barbarians (or the socialists) from wrecking the party.
As a party girl, Christy Clark is nothing at all like Alyson Redford...in my view at least
SH:
Good points G West. I'm no psychologist, but, a giddy sense of schadenfreude must envelope Clark...and that will no doubt lead to greater delusions of grandeur...
...and horror, of horrors, the mean marionette might feel entitled to go rogue. What then?
SH, if I wasn't convinced BC is in a spiral to the bottom a la land of Deliverance, after reading the following CBC commenters, I am now. We gotta get our behinds in gear and fight to return BC to civilization:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/feral-pigs-b-c-allows-hunting-anywhere-and-at-any-time-1.2580279
Just noticed that my comment above here - about the burdens of women in a (mostly) men's world - says the opposite of what I meant: To wit, 'Men's burdens in such jobs as Alyson Redford's tend to be 'less onerous' than the ones borne by the few women who've been in such positions'...
In case anyone but me noticed the screw up!
G West, I appreciate your sensitivity towards women. There is no doubt many women are oppressed. However, some of the strongest, baddest, people I know are women.
My father's dear late friend NDP icon, Grace Mcinness, spoke about women's rights, choice and dreams at my high school in the early seventies. The number of strong women is legion. I can't explain why some women prevail and others fold under pressure, but the McPhails, Quans, Blencoes, and Chows are a tribute to inner strength and conviction.
Many men suffer bullying and intimidation in silence, and we never hear about them.
I think the Wild Rosers were looking for anything, and, had already shored up their ship-jumpers and were looking for any reason to pull the plug, so the W R could emerge for an Easter resurrection.
SH (above): sorry for the lower case "I" Grace. I will never forget you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_MacInnis
If some of the MLAs in Albert wanted to replace their leader you have to wonder why the ones in B.C. don't try the same thing. You can't tell me all of the lieberals think its really really good that we have had the highest rate of child poverty in Canada for 9 out of 10 years. Oh, well......
SH:
Now, the CBC wouldn't intentionally Enquirerize would they?
Here's the set-up to the set-up:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/portland-hotel-society-audit-reveals-limos-cruises-luxury-hotels-1.2580427
"NDP MLA Jenny Kwan's Disneyland trip paid by Vancouver charity"
"In a statement, Kwan said she was concerned to discover the type of expenses charged by previous directors of the society, including the Disneyland trip.
"Together with my family, I did join my husband, who was an employee of PHS on two trips in 2012, said Kwan. "I was assured at the time by my former partner that he paid out of his pocket for the family portion of the travel expenses."
"I never would have gone, had I known that the family portion of the travel would appear to have been paid for by PHS."
Kwan said she trusts her former partner will reimburse the PHS for any expenses related to family travel, and if not, she will."
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/ndp-mla-jenny-kwan-s-disneyland-trip-paid-by-vancouver-charity-1.2581039
GW--
Don't disagree with your first point.
I'm really just commenting on the proMedia meme in one location and the absolute absence of same in another.
Thanks all for the great discussion and points made - none of which is bigger than Hugh's.
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I'm generally not a supporter of right leaning politics, even the progressive sort in a party that attaches that label to conservative, but I gotta say that I like Allison Redford, at least as the limited bit we got to see in public. She may have gotten a bit off track with spending and such, but as we've pointed out, pretty minor compared to the totally unfit for the job of premier, Clark. I was struck by the not a nice lady tag that the defector chose to use when he called her a bully, gee, not a lot of people in high places point that obvious trait out about our PM and his closest ministers.
Who are predominantly male who fall on feathers while women fall on swords for their misdeeds.
bcw--
Excellent point, that last one.
Hadn't thought of it before - thanks.
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