Harper digs a coalition hole

The Globe and Mail:

The more Stephen Harper and his Conservative war room talk about their coalition, the deeper they dig their hole.

Consider the latest as reported by the Globe’s Steven Chase. Mr. Harper, talking in 1997, describes in clear, ordinary language a scenario where the Liberals lose power even though they have won the most seats, but less than a majority. In other words, he describes exactly the scenario he is decrying the Liberals for contemplating in this campaign.

“What will be the test is whether there’s then any party in opposition that’s able to form a coalition or working alliance with the others.”

The others. Plural. Is there any one party (singular) that’s able to form a coalition with more than one additional opposition party. The alternative would have been “with another,” not “with the others” – “the others” is an all-inclusive term – meaning all of the other parties, including … wait for it … the socialists and the separatists.

This is of course logical given that after the 1997 election, the Reform Party had 60 seats and the PCs 20. They were 75 seats away from having a majority of the seats in the House. The notion in 1997 that just joining those two parties alone was sufficient to defeat the Liberals – even if the Liberals fell below a majority – was laughable. The Stephen Harper of 1997 knew that, which is why he was fine with a coalition of multiple parties. The TVO video clearly demonstrates that, regardless of the lame spin that the Stephen Harper of 2011 mustered.

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