Another slap in the face

Shorter Maria Minna, trying to deflect criticism of the Libs' $550/plate Sudbury fund-raiser in the midst of a lengthy and bitter strike at Vale Inco:

I'm shocked the little people aren't grateful that we're trickling down all over them.

Uncooperative efforts

Kuri has already blogged about NDP MP Irene Mathyssen's valiant attempt to turn the Libs' sad excuse for a motion into something that all opposition parties could agree on to highlight the Cons' continued failure to consider the needs of Canadian women. But Lib MP Maria Minna's reaction may say even more about the Libs' current lack of direction than the original motion:

Mrs. Irene Mathyssen (London—Fanshawe, NDP):
...I move that the motion be amended by deleting all the words “that, therefore” and all the words after, and replace them with: “that this House acknowledge International Women's Week and call on the government to reinstate the court challenges program, restore funding to research and advocacy groups under women's program, reopen the 12 regional offices of Status of Women Canada, create a national housing program, provide resources for an early learning and child care program, implement proactive pay equity legislation, address violence against women, reform the employment insurance program to allow women better access to it, and recognize that women in Canada deserve fairness, affordability, equal opportunity, equal pay for work of equal value, a decent standard of living, and the freedom to live without fear”.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Andrew Scheer):
Before ruling on the receivability of the amendment, it is my duty to inform hon. members that an amendment to an opposition motion may be moved only with the consent of the sponsor of the motion.

Therefore, I ask the hon. member for Beaches—East York if she consents to this amendment being moved.

Hon. Maria Minna:
I do not, Mr. Speaker.

In sum, rather than simply leaving the Libs to twist in the wind based on their own poor strategy, the NDP actually offered a way to salvage a united front against the Cons. But even after the firestorm that immediately followed their introduction of the motion, the Libs still weren't interested in acknowledging that the motion could be improved - preferring to stumble forward with a motion doomed to both fail in Parliament and embarrass the Libs as a party, rather than redirecting the publicity surrounding the motion toward more constructive ends.

Which means that amazingly enough, Minna seems to have managed to make the Libs' most obvious misstep yet even worse. And given the track record of the Libs under Dion, it only seems like a matter of time before they find a way to descend even further.