NB Telegraph-Journal | Editorials
As published on page A7 on April 22, 2006
This Speaker must resign
When the legislature resumes sitting Tuesday, one issue will dominate: whether Tanker Malley should sit as Speaker.
He should not - and the most persuasive argument why he should not is the impact his apparent deal-making has had on political debate.
Tankerpalooza has edged out concerns about rising gas and electricity prices, job losses, nursing home fees and overcrowded classrooms as the leading topic of discussion. The MLA's actions and the government's reactions have brought the legislature to a standstill, at a time when these issues and a host of others require action.
What Mr. Malley and the Tory government have done is permissible within the rules of the legislature. But the blatant political bartering they have engaged in is distasteful. Across the province, people are saying the government gave in to unreasonable demands for the sake of clinging to power. At least one Conservative MLA has echoed these concerns, accusing Mr. Malley of blackmail.
It is clear Mr. Malley has lost the confidence of the majority of MLAs and the majority of New Brunswickers. If he remains Speaker, it will bring further disrespect to that distinguished and impartial office, to the legislature, and to the province as a whole - a shame that Premier Bernard Lord and the government must share.
Consider this:
€¢ Mr. Malley made outrageous demands as the price of his support for the government, and left the Tory party when they were not met. These demands allegedly included a promotion for himself, a job for a friend, a judgeship for another friend, and new funding for his riding.
€¢ He sought and won election as Speaker. By parliamentary tradition, the Speaker must vote with the government for the sake of continuing debate. By allowing Mr. Malley, an Independent, to seek the Speaker's chair unopposed, the government was able to take his free vote out of play and convert it to a government vote. Mr. Malley also received the perks accorded the Speaker's chair - a higher salary, a larger office and a government vehicle.
€¢ Having effectively preserved the government's voting majority in the legislature, Mr. Malley announced he would return to the Tory caucus, ensuring the government would also enjoy a majority on legislative committees. And why wouldn't he? The majority of his demands were met, including a promotion for himself, a job for his friend "Judy", and more money for his riding.
€¢ In defiance of the tradition that Speakers keep a low political profile, Mr. Malley has been bragging about his importance to the Conservative government. In recent interviews with Miramichi media, he has claimed he was responsible for key elements in the Conservative budget, unveiled while he was sitting as an Independent and serving as Speaker.
Mr. Malley has claimed Miramichi will receive new government spending as a result of his floor-crossing. Miramichiers appear to be reaping the benefits, judging from the more than $1.5 million in funding Conservatives announced in the region Thursday.
This is not the sort of behaviour New Brunswickers expect from the highest officer of the legislature, or from the premier and his cabinet. It makes a mockery of the ideal of responsible government.
Mr. Malley has not done his constituents any favours, either. Thanks to his involvement, the government's decision to fund important and legitimate projects, such as water and sewage repair, has been tainted with the appearance of patronage. As long as Mr. Malley is involved in funding announcements, New Brunswick taxpayers will wonder whether Miramichiers are getting their just rewards, or just getting rewarded.
Mr. Malley should resign, allowing a new election for Speaker to be held. And, in the name of integrity, it must be done under the watchful public eye of a free vote.
Tankerpalooza has gone on long enough - far beyond its 15 minutes of fame, or the borders of political gamesmanship.
It's time to cancel the show.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
WHY ARE THE IRVINGS GOING AGAINST TANKER MALLEY????
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6 comments:
The only people making it a media event is the media. Government business still has continued, legislation is being passed, and question period is being held. Anybody that thinks government is at a standstill is as stupid as this Irving editor.
Who the hell ever even said 'tankerpalooza' before? What the media is saying here is that THEY are not going to report on any of the other issues so they can sensationalize this one.
Anybody that thinks 'getting results' (which is what Tanker got) is not what politics is about is living in la la land. Funny how we never heard about government corruption when Irvings were blackmailing the provincial government into their tax deal, or when Irving starts up community papers in towns that already have one to put them out of business. What is going on in the legislature is pretty small potatoes compared to what the state of the media is in the province-but of course we never hear about those.
Irvings are right. Tanker is becoming a national joke and as a result N.B legislature a joke too. He should resign.
Tanker is a big potato right now in every sense of the word. And a hot potato.
Nothing wrong with Tanker staying. Other MLA's could have let their name stand if they wanted to. I'll agree there have been lots of shenanigans from all parties (well not the NDP, where are they anyway?) but I'll have to somewhat agree with Mike on this one, this has largely been a media event, (granted all the players made it pretty hard to resist).
Flipflop Malley and tinkering Tanker.
Yes Charlie it should indeed be an interesting day to say the least.
The Tanker two-step: an N.B. tragedy
(David Smith/The Daily Gleaner)
The political story of Michael (Tanker) Malley reads more like a tragedy than a comedy, but it’s not over yet.
PETER T. SMITH
COMMENTARY
The controversy surrounding Michael "Tanker" Malley's return to the Tories is refusing to die, and rightfully so. If the New Brunswick legislature is going to set parliamentary precedents, then the least we can expect is some debate. Besides, as far as political manoeuvring goes, Tanker's two-step makes David Emerson's situational loyalty seem well thought out and ethically consistent. The criticism of Tanker is tinged with ridicule, and Shawn Graham has even asserted that this situation makes our legislature the "laughing stock" of the Commonwealth. The critics couldn't be more wrong. The story of Tanker Malley is not a comedy in the least - it's a tragedy.
If a playwright were to tackle Tanker's story, it would certainly be a tragedy, which is simply the story of the rise and fall of a hero. We've seen Tanker's rise from the small town boy who never missed school to the Speaker of the New Brunswick House of Assembly. What we're watching now is the fall.
The first act of The Tragedy of Tanker would trace the life that diligent schoolboy as he grows up, driving a bus for a living and an ambulance in his spare time. Community minded and selfless, his altruism leads him from volunteering as a fire fighter to running for council and serving as deputy mayor. His star continues to rise and he is elected to the legislature. His reputation as a loyal Conservative spreads throughout the province, and he assumes the position of working-class hero - complete with a blue-collar nickname - in the government backbenches. In short, the boy done good.
But conflict is the essence of drama and in Act II the premier's loyal soldier finds himself at odds with his leadership and quits the Tory caucus. The accounts of the meeting between Tanker and the premier conflicts like Rashomon, with our hero asserting he cannot support a government which doesn't support his constituents.
The premier tells a more detailed and tawdry tale: Tanker wants more money: for his constituency office, to hire "Judy," and to support two projects in his riding, with a cabinet position for himself and judicial appointment for another thrown in for good measure.
Is it a crisis of conscience, or a failed backroom blackmailing?
Constituents voice their support for him; even the mayor in his riding stands by him, and Tanker finds himself elevated to the political equivalent of folk hero status. Almost as a reward for his integrity, the rogue MLA reaches the pinnacle of his career by being named Speaker. The populist hero, forced by his integrity to a lonely seat in the opposition, now oversees the business of the legislature, and valiantly saves the government in a crucial vote. And he gets a nice car, a raise, and a big office.
Like the hubris of a classical Greek, or the vaulting ambition of a Shakespearean tragic hero, Tanker's tragic flaw becomes evident and leads to his downfall.
The third act in this story begins with the Opposition crying foul as Tanker returns to the Tory caucus, ironically citing the best interests of his constituents, which was the same reason he quit. Too principled to sit as a Progressive Conservative just six weeks earlier, he returns with the equivalent of a cabinet position, a job for Judy, hints of more money for his riding, and the suggestion that he influenced two of the more popular budget items despite being out of caucus at the time. The protests and jokes begin. One Conservative publicly accuses Tanker of blackmail. The Opposition calls for his resignation as Speaker. And the people who supported Tanker - not just the folks back home but across the entire province - turn against him. No longer able to present himself as a man of the people, a would-be Robin Hood intent on liberating government resources for the Miramichi, it becomes clear the constituent best benefiting from this power play is himself. The populist hero is revealed to be as savvy and self-serving a dealmaker as ever sat in the legislature.
This third act hasn't finished playing out, but we all know how it will end. The hero's fall may be fast or slow, but in the end it is excruciating and inevitable.
Besides, if this were a comedy, the joke would be on all of us.
Tanker's starring role in this drama sets him up as a candidate for newsmaker of the year, and it's only April. It's also a wonderful reminder that you don't need to be in Toronto or New York to see good drama; it unfolds right here in New Brunswick.
Peter T. Smith, one of Next N.B.'s "21 Leaders for the 21st Century, teaches English and psychology at Kennebecasis Valley High School and lives in Hampton. His column appears on Tuesday.
# posted by Anonymous : 8:29 AM
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