Without waiting for any investigation by Election Canada, the Ottawa Citizen’s Michael Den Tandt is already calling for a Gomery-like inquiry on the robocall scandal.
“Truth is, there is no defence to the robocalls story, any more than there was to sponsorship. And anyone who says the two can’t be mentioned in the same breath is dreaming.” (see here)
Den Tandt has added his name to the growing list of journos at Postmedia who are putting what’s left of their credibility on the line and gambling their careers hoping that this is another ‘Adscam’.
Maybe they know something that hasn’t come out yet but when Den Tandt says things such as this
“Rae did not exaggerate when he called it Nixonian”
colour me unconvinced that they do.
Also: The National Post thinks quoting NDP MP Pat Martin (see here) is a sound bit of reporting as it’s not like he’s been anything but truthful right?
BC Blue: One BC Conservative's view on it all... 
February 26, 2012 at 5:35 PM
The Harper haters are all out in force on this latest scandalette, as expected… and more rabid than ever – some things never change.
I know that on election day, I’m going to vote. If someone called and told me the wrong location, I might possibly go there and find out the information was wrong. I would then proceed to the poll that was sent to me on my card and place my vote. Bottom line is, if any Liberals wanted Stephen Harper out of office, they would certainly make their way to the proper poll to vote that way, and stop at nothing to accomplish that.
This whole story is so full of holes it just doesn’t make sense. How would anyone know that they’re targeting ONLY Liberal voters? Is there a master list of Liberal voters somewhere – with all of there phone numbers in 37 different ridings (or however many ridings they’re claiming). And how exactly would Conservatives get these lists for all of these ridings? The whole thing doesn’t pass the smell test… not even close. I’m not even sure why some demented staffer would go to this trouble…
February 26, 2012 at 5:43 PM
You know that when a journo says “no way one guy could do all this robocalling” they haven’t a clue
February 27, 2012 at 7:39 AM
what drives me nuts is that robocalls never have your name associated with the call. if peoples names were being used then they were not robocalls. the calls would have to come from some sort of centre where the phone numbers and names were listed as well as the political affiliation and the polling place info. i would say that having an individuals polling info, political affiliation, name and phone number would need a serious data base.
February 26, 2012 at 5:38 PM
Tempest in a teapot,part 46. I am SO sick and tired of hearing the Liberals cry “WOLF”,and I’m sure most Canadians are as well. It didn’t work last Spring,and I doubt it will work now.
I suppose it’s part of the tactic of keeping the pressure on,hoping cracks appear in the Conservative fortress. The Liberals did,however, show some restraint in not making any Nazi-Germany comparisons.
At least,not yet.
February 26, 2012 at 6:22 PM
Almost makes you think it was a plan targetting Conservatives and didn’t work when they actually won …nah, they wouldn’t do that, would they?
February 26, 2012 at 7:26 PM
perish the thought… Adscamming “Liberals”, NDPQ, Media Party and dirty tricks campaigns? Nah… To quote Ralph from the Simpsons… “Thats unpossible”.
February 26, 2012 at 5:50 PM
Clearly, this whole smear has been carefully orchestrated by the opposition and the media… Dirty tricks planned long in advance by the “liberals”/ NDP and their media. The whole thing stinks. Why would the “Liberals”/NDPQ and their media be so sure of “dirty tricks” based solely on circumstantial evidence, before an investigation has even been started ? Why would the media attack the credibility of Dean Del Maestro and dismiss his allegations without a moments thought. This reeks of a co-ordinated smear campaign between the media and the opposition. What do the media and the opposition know about this case that the RCMP, EC, and everyone else doesn’t know ?
February 26, 2012 at 6:23 PM
opps, my reply to the comment above was meant for Sean’s comment….stupid iPad
February 26, 2012 at 5:54 PM
The whole thing doesn’t even begin to make sense, but then the left have never let that stop them. They cannot stand the thought that Stephen Harper won and is now well on his way to dismantling their sacres socialist cows. There is a budget coming up and I think they are going to try some sort of ploy to take down the gov. with the number of journos and MP’s all remembering calls with documentation in place, this smells like a setup. And one that is impossible to prove or disprove.n There is no winner here. They have forever cast doubt on the election process in their hate.
Chris Shelley was tweeting tonight that even if there is an RCMP invest. it will be tainted because Harper appointed new head. They are setting this thing up to never have an outcome they will believe.
February 26, 2012 at 6:10 PM
May as well let them talk amongst themselves, the whole cabal, the media hacks , the Liberal rump and the hapless Dippers who think they really have a hope of being taken seriously.
February 26, 2012 at 6:32 PM
It’s complete crap. CTV should be boycotted and everyone should show up for Evan Soloman’s show and vote in his junk poll. This is the third time that the NDP has tried to take the government through the back door. There is no loner any doubt in my mind that Vikileaks was orchestrated by the NDP.
No conservative minister should show up in any panel or interview where that slug Pat Martin attends. Conservative MP’s have to start speaking out without being shut down and put on display or subject to the good cop/bad cop routine of Rae/Martin. They better start talking to Sun TV and any other friendlies out there. They don’t have to be paralyzed by the liberal media.
Somebody has to start asking questions about the feasibility of few people actually pulling something like this off. I hear it is technically possible. And more than anything; conservatives have to start demanding a proper discovery and investigation instead of this kangaroo court.
February 26, 2012 at 6:34 PM
Looks to me like voters should demand the removal of robocalling as an election tool if it can be subverted by anyone.
February 26, 2012 at 6:53 PM
The other sign of a clueless journo is when they say “with the cost of robocalling, the people doing it must be very well-funded”
February 26, 2012 at 7:27 PM
I just watched snippet of an interview with Pat Martin on CBC. He is “suggesting” that people might want to go back through their memories; maybe they remembered something. This would be what? Planting a suggestion. LOL. We all know how reliable memory can be. Especially with the overly-suggestible groupthink crowd.
This really is serious though. If the conservatives don’t start talking to friendlies they could lose this. I think Michael Coren should get a one on one with the Prime Minister about answering this charge about the toxic climate smear. I wish to hell that every friendly out there was challenging all these so called “facts”.
February 27, 2012 at 7:18 AM
Uhm..
I love your blog. But, well, the robo-calling bull**** is exactly “Nixonian”. Let’s not circle the wagons too tightly.. we can, at once, suggest to Liberals that they allow Elections Canada to complete its investigation, and resist the over-whelming urge to exaggerate this issue to cover up their own lack of coherent policy on, well, anything.
But – at the same time – the message left with us post-Watergate is that the ends never justify the means -where those means seek to undermine free and open democracy.
The wrong-doer or wrong-doers are not our friends – they, most assuredly, pose more risk to our party than an army of Pat Martins.
This bull**** should be rooted out and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law – and no true conservative should seek to come to their defence. Our party must show ourselves to be something more than adscam liberals with a different colored button.
February 27, 2012 at 7:28 AM
As Lynnster1 one said, the commentariat — the politicians, the media, and the blogosphere — has been planting a suggestion by asking people to come forward with information. Of course, those people who come forward at this time are to be believed, because they are absolutely non-partisan, right?
Then, there’s Den Tandt saying “There needs to be a public, arm’s-length judicial investigation.” Who gets to choose the judge? If PM Harper does, the judge will be labelled as a conservative toady. Even if the choice of a judge is mutually agreeble to both sides of the political spectrum, would the findings be accepted by both sides? I doubt it.
Let’s face it. The opposition has whined about their leaders’ image being defined by the Conservatives. That may be true to a certain extent but the opposition and their media allies have engaged in an equally if not more unrelenting campaign to demonize the PM as mean-spirited, ruthless, control-freakish, bullying … you name it.
The opposition will never be satisfied until Stephen Harper and the Conservatives lose power.
February 27, 2012 at 7:55 AM
The Tories complained back in May during the election that their supporters were receiving these calls, too –
http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=5761498836067676504&postID=3212680325832979890&page=1&token=1330355264795
Uh oh! 😀
February 27, 2012 at 8:32 AM
Yep, like anyone in their right mind would base their vote on the basis of one phone call from a machine no less…
Voters are too stupid to find other methods to fact check assertions made or insinuated…hah!
This stuff is so minor it isn’t even close to a Gomery inquiry…where millions in funds are recycled for a LIEberal election.
The ravening wolves are at the door…and Red Riding Hood will open the door and invite them in for dinner.
On the menu we have puffery, superciliousness, with a cream sauce of gulliblility and a side order of scandalette.
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
Frankenstein Battalion
2nd Squadron: Ulanen-(Lancers) Regiment Großherzog Friedrich von Baden(Rheinisches) Nr.7(Saarbrucken)
Knecht Rupprecht Division
Hans Corps
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
February 27, 2012 at 9:49 AM
[…] bad enough to see a call for a Gomery-type inquiry from the Citizen’s Den Tandt even before any completed […]
February 27, 2012 at 10:16 AM
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