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Monday, June 01, 2009
Tim Hudak's endorsement video
This was sent to me anonymously:
Posted by Hugh MacIntyre on June 1, 2009 | Permalink
Comments
I suspect that is not the endorsement Tim was looking for. Just a guess.
Posted by: Angus MacIsaac | 2009-06-01 6:54:44 PM
A pretty tame sample of what the Liberals will have on us if Tim is leader. This is my great worry about him - that Tim = another free pass for McGuinty.
Posted by: Claire Featherstone | 2009-06-01 7:14:26 PM
Mike Harris and George Bush endorsements should secure a victory in 2011
Posted by: Frank B | 2009-06-01 7:14:32 PM
Oh my God. This guy is a total tool.
Posted by: Rob G | 2009-06-01 7:27:31 PM
That's the best McGuinty's Liberals could come up with? If anything supporting freedom in Iraq is likely to win Tim Hudak votes in a PC leadership race.
Posted by: Sarah | 2009-06-01 7:29:43 PM
Sarah, it may help in a PC leadership race (although I'm not sure it does), it certainly won't help in a general election. My guess is that McGuinty would love to face Hudak.
Posted by: William Joseph | 2009-06-01 7:36:20 PM
WHO MADE THIS VIDEO?? HOW DARE ANYONE ATTACK TIM.
I demand to know who made this video and why it is online - otherwise the authorities will be notified. Consider yourselves warned.
Posted by: Brett Bell | 2009-06-01 7:37:55 PM
What are the authorities are you refering to exactly? The thought police or the PC Party Executive?
He's quoted directly out of news articles.
Posted by: Frank B | 2009-06-01 7:45:37 PM
If only the creators of his video knew the truth: Ontario, and Canada, was one of the largest backers of the Iraq War.
Posted by: Zebulon Pike | 2009-06-01 7:45:47 PM
William, if McGuinty would love to face Hudak in a general election then why is he leaking Hudak attack ads to a pro Hillier site? If McGuinty was afraid of facing Christine Elliot or Frank Klees in a provincial election then wouldn't we be seeing anti Elliot or anti Klees ads? If I were McGuinty and I wanted to face Tim Hudak in 2011 then wouldn't I want Tim Hudak to win the leadership? Please explain your reasoning.
Posted by: Sarah | 2009-06-01 7:47:49 PM
Sarah, I guess the two most obvious explanations for the video are:
1) Going on your assumption that this helps Hudak win the Ontario PC leadership, but lose the general election. That's a winning scenario for McGuinty.
2) McGuinty had nothing to do with this video and it was done by either another candidate's campaign or just a supporter of another candidate (since anyone can create a video like this).
Posted by: William Joseph | 2009-06-01 7:53:10 PM
William, my answers to your questions would be:
1. Dalton McGuinty is an idiot and would think everyone in this province thinks like his Liberal dreamers.
2. This wouldn't help any of the other camps since Tim Hudak will likely win the PC leadership and thus carry the party with him into 2011. Every attack ad created by the other candidates would thus be an attack on a potential leader. Not very smart, eh?
Posted by: Sarah | 2009-06-01 7:58:32 PM
The Great McGuinty ought to realize how much of his precious tax revenue came from arms sales to the US and other countries fighting in Iraq. I wonder if he'd give it back out of "principle". As an Ontarian, of course, he has none - he even failed to stop Toronto from racially segregating its schools. Its fair to call Ontario a failure of a place and ought to be kicked out of Canada as deadweight.
Posted by: Zebulon Pike | 2009-06-01 7:59:51 PM
Why are you assuming that this came from McGuinty? As william points out it could have be made by anyone.
And even if they did make the video, the point could easily be to weaken but not destroy Hudak.
Posted by: Hugh MacIntyre | 2009-06-01 8:01:32 PM
Er.. Brett Bell.
Have you ever heard of freedom of speech? and find me one thing in that that isn't verifiable. Authorities, my ass....
Posted by: Sean | 2009-06-01 8:04:44 PM
I'd like to inform commenters that the previous comments by "Brett Bell" was not posted by me.
People are free to make these kinds of videos if they wish. And if Western Standard wants to promote this kind material, that is also their right.
Brett Bell
Tim Hudak Campaign
Posted by: Actually Brett Bell | 2009-06-01 8:29:33 PM
Sarah said, "This wouldn't help any of the other camps since Tim Hudak will likely win the PC leadership and thus carry the party with him into 2011. Every attack ad created by the other candidates would thus be an attack on a potential leader. Not very smart, eh?"
I completely disagree with this. If your point is that the other 3 candidates all think they have no chance to win so they don't want to hut Hudak, then I think that's insane. Even if this were true that the other 3 candidates think they will lose and don't want to attack Hudak, this doesn't mean that their supporters believe they will lose and are unwilling to attack Hudak.
Right now there are 3 candidates in a race with Hudak and McGunity has a chance to be in a race with Hudak. I would bet this video came from one of the 3 candidates or supporters of that candidate.
Posted by: William Joseph | 2009-06-01 8:40:33 PM
Obvious Liberal job. We should remember that they are not uninterested in the outcome of this race. It looks like they're most worried about Tim.
Posted by: nichego | 2009-06-01 8:42:13 PM
The Great McGuinty ought to realize how much of his precious tax revenue came from arms sales to the US and other countries fighting in Iraq.
Posted by: Zebulon Punk | 2009-06-01 7:59:51 PM
Canada sells arms to the US, and some to the the UK. Canada's arms sales to Australia, Denmark and Poland who were part of the invasion force and to Spain which joined later on are non-existent. Much of Ontario's aerospace and defence sector is home grown, unlike Alabama's which required Nazi's like Von Braun to get started. The aerospace and defence sector requires lots of highly skilled engineers and technicians, illiterates just off a banana boat have nothing to offer that industry.
Posted by: The Stig | 2009-06-01 8:46:39 PM
Stig: and you have no problem with Chretien lying about involvement in the Iraq War and rampant war profiteering? Sad. Truly sad.
Posted by: Zebulon Pike | 2009-06-01 9:21:41 PM
Wow. This is what passes for news at the Western Standard? If only Ezra could take back control - this thing is being run by a bunch of children.
Posting an anonymous attack video of a Conservative candidate? No wonder no one takes this space seriously.
You're not a Tiny Tory anymore, Hugh.
Grow up. And get a job.
Posted by: Disappointed | 2009-06-01 10:51:08 PM
It isn't news that someone did an anonymous attack video. The content of the anonymous attack video is something though. Many people may not have known that Hudak was helping to organize the Canadians for Bush rally in 2003. This isn't a sleazy personal attack, it is quotes from an interview that Hudak gave about a public event he was helping with.
Posted by: William Joseph | 2009-06-01 11:09:26 PM
I agree with Disappointed, the presentation of the video lacks context and research. Were other candidates for the war in Iraq and what was the Liberals' stance on the matter, that would make for real journalism... Oh but I forgot this is a blog, so you can throw all that work out the window...
Here are my comments regarding this video:
First, it was a different context, we still believed, including PM Harper, that there actually were WMD in Iraq and Tim showed good sense in wanting to support the US, our major partner in Canada and Ontario, in this endeavour. We later learned the Bush administration had exaggerated, but that should not reflect on those who wanted to support the US in good faith. If he still had those views recently, that would be a different story, but in 2003, come on.
Secondly, what kind of message is this sending. Ontario or provinces for that matter, have nothing to do with National Defense. Whoever designed this video did not really think this through.
I am pretty sure this was NOT created by the liberals. They wouldn't be wasting their time on this so soon. They would at least wait to see which leader actually won. I have a feeling this is a desperate move, by a desperate campaign (read: Hiller or Klees).
Posted by: Nathalie | 2009-06-02 4:45:36 AM
I disagree, Nathalie. With the recent Mike Harris endorsement, Elliott polls showing Hudak is leading, the most endorsements from the PC party establishment, the highest membership sales, a provincewide organization and a grass roots fund raising machine, Tim Hudak has emerged as the clear popular frontrunner. McGuinty needs to nip this in the bud right away. The best way to do that? Cause infighting within the party by releasing an anonymous attack ad to a blog he knew would post it then sit back and watch the bickering. This has all the trappings of classic Liberal smear and personally I think the party is too strong to fall for it.
Posted by: Sarah | 2009-06-02 6:00:36 AM
Of course the Liberals would put effort in to cutting off their main opponent before he can even win the party leadership! The federal Conservatives put out a full set of TV ads on Stephane Dion not two months after he was elected; a single YouTube clip is not an excessive amount of effort to use on a leadership candidate found to be a little threatening.
I'm not saying it's wrong for the Liberals to do this, but it's disappointing to find allegedly conservative websites delivering Dalton's attacks for him.
Posted by: nichego | 2009-06-02 6:17:02 AM
Sarah,
actually Tim Hudak didn't sell the most memberships. In fact he was behind both Frank Klees and Christine Elliott. Despite his advantages of having the support of the party elite, he isn't even raising the most money. This race is far from over.
nichego,
You may be partly correct in calling this a 'conservative website' but you would be very incorrect if you had called this a 'Conservative website.' I don't think that there is a blogger on Shotgun who is more interested in political parties than ideas. I felt that this video was interesting enough to share with people and it isn't my responsibility to protect politicians from each other.
Posted by: hughmacintyre | 2009-06-02 9:11:14 AM
Yes, clearly, the 2011 campaign is going to focus on a provincial politician's view on a foreign war eight years earlier.
Stephen Harper's similar view didn't seem to hurt him in 2006 or 2008 - and he was running for a position that actually handles foreign affairs.
If you wanted any more confirmation that Hudak is the frontrunner, it's videos like this one. But if someone is going to use attack ads, they'd better make sure they're effective. I'd suggest that this one really isn't.
Posted by: ALW | 2009-06-02 9:37:04 AM
ALW, it speaks more to his judgement in general than his position on this one issue. Hudak seems to be pretty awful from a libertarian perspective, even if I don't expect that he'd send Ontario into the Iraq war.
Posted by: William Joseph | 2009-06-02 9:56:34 AM
I second that William - Hudak's policy of seizing assets of alleged (not convicted) criminals is utterly ridiculous. Hudak is not a libertarian at all, and his tax holidays are a joke as well.
I was with him at the beginning but am going Randy #1 and Christine #2 because of her flat tax.
Posted by: Freedom Lover | 2009-06-02 11:32:19 AM
William, are you being a revisionist? There are plenty of hawkish libertarians (myself included) who supported the invasion of Iraq at the time. Suggesting that taking that position disqualifies one from being a libertarian is as ridiculous as saying that being pro-choice or pro-gay marriage disqualifies someone from being a conservative.
Posted by: ALW | 2009-06-02 6:54:36 PM
Easy ALW,
Your point is well taken.
But the Hudak Campaign has been a campaign about annointing the leader in a quick race.
They tried to suck out the oxygen - didn't work.
They got the big endorsements from Candidates and Riding Presidents - people are leaving and going to Elliott.
They rolled out Mike Harris - didn't work.
They claimed the front runner status - obviously not true.
They claimed to sell 14,000 memberships - bunk.
They deny that its even a close race - it is closer than they like.
Targeted tax cuts for who? You?
Seizing property with no charges laid?
The campaign has been aweful. They are arrogant and there seems to be a sense of entitlement.
You can't honestly say that you are pleased with this campaign.
Posted by: Frank B | 2009-06-03 12:57:00 AM
Wow - poll just came out through Ipsos Reid saying Christine has 35% support, Hudak 24%. This guy is a sinking ship. Frank B, you called it. http://tinyurl.com/q664jf
Posted by: Jarrod S | 2009-06-03 5:29:37 AM
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