OK, I admit it, the Conservatives may be in trouble. The combination of problems with the transfer of detainees in Afghanistan and certain former Conservatives married to cabinet ministers who did ... well ... something (Harper won’t tell us what but it was bad enough to kick said minister from caucus) looks like it could cause some problems for the government. In this situation, in the “real world of politics” we would expect the government to do something to shore up its base. And, just days after I told my students that there was no way on earth the Conservatives would touch the abortion issue, it looks like they are going to touch it. It is a private members bill, to be sure, but one that looks intentionally designed to try to make the opposition Liberals look bad. The bill prohibits using coercion to force a woman to have an abortion against her will.
The Globe has a good take on it: Aborition Non-Abortion
One can have a range of different views on this bill. My take is that it is the worst type of politicking I’ve seen in some time. Why? Well, the bill is absolutely meaningless. The most meaningless passage in it is the following. The bill -- if it became a low -- would make it illegal for someone to break the law. Yep, you read right. It is not a typo. This proposed bill would make it illegal to break the law. If you vote for it, you are, in effect, saying that it is a crime to break the law. Hmmm ... I know the Conservatives want to find some way to tag the Liberals a good one after a bad week but is this not just a bit over the top?
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