What do you think is the reason behind the federal cabinet shuffle?

Question

Prime Minister Stephen Harper insists this week's cabinet shuffle is not motivated by the possibility of an election, yet recent polls put the federal Conservatives in a dead heat with Stephane Dion's Liberals.

Answer 1

He thinks Canadians are so dumb that they'll see a change in the cabinet as a change in policy! Hopefully the laugh will be on him!

Answer 2

Of course all politicians know they must always take into consideration the possibility of the next election, especially when your a minority government. Like this is a no brainier. But they also must deal with what is considered the general public present primary concern and address that with good policy a timely schedul and good government. In addressing these issues along with good policy, the right person for the job must be considered and this is arrived at by the track records and expertise of these individuals. They also must deal with weather it is the right person or not and in today's politically correct society an appearance of balance amongst the sexes and minority's needs to be also dealt with and not necessarily if it is the right person for the job. So if someone does not work out, then they are replaced. It does not mean that they would not be good at other portfolios, that they did not have something of value to give or maybe they just never had enought time to change things.The liberals screwed this country up for 12 years and could not get it right. Don't expect the Conservatives to reverse the damage in 12 months. Give Harper and his people 3 years of government and the country will see that he will bring to the people of Canada an equal and fairest representation of democracy this country has never had in its history for all Canadians coast to coast and north to south. He will also be a major world leader (not a follower) and will go down in history as either the greatest Prime Minister Canada ever had or one of the greatest and I will put my money on that.

Eric W

Answer 3

Borrowed from Bill Clinton " It's the Environment Stupid"

Climate change is either manmade or natural or a combination of both. There is a considerable amount of science available to the discerning person who wishes to assess the subject objectively. Unfortunately there is too much scientific bias in support of political and corporate masters. It really is quite remarkable. The resultant spin is also quite remarkable to the extent that politcians think they can hoodwink the public. Very often this works, however, on this occasion the spin has backfired and the Harper Government is in damage control mode, hence the cabinet shuffle. The public face of Canada's environmental strategy during 2006 was so pathetic that recovery as a result of the shuffle is very unlikely. The blame does not lie at the feet of Ms Ambrose either. She was given a hokey policy and bad information with which to advocate. She was put in a position where it was impossible to mitigate embarrassment to Canada on the global stage. The constant partisan criticism of the 13 years of so called Liberal inaction sounds like a scratched gramaphone record. Can the PM not speak with some intellect that would give the people of this country just a clue that he knows anything about global warming. At the same time does anyone in the PMO office know anything about global waming.
Remember the Cigarette Ads that Doctors prefer Camels.

Answer 4

I think Stephen is trying to understand what it is Canadians want... We needed a smart, resonable government that could make decisions and not steal from Canadians. We got that, they are making the tough decisions and they are actually doing something about the enviroment, with a realistic plan. Roughly 35% of Canadians are obviously too ignorant to understand, and it must be very confusing to Mr. Harper as it is to Canadians who want a better Canada and a better world. He moved Ambrose out to try to reach out to the 35% of Canadians who are so confused they would put proven theives back into power.

Why don't people see it was the Liberal ignorance and lazyness to do anything real with the enviroment? Anyone can say this and that, and sit and do nothing... what do people want? An amazing miracle, like the Liberals where just going to snap there fingers and bam, the enviroment is fixed. Come on people put your political biases aside and see what has happened. Harper is fixing the crap that we've been through and it's not easy.

So now we have Harper and a Government who is actually governing, making decisions for people who obviously have the lack of ability to think in a rational manner. He's moving people around because he needs to appeal to these people that still say they'd vote Liberal, why?? That's got to be a question Stephen is trying to answer as a Logical and good man that cares more for Canada than just votes or the amount of money he can scam and give to Quebec to stay in control of a confused country.

Answer 5

I think the reason he is shuffling his cabinet is maybe he thinks that some people may be better at doing other things in a different area. You cant always match the right person to a position on the first try. Personally I like Harper and his government so far. They've kept far more promises that the liberals have. And they had to fix a lot of things that the liberals messed up. Good Job Tories!

Answer 6

Every day I shake my head at the reason for people supporting certain groups. I used to vote liberal, now I vote conservative. I am not locked into any party, I will vote with who ever has the best platform. It amazes me that there are so many people out there that blindly follow the liberals due to their own selfish reasons. Canada is better served with a conservative government, they have done more with a minority government in the last year then the Liberals did in 12.

One person will vote for the liberals because there aren't enough women in the current cabinet??? are you kidding me??

Plain and simple, the conservatives re-shuffled the cabinet due to some weaknesses. Think for a minute, what is wrong with that, they are trying to be as effective as possible. If they were like the liberals and left mistakes in key roles, would that be better. Think about what you're complaining about, before you open you're mouth.

And lastly, I wish all the cowards that want to bring the troops home could talk to the troops and families of the troops and realize that they believe in what they are doing. Getting rid of the Taliban is a good thing for the world, and you want to stop doing it?? Our country is proud and great and we need to protect our values and freedoms.

Answer 7

Stephen Harper is an ambitious politician who follows the twists and turns of public opinion carefully. At the same time, he has an agenda, not all of which is open to the public to know. Rona Ambrose failed to serve Harper's political purpose. He had appointed a woman as his environment Minister, probably expecting that such an appointment would attract support among those who care about the environment. From the green perspective this was obviously not going to work, because Rona Ambrose doesn't understand the issues. Nor does Stephen Harper. He doesn't realize that Mother Nature's rules are far more fundamental than those of conventional economics (particularly the neo-conservative versions), and there is really no hope that he will understand. So he has spun the wheel, hoping that another stubborn character will be able to hold back a tide by telling it to go away.

Answer 8

The cabinet shuffle has everything to do with an election. If another liberal MP besides Stephan Dion had been elected Liberal leader, we may not have seen this shuffle. But now, with a liberal leader who is an environmentalist, a significant NDP presence (who have environmental policies), and a growing interest in Elizabeth May - the Harper govt, who has been very ineffective with enviromental policies, is nervous. I really don't think the Harper government cares much for the environment at all. The good thing is, whether any party "cares" for the enviroment or not, there seems to be a focus on the issues we face - toxic chemicals, global warming, declining natural resources.

Answer 9

The shuffle was because of a pending election, and therefore, the environment, which promises to be a bigger issue the next time around.

The Liberals are very close to the Tories in terms of popularity, they have a new leader and are threatening an election. Harper's cabinet shuffle moves the government away from the right and towards the centre and has gives new posts to five MPs from each region of the country. This is an election cabinet.

Answer 10

I believe the primary reason for the shuffle is the environmental issues that seem to be at the forefront. Rona Ambrose has had great difficulty dealing with the issues within the Ministry and, with Dion now the leader of the Liberal party, the Conservatives need to show Canadians that they are willing to make changes to deal with these issues and continue forward. Dion's past involvement with this portfolio has been less than stellar and the Liberals disregard for the environment over the past 15 years will be the key point should an election be called. The Conservatives need to position themselves firmly with solid leadership within the Ministry and prepare for when the writ is dropped.

Answer 11

Rona Ambrose was not suited for the Environment portfolio. That being said, I think she did a good job, and that the government as a whole could have done a better job with presenting the Clean Air Act. Again, that said, I am thoroughly convinced the Clean Air Act is a much sounder policy than the Kyoto protocol was. But I digress. John Baird's experience with the Federal Accountability Act should be useful when applied to the Clean Air Act. It is not uncommon for leaders to shuffle their cabinets, and the new year provides a perfect psychological and reasonable time to do it.