He is, and the Conservatives have been moving more to the centre in recent years. Compared to the GOP, the Conservatives are downright liberal.
Harper makes a lot of stupid errors that get him into trouble. Still, I think Canada has been far better off. We weathered the recession better than most countries. Plus Canada has a much higher standing in the world than under the previous government. He's one of the few leaders to continually speak against rights abuses in the People's Republic of China. Afghanistan has been a huge boon to us on the international stage as well. When the Liberals sent them in, they didn't even have the proper equipment.
Iggy on the other hand is a typical tax and spend liberal. Us in Ontario have weathered eight years under the worst premier in resent memory. Statistically, not just my opinion. His brother is one of Iggy's right hand men. They're both painted with the same brush. It worries me that they would even entertain the possibility of allying with the Bloc. The Liberals support a weak, wishy washy foreign policy and an elitist, anti-libertarian domestic policy. Canadians like them because they tell them what to do without rocking the boat. They've always been a fair weather party.
The NDP is far to extreme on the political scale for most Canadians. Jack Layton also isn't well. In the last year he's had a hip replacement and treatment for cancer. He looks ill and would be well advised to step down as leader. As for their platform, there's not a lot of meat to it.
Both the Liberals and NDP have very costly platforms. The country cannot afford them. Not now, not in the foreseeable future. Everyone knows tax revenues are forecast to drop as the boomers retire. Instituting multi-billion dollar programs that only benefit a minority of people is downright foolish and irresponsible. That's what got Portugal, Ireland, and Greece into so much trouble. Spending now means serious austerity measures later. Maintaining the status quo is at least somewhat sustainable.
The Bloc can kiss my hairy arse. Bunch of traitors only there to extort money, money the province of Quebec is swimming in. I'm tired of having my tax dollars going to support those ingrates. However, they hold the balance of power in parliament right now. They're guaranteed Quebec, which holds a large number of seats. They have zero interest in the welfare of the country as a whole. For them to wield so much power should be of great concern for all Canadians. It's like electing Benedict Arnold as president of the United States!
