Political leaders hit the road as campaign heats up
Last Updated: Saturday, April 25, 2009 | 3:59 PM PT
CBC News
The leaders of British Columbia's two major political parties hit the campaign trail in various parts of the province Saturday.
During a stop on Vancouver Island, B.C. Liberal Leader Gordon Campbell addressed the fact two of his party's candidates — John van Dongen, the current solicitor general, and Laura McDiarmid, running in Vancouver-West End — have driving records involving speeding, while another — Jesse McClinton, running in Victoria-Swan Lake — had an incident involving drinking and driving three years ago.
B.C. Liberal candidate Jesse McClinton says he hopes voters will look past his brush with the law. (CBC) Campbell said he was unaware of the McClinton incident before CBC News broke the story Friday. But the premier said he hoped voters would give his young candidate a chance, and referred to his own arrest for impaired driving — in Hawaii in 2003.
"First of all, let's be honest about this," Campbell said. "I had a DUI, I was upfront about it. I said I was sorry, I knew it was wrong and I think that's what Jesse's done.
"And I think we have to recognize, unfortunately, people make mistakes. I think the question is, how do people deal with mistakes when they make them?"
McClinton told reporters Saturday he had told the party what happened, saying he had had a few drinks and waited before getting behind the wheel of a vehicle, but didn't wait long enough.
He was careful to specify that he did not have a criminal record. Despite being charged with driving while impaired, he pleaded guilty to driving without reasonable consideration — not technically a criminal charge — and paid a $200 fine.
He said Saturday he hoped voters can see past the incident.
"I think that I've learned from my mistakes," McClinton said, "and hopefully, people know that out of some failure … people can move forward and make good decisions from it. So, hopefully, they'll see that."
McClinton said he never intended to conceal the incident and, although he didn't expect it to emerge the way it did, he said he's now glad it's out in the open. He's not ruling out talking to young people about the incident, either.
James takes campaign to Interior
In a speech in Cranbrook, B.C., New Democrat Leader Carole James promised Saturday to give more power to small communities.
Speaking to regional politicians in the riding of Kootenay East, James characterized the B.C. Liberal government's approach to small communities as "colonialism."
"It's about Victoria saying: 'We know best. We'll make the decisions, and if you don't like it, lump it.'"
It was the latest attack on an issue James has hammered away at all week: the Liberals, the NDP says, have used legislative bills 30 and 75 to sell B.C.'s rivers and streams en masse to private power companies, leaving communities with no say when it comes to approving or rejecting hydroelectric projects.
During her speech, James repeated a promise to repeal those laws.
However, David Wilks, the mayor of Sparwood, disputed James's stand on the issue.
While there are problems surrounding power projects, he said, Kootenay East already has a strong advocate in Victoria in Bill Bennett, the sitting MLA for the region.
"We need to have a voice at the table in Victoria," Wilks said, "and fortunately for us in the East Kootenay, we do have a voice in minister Bennett."
The New Democrats are hoping their candidate, Troy Sebastian, will defeat Bennett on May 12 and solidify the party's hold in the Kootenays.
Free beer? Not!
There will be no free beer at a pre-election event in Fernie next month.
On Saturday, B.C. NDP campaign organizers sent out a photograph of a poster at the Bulldog Pub that advertised a meet-and-greet with Bennett — and free beer.
Just a few hours later, the Liberals sent out a release saying Elections BC would determine whether the offer was in compliance with the Elections Act. But in the meantime, the posters are coming down and the offer of free beer has been taken off the table.
Troy Sebastian, the NDP candidate in Kootenay East, said the whole thing smacks of Liberal desperation.
For his part, Bennett said he was never offering free beer to anyone, adding that the pub, presumably, saw little difference between free beer and free hotdogs at a campaign rally.
Nominations closed
Candidate nominations for the May 12 provincial election are now closed and, according to Elections BC, a total of 346 candidates, representing a total of 15 political parties, have entered the race.
The Liberals, New Democrats and the Green party have entered candidates in all 85 ridings, while the B.C. Conservatives are running 25 candidates, Elections BC reported on its website.
Among the lesser-known parties are the Sex Party and the Communist Party, both of which feature three candidates. The Work Less Party will run two candidates and the Marijuana Party has one.
Conservatives announce platform
The fledgling B.C. Conservative Party has unveiled its election platform and, much like the New Democrats, it is vowing to abolish the province's carbon tax.
The Conservatives say they will also push to lift a moratorium on offshore oil exploration and expand the on-shore oil and gas sector. The party is also in favour of reducing personal and business taxes and opposes the recognition of aboriginal title.
While the provincial New Democrats have taken heat of late from environmental organizations for vowing to axe the carbon tax, a prominent environmentalist has taken a swipe at the B.C. Liberal government.
Valhalla Wilderness Society director Anne Sherrod says praise from groups such as the David Suzuki Foundation for the Liberals' energy policy envisages B.C. as the oil and gas drilling capital of the world.
