To Your Health!
By Chris Hall, CBC News
Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks during Monday's question period in the House of Commons. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)
Apparently politicians don't have to make a trip to the doctor to get in a shot. Or two.
It began when Liberal MP Bob Rae rose in the Commons today to ask the prime minister abut the health-care debate raging the United States.
During the first question period of the fall parliamentary session, Rae wanted to know what Prime Minister Stephen Harper thinks of the ''extraordinary attacks'' on Canada's health-care system by right-wing Republicans.
Rae then gave his shot, calling them the people from whom the prime minister takes ''spiritual inspiration.''
Republicans have derided Canada's universal health-care system as "medicine by bureaucrat" and grossly inefficient compared to the U.S. system built around private insurance.
Rae asked if Harper was ''proud'' of Canadian health care.
''It's the only system my family has ever used and we're depending on it in the future,'' the prime minister replied.
With that answer in mind, Rae — a former NDP premier of Ontario — got to his feet for a follow-up question.
Would the government defend the virtues of Canada's medicare system in light of those attacks from the American right-wing, he asked, giving Harper his chance to administer a shot of his own.
"The Canadian health-care system will not only survive the attack of right-wing commentators in the United States, but even survived one by left-wing incompetence in Ontario," Harper replied.
About the Authors
- Rosemary Barton started her television career reporting from Quebec City where she covered the ins and outs of Quebec politics. She moved to the CBC Parliamentary Bureau in 2007. She also stood on the side of road awaiting U.S. President Barack Obama's motorcade for hours in the cold. When she finally spotted him, all of Canada heard her shriek, "I saw him!"
- Alison Crawford worked in Fredericton, Calgary and Winnipeg before returning to her hometown to work in the CBC parliamentary bureau. Her beats include the RCMP, justice, public safety and the Liberals. Alison credits her investigative skills as well as a national etiquette column and coverage of a ferret Christmas party, with having prepared her for covering national politics.
- Andrew Davidson is a producer for the CBC politics page in Toronto. He joined CBCNews.ca's national desk in 2006 and was the lead news writer for the website's 2008 federal election coverage.
- Chris Hall is the National Affairs Editor for CBC News. He's been a member of the CBC Parliamentary Bureau since 1998. That adds up to 11 budgets, four elections, three prime ministers and too many confidence votes to count. Chris started his career in print before moving to the CBC in 1992. Since then, he's worked in Toronto, Halifax and St. John's, as well as Ottawa.
- Leslie MacKinnon Leslie's been working in news and current affairs since newsrooms used teletype, televison was shot on film and radio tape was edited with a razor blade. She saw through The Journal's long run on CBC-TV, and since then has worked in Halifax, Toronto and Ottawa in the CBC's various permutations. Right now, she's a TV news reporter in the political bureau, and likes certain parts of Ottawa - the canal, the Hill - a lot.
- Janyce McGregor has been a television producer in the CBC's Parliamentary Bureau since 2001. She started her career working for Studio 2 on TVOntario. In 2005 her then-doctoral student husband persuaded her to follow him to the U.K., where she worked for BBC World Service Radio in London. Janyce is originally a farm girl from southwestern Ontario. Her most important job title is "Norah's Mom."
- Chris Rands has been a member of the Parliamentary bureau since 2001. He started at Toronto's AM Radio giant CFRB before moving to CBC's National Radio News in 1996. Chris has worked in Toronto, Moncton, Sudbury, Regina, Washington and St John's. Every time Chris walks up to the Peace Tower, he wants to throw his hat in the air like Mary Tyler Moore.
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