Warning wins it for weston
Published Wednesday October 15th, 2008
The carbon tax killed Paul Zed.
That's one way to interpret why the Liberal lost his job to Conservative Rodney Weston in the federal election Tuesday. Saint John was a seat most pundits, including this one, thought Zed would take after winning the two previous elections.
By sending Zed packing, Saint Johners have sent a message to Liberal leader Stéphane Dion and his Green Shift initiative. They want no part of a new tax regime that might boost the cost of gas and electricity and hurt the chances of a new oil refinery, a megaproject that would pour a lot of money into the local economy.
There's growing fear about the world credit crisis and the possible future effects in this industrial town. People think of their pocketbooks in such times and wonder if there will be enough to make ends meet, especially when they've maxed out their credit cards or remortaged their homes.
Weston heard this message on the doorsteps and campaigned hard against the Liberal carbon tax. His pamphlets, dropped off at thousands of households, made the declaration in big letters: "The Dion/ Zed carbon tax will drive up the cost of everything you buy."
He cleverly made detailed warnings in smaller print, the kind that would make most people jumpy. The Dion/Zed carbon tax, it said, would create a spike in home heating oil costs and electricity rates. It would kill jobs in the mills and other key industries. And it would jeopardize Saint John's future as an energy hub. The only thing missing were a few exclamation points to augment the anxious tone.
It didn't help Zed that the NDP's Tony Mowery and the Green Party's Mike Richardson took thousands of left-wing votes, hurting him in a tight race. Those voters would never cast ballots for the Conservatives, which has the weakest environmental platform of the bunch.
Another interpretation is, like other New Brunswickers, a lot of people in Saint John wanted to get back on the government side. Sensing another Harper government was imminent, they voted for Weston in the hopes they'd have a bigger say in Ottawa and see more funding for the riding.
Weston is no small player and didn't consider himself a sacrificial lamb. He wasn't running simply to impress party brass with his loyalty. Once a provincial Conservative cabinet minister, he also served as former premier Bernard Lord's chief of staff.
But his win is still stunning. Weston's base is St. Martins, a small seaside village, whereas Zed was raised in Saint John and makes his home in the more populous suburban enclave of Rothesay. More people know Zed's name than Weston's. The Zed machine had a big volunteer base that loved his Team Saint John message. Reporters joked that never a day went by that Zed minions didn't pump out a media release commenting on anything and everything in the riding.
But Saint Johners didn't buy the lawyer's suggestion the $100 million that flowed from Ottawa to the riding during his tenure was mainly his doing. Weston easily countered that the $30 million from Ottawa for cleaning up the harbour of raw sewage was thanks to Harper's Conservative government, along with other funding initiatives.
With the city desperately in need of up to $70 million from Ottawa to bring safer, cleaner water, Saint Johners are counting on Weston to deliver on his pledge to find a way to make the upgrade.
They'll also be sure to remind him of his promise to work on forgiving the Harbour Bridge debt. Zed made this a campaign issue as well, but Weston upped the ante.
The Conservative said he'd like to see the tolls lifted after 40 years of dinging drivers. It will take more than simply writing letters to the Minister of Transportation, something Zed tried with little result.
John Chilibeck is a Telegraph-Journal reporter who writes about issues that affect the Saint John region. He can be reached at chilibeck.john@telegraphjournal.com or by calling 645-3267.
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Bunk promises from a Bunk candidate.
Zed lost because of an inapt leader, the green shift, and the fact that Zed had done little for Saint John. Zed only stood up and talked about things he had nothing to do with when the election was called.
Why don't you sore losers go to Zed's house and cry with him. Enough with bashing Harper and his negative attack ads. What about the liberals negative attack ads calling Harper=Bush.
They lost cause they did not have a plan.