Angry in the Great White North

Here is the exchange between CTV's Graeme Richardson, sitting in for Mike Duffy, and Liberal MP John McCallum, discussing Liberal plans on the upcoming budget vote:

Graeme Richardson: Surely the Liberals can't support another Conservative budget?

John McCallum: But what we want to see is the budget.  As Stephane Dion has said 101 times, he wants to see the budget.  If it's good, we'll vote yes.  If it's bad, we'll vote no.  And we've named a number of things we want. 

One is direct support for manufacturing which I've just described.

Second, we have paid down the debt enormously.  We think a $3 billion reduction is enough this year, not $10 billion, which the Conservatives want to do, and we would inject that $7 billion immediately into infrastructure -- crumbling bridges, crumbling infrastructure.  We want to leave to our future generations not just a lower debt but also a healthy infrastructure, healthy cities, public transit, better roads, bridges, and so on.

So those are two things we want to see in the budget.

Two things stand out.

First, there are two specific issues that the Conservatives must address.  One is a bailout for the manufacturing sector, and the other is yet more money for infrastructure.  Nothing about the environment, or poverty reduction, or health care.

But the other is that if these two things aren't in the budget, the Liberals will vote no.  John McCallum never makes mention of abstentions or walking out of votes.  The Liberals will vote yes or the Liberals will vote no.

Bailout and infrastructure spending.  Yes on the budget and no election required.

No bailout or no infrastructure money.  No on the budget and an election fight begins.

Final, some clarity from the Liberal Party.  I fully expect that this position will not change between now and the budget vote.