Angry in the Great White North

The Throne Speech has been read. The responses?

Gilles Duceppe: Thumbs down.

Jack Layton: Thumbs down.

Stephane Dion: No response. I think he's hiding behind that column to the left.

Michael Ignatieff spoke on behalf of the Liberal Party? In any other situation, it wouldn't matter. But with Stephane Dion and the Liberals, what message is that sending?

Anyway, Michael Ignatieff used words like "responsible" in describing the pending Liberal response. Hmm, opposite of gutsy. No election coming? Maybe.

But the giveaway is Ignatieff's response to NDP charge that the Liberals are abrogating their responsibility if they don't vote down the Throne Speech. Michael Ignatieff repeated word-for-word Ralph Goodale's response to NDP sniping at the Liberals who might be considering letting the Throne Speech stand:

Liberal House Leader Ralph Goodale insisted Liberal MPs will discharge their responsibilities in the best interests of Canadians, but called Layton's challenge "a bit much." He said the NDP's role in bringing down the last Liberal government cost Canadians a universal child care program and billions for aboriginal Canadians.

"Mr. Layton's principles are barely skin deep, and quite frankly I will take no lectures from him on how to conduct myself in the Parliament of Canada," he said.

Universal child care? Aboriginal Canadians? No lessons from the NDP?

Yup, word for word. Michael Ignatieff hit each of those points exactly while being interviewed by the CBC.

This has to be a Liberal talking point prepared for what they expect to be a commonly heard NDP attack.

And if they think it's going to be heard often enough that every senior Liberal has been briefed on what to say, then you have to assume that they expect to be hearing that often, and that means they already know that they are going to let the Throne Speech stand, and that the NDP is going to be going after them on that point for the forseeable future.

That's my bet based on reading the tea leaves.