Angry in the Great White North

Francis Chartrand and Micheline Montreuil: Is Thomas Mulcair behind NDP problems in Quebec?

Though there is some confusion about the size of the fallout from the decision of the NDP to cancel the candidacies of Micheline Montreuil and Francis Chartrand in Quebec, it is clear that there has been some fallout.

Anne Humphreys, a candidate who resigned her candidacy in support of Francis Chartrand, attributes the problems to Thomas Mulcair, the former provincial Liberal cabinet minister who ran for the NDP in the Liberal stronghold of Outremont.  In that by-election, Stephane Dion's hand-picked candidate, Jocelyn Coulon, was handily defeated by Mulcair.

According to Humphreys, Mulcair has promised to bring in a dozen star candidates.  Jack Layton desperately wants these people as candidates, so longtime NDP members like Chartrand and Montreuil are chucked aside.

NDP members in Quebec are not happy about this.

Micheline Montreuil and the NDP exchange barbs

Transsexual Micheline Montreuil was dumped as an NDP candidate just before Christmas, and harsh words were exchanged.  She alleged that the NDP decided a transsexual candidate was a liability.  Now the two sides are exchanging verbal blows again.

Francis Chartrand, the NDP, and historical revisionism [now with a bonus revisionism game]

With the news of transgendered NDP candidate Micheline Montreuil's ejection as a candidate for the NDP, not much notice has been given to Francis Chartrand, the other NDP candidate in Quebec who was also told he would no longer be able to stand for office on behalf of the NDP.

Given Chartrand's unambiguous gender, the story seemed less interesting.

It might not be as salacious as Montreuil's, but Chartrand's story is far from uninteresting.

Update: Not to be satisfied with deleting posts, Francis Chartrand now adds posts back in.  Fortunately I have the screenshots to show the changes.

The fight between Micheline Montreuil and the NDP

The NDP has not had a good few weeks.  The latest is the news that transgendered candidate Micheline Montreuil has been dropped by the NDP.  It was not a friendly parting of the ways.  Instead we have conflicting stories and threats of legal action.

Jack Layton and the NDP versus transgendered ex-candidate Micheline Montreuil

The NDP has a problem.  The party is eager to build on the success of Thomas Mulcair to make a real breakthrough in Quebec.  But transgendered candidate Micheline Montreuil was problematic.  Depending on who you listen to, she was not a team player, or her gender status was considered to be a liability.

The NDP has dropped her as a candidate.

And now it looks like the NDP is going to learn what it feels like to be worked over by the Human Rights Tribunal.