MLA Slater sits as Independent

[Assumed]

Just heard Slater quits/booted from Liberal party. President of riding also leaves.

Slater tweeted that he will sit as independent. Interesting change of mind after he said that he would do whatever is best for Liberal Party. Me thinks that this has been a nasty breakup. Now will he run as an independent to spoil the liberal Candidate (Linda Larson) chances of winning the riding. Waitng to hear what Slater has to say about all this. Politics is always an interesting sport.

[grammafreddy]

I just googled "MLA Slater" and got this ...

This user has elected to delete their account and the content is no longer available.

[grammafreddy]

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/01/14 ... 74761.html

John Slater, B.C. MLA for Boundary-Similkameen, is leaving the B.C. Liberals to sit as an Independent, as the party stated it did not approve his candidacy to run again over “personal issues.”

Slater announced Monday on Twitter that he’s stepping down from the caucus, with a message that began, “Eff. Today.”

John Slater @JohnSlaterMLA
John Slater
Eff. Today, I will be stepping down as a member of the BC Liberal Caucus and will sit as an Independent for the rest of the session #bcpoli
January 14, 2013 9:01 pm via Twitter for BlackBerry® Reply Retweet Favorite

His news was followed by the resignation of Zach Poturica, the B.C. Liberals’ riding president in Boundary-Similkameen.

Zach Poturica @zachpoturica
Zach Poturica
Effective Immediately I'm stepping down as Riding President for the @bcliberals Boundary-Similkameen Riding #bcpoli
January 14, 2013 9:13 pm via web Reply Retweet Favorite

“I'm not alone,” added Poturica on Twitter, who said three to four other members of the riding executive are stepping down too. “I'm disappointed in the way this party mislead us.”

The B.C. Liberals issued a news release on Tuesday saying that Slater told colleagues he was not going to seek re-election, only to reconsider that decision over the past week.



"Mr. Slater’s candidacy is not being approved due to personal issues that, in our view, impact his ability to represent the party," said B.C. Liberal president Sharon White.

"The party sought a cooperative solution through discussions with John. This is not a decision taken lightly and is fully considered."

In 2009, Slater beat the NDP’s Lakhvinder Jhaj by 813 votes for his first provincial victory.

Linda Larson, a councillor and former mayor in Oliver, told the Vancouver Sun on Friday that she had been approached by party officials to run in Boundary-Similkameen.

[fluffy]

The Liberal Party is acting out of desperation, and it seems every move they make scores another point for the NDP. It looks like Mr Dix could win this election sitting at home watching Baywatch reruns, Ms. Clark is winning it for him. This is scary. The resource sector is too weak in BC right now for a left wing party to make a realistic go of it unless they plan to adopt right wing policy. This is real scary.

[edwardv]

The Liberal Party is acting out of desperation, and it seems every move they make scores another point for the NDP. It looks like Mr Dix could win this election sitting at home watching Baywatch reruns, Ms. Clark is winning it for him. This is scary. The resource sector is too weak in BC right now for a left wing party to make a realistic go of it unless they plan to adopt right wing policy. This is real scary.

In comparison to how the Liberals have managed things, the NDP would really have to screw things up to do worse. They (Libs) seem like the scandal a day party with the leader in hiding. What happened to Christy, she has been in hiding since the Firing of John Doyle.

[southy]

I have one major concern right now, if the LIberals continue to self destruct they leave voters no choice but to go with the NDP. Not that this in the big picture is a bad thing, just that it means Dan Ashton might actually lose and then we have to put up with him as Mayor and RDOS Chair. If he wins .. we lose. If he loses .. we lose? What's one to do?

[Captain77]

The Liberal Party is acting out of desperation

I think it could be the Liberal Party acting out of courage. Lets face it, the easier thing would be just keep John Slater there. But, the Liberals have indicated that there are personal issues in Mr. Slater's life that make him a less than desirable candidate in the upcoming election.

[Logitack]

"make him a less than desirable"??

less desireable than whom? like gordon campbell, DUI conviction? jane thornthwaite with her DUI?

gotta love the liberals and their character assassination of one of their own, or one that used to be their own..

[twobits]

less desireable than whom? like gordon campbell, DUI conviction? jane thornthwaite with her DUI?

Sounds like it might just be headlines like that they would prefer not to see again. If the guy does have an addiction problem, perhaps it was the right thing to do.

[edwardv]

Personal Problems could mean anything, It seems like his personal problem is the Liberals don't like him anymore.

Lib's have lost all credibility with me long ago, hard to believe anything they say anymore its all spin.

[twobits]

Personal Problems could mean anything, It seems like his personal problem is the Liberals don't like him anymore.

Lib's have lost all credibility with me long ago, hard to believe anything they say anymore its all spin.

Yes personal problems could mean anything but this snippet from the Castanet news article does possibly suggest what some concerns might be.

Slater said there were other personal issues, of which he would not elaborate.

He said he consulted his doctor last spring after he was observed swaying down a hall at the legislature on his way to a caucus meeting.

Slater said Monday a combination of prescription medication, antihistamines and a glass of wine left him out of sorts for much of the afternoon.

Liberal officials kept Slater in the party caucus room for several hours after which he emerged and said he was discussing rural issues with party brass.

He confessed to "being out of sorts for much of the afternoon" and then claims to have been discussing rural issues with party brass. Tell me how you effectively do that if you are swaying down the hallway from the effects of meds and alcohol? Can't help but think it was probably more a case of "John, park your butt here until you sober up"

[edwardv]

He confessed to "being out of sorts for much of the afternoon" and then claims to have been discussing rural issues with party brass. Tell me how you effectively do that if you are swaying down the hallway from the effects of meds and alcohol? Can't help but think it was probably more a case of "John, park your butt here until you sober up"

So you "Think" as in perhaps but i don't really have any evidence other than he may have accidentally had some wine with some prescription medications.

Does Gordon Campbell have a problem, he was busted Drinking and Driving. Should he have been told to get out for a term until he sobers up? Seems like a double standard here?

[Assumed]

Remember that Cardoso won the nomination and Campbell would not sign his nomination papers. The riding did a do over and Slater won. Now Clark doesn't approve of Slater. I would not appreciate Clark telling me that Slater can't be my MLA if I voted for him. The public make that decision at the ballot box, not Clark. I hope that Slater runs as an independent or as a Conservative.

With Linda Larson being approached by the Liberals, it seems that they want a women from the valley as it did not go so well in Penticton. Are the Liberals sacrificing Slater?

Is Barisoff one of the MLA's that Slater does not get along with? He lives in the riding. Slater got the jail for that area.

Just thinking out loud. Lots of questions. Reminds me of when the NDP imploded. They started fighting amongst themselves.

[Captain77]

•Photos ( 1 )








I'm sorry for the big cut and paste - but here is some information from Michael Smyth in the Vancouver Sun today.





John Slater, MLA for Boundary-Similkameen, says he’ll be stepping down from the B.C. Liberal Party to sit as an independent. — submitted photo

Photograph by: Handout , Vancouver Sun


From the moment John Slater announced he was quitting the B.C. Liberals to sit as an independent MLA at the legislature, the whisper campaign began.

Officially, the Liberals said Monday their Boundary-Similkameen MLA was dealing with “personal issues” that left him unfit to run for them in the May election.

Unofficially, Liberals whispered he has an alcohol problem that’s produced some embarrassing public incidents. In the most notable episode, the Liberals say Slater was found under the influence of alcohol during a caucus meeting.

What does Slater say? He admits he’s had problems with alcohol, but not from drinking too much booze.

The former Osoyoos mayor told me Monday he’s been taking prescription medications to deal with stress and high blood pressure. He said he also takes antihistamines for severe allergies.

He said the drugs had a bad interaction with beer and wine.

“One day I had one glass of wine in the legislative dining room and I stood up, it was like ‘Whoa, what’s happening here?’ ” he told me.

He said the combination of the wine and the drugs left him sick and disoriented during the caucus meeting, and admits there were a few similar incidents last year.

“With these medications, even one glass of wine or one beer can throw you right off because of the chemical reaction,” he said.

He said the Liberal party brought up the incidents when deciding whether he should run again in May, and he explained to the party he was consulting with his doctor about the alcohol-drug interactions.

Does he have a drinking problem?

“No,” Slater said. “Most people have a few drinks now and then, but it’s nothing that’s affected my work. I’ve seen my doctors, my prescriptions have been changed and everything is fine.”

But not according to the Liberal party, which announced Monday that Slater’s “problems” triggered a decision to blacklist him for the next election. Slater said he’s crushed by the decision.

“I have worked my butt off for my constituents,” he said. “I’ve given everything to this job.”

The Liberals said Slater privately agreed in December not to run again, but Slater said that was because the party told him local polling results showed he had no chance to win.

“But then I started talking to people in this community and I realized the party was giving me false information,” he said, adding he decided to quit the Liberals when they refused to approve his re-election bid.

The president of the riding association quit, too.

“I’m frustrated and so disappointed with this party,” said Zach Poturica, adding Slater had the unanimous backing of the local executive.

Linda Larson, the former mayor of Oliver, is now expected to run for the Liberals in the Okanagan riding, leaving Slater feeling like the party used his personal health problems to get rid of him.

“When I look around that caucus room, I see lots of people with lots of problems,” he said. “For some reason they singled me out. It hurts.”

twitter.com/MikeSmythNews


Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/news/Bitter+ ... z2I4BowtUo

[twobits]

"He said the combination of the wine and the drugs left him sick and disoriented during the caucus meeting, and admits there were a few similar incidents last year."

I might be wrong but I think most clear thinking individuals would have recognized a bad reaction between the meds and a glass of wine or beer the first time and not have a few similar incidents in the last year. Too bad really because I think he worked hard for his riding.
On a lighter note....am wondering what the meds were? Sounds like they could really reduce my "entertainment" expenses.