Positive criticism of Clark and Horgan

[Gone_Fishin]

There is a big difference between donating to a political Party in the hopes of helping them get elected, and donating to a sitting Premier who has the power to influence legislation in the donor's favour.

Actually, there isn't. The donor is looking for personal gain in either case, and is hedging his bet that the person to whom he is donating can help him get it.

[Merry]

The donor is looking for personal gain in either case, and is hedging his bet that the person to whom he is donating can help him get it.

True, but the difference is that the Premier is in the best position to be able to influence legislation that favours the donor's interests.

Anytime that legislators receive money from private sources the potential for conflict arises. Which is why most Provinces, except ours, do not allow donations to political Parties from special interest groups such as corporations and unions.

But allowing individuals in Government to receive such donations creates an even bigger potential for conflict, which is why even our Province doesn't allow it. However, allowing such donations to be filtered through the Party coffers prior to being given to the individual legislator, is merely a way of sidestepping those rules.

Allowing those rich enough to buy influence in this way is just plain foolish, and not in the best interests of the majority of this Province's citizens.

[twobits]

Well let's just eliminate every and all donations to political party's and let the candidate run on their own merits and financial resources. Would that be better? Likely not eh? That would mean only the wealthy could afford to run. Limit it to personal donations only wouldn't make you lefties happy either as the right side of the spectrum tends to have more disposable income for some strange reason. Pick your poison.
I think your real problem in winning elections is the people who actually vote left are generally just politically disinterested people that think society owes them a 50k job despite little or no skill and find it really easy to *bleep*, whine, and hold self serving pot banging rally's in the streets, but when it comes down to putting up some cash support or even bothering to show up to vote.....they somehow disappear. Why is that?
People paying $1000 a plate for a dinner fundraiser is pretty opulent. I would never do it. But the flip side that you have to come to grips with is the reality that more people show up at these over priced dinners than John Horgan could get if the meal was free. And the people that did show up at the free meal would be the typical lefty that thought it was their right to do so but will still not show up at the polls.

[Merry]

You're totally missing the point twobits. Donating to a political Party, and donating to an individual legislator, are two entirely different things, each with their own problems. And each need to be discussed separately.

With regard to the latter, society doesn't allow donations to individual legislators (such as the Premier) because of the potential for conflict of interest. Yet, here in BC, we allow political Parties to get round this rule by letting them pass donations on to the Premier. Which is nothing more than a "back door" way of allowing folks (the ones making the donations) to give money to the Premier in an attempt to buy influence. And that shouldn't be allowed.

[flamingfingers]

Merry wrote:

Which is nothing more than a "back door" way of allowing folks (the ones making the donations) to give money to the Premier in an attempt to buy influence. And that shouldn't be allowed.

But it does buy influence - check up on the major donors to the ChristyLiberals and the blind eye/contracts the government has turned over the years:

[twobits]

You're totally missing the point twobits. Donating to a political Party, and donating to an individual legislator, are two entirely different things, each with their own problems. And each need to be discussed separately.

With regard to the latter, society doesn't allow donations to individual legislators (such as the Premier) because of the potential for conflict of interest. Yet, here in BC, we allow political Parties to get round this rule by letting them pass donations on to the Premier. Which is nothing more than a "back door" way of allowing folks (the ones making the donations) to give money to the Premier in an attempt to buy influence. And that shouldn't be allowed.

So like I asked Merry....pick your poison. Anything you come up with for a preferred donation rule is still going to have the left wing underfunded compared to the right. So the bellyaching won't stop. The only way the NDP will ever be in power again is if they actually come up with a platform and vision that actually appeals to and motivates people to come out and support them and miss their favorite sitcom or prerecorded daytime soap. The "no" to virtually everything that creates economy makes it really easy for people to either vote Liberal or stay home and just watch TV.
Blame funding all you want but the reality is people vote for policy that is in their best interest. Given the lack of platform and what the NDP does put out for intention, funding is the smallest of their problems.

[Gone_Fishin]

removed.

[nrgperformance]

The problem of who to vote for is a conundrum. Fifteen years of Liberal mismanagement have cranked our debt beyond 66 billion dollars (a 45% increase from the time crooked Christy got in). What do we have to show for it? Jacked up MSP premiums, huge increases in hydro rates and obscene ICBC premiums. Don't get me started on the carbon tax. While I do not "hate" the NDP, I just am not enamored with voting for them. Instead, I will be supporting the Your Political Party of BC and will campaign for them to help bring a new idea of actual leadership to this province, something it hasn't had for a very long time.

[Merry]

So like I asked Merry....pick your poison. Anything you come up with for a preferred donation rule is still going to have the left wing underfunded compared to the right. So the bellyaching won't stop. The only way the NDP will ever be in power again is if they actually come up with a platform and vision that actually appeals to and motivates people to come out and support them and miss their favorite sitcom or prerecorded daytime soap. The "no" to virtually everything that creates economy makes it really easy for people to either vote Liberal or stay home and just watch TV.
Blame funding all you want but the reality is people vote for policy that is in their best interest. Given the lack of platform and what the NDP does put out for intention, funding is the smallest of their problems.

twobits, this isn't an NDP versus Liberal issue. It's about whether or not political Parties (ANY political Party) should be allowed to use donated funds to "top up" a sitting legislators salary.

I would argue that, regardless of which particular Party is in power, it is a conflict of interest for a sitting Premier to accept cash from individuals or groups of individuals who donate money in an attempt to "buy" influence.

When folks donate to a political Party to help fund an election run that is one thing. But when the funds are passed on in the form of a cash payment to a sitting legislator, that is entirely another. And it shouldn't be allowed.