The PTBC QUOTE OF THE WEEK AWARD - September 14 2007

”…Once in office, we were confronted as you’ll remember with some intractable problems:  like the largest deficit in Canadian history, and a national debt that increased a THOUSAND percent in the previous 15 years.  Remember that —  a THOUSAND percent in 15 years.”

”…And of course the GST.  My mother always told me to be fair and to give people full credit, so let me say here today:  the GST was entirely Michael Wilson’s idea [audience laughter].  But I guess that doesn’t matter now, because didn’t Jean Chretien abolish that back in 1993?? [audience laughter]  Didn’t he run on the —I’m getting old now, but —didn’t he run on the slogan ‘I’m gonna Axe the Tax’?  [audience laughter]  Well in fact the GST remains.  And produced 33 billion dollars in income, and that’s the way along with the tremendous proceeds from the free trade agreement and some ongoing budgetary cuts, that the Liberals got rid of the federal deficit.  The truth is, Michael Wilson and Don Mazankowski planted the garden and Paul Martin got to pick the flowers.  Paul Martin doesn’t like that—to hear it—but what the hell—he can write his own memoirs.”  [audience laughter]