Friday, September 21, 2018

Could This Be The End Of The Con War On The Carbon Tax?



As we all know Andrew Scheer is on a creepy crusade to destroy Justin Trudeau.

And he was counting on the federal government's carbon tax to help him do that.

The plan was he would attack the tax like a rabid hyena. Trudeau would defend it. The mob would scream for money, or blood.

Until Scheer destroyed Justin and became Prime Minister.

In fact, so confident was Scheer that he couldn't lose, that he even challenged Trudeau to "Bring it on." 



Only to mistime his move badly. Sadly.

And risk ending up on the canvas...



For if this new report is right, it could be a game changer. 

While the Conservatives argue the Liberal government's proposed carbon tax would take money out of the pockets of everyday Canadians, a new report suggests the opposite is true.

New research to be published next week suggests that, if the prime minister follows through on his plan to return revenues from the tax to households in the form of carbon dividends, then most people in those provinces would get more money from the federal government than they would pay out in carbon tax. What's more, the report says low-income people would benefit the most.

Scheer and the other Cons could end up looking like losers...



Or maniacs, trying to steal OUR money.

While Justin Trudeau cruises to an even bigger majority than he got last time...



Oh boy, wouldn't that be poetic justice?

Andrew Scheer thought that destroying the Satanic carbon tax would make him Prime Minister.

But as John Ivison points out, he had no better plan.

Scheer has committed to meeting Canada’s Paris climate targets — emissions 30-per-cent below 2005 levels by 2030 — but without a carbon tax. That likely means regulation across a range of sectors that, while less visible, most experts suggest would be more complex and more expensive than a simple pricing mechanism.

The Conservatives will hope nobody notices. But the Liberals can be relied upon to point out that, while their plan will put money in the pockets of Canadians, their opponents intend to increase the cost of everything, for absolutely everybody.

So instead the job Con killing carbon tax he hated so much helped destroy him...



And since all he ever tried to do was scare people, or smear them, or divide them.

When he finally goes, he will not be missed...

17 comments:

Jackie Blue said...

To add insult to injury (for Scheer at least), it was Harper's former policy director who gave the thumbs-up to Trudeau's plan. Talk about crossing the floor. In the words of our own esteemed intellectual Secretary of Energy, Rick "I Wear My Smart Glasses at Night" Perry, oops, ya boots dun stepped in it this time.

I think the part in the analysis where it says "low-income people will benefit the most" is what REALLY pisses off Andy and his caviar Catholics of the Koch Kleptokrat Kult. As in, why should those smelly, inferior ruffians share in the spoils of the divine right of corporations? You could say it scares the Dickens out of them...

After spending the whole of his summer of failure trying to depict Trudeau as an out-of-touch "globalist elite" and trust-fund pretty boy, who drives daddy's Mercedes to work (or gets chauffeured in it) and hobnobs with movie stars rather than being a man "for da people," I wonder if the Mammon-worshiper Scheer will dust off the old "Justin Castreau" meme accusing JT of being a crypto-communist. "He wants poor people to eat! Instead of rich people eating the poor! Crucify the heretic! Onward, Canadian soldiers!"

Lying, failing, crooked, dopey loser. Sad.

ottlib said...

Hmmmm, it is almost as if the Liberals did their due diligence to craft a Carbon Tax Bill that would be in the best interests of the country and its citizens.

As opposed to, you know, crafting a Bill designed to satisfy a particular ideological bent.

Anonymous said...

I just saw Scheer trying to discredit the report that says that the rebates will exceed the price of any carbon taxes, and he looked very uncomfortable. He has to claim that because killing the carbon tax is the number one item on his agenda. But if he isn’t careful he will not only make a hash out of the carbon tax issue, he will look like liar again.

Anonymous said...

This is a huge development that could really hurt the Cons. It was bad enough that they don’t give a damn about the environment, but if the war on the carbon tax turns out to be a scam it could finish off botth Scheer and Ford. I’d add Kenney to that list but Alberta is a different country and not part of mine.

Anonymous said...

Partly because of corporate mindset and partially because of seeking to maximize return on capital investment large corporations are slow to embrace new and potentially disruptive technology. By taxing major carbon producers and returning the money to consumers the federal carbon pricing plan helps to nudge energy intensive corporations in the direction of lowering costs by reducing their carbon footprint through investment in new technology or risk loosing out to consumers using the carbon tax dividends to lower their energy costs by seeking out competitive alternatives such as improved home insulation, more fuel efficient cars, public transport etc. Consumer demand for alternatives will also help spur on new investment, research and associated job creation. The nudge is not a sledgehammer as the Cons portray but the start of a survival journey. By comparison Trump added the carbon tax equivalent to a barrel of oil by scrapping the Iranian nuclear agreement and plans on removing consumer choice by freezing EPA mileage standards at current levels. Its what Cons call a win win while actually it as a loose loose with more downside to come as the weather becomes more extreme. Con double speak at its best!
RT

e.a.f. said...

B.C. has had extra taxes on gas for a decade. Drivers just suck it up and drive less. A campaign with a rebate for a carbon tax will be a winner, just like the Trudeau cheque are each month for those with children, who need the money. That is what Scheer doesn't understand. Scheer and his Cons are out of touch with the needs of the average Canadian. Trudeau understands the need for money in Canadian's pockets because in places like B.C. where housing is so expensive every nickel counts.

e.a.f. said...

Scheer and his Cons do represent a specific demographic. You just have to look at their conventions, white, middle class or better off, etc. They're well to do. People in some areas of the country need the money. Housing is so expensive in B.C. that the Food Bank in Greater Vancouver announced they are now seeing middle class families needing help. Until recently they were requesting additional assistance because the working poor required the services of the food bank, but in some communities, it is now the middle class.

Steve said...

I have to admit I thought JT was going to have to quit on carbon. With Alberta, Sask, and Ontario talking like the COCK bros 24/7 it looked like a hill democracy could die on.

Simon said...

Hi Jackie...Scheer and his gang must be absolutely terrified by this report, especially since it was produced by the company owned by a former Harper advisor. And as you point out, the fact that low-income people will benefit the most makes the plan even more attractive. I have always felt that supporters of carbon pricing have failed to explain it properly, which allowed the Cons to paint it as just another “tax grab.” This is the chance to change all that...

Simon said...

Hi Ottlib...I hope the Liberals take full advantage of this new report for it could stick a fork in the bestial Con arguments that a carbon tax can only make Canadians poorer. I have always been ready to pay to try to encourage the greening of our economy, but if I can get a rebate out of it all the better. As I told Jackie the messaging on the need for a Vernon tax has in my opinion been totally inadequate, so the Liberals need to grab this report and run with it...

Simon said...

Hi anon...exactly. The Cons are in a very difficult position, and if the Liberals press home their advantage they can do the Cons some real advantage. The Con argument seems to be that you can never trust governments to return tax money to you, which since millions get tax rebates is absolutely ridiculous. The media should be taking a good look at Scheer’s shabby argument, but of course whether they will is another question...

Simon said...

Hi e.a.f...lower income people are the most susceptible to Connarguments that a carbon tax will take money out of their pockets, for obvious reasons. But if the government can convince them that the opposite is the case, the carbon tax haters/climate change deniers will have some serious explaining to do....

Simon said...

Hi anon...Alberta is part of Canada, and while nothing might be able to prevent Jason from being elected as its cowboy fuhrer, and separatist in chief, a carbon tax that gives people rebates will be hard to for even Kenney to counter. And for other Cons like Scheer and Ford, fighting a carbon tax that gives people rebates has the potential to absolutely destroy them..l

Simon said...

Hi RT...exactly, that is indeed the reason a carbon tax is needed, to fight carbon emissions and green our economy to meet the challenges of the future. But the problem is that those who believe in carbon pricing have done a very poor job explains why we need it, and that has allowed the Cons to get away with murder. With climate change becoming more obvious and more extreme, there has never been a better opportunity to press the need for a carbon tax, and the idea of getting rebates should make that a lot easier...

Simon said...

Hi e.a.f...As I understand it, the revenues from the B.C. carbon tax are used to help reduce other taxes, which idiots like Ford are too stupid to grasp. But since he has made fighting carbon pricing his number one priority, the Trudeau government has the opening it needs to send cheques directly to the people of Ontario. Which is what I call a win win situation...

Simon said...

Hi Steve...to quit on carbon Is out of the question, for it would be yet another betrayal of the future generations. But if this new report is properly publicized it could very well be the hill the Cons die on..l

e.a.f. said...

used to reduce other taxes???? Not so much. What it did was enable the B.C. Lieberals (Cons) to enrich their financial supporters via tax breaks, royalty reductions and not hving to pay their electrical bill on their mine. Did the people of this province is any of that money? NO, NO, NO. During the time of the B.C. Lieberals, there was reduced spending on public housing, hospitals, medical services in general, reduction in the education budget, etc. Since Horgan and the NDP have come to office, Horgan has announced the building of 3 new hospitals and do we ever need them. The B.C. Lieberals (Cons) drove this province into the ground, when it came to social services. That is why we have the highest fent. death rates in Canada and so much homelessness. The homelessness is not getting better even though the NDP has made housing available. The B.C. Lieberal (Con) farm teams which sit on city and town councils won't permit them in their communities. Quebec has a lower death rate, just on the numbers than B.C. does and they have a larger population. No this province didn't benefit from the carbon tax, we just paid it and the financial supporters of el gordo, now Ford's "adviser", made all the money. That is why I keep writing Ontario hasn't seen anything yet. Gordon Campbell still has much work to do in Ontario so it will be turned into the money laundering center of the country, just like B.C. was.