PM returns to Ottawa after majority win

PM returns to Ottawa after majority win

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper stops walking away from the podium as he is asked a question during a media appearance in Calgary on Tuesday. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has returned to Ottawa a day after Canadians elected his Conservative Party to form its first majority government.

Cheering supporters greeted Harper and his wife Laureen, their children Ben and Rachel, as well as his campaign staff as the Conservative plane landed at Ottawa airport Tuesday evening from his home riding in Calgary.

Speaking at a news conference earlier in the day in Calgary, hailed Quebec's "shift to federalism" in Monday night's election, which reduced the once-dominant Bloc Québécois to four seats in the province.

The prime minister added he is disappointed that his majority government does not have a larger foothold in Quebec, as most of the Bloc losses came from an unprecedented surge by Jack Layton's New Democrats.

"Despite the fact that we did not make any gains, of course, as a Canadian and a federalist, I'm encouraged by the collapse of the Bloc," he said.

Harper won 167 seats in Monday night's election and will form his first majority government. He won minority governments in 2006 and 2008.

The Conservatives won 39.6 per cent of the vote. However, the party only won six of Quebec's 75 seats.

"I'm disappointed, but I'm not discouraged," Harper said.

The Conservative leader said he would not appoint an unelected person to his cabinet, which he did in 2006.

Harper said he would build his cabinet from the six Quebec MPs who won on Monday.

"We did win a number of seats for experienced MPs who will have a significant place within our government," Harper said.

"I would have hoped for more, but we do have significant representation there, and we will certainly be listening to what the people of Quebec say over the next four years."

Harper received calls of congratulations on Tuesday from U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron. During his telephone conversation with Obama, Harper congratulated the U.S. president and military servicemen on this week's raid in Pakistan that killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

Obama also renewed his commitment to the border security framework agreement the two leaders announced in February, the Prime Minister's Office said.

Harper told Cameron he looked forward to seeing the British leader at the upcoming G8 summit later this month. The two leaders also discussed the situation in Libya, the PMO said.

Health talks with provinces coming

The Harper majority government will have to renegotiate a massive health-care deal with the provincial governments.

The Conservatives committed during the campaign to keeping the escalator clause in the deal that will see six per cent annual increases in health transfers.

Harper reiterated his support for a universal health system, but he said he is not opposed to provincial governments experimenting with alternative forms of delivery.

"As you know, provinces have within the existing framework experimented with alternative delivery, but that is different from moving away from the basis of a universal system of public health insurance coverage, and we are all committed to that," Harper said.

He said he foresees a collaborative approach to coming up with a new health deal with the provinces. He said he will also respect the asymmetrical arrangement with Quebec, which was agreed to in the health accord signed by the former Liberal government of Paul Martin.

Champagne celebration

After running a tightly scripted campaign, for the last several weeks, Harper seemed relaxed as he spoke to reporters on Tuesday morning.

Harper twice left the microphone to signal an end to his news conference and twice returned to answer one more question.

The Conservative leader recalled how he celebrated with his staff Monday night after learning that he would lead a majority government.

"My staff had me celebrating last night," Harper said.

"They pulled me up to the room, they made me pop this champagne, and after I'd said a few words, they passed me the champagne and wanted me to guzzle it out of the bottle. And some of you know I'm not much of a drinker, but I did. However, they tricked me, and there was only that much in it. So much for my wild side. That's as wild as it got."

As he recalled the story, he held his fingers to suggest there was very little champagne left in the bottle.

Elections act limits online comments, social media

Elections act limits online comments, social media

Canadians are being reminded to comply with Elections Canada's broadcasting ban, preventing premature elections results from being distributed even over social media sites. (CBC)

An elections law enacted when telecommunications were still in their infancy runs up against the digital age for several hours Monday when polls close in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Strict rules under the Canada Elections Act prevent any instance of "premature transmission of results" until the last polls have closed in every electoral district in the country.

That means extra precautions for online publishers and consumers.

Elections Canada has issued a warning to Facebook and Twitter users to use caution on election day when communicating and posting voting results, saying the act also applies to transmissions made over the internet.

That also affects CBC's coverage of the election, resulting in adjusted broadcast schedules and changes to the cbcnews.ca website.

As of 5 p.m. ET Monday, comments on all cbcnews.ca stories will be closed until all polling stations across the country have closed at 10 p.m. ET.

Users are also discouraged from posting any advance polling information on any related social networking sites, including Facebook, as broadcasters and publishers go to great lengths to comply with the act.

CBC Television and CBC News Network will feature a live election special airing east of B.C. starting at 9:30 p.m. ET, when polling stations are closed elsewhere in the country. A blackout will be in effect in B.C. during that time, from 6:30 to 7 p.m. PT, before the broadcast goes coast to coast.

Online, cbcnews.ca will host a moderated live chat beginning at at 9 p.m. ET and on Facebook at 10 p.m. ET.

After 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT), the online blackout will be lifted and our cbcnews.ca's website, mobile and iPad/iPhone apps will have live results from across the country, live streaming video, full coverage of the regional and national election stories and comments on news stories will be reopened.

And social media users will once again be free to share their reaction to election results.

Opposition lines up against government

Opposition lines up against government

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff tells reporters outside on Parliament Hill March 23 that his party will move to a motion of non-confidence against the government, which could trigger an election by the weekend. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

 

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff said Wedneday his party will table a motion against the government Wednesday and seek to defeat it Friday. The leaders of the NDP and the Bloc Québécois said they would support the Liberal motion.

Ignatieff said the government stands accused of contempt of Parliament, election fraud and influence peddling, referring to recent scandals. And he attacked the government over the spending priorities in the budget.

"There isn't what there should be for families," in the budget, Ignatieff said, pointing to families who can't get child care or afford post-secondary education.

Ignatieff said it's a question of respect for Parliament's institutions.

"This is a government that's lost the confidence of the House of Commons, a government that's lost the confidence of Canadians," he said.

NDP Leader Jack Layton said in his own remarks to reporters, "If it comes to it...we would be voting in favour" of the Liberal contempt motion. Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe also said he would vote against the government.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper addresses reporters in the foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill March 23. Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press

Prime Minister Stephen Harper earlier defended his government's budget and said the opposition parties did not give it a chance.

Harper said in an interconnected world, Canada's economy is at risk, and his government is focused on following through on their plan for the country.

"I'm disappointed (the other leaders) didn't take the time to read the budget before they decided," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said.

The prime minister said the opposition parties are choosing to force "an unnecessary" election.

"It is not too late for them to step back, to think about the fragile global recovery and to listen to the strong support of the many organizations and the Canadian public for these measures," he said.

Layton said his party was willing to try to support a Conservative budget, and said Harper still has a chance to make changes to it.

"[The prime minister] could have strengthened the retirement security of hard-working security, but instead under a cloud of scandal," Harper chose not to.

Layton said Canadians were looking to the budget for help. "What they got was just more proof that Ottawa is broken and more evidence Setphen Harper can't be trusted."

In his earlier comments, Harper went over some of the highlights from the budget he said the opposition is putting at risk, including infrastructure funding for the cities and the tax credits for caregivers and children's arts programs.

"They are opposing initiatives to create job growth," he said, adding that the opposition leaders must explain their rejection of the budget.


If the government loses a vote of a non-confidence on Friday, the prime minister is prepared to head to Rideau Hall on Saturday to ask Gov. Gen. David Johnston to disolve Parliament and issue a writ of election, CBC News has learned. An election campaign would begin immediately, with an election date of Monday, May 2.

Asked Wednesday whether he would pre-empt a non-confidence motion by the Liberals by going to the Governor General himself, Harper said, "Our priority is the economy and we'll continue... as long as we're in office."

The Liberals have argued the Conservatives can't be trusted on budget numbers, and they've been leading the charge to find the government in contempt of Parliament for not giving sufficient information to MPs on the cost estimates of their crime legislation, the F-35 fighter jet deal and corporate tax cuts.

A committee studying the matter found the government in contempt on Monday and at some point the House of Commons must vote on whether to agree with that finding. A debate on that report could get underway as early as Wednesday, but Liberal MP Scott Brison said one has not been scheduled.

Instead, a debate on the budget itself is also scheduled to begin today after question period, in accordance with parliamentary rules. Liberal motions on contempt or non-confidence would follow.

Meanwhile, cabinet ministers and Conservative MPs are fanning out across the country to promote the budget, which the government calls "the next phase of Canada's Economic Action Plan."

Canada's reputation on the rise: poll

Canada's reputation on the rise: poll

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, left, and then B.C. premier Gordon Campbell enjoy the closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. A new survey suggests the Games gave Canada's popularity a boost. 

Canada's reputation in the world is improving, despite some recent controversies, a new survey suggests.

On average, 57 per cent of respondents gave Canada a favourable evaluation this year, according to the survey of 27 countries conducted by GlobeScan for the BBC World Service. That's up five per cent from 2010.

Twelve per cent gave an unfavourable evaluation.

"It's restored a blip that we were actually rather worried about because once people start noticing you in a negative way, your reputation is a lot more easily lost than won," said Doug Miller, GlobeScan's founder.

A negative view of the federal government's lack of commitment to climate change and aid to Africa partly drove the drop in Canada's popularity, some experts say.

"We were seeking a seat on the [UN] Security Council," said Jim Peterson, Canada's former minister of international trade. "We had 53 countries that voted against us, and this is probably a direct result of having cut aid to Africa."

But playing host to some high profile events, such as last June's G20 summit in Toronto and the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, helped turn the tide in Canada's favour, they say.

"If people are seeing their presidents and prime ministers on Canadian soil, it raises Canada in their minds," Miller said.
Positive shifts

Some of the biggest positive shifts have been in nations with which Canada has a close relationship, according to the poll.

Eighty-two per cent of Americans view Canada in a good light, up 15 points from a year earlier. Seventy-eight per cent of respondents in the United Kingdom gave positive views, up 16 points, and 50 per cent viewed Canada positively in Mexico, up 13 per cent.

The results of the poll, which was conducted between Dec. 2, 2010 and Feb. 4, 2011, are based on 28,619 in-home or telephone interviews conducted across 27 nations. It has an error margin of plus or minus 2.8 to 4.9 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

In-and-out worth $100,000 in payouts

In-and-out worth $100,000 in payouts

Andre Thouin, an official with Elections Canada, knocks on the door of Conservative Party Headquarters of Canada in Ottawa on April 15, 2008 during an RCMP raid of the office. 

Elections Canada paid out more than $100,000 to Conservative riding associations before the party's so-called "in-and-out" scheme was discovered, a CBC News investigation has found.

Elections Canada paid out the expense claims of 17 "in-and-out" participants before noticing something was amiss, it says in court documents.

That meant more than $100,000 in taxpayer dollars going out the door before it was stopped.

Four high-ranking Conservatives, including two Senators, are charged under the Elections Act with moving more than a million dollars through local ridings to help fund the national campaign.

Conservative MP Steven Blaney says he and all the other candidates who participated were following the rules.

Court documents show Blaney's 2006 election campaign was one of those that received money from the national party, transferred it immediately back, and then claimed the money as part of its election expenses.

A comparison of Elections Canada documents and the ones filed in court reveals Blaney's campaign received $18,000 more in reimbursements than it was entitled to. Blaney says his campaign did nothing wrong.

"There is a difference of interpretation of the law between Conservatives and Elections Canada," he said.

Elections Canada reimburses all candidates 60 per cent of their eligible expenses if they meet a certain threshold of votes. The money comes from the public purse.

Another riding that appears to have received some of that money is the Conservative riding association in Hull-Aylmer, Que.

That association spent only about $12,000 of its own money in the 2006 election, according to numbers from Elections Canada, but received almost $34,000 in reimbursements because of the "in-and-out" tactic.

David Herle, the Liberal campaign director in 2006, says the $1.5 million extra the Conservatives spent could have changed the outcome of a close election.

"I don't know if it was decisive. It was influential," Herle told CBC News.

"They clearly intended it to be influential or they wouldn't have done it. If they didn't think it would have made any difference, they wouldn't have gone to such great lengths."

Pierre Poilievre, parliamentary secretary to the prime minister, says all the parties use the same strategy.

"The national party did indeed transfer funds to local campaigns, which is legal, ethical and commonplace among all political parties," he said in the Commons last week.

But the NDP's national campaign director says in those cases the money goes from national to local and then stops.

"That money then should be spent on local projects and that is not the case with the Conservatives. But that was the case with the New Democrats. That's why we're not up on charges," Brad Lavigne said.

Beyond a leg-up in the 2006 campaign, the "in-and-out" scheme may have helped the Conservatives in the next one as well.

All candidates who get at least 10 per cent of the vote are entitled to the 60 per cent reimbursement of election expenses.

For some campaigns, the scheme could have been quite lucrative, landing them taxpayer funded reimbursements worth thousands of dollars more than Elections Canada says they actually spent — a surplus that could be retained by the riding association for the 2008 election.

'National dialogue' to tackle childhood obesity

'National dialogue' to tackle childhood obesity

California elementary students look at fruits and vegetables during a school lunch program, of the kind that First Lady Michelle Obama would like to see offered across the United States. Ottawa announced a 'national dialogue' on childhood obesity Monday. (Paul Sakuma/Associated Press)

The federal and provincial health ministers launched a new strategy Monday to curb the rising rates of obesity in children.

The initiative is billed as a "national dialogue" and it seeks to identify ways to promote healthier lifestyles for children.

Federal Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced the "Our Health Our Future" project in Toronto. A new website will serve as an online forum and a report with recommendations will be presented at a national summit this fall where federal, provincial and territorial health ministers will decide on further actions.

"We have an alarming trend among our children in the last decade," Aglukkaq said. "Too many of them are overweight, too many of them are obese ... this has to be reversed."

The initiative announced Monday stems from an agreement reached by the country's health ministers at their annual meeting last September. The ministers adopted a broad framework at that meeting that commits them to making the problem of childhood obesity a priority.

Young people, non-governmental organizations, national Aboriginal organizations and industry players are being invited to participate in the national dialogue through the website and in meetings that will take place across the country over the coming months.

"We need to get to the roots of what causes people to become overweight or obese and then kickstart a program, a long-term movement to change it," Aglukkaq said.

The project will involve identifying the conditions that contribute to unhealthy weights such as how communities are designed, the availability of healthy foods, the influence of advertising and how much time youth spend in front of television and computer screens, according to the minister.

"Ultimately we want to create the conditions that will ensure that children and families can eat well, be active and have healthier lives," she said.

The number of children who are overweight or obese has been rising steadily in Canada. More than one in four children and youth in Canada are considered overweight or obese and increases in the rates are highest among teenagers.

But while Aglukkaq was touting the initiative as the first of its kind in Canada, it was panned by the NDP's health critic Megan Leslie.

"What the minister announced this morning, I think, is pretty narrow," Leslie said at a news conference Monday in Ottawa, where she accused the Conservative government of failing to take leadership on health-care.

Leslie said obesity has already been studied by the House of Commons health committee and that legislative solutions are already known. "I've seen no action on them. I don't quite understand how a national summit is actually going to help things, but, you know, yay for the website."

No dollar figure has been attached to the national dialogue initiative. Aglukkaq said the total cost will depend on what actions the health ministers eventually decide to take.

Report finds hundreds of duplicative government programs, costing billions

Report finds hundreds of duplicative government programs, costing billions


The federal government could save billions in taxpayer dollars annually by consolidating duplicative government programs, according to a new report.


The newly-released report from the Government Accountability Office "makes us all look like jackasses," Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) told reporters Monday night.


The conservative senator said the report -- which identifies redundancies in more than 546 individual programs -- reveals why the United States is $14 trillion in debt.


"Anybody who says we don't look like fools up here hasn't read the report," he said.


The report is the product of President Obama's executive order calling for a government-wide review of federal regulations. At the time, the president said the regulatory review would seek to eliminate rules that stifle job creation, are redundant, or are just "plain dumb."

The GAO reviewed 34 areas (among them agriculture, defense and social services) where agencies, offices or initiatives have similar or overlapping objectives. The report also looked at 47 additional cost-saving opportunities related to more general government efficiency. For instance, the report said, "Improved corrosion prevention and control practices could help [the Defense Department] avoid billions in unnecessary costs over time."


Addressing duplicative efforts on even a single issue could save billions, the report found. For instance, the GAO says the government could save up to $5.7 billion annually by addressing potentially duplicative policies designed to boost domestic ethanol production. Additionally, the Defense Department could save $460 million annually by making broader changes to the governance of its military health care system.


The report finds that there are 15 agencies involved in food safety, 80 programs involved in economic development and more than 100 involved in surface transportation. There are 10 agencies and 82 programs involved in teacher quality, and more than 20 agencies and about 56 programs involved in financial literacy efforts. There are about 2,300 investments across the Defense Department to modernize its business operations.


House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said today that in order to foster long term economic growth, "we're going to deal with the pressing issues of regulatory waste in our agencies, as well as long term issues facing our country with entitlement programs."


Mr. Obama sought to highlight the need for greater government efficiency in his State of the Union address with a joke about the multiple agencies involved in regulating salmon.


"The Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they're in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them while they're in salt water," he said. "I hear it gets even more complicated once they're smoked."

Talks to start on makeup of Ireland's government

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny addressing party members at the Burlington Hotel in Dublin, Ireland, Saturday, Feb. 26, 2011. (AP / Peter Morrison)

Talks to start on makeup of Ireland's government
 
DUBLIN — Two former Irish opposition parties were holding talks Monday about forming a new government to tackle the daunting task of rebuilding an economy battered by reckless property speculation and bank lending.

National broadcaster RTE said Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny, soon to be Ireland's next prime minister, and his Labour Party counterpart Eamon Gilmore had agreed to meet face-to-face later in the day.

"We don't want a situation where this is going to be dragged out," said Kenny.

The initiative rests with Fine Gael, which has won 70 seats so far in the 166-seat lower house of Parliament after Friday's national election. Results are not yet complete.

Labour Party has won 36 seats, its best ever showing, while the long-dominant Fianna Fail party suffered its worst election in 80 years with only 18 seats so far.

Fianna Fail was punished for leading the government as Ireland's property boom collapsed, banks tottered under bad loans and unemployment soared above 13 percent. To avoid bankruptcy, Ireland was forced to accept a euro67.5 billion (US$92 billion) credit line from the European Central Bank, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

A Fine Gael-Labour coalition was widely expected after Friday's vote, but Fine Gael could also rule with the support of independents, who won 13 seats.

Gilmore is clearly eager to get his Labour party into government, arguing during the campaign that a coalition would best for Ireland.

"If Fine Gael want a government for a period of five years, strong, stable, that brings together the two largest parties ... the Labour Party is willing to play its part in that," Gilmore said.

"But I do say that the window of opportunity for that to happen is very narrow," he added, saying a deal should be completed before the legislature reconvenes March 9.

The bailout loan is contingent on Ireland cutting euro15 billion (US$21 billion) from its deficit spending over the coming four years and imposing the harshest cuts this year, but Fine Gael and Labour have some marked differences over economic strategy.

Fine Gael is committed to cutting the government annual deficit to 3 percent of GDP by 2014; Labour wants the target moved to 2016. Fine Gael wants two-thirds of deficit reduction to come from spending cuts and one-third from taxes; Labour has advocated a 50-50 split.

Kenny says he will try to negotiate a lower interest rate on the bailout loan and make bond holders in Irish bank absorb a share of the losses. He has also promised to create 100,000 new jobs in five years.

Whether Ireland gets a Fine Gael-led coalition government with Labour or goes it alone with independents, analysts said more rocky times are ahead for Ireland and the European Union. Other EU nations are annoyed about bailing out Ireland while the island nation refuses to raise its low corporation tax rate.

"The major hurdle in any such renegotiating is more than likely to be a quid pro quo demand from many other EU nations on harmonizing corporate tax rates," said Mark Ostwald, strategist at Monument Securities in London.

"But with Fine Gael having committed to holding both the 12.5 per cent corporation tax rate and the top rates of income tax, and the Labour Party being fiercely opposed to an EU wide harmonization of corporate tax rates, finding some common ground between the EU and Ireland looks very difficult."
 

Obama: It's time for Libya's Gadhafi to go

AP – A man carrying a bag of food walks past a burned-out police station in Tripoli, Libya, Saturday, Feb. 

Obama: It's time for Libya's Gadhafi to go

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama has called on Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi to leave power immediately, saying he has lost the legitimacy to rule with his violent crackdown on his own people.

With that shift Saturday, Obama dropped the careful condemnation, threats of consequences and the reminders to Gadhafi's regime about its responsibility to avoid violence.

The president called on Gadhafi to step down for the first time, saying the Libyan government must be held accountable for its brutal crackdown on dissenters. The administration also announced new sanctions against Libya, but that was overshadowed by the sharp demand for Gadhafi's immediate ouster.

"The president stated that when a leader's only means of staying in power is to use mass violence against his own people, he has lost the legitimacy to rule and needs to do what is right for his country by leaving now," the White House said.

The statement summarizing Obama's telephone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel came as Libya's embattled regime passed out guns to civilian supporters and sent armed patrols around its capital to quash dissent and stave off the rebellion that now controls large parts of the North African nation.

Until Saturday, U.S. officials held back from fully and openly throwing all their support behind the protest movement, insisting that it was for the Libyan people to determine how they want to be led. The refrain echoed the public position maintained by the administration during the Egypt crisis, when the U.S. gradually dropped its support for longtime ally Hosni Mubarak but never explicitly demanded his resignation after nearly three decades in power.

Explaining the change, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Libyans "have made themselves clear" that they want Gadhafi out.

The tougher tone set the stage for Clinton's trip Sunday to Geneva, where she will confer with foreign policy chiefs from Russia, the European Union and other global powers on how to drive home the message to a Libyan government determined to cling to power and crush opposition to Gadhafi's rule.

Obama and Merkel strategized on how the world should respond to the violence that, according to some officials, has killed thousands of people. Clinton spoke with the EU's top diplomat Catherine Ashton to coordinate the international pressure.

Acting on its own, the administration announced a new measure Saturday when Clinton said the U.S. was revoking visas for senior Libyan officials and their immediate family members. New travel applications from these individuals will be rejected, she said.

The visa ban followed the administration's moves Friday to freeze all Libyan assets in the U.S. that belong to Gadhafi, his government and four of his children. The U.S. also closed its embassy in Libya and suspended the limited defense trade between the countries.

It is unclear how far the U.S. — and its international allies — might have to go to convince Gadhafi that his four-decade reign in Libya must end. American military action is unlikely, although the administration hasn't ruled out participation in an internationally administered protective no-fly zone.

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon was due in Washington on Monday for talks with Obama at the White House.

A nonviolent revolt against Gadhafi's government began Feb. 15 amid a wave of uprisings in the Arab world. Most of Libya's eastern half is under the control of rebels. Witnesses say Gadhafi's government has responded by shooting at protesters in numerous cities.

Wisconsin Budget Plan: Some Governors Call It Political Payback

Wisconsin Budget Plan: Some Governors Call It Political Payback

As governors convened at a conference in the nation's capital this weekend, one was noticeably missing -- Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, whose state is embroiled in a political war over a budget proposal that threatens collective bargaining.

The political turmoil in Wisconsin and sweeping budget cuts across the country were a hot topic among the governors attending the National Governors Association's Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C.

For some of the governors, what Walker is doing with his budget proposal is putting political payback ahead of what is really good for the state economy, but others say he should be praised for taking serious steps to slash spending.


Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, a Democrat, said Walker isn't the only governor turning state budget decisions into an ideological battle.

"What's going on in Wisconsin, Ohio and other states is an ideological detour that does nothing to help us create jobs and move our economy forward," O'Malley told ABC News. "I think it's a shame when some governors decide to sharpen their ideological acts in order to go after unions just because they didn't endorse them in the last election."

But several Republican governors, including Haley Barbour of Mississippi and Jan Brewer of Arizona, praised Walker's governing style in Wisconsin, saying he should be commended for his actions.

"Governor Walker, after all, is only doing something he promised to do and he ought to be commended, I think, for trying to keep his commitments," Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels told ABC News.

Christy Clark voted B.C. Liberal leader

Christy Clark waves after being elected as the party's new leader in Vancouver. ((Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press))

Christy Clark voted B.C. Liberal leader

Radio talk show host and former deputy premier Christy Clark has won the B.C. Liberal leadership on the third ballot and will succeed Gordon Campbell as premier.

Clark, who billed herself as a Liberal party outsider, won the party's leadership contest by beating former cabinet ministers Kevin Falcon, George Abbott and Mike de Jong.

It took three rounds of the preferential ballot to decide who would replace Campbell, who resigned last fall over his party's disastrous unveiling of the harmonized sales tax.

In a speech following the announcement, Clark addressed the people of British Columbia.

"I want you to be my partners in change in Victoria. I want you to be my partners in bringing open government. You can count on me to listen, you can count on me to engage, and you can count on me to make sure government really does include you. I have specific ideas on how to do these things but I also need to hear from you," she said.

"My top priority will be to put families first. In British Columbia we are blessed with families of all shapes and sizes, families as diverse as our great province. This is the foundation of our communities. This is the building block of our future."

Clark said her government's top priorities will be job creation and fighting poverty, and she vowed to focus on innovation and rural B.C.

The Liberals have not said when Campbell will step down and transfer power, but the departing leader was nowhere near the leadership convention Saturday night — organizers noted he was in Washington, D.C.

More than 57,000 Liberal party members cast their ballots, out of nearly 92,000 eligible voters.




Liberals pledge unity

All three unsuccessful leadership candidates — Kevin Falcon, George Abbott and Mike de Jong — said the B.C. Liberal Party would unite under Christy Clark, despite a heated leadership race.

Abbott told CBC News he was proud of his campaign, had no regrets and wouldn't change anything but the result.

"It is absolutely imperative that the B.C. Liberal Party be united as we move forward over the next year towards, hopefully, a May 2013 election," he said.

"I think we've got a lot of work to do in terms of the public and rebuilding trust and confidence in our party … so we've got lots of work to do."

Falcon, who finished second, pledged his support for Clark.

"We're a big family and when you have a race in a family it creates what looks like divisions but at the end of the day, we are a family," he said.

"It was a very close race, it was exciting. I think that's great for our party, our government, and Christy won and I congratulate her completely and we'll all get behind her now and make sure we keep this great family together."

Mike de Jong said he had no regrets and would run again in a heartbeat.

"I mean, why wouldn't I? To have the chance to travel around, to meet with British Columbians, to watch the party grow and contribute to that, to compete with three ... talented individuals who all brought something to the debate, sure. Why wouldn't I?"

Obama Sitting Out State Fights With Unions

AP

Feb. 23: Teamsters President James Hoffa speaks at a rally in the state Capitol in Madison, Wis.

Obama Sitting Out State Fights With Unions

President Barack Obama, after initially lending his support to organized labor, has stepped back from the fights spreading in state capitals from Wisconsin to Tennessee, leaving union officials divided about his tactics.

Democratic officials said that with Obama heading into battles over the federal budget, a plunge into the fray over public-sector collective bargaining could weaken his position as a deal-maker in Washington.

Obama is eager to occupy the political center, Democratic officials said, to help him forge a bipartisan deal on the nation's long-term finances that could strengthen his position heading into the 2012 election. Obama has already tacked to the center on taxes, on trade and by working to forge stronger ties with business leaders.

For their part, many union leaders worry that White House involvement could harm their case that the protests and political actions in the capitals of Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana are grassroots, organic movements.

"I don't think the president's involvement in making this a Republican and Democrat issue would be particularly helpful at this point," said Andy Stern, a former president of the Service Employees International Union.


But others say Obama, as the leader of the Democratic Party, should do more to help the labor movement, which provides money and grassroots organizing muscle for Democratic candidates and whose power is now threatened by Republican efforts to curtail collective bargaining rights.

"Everybody is looking to the president on this one," said Amy Dean, a labor activist and former AFL-CIO official in California. "The grassroots infrastructure of the Democratic Party is organized labor."

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D., Ariz.), a co-chairman of the House Progressive Caucus, agreed. "There's a bully pulpit there that the president has, and it needs to be used," he said. "I don't think you can turn the cheek on this one."

Feb. 22: Opponents of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's budget bill sleep in the rotunda of the Wisconsin State Capitol.