Fake

Here's a story which details just how full of crap Paul Martin really is. You know, with Chretien, his little guy from Shawinigan act was, at the very least, likable. With Martin, he's just a phony.

An excerpt:

With that we left St. John's for Saint John, N.B., in Martin's campaign plane -- a chartered Boeing 727, laden with yummy foodstuffs, that lands by flopping onto the runway like a trout, routinely bouncing at least once. In the gym of the local YM-YWCA, about 20 small children sat on the floor, looking bewildered. A Liberal campaign staffer handed them little Canadian flags. They cheered right up.

"Mr. Harper says he doesn't favour government-supported child care," Martin told the crowd. "A Liberal government will make our commitment to child care permanent." How? By doubling the amount of money allocated to Ken Dryden's child-care and early-learning agreements with the provinces. And, just to be on the safe side, by doubling the length of the program.

That's right. Instead of spending $5 billion over five years, Martin was announcing $10 billion over 10 years. His new commitment does not take effect until 2009 -- almost certainly after the term of the government we are about to elect. Before long he may extend his commitment to $48 billion over 48 years, or $162 billion over 162 years.

"We're talking now about the future of our country," Martin told reporters afterward. "It's our children. We're talking about an investment in a child. It's impossible to say no."

I guess it depends which child. By the Liberals' own account, their plan would create 625,000 daycare spaces over five years -- rather smaller than the total number of Canadian children in daycare, and far smaller than the total number of Canadian children. It's Stephen Harper whose plan would say yes to every Canadian child under 6, or more accurately, to their parents. Martin would provide bigger unit payments by saying no to lots of children. You may argue that Martin's is the superior plan. You cannot argue that it is what it isn't.