Post by kelvin on Oct 13, 2008 15:34:55 GMT -5
www.thestar.com/federalelection/article/516625
Richard Brennan
OTTAWA BUREAU
NDP Leader Jack Layton says he will give voice for the hundreds of thousands of people who have lost their jobs and the struggling middle class faced with an uncertain future.
In auto town Oshawa, Layton told an early morning rally that Conservative and Liberal governments have all but ignored the plight of the working class with their concentration on corporate tax cuts rather than an agenda to protect jobs, especially in the manufacturing sector.
"You can't pay a mortgage serving coffee at minimum wage," he said in Oshawa, where hundreds of good paying automotive industry jobs have disappeared, only to be replaced for the most part by low-paying part-time jobs.
Veteran former NDP leader Ed Broadbent showed up in the riding he once held to give a boost to Layton's campaign, which is counting on disgruntled supporters from other political parties to take a chance on Layton for a change.
Layton said his party has an "optimistic vision" even in hard times.
The NDP leader spent the last day in the Greater Toronto Area scrambling to stake out his territory of being the only leader to speak up for the little guy while Conservative Leader Stephen Harper and Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion spent the final hours trying to convince voters that they are the best manager for a struggling economy.
"I think that's what this election is boiling down to. Who is going to be on people's side, who is going to be on your side, who is going to be on the side of middle class, the working families ... as we go through these turbulent times?" he said.
"It's time we had the working people in the halls of power in Ottawa for a change."
This Thanksgiving, Layton said many Canadians are feeling very anxious about the economic situation "and nobody knows that better than the people here in Oshawa as we have watched some of the best jobs in this country disappear because of a complete lack of policy or strategy or even a sense of caring about the issue from the our (Conservative) government."
Layton said beyond the statistics, headlines, and economic theory are real people whose way of life has been ripped apart by jobs moving offshore and a prime minister whose polices concentrate on the well-being of large corporations.
"This isn't theory, this is about the real lives of people in our country. And we are not just talking about a few. We are talking about 400,000 manufacturing jobs, the kind of jobs that allow you to be part of the middle class. And Stephen Harper doesn't care about it. The best he can come up with is to tell you to go off and bet on the stock market," he said.
Layton said Dion can't be trusted to stand up for workers when his Liberal caucus supported the Conservative government on so many confidence votes.
"Its Harper's policies but it is Dion responsibility," he said.
"Mr. Dion turned his back on (manufacturing) workers despite what he is trying to claim today," he said, suggesting that Dion's attempt to fashion himself into a "progressive" is "not on, people won't buy it."
Layton said his party stands for fair trade agreements and a buy-Canadian policy plus an emphasis on helping companies with green job strategies, including car makers who can produce so-called green vehicles.
Richard Brennan
OTTAWA BUREAU
NDP Leader Jack Layton says he will give voice for the hundreds of thousands of people who have lost their jobs and the struggling middle class faced with an uncertain future.
In auto town Oshawa, Layton told an early morning rally that Conservative and Liberal governments have all but ignored the plight of the working class with their concentration on corporate tax cuts rather than an agenda to protect jobs, especially in the manufacturing sector.
"You can't pay a mortgage serving coffee at minimum wage," he said in Oshawa, where hundreds of good paying automotive industry jobs have disappeared, only to be replaced for the most part by low-paying part-time jobs.
Veteran former NDP leader Ed Broadbent showed up in the riding he once held to give a boost to Layton's campaign, which is counting on disgruntled supporters from other political parties to take a chance on Layton for a change.
Layton said his party has an "optimistic vision" even in hard times.
The NDP leader spent the last day in the Greater Toronto Area scrambling to stake out his territory of being the only leader to speak up for the little guy while Conservative Leader Stephen Harper and Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion spent the final hours trying to convince voters that they are the best manager for a struggling economy.
"I think that's what this election is boiling down to. Who is going to be on people's side, who is going to be on your side, who is going to be on the side of middle class, the working families ... as we go through these turbulent times?" he said.
"It's time we had the working people in the halls of power in Ottawa for a change."
This Thanksgiving, Layton said many Canadians are feeling very anxious about the economic situation "and nobody knows that better than the people here in Oshawa as we have watched some of the best jobs in this country disappear because of a complete lack of policy or strategy or even a sense of caring about the issue from the our (Conservative) government."
Layton said beyond the statistics, headlines, and economic theory are real people whose way of life has been ripped apart by jobs moving offshore and a prime minister whose polices concentrate on the well-being of large corporations.
"This isn't theory, this is about the real lives of people in our country. And we are not just talking about a few. We are talking about 400,000 manufacturing jobs, the kind of jobs that allow you to be part of the middle class. And Stephen Harper doesn't care about it. The best he can come up with is to tell you to go off and bet on the stock market," he said.
Layton said Dion can't be trusted to stand up for workers when his Liberal caucus supported the Conservative government on so many confidence votes.
"Its Harper's policies but it is Dion responsibility," he said.
"Mr. Dion turned his back on (manufacturing) workers despite what he is trying to claim today," he said, suggesting that Dion's attempt to fashion himself into a "progressive" is "not on, people won't buy it."
Layton said his party stands for fair trade agreements and a buy-Canadian policy plus an emphasis on helping companies with green job strategies, including car makers who can produce so-called green vehicles.