Wake me when it's over

Back from Ontario budget lock-up, where I was writing an op-ed for tomorrow's Post. As an Ontarian, I'm not crazy about what Greg Sorbara sold us - it's a lot of pain for what seems like very little gain. But as a journalist, I absolutely hate it.

That's not just because I'm legally required to be cynical (though that's probably part of it), but because it's absolutely impossible to write anything interesting about this budget - or, for that matter, this government. The McGuinty Liberals are like an amorphous blob, picking and choosing policies left and right without any defining script. You can write about issues in isolation, but there's no way to tie it together into a central theme.

Maybe it's a good thing they're so anti-ideological that they can't be pigeon-holed. I don't know. But I do know that, based on the way Sorbara was grilled in this afternoon's press conference, coverage is going to be absolutely brutal.

Grey plus green does not equal electoral gold

Last year, the Ontario Tories desperately tried to keep their hold on power by bribing seniors with, among other things, a promise that they'd no longer have to pay property taxes for education. Now, the federal Liberals - apparently subscribing to the Tory view that old folks can be easily bought off - are reportedly keen to try the same trick. True, the Liberal plans (rental supplements, an increased income supplement for the poor, etc.) are much more defensible. But given its timing, the politics behind this are pretty transparent.

Since he's not spending much time providing useful opposition at Queen's Park, maybe Ernie Eves should call Paul Martin and tip him off that this trick didn't exactly work wonders the first time. Seniors weren't born yesterday (okay, bad cliche in this case), and they're not going to jump up and down every time you wave cash at them.

Somehow, I doubt this'll be the last time I'm led to compare the Martin Liberals to the Eves Tories. The only difference is that, when Ernie's party was busy imploding, there was a credible alternative ready and waiting.