新省长取消了$5,000见面费

小曲

Alta. premier cancels $5,000 receptions set up to erase Tory leadership debts
Thursday, Jan 11, 2007

面对一片批评声浪，新省长Ed Stelmach 取消了要捐款$5,000会面省长和部长的计划. 他承认政府的透明度极差.

当问到他是否在拍卖政府, 他回答说 "No,"

2 f4 ^) i. Y! Y# l$ I4 u这两个捐款的酒会是为了还新省长Stelmach 和三个后来支持他的候选人的竞选债务. 他们是健康部长Dave Hancock, 财政部长Lyle Oberg, 和前部长Mark Norris.
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据估计Stelmach的竞选债务约$300,000.
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到下午Stelmach办公室收到了20个电话, 16 个要求取消, 4 个问在哪买票.
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反对党领袖Kevin Taft说Stelmach 取消了计划是因为走漏了消息,引起公众的愤怒.

& u  S! T) h% K) |但Stelmach说$500酒会的门票还是要收的.
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/ U: ~* J1 ]% @2 o0 z新省长Ed Stelmach 是亚省北方的一个农场主, 是Klein政府长期的内阁部长. 他的新内阁成员全部是白人,大城市的很少,绝大部分是在竞选中支持他的乡镇的代表.
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EDMONTON (CP) - Access denied.
& x% k- m. c! h) \$ dAlberta Premier Ed Stelmach, faced with mounting criticism over a plan to offer exclusive access to him and his ministers at two receptions for anyone willing to contribute $5,000, pulled the plug on the plan Thursday. The rookie premier told reporters the optics were poor.
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"It's a bit of perception that I'm not happy with. And of course it goes against what I've done in the past in politics," he said.
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5 E3 c( x, R0 \' x. S+ PStelmach, who took over from Ralph Klein as Conservative party leader and premier last month, took full responsibility. He said he didn't give the plan enough attention, but had already decided to kill it a day before it became public knowledge on Wednesday.
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9 F, O# s& \0 b7 [, x"This will not happen again. This is as a result of not only miscommunication but maybe of volunteers not being fully aware of the way I personally do business."

3 H3 h7 A" z; o6 X' X" ^  ~( v/ IHas he sent the message his government is for sale? he was asked.
0 _& G2 X. b/ Y"No," he replied.
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The receptions came to light in an e-mail invitation sent to the Calgary business community announcing an upcoming fundraiser in that city. There was also one planned for Edmonton.
Along with a $500-a-plate reception with Stelmach and his cabinet ministers, there was to be a "smaller, more exclusive event" for a minimum donation of $5,000 to help pay off the leadership campaign debts of Stelmach and three rivals who later supported him.
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Two of those rivals are Health Minister Dave Hancock and Finance Minister Lyle Oberg. Former cabinet minister Mark Norris is the third.
The money was to go to an entity called True Blue, set up to fundraise for the four politicians.
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* ~6 J8 `8 M' `7 I2 NStelmach's team has estimated his campaign debt at $300,000.
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2 f- _9 i: S; ^- M9 W8 S! rOberg said he understood Stelmach's decision given the perception. He said people can contribute whatever they want whenever they want, but it won't affect access to him.

8 z! T, k, C& y: \, K- R* p! H& g"I'm accessible to anyone, anytime pretty well, schedule available," he said.

! F5 O% u+ d8 l7 Z  iTed Morton, a Stelmach cabinet minister who ran against him and is not part of True Blue, could not be reached for comment.
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A spokesman for Stelmach's office said that by mid-afternoon they had received 20 calls on the issue: 16 callers urged the plan be scrapped while the other four wanted to know where to buy tickets.

Liberal Opposition Leader Kevin Taft said Stelmach only cancelled the plan because he knew the information was leaking out.
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* L% k% B" o* G" M"They were caught with their hand in the cookie jar. It's as simple as that," said Taft.

"I'm sure this never would have been cancelled if it hadn't come to public attention. It leaves me wondering what else has gone on that the public doesn't know about."

! W+ o' `# W( u7 T0 ?, j% SNDP Leader Brian Mason has asked Alberta's ethics commissioner to determine whether such activities contravene Alberta's Conflicts of Interest Act.

2 |$ X4 x" t. e$ _% |  p+ jHe said Tory leadership campaigns are legal free-for-alls that are open to abuse.

"There's a real blind spot on the part of all of the Conservatives - leadership candidates and the party and the government - around the whole question of transparency and fundraising for political purposes," said Mason.
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Ethics commissioner Donald Hamilton questioned the wisdom of such a fundraiser but said little could be done about it under current legislation.

& m. v0 M# ^4 p9 g: [- eThere are no laws in Alberta governing leadership races. And the Conservative party itself imposes no spending limits and doesn't require candidates to report who's giving them money.
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, V- C9 L. _8 D4 m7 B7 uStelmach said the $500 receptions will go ahead, as they are "part of the political process."

But he said the party will discuss spending limits and other leadership race issues at its next annual general meeting.
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Stelmach, a northern Alberta farmer and longtime Klein cabinet minister, was a surprise victor in the race to become the province's 13th premier.
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He faced criticism when he announced a new cabinet that was 90 per cent male with no visible minorities, few ministers from cities and top-heavy with rural legislature members who supported him in the leadership race.
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Keith Brownsey, who teaches political science at Mount Royal College in Calgary, said Stelmach was right to cancel the access-idea.

But he said when it's added to the cabinet controversy, Stelmach will have to work quickly to fix a growing perception that he and his government will be about insider politics and bush-league, ad hoc decision making.
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"It smacks of amateurism," said Brownsey.
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"This is someone who is not used to playing in the major leagues.

"He's been suddenly thrust in the job of premier and right from the get-go he's stumbled."
; F* E! Y3 }: {' m6 N1 lPolitical scientist Doreen Barrie of the University of Calgary agreed the optics were "terrible" but said the problem is far from insurmountable.

"Albertans will accept a few errors in judgment," she said.

精品中年老男人

honghaier

这个傻瓜！召人怨！

lischka

是挺傻的

明明白白我的心

见面费取消容易，但想挽回已造成的恶劣影响就难了。

百乐门

cdyy

支持，钱不是最重要的

阿Q臭臭锅

这里有没有人当初投给他票的,后悔了吧

Chocolate

强烈要求发繁荣奖的省长再次上台。

wli004

他是哪根葱哪根蒜呀,他掏钱给我也不去.

guanzhong

连30万都没有还选个屁省长啊！