Archive for the ‘Liberals’ Category

Mba Liberals avoid internal showdown over proposed changes to party constitution

WINNIPEG -- Manitoba Liberals avoided an internal showdown Saturday by shelving controversial changes to the party's constitution.

Corey Shefman, senior adviser to leader Rana Bokhari, withdrew proposed changes at the party's annual general meeting that critics said would have concentrated power in the party's inner circle.

"It was a recognition that there are different people in the party with different interests and different opinions, and it was a respect for those different opinions," Shefman said afterward.

One change would have reduced the size of the party's board of directors, which includes representatives from all areas of the province and makes decisions alongside the party's executive. Another change would have reduced the minimum number of board meetings each year, to six from eight.

The Liberals, who have just one legislature seat but have shot up in recent opinion polls, are trying to present a united front in the wake of open criticism of Bokhari from a small but very vocal group of members.

An email sent by one board member last week said Bokhari and her team had stopped listening to the party's grassroots and were violating the party's constitution -- accusations Bokhari has denied. The president of one constituency association, Shane Nestruck, made similar accusations and said he is resigning.

Open dissent is nothing new for the Manitoba Liberals. During the 2011 election campaign, one candidate questioned the party's strategy and told reporters the Liberals were in danger of being wiped off the electoral map.

Because of that, some members of the Liberal executive proposed a constitutional amendment Saturday that would forbid members from doing anything to bring the party, the leader or a candidate "into disrepute."

The proposal was narrowly defeated. Some Liberals thought the move would be heavy-handed.

"This may be a chill on free speech. We ought to have the opportunity to say what we really honestly believe," said one member.

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Mba Liberals avoid internal showdown over proposed changes to party constitution

Manitoba Liberals dodge internal dispute

The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION

By: Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press

Saturday, May. 3, 2014 at 9:22 PM | Comments: 0

WINNIPEG - Manitoba Liberals avoided an internal showdown Saturday by shelving controversial changes to the party's constitution.

Corey Shefman, senior adviser to leader Rana Bokhari, withdrew proposed changes at the party's annual general meeting that critics said would have concentrated power in the party's inner circle.

"It was a recognition that there are different people in the party with different interests and different opinions, and it was a respect for those different opinions," Shefman said afterward.

One change would have reduced the size of the party's board of directors, which includes representatives from all areas of the province and makes decisions alongside the party's executive. Another change would have reduced the minimum number of board meetings each year, to six from eight.

The Liberals, who have just one legislature seat but have shot up in recent opinion polls, are trying to present a united front in the wake of open criticism of Bokhari from a small but very vocal group of members. Bokhari was elected leader last October in a three-way race that left some of her opponents' troops bitter.

An email sent by one board member last week to hundreds of Liberals said Bokhari and her team had stopped listening to the party's grassroots and were violating the party's constitution accusations Bokhari has denied. The president of one constituency association, Shane Nestruck, made similar accusations and said he is resigning.

Open dissent is nothing new for the Manitoba Liberals. During the 2011 election campaign, one candidate questioned the party's strategy and told reporters the Liberals were in danger of being wiped off the electoral map.

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Manitoba Liberals dodge internal dispute

MB Liberals must quash 'internal politics' to move forward, leader says

Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION

By: Larry Kusch

Posted: 05/3/2014 10:56 PM | Comments:

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Enlarge Image

Provincial Liberal leader Rana Bokari called for a united front at the party's annual general meeting in Winnipeg Saturday. Photo Store

Rana Bokari says Manitoba Liberals must bury their differences and build a "truly progressive and fiscally responsible alternative" to the NDP and Progressive Conservatives.

In a speech to the partys annual general meeting Saturday evening, Bokari portrayed the Grits as the true centrists.

"It is commonly said that elections are won by gravitating to the centre and we have all seen that around election time as our opponents try to become Liberals," she told a banquet crowd of 200. "They try to occupy the centre. Well, my friends, we dont have to gravitate or try to occupy the centre. We are the centre."

But she said a party thats known for its internal bickering must stand united.

"We must set aside any internal politics that we Liberals are unfortunately so well-known for and instead push forward together because this is a party that is strongest not in spite of our differences but because of our diversity."

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MB Liberals must quash 'internal politics' to move forward, leader says

Liberals gather to plan for future

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

By: Larry Kusch

Posted: 05/3/2014 1:00 AM | Comments:

Manitoba Liberals will focus on election readiness as the party holds its annual general meeting in Winnipeg this weekend.

In an interview, provincial Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari played down recent reports of internal bickering, saying the number of disgruntled members is "very, very small."

She also fended off accusations the law firm that employed her before she took over as Liberal leader in October charged exorbitant rates to residential school survivors.

"I am confident that Liberals are going to come out of this weekend more motivated, confident to reach out to their neighbours, to their friends -- inviting them to support a new progressive alternative for Manitoba," said Bokhari, as 175 party delegates gathered for the AGM Friday.

'I am confident that Liberals are going to come out of this weekend more motivated, confident to reach out to their neighbours, to their friends -- inviting them to support a new progressive alternative for Manitoba'

Bokhari does not yet hold a seat in the Manitoba legislature, nor has she indicated where she will run.

The provincial Liberals, however, have climbed considerably in the polls since she assumed the top job. According to a recent Free Press/Probe Research poll, the Grits have the support of 23 per cent of decided voters in Manitoba, compared with less than eight per cent on election day.

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Liberals gather to plan for future

NorCal Corner: Net Neutrality Is Dead and Bourgeois Liberals Claim Rights on Marx and Engels Work – Video


NorCal Corner: Net Neutrality Is Dead and Bourgeois Liberals Claim Rights on Marx and Engels Work
The Freedom of the Internet is Gone. The Freedom to stream info or movies or even work by Marx and Engels is gone. Net Neutrality is dead and capitalism has ...

By: NorCalNik

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NorCal Corner: Net Neutrality Is Dead and Bourgeois Liberals Claim Rights on Marx and Engels Work - Video