OTTAWA - The federal election is set for May 2 and it's shaping up to be a campaign battle from C to C -- coalition to contempt.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the date after meeting the Governor General today to dissolve Parliament. He immediately urged voters to give him a majority to stave off a "reckless opposition coalition."
Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff moved to blunt that line of attack, vowing not to form any coalition with the NDP or Bloc Quebecois and warning that the real danger is Harper's contempt for democracy.
Ignatieff chose the seat of Canadian democracy, Parliament Hill, to launch his campaign.
"The Harper Winter will soon be over," he said, amid a phalanx of Liberal MPs in the shadow of the Peace Tower.
"For the first time in our history, a prime minister was found guilty by the House of Commons of contempt for our parliamentary institutions and that's why we're having an election.
"We will be asking Canadians to choose between a prime minister that shows scant respect for our institutions and a Liberal team that believes profoundly that the first thing you expect of a government is respect for democratic principles."
However, Harper said the Liberals can't be trusted to keep their word and warned that an opposition coalition would be a danger to the economy and the country.
"Their record is clear," he said. "Deny it in an election, then do it afterward.
"Let me be perfectly clear: unless Canadians elect a stable national majority government, Michael Ignatieff will form a coalition with the NDP and Bloc Quebecois.
"Imagine a coalition of arch-centralists and Quebec sovereigntists trying to work together. The only thing they'll be able to agree on is to spend more money and to raise taxes to pay for it."
That alarmist talk was scoffed at by Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe, who noted that Harper was eager in 2004 to replace Paul Martin's minority Liberals with a Tory government backed by the NDP and Bloc.
Harper signed a letter with Duceppe and NDP Leader Jack Layton at the time, asking the Governor General to "consult the opposition leaders and consider all of your options" before agreeing to call an election.
"He lied this morning. He lied," Duceppe said of the prime minister.
Duceppe revelled in the details of his meeting with Harper in 2004 at the Delta Hotel in Montreal: "He was coming in my office saying, 'If Martin is going to lose confidence, what do you want in the throne speech? What would you like in the budget?"'
The rhetoric follows a historic vote in the House of Commons on Friday. MPs voted 156-145 in favour of a Liberal motion expressing non-confidence and citing the Harper government for contempt of Parliament -- a first for a national government anywhere in the Commonwealth.
Harper and other Tories defended this week's federal budget as a responsible plan during a fragile economic recovery and warned about the "irresponsible" effects of an "unnecessary" election. However, the stock market rose Friday and at least one expert dismissed any economic impact.
Harper is expected to campaign on the budget, which was laden with tightly targeted tax credits and riding-specific goodies, while simultaneously accusing his opponents of plotting to subvert the will of the electorate should the Conservatives fail to add 12 Tory seats and win their coveted majority.
The opposition parties have already begun pounding home their campaign message, slamming the prime minister as a secretive leader who abuses power, leads a government plagued by scandal, and lavishes tax cuts on big business while doing little for average Canadians.
Layton hammered away at that theme in his campaign kick-off speech in Ottawa.
"After five years, Stephen Harper has failed to fix what's wrong in Ottawa," he told a cheering crowd. "In fact, he's made it worse. You're working harder than ever. Your household debt is at an all-time high, your retirement is less secure ...
"He promised he'd finally clean up Liberal-style scandals. Instead, he just created new scandals of his own ... Ottawa is broken and it's time for us to fix it."
In the last month, the Conservative party and four of its top officials have been charged with election overspending and two RCMP investigations have been launched against former political staffers.
Harper's first campaign stop is Quebec City where he's desperate to hold on to the six Tory seats in the region amid discontent over his decision not to fund a new arena.
Ignatieff has a rally in Ottawa, then heads to Montreal where the Liberals hope to win back a seat lost to the NDP and solidify their other seats.
Layton is on his way to Edmonton where he hopes to build on the NDP bridgehead in Edmonton-Strathcona, the only non-Conservative seat in the province.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May began her campaign in Saanich, B.C., where she's making her third attempt -- all in different ridings -- to become Canada's first Green party MP.
