Provincial budget coverage ain’t what it used to be: Tom Brodbeck’s column in the Free Press was full of funny backtracks compared to his pre-budget burial of the ‘Hail Mary’ playbook of the PC government. Is he a comedian? “It’s unlikely she’ll find a receptive audience” for “a decent budget” that increases key spending -and puts money back in Manitoban’s wallets? What about the ‘buffoonery’ he predicted in his Feb. 27 column?
10:15 With leader Dougald Lamont trying to horn in on NDP turf, the Manitoba LIberal Party budget response also earns a laugh or two. Hear what really hasn’t worked for decades- the MLP approach to attracting voters.
13.50 Part 2 – During the break, Marty realized there was a big-time tell in the change of headline for Brodbeck’s budget analysis. First he goes over the football-play language in the budget preview story, and then breaks down Dr. Tom’s new prescription for the NDP: Wab Kinew should vote against the budget – and become a right-wing New Democrat.
Wait to hear the original title the Mountain Avenue gang created for the column– there’s no doubt they wanted to paint Heather Stefanson as something she’s not, to manipulate voters.
22:09 Part 3 – CDI College under seige, in the Crime Courts and Public Safety commentary. We take this personally as our first live remotes on Kick-FM were from their campus at Graham and Main. Reports are that international students from a religious college leasing space inside CDI were the 4 mugged we described last week. Hear of the threats and racist abuse the students endure, the pattern of violence south of Portage and Main, and how this can undermine an iconic nearby burger stand and other area enterprises. People petrified to take the bus, daily machete attacks; 13 year olds pepper-spraying folks for shits and giggles put back on the streets. Welcome to Winnipeg.
This unchecked wave of violence, within blocks of the cop shop, is destroying downtown and is Brian Bowman’s legacy. It’s so bad, the cops can’t keep their story straight whether more people downtown post-pandemic makes it safer, or make it worse by increasing the supply of victims. While federal revolving-door crime laws release violent derelicts almost immediately to harm more victims, City Hall says ‘soon the work will start’ on planning meetings that will no doubt be too little, too late.
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