In the first day
of his campaign to become Canada's next prime minister,
Conservative leader Stephen Harper lobbed a cultural grenade
into the race. If elected, he is promising to
introduce a law that would define marriage as the
union of one man and one woman, CanWest news service
reported Monday.
"I would simply ask the House of Commons in a
motion whether they want to table legislation on the
marriage issue to change the definition of marriage,"
he said. "If the motion is defeated, we won't proceed."
Liberals quickly denounced the move. "Ambition
has overwhelmed common sense," said current pro-gay
prime minister Paul Martin, who is Harper's main
challenger in the race.
The election is set to be held on January 23,
and a new poll shows the race is a dead heat.
On Monday, Martin's scandal-plagued ruling
government lost a no-confidence vote, which threw the
country into election turmoil. All 308 seats in the
lower House of Commons are up for grabs. If Harper's
party wins a majority, he becomes prime minister.
Martin avoided any talk of scandal and touted
the Liberal Party's economic record, the news service
reported. "Under a Liberal government, Canada has gone
from pauper to powerhouse," he said. "Deficits are
history. We've had eight surpluses in a row now."
For his part, Harper is determined to push the
idea that the country is ready for lower taxes and a
change in leadership. (Advocate.com)
