There's something fundamentally wrong about any politician who is proud of walking away from billions in economic development (Hebron), applauds an incompetent minister who neglected to act on a major economic opportunity until after a decision was made and then cancelled the project altogether, but who focuses instead on getting more hand-outs from Ottawa.
Danny Williams is the first premier in Newfoundland and Labrador history who preferred increasing the provincial government's dependence on Ottawa in lieu of economic self-reliance.
Danny Williams' sole victory to date - by his own calculation - was in securing a $2.0 billion hand-out from Paul Martin.
Bond Papers discussed this already, in a post titled "Haec tibi dona fero". For those who don't know, the phrase is the motto taken from the old badge of Newfoundland. Before someone discovered the provincial government had right to the current coat of arms (originally granted in the 1620s), the official flag of Newfoundland was a red ensign with the Badge in the fly.
Translated, it means: "We bring you these gifts."
