By Doug Draper
There are the usual pot shots that politicians take at their partisan opponents. Then there are shots that are so cheap and so divorced from reality that one in the media world wonders how giving them publicity adds anything of any value to the public discourse.
Niagara Falls Liberal Riding MPP Kim Craitor
That is how I felt this March 4 when I received a media release from the office of Ontario Conservative leader Tim Hudak suggesting that Niagara Falls Liberal MPP Kim Craitor may not care all that much about the closing of emergency rooms at hospitals in Fort Erie (part of his riding) and Port Colborne because he apparently congratulated Juanita Gledhill, the outgoing chair of the Niagara area Local Health Integrated Network, for doing a “good job.”
For anyone who has paid the least bit of attention to Craitor’s efforts to save these now-defunct emergency rooms, even at the risk of annoying higher ups in the province’s Liberal government, any suggestion that he may have been less than sincere on that file is patently ridiculous.
Yet in that March 4 media release, Hudak charges that Craitor “showed just how out of touch the McGuinty Liberals have become with Ontario families when he congragulated (Gledhill) for doing a ‘good job’. …. While Kim Craitor may think closing the emergency rooms in Fort Erie and Port Colborne is a job well done,” continued the release, “Ontario PC leader Tim Hudak has vowed to scrap the LHINs and reinvest every penny into frontline patient care like reopening the Fort Erie emergency room.”
While no one, including Craitor, has expressed doubt about Hudak’s repeated vow to ”scrap” the LHINs, what has the Niagara Falls MPP upset is any suggestion that his “good job” remark, which he admits he made to a Niagara area media outlet” implies that he hasn’t been sincere in his efforts to keep ER services open in Fort Erie and Port Colborne.
“I will just never stoop that low,” Craitor told Niagara At Large of Hudak’s claim that a positive remark about the job Gledhill did means he somehow supports the closing of the ERs. “I want to get re-elected, but not by slamming someone like that.”
Sue Saltzer, a Fort Erie resident and a leader of the Yellow Shirt Brigade, a citizens group lobbying for better health services, told Niagara At Large “there is no que3stionh where Kim’s mind, hear and efforst have been since day one. … Since day one, he has been fighting for us and anyone who has been following the mass destruction of our hospital services here know that. Kim Craitor has been here front and center, at every meeting, every rally, every event.”
Craitor said he has sought legal advice to determine if he should take action against the content of a media release which, he said, has apparently been circulated across the province and may give everyone from here to Ottawa the impression he isn’t being sincere in his fight for better hospital services in Niagara.
The Niagara Falls MPP said he made the comment to an area media outlet that Gledhill did a “good job,” but he insists he also made it clear that he did not agree with many of the decisions the Gledhill and the LHIN made around the Niagara Health System, the board responsible for most of the region’s health services, and its so-called “hospital improvement plan” – a plan that calls for moving a critical mass of the acute care services in the region to a new hospital complex the NHS is building in west St. Catharines.
Following is a copy of Ontario Conservative leader Tim Hudak’s March 4 media release. Please follow it up, further below, with your views on this issue.
Kim Craitor Congratulates Niagara LHIN Head on a “Good Job”
Today Niagara Falls Liberal MPP Kim Craitor showed just how out of touch the McGuinty Liberals have become with Ontario families when he congratulated the outgoing Chair of the Niagara area LHIN for doing a “good job”.
- Niagara Falls MPP Kim Craitor says “She did a good job,” and was always willing to listen to concerns about health care. (610 CKTB News, March 4, 2011).
Outgoing Niagara LHIN Chair Juanita Gledhill was Chair of the Niagara LHIN when they held illegal, secret meetings that resulted in the closure of the emergency rooms in Fort Erie and Port Colborne.
While Kim Craitor may think closing the emergency rooms in Fort Erie and Port Colborne is a job well done, Ontario PC Leader Tim Hudak has vowed to scrap the LHINs and reinvest every penny into frontline patient care like reopening the Fort Erie emergency room.
In the next election Ontario families will have a clear choice between a Dalton McGuinty Government that diverts frontline patient dollars to the LHINs and closed emergency rooms in Fort Erie and Port Colborne, and a Tim Hudak Government that will close the doors on the LHINs and re-open the emergency room in Fort Erie.
CONTACT: Alan Sakach | 416-848-8154 | alan.sakach@ontariopc.net
Oops. Did Niagara At Large leave the contact information for Alan Sakach, a member of Tim Hudak’s p.r. team, in the media release on this one? Yes we did. And maybe, just maybe, this marketing professional for Hudak ought to play a role in answering for this release, since his name is on it. Let him answer for why a debate over whether or not we should retain the LHIN should devolve to pissing on an MPP that might, just might, care as much about health care issues as his leader, even if that leader and the MPP are not members of the same political party.
In other words, maybe what has been going on with hospital services in Niagara should be less about partisan politics and more about providing the best services possible for the residents of Niagara.
(Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary on matters of interest and concern to residents in our greater Niagara region and beyond.)
Niagara At Large 
I remember back when Tim Hudak was a mere backbencher in the Mike Harris regime and I was on the Niagara District Health Council. That was in 1996-1997. We were given the responsibility to come up with ways to save some $30 million and the way we were forced to do this was to recommend the closing the ERs of Fort Erie and Port Colborne. None of us wanted to do this, but we were told we had to. By the Harris government. That was the same Harris that Tim Hudak owes his very political existence to. You can well imagine just how popular we were with the people of Niagara while the real villians of the piece sat in Queen’s Park. The emergency rooms were saved at the last minute by the rural hospital policy (put into effect just prior to a provincial election) which, to everyone’s dismay, was never set in stone. I’m not saying this to let the Liberals off the hook. They are just finishing what the Harris government started over ten years ago. Despite that, Kim Craitor has done an outstanding job of working with the public to help get our ERs open again. He has stated time and time again that the reason he has gone against his own party in this issue is that “it’s the right thing to do.” Meanwhile, Hudak promises to reopen the ERs, something he and his own party were all too quick to close down just a few years ago.
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Politics is such a dirty business. There is no doubt Kim Craitor has been sincerely upset about the closure of both Fort Erie and Port Colborne emergency departments and has said so over and over again, even though Port Colborne is not his riding. He is an honourable man, but he has not been sucessful at convincing his own party or Health Minister Deb Matthews of the gigantic mistake that has been made in south Niagara.
This mistake will continue to haunt Niagara with a two tiered health care and hospital services for generations to come…..unless they make adjustments to the HIP. Therefore, even though we love Kim Craitor, people may feel they will have to vote other than Liberal this next election as the Liberal government is refusing to listen to common sense.
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Unfortunately, folks like Hudak, McGuinty, Craitor, et al only see things in a partisan political perspective. None of them give two hoots about what is the best for the public. (I was going to use the word “right” but some might misconstrue that to mean “right-wing”)
I do not doubt the sincerity of Kim Craitor on this issue. In my former role as an employee of the Ontario government (NOTE: I use the term Ontario government, not the McGuinty government) I dealt with Mr Craitor a number of times and always found him to be one of the few who actually “gave a damn” about his constituents and in doing the right thing.
Unfortunately, his is almost a voice in the wilderness — most MPPs are afraid to go against their official party policy – this applies to ALL political parties.
I live in the Hamilton area and we too are facing the loss of an important emergency room as part of the same LHIN’s gutting of health services at the behest of Dalton McGuinty and former Health Minister George Smitherman.
Politically, I would be called a “Red Tory” in that I tend to be conservative, but with a social concsience.
With folks like Hudak, Harris and Harper taking over the provincial and federal conservative parties, I no longer have someone to vote for!
The Liberals are just as bad and the NDP, unfortunately, continue to suffer the same problem that plagued Dave Barrett in BC and Bob Rae in Ontario – a good leader, but no bench strength to back them up.
Until we, the voters, actually take control and hold politicians of all stripes accountable, we will continue to see such idiotic moves as more guttings of our health and education systems.
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I too have seen many signs of Craitor’s genuine concern and compassion. While I dislike the current provincial government, I do like Kim Craitor. In my humble opinion, Hudak is just another opportunistic, bottom dwelling politician who will say whatever is needed to get elected. Remember the cutbacks in Walkerton that resulted in deaths there? All the Harris gov’t did was cut services so what’s different from the current government and who is to say Hudak will be different than his mentor? Maybe it’s time we Canadians tried pulling off a massive “Egypt” or a “Wisconsin” type of protest to show the powers that be that they are not as omnipotent as they seem to think. Our politicians, federally and provincially, are no less autocratic, bought-and-paid-for and undemocratic and arrogant as Mubarak and his ilk. Our democrarcy is becoming increasingly farcical on all levels, in large part due to our apathy.
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I thought the notion of “a buck a beer” was emblematic of sound, long-sighted political policy. (It reminds me of some high school election campaigns where the student council hopefuls deliver their speechs, and then throw candy to the audience.) Walkerton was another health disaster caused by privatization of health services; I hope people don’t forget that.
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note to Will
As an insider you no doubt saw it all. Kim is indeed unique to continue to stand up for the electorate and fight for his beliefs.
We wish him well in his current mission to get a hearing with the Premier for our Region and Mayors to present our case to the Premier.
Hamilton Council stance on refusing downloaded expenses from the closure of “Mac” ED to adults is to commended. Drawing a line in the sand is long overdue and our shared LHIN has got to get the message.
Reducing the Health Care Budget so they look good onto the backs of Taxpayers is totally unacceptable.
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Kim is a good man, and I have told him so myself, but unfortunately he is not allowed to pull any weight at the cabinet level. Dalton Mubarak has decided that our children and seniors are not worthy of the same medical care that he and his children are worthy of. We, in south Niagara, are the Star Trek crewman with the orange shirts. We are expendable. That is why we can not vote for Kim again. The Liberal party is the party of Toronto and near north. We poor chumps in the south should just die quietly and decrease the surplus population. That way they won’t have to listen to us whine. They have all sorts of time to extend drinking hours and take away our civil rights but no time to discuss far and equal access to healthcare. We seem to be an inconvenient truth,….. and not worthy.
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Dalton Mc.Mubarack is an albatross around our Kim Craitor’s neck, the Dalton, is going down to purgatory and dragging a few good men with him, I was at the Toronto demonstration at Queens Park 16 bus loads from Niagara, Kim was out side with us, I know because I spoke with him, there is no doudt in my mind where Kim stands, I am Green PartyI wish he would switch to us, we all love Kim but despise his leader.
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As most of you know I have been an outspoken critic of the NHS, the LHIN, the Health Ministers (all) and Government MMP and MPs who have aligned themselves with privatization advocates. I have had words with MP Craitor over some of the comments he made and wondered out loud to his face why he did not cross the floor and if not sit with Andrea then at least sit as an independent. The fact that he raved about McGuinty at the Casino deal or that he spoken warmly about George Smithman and NOW Geldhill is irrelevent.
The Truth is the ONE person who is and has been in our corner from day one has been Andrea Horwath. She arranged for the Yellow Shirts to be seated at the Ontario Legislature, She spoke at rallies and arranged meetings in front of the Douglas Hospital and at Queen’s Park. This Woman has been the true advocate and is being ignored in this article and by comments from people who should know and appreciate her dedication to our plight. NO I DO NOT CARRY ANY PARTY CARD I JUST SPEAK TO WHAT IS TRUTH………..Amen
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