Seemed more like a cop-out to me ...

"Test Drive a Tory Today Canada's Conservatives were not given a mandate, but they may earn one." by Edward Morrissey

...When the money-laundering and influence-peddling scandal surrounding the Sponsorship Programme first broke open two years ago, the conventional wisdom held that corruption alone would not be enough to move Canadians to replace their Liberal government [ed. it should have given them a clue!] . The national economy had improved and stabilized during more than a decade of Liberal rule, first under Jean Chrétién and then Paul Martin [ed. the national economy rode on the coattails of the American economy, on the backs of small businesses and in the pockets of Jane and Joe Canada ...] . The government had decent relations with the United States [ed. Ed ... eat your Wheaties] but had avoided entangling the nation in the Iraq war, which most Canadians [ed. a.k.a. LSM] rejected as unnecessary; Martin had stood up to Washington on trade and environmental issues [ed. beating his chest and yelling "YOU MORONS"], as well as missile defense. Besides, the Conservatives had only recently pieced themselves together after years of infighting, and Stephen Harper seemed to many like an unseasoned cipher.

In 2005, that political ennui appeared to dissipate. The Gomery hearings and the explosive testimony of Jean Breault made clear just how corrupt the ruling party had become, and the electorate suddenly [ed. if you call 13 years "suddenly", ok ... I'll give up now] appeared poised for change. Only through last-minute deal-making with Jack Layton and the NDP was Paul Martin able to stave off a no-confidence motion in May, when the testimony went public. The $5.4 billion deal on health care [ed. some deal! He'd ripped $11 billion out of Ontario to shore up the federal budget!] only bought the Liberals another six months, as Layton finally bowed to public pressure and joined the Tories and the Bloc Québécois in toppling the Liberals last November. ...

I'll stop now.

Capt'n ... you're much too kind. The east coast and much of Ontario fell for the usual jargon and fear mongering that they were going to be shafted by the conservatives (as if they haven't been by the liberals over the past 13 years). What does it take to shake some common sense and decency into Canadians?