Is Stephen Harper Sticking it To Clement Out of Revenge?

When the Afghan Detainee issue first became news in 2009, where was Stephen Harper?

At a photo-op with the Olympic Lacrosse Team.

Despite the fact that all direction for the handling of detainees, came straight from the PMO's office, Harper left Peter Mackay to take the fall.

Day after day he was hammered in the House of Commons, and day after day, Harper was a no show.

This prompted Kennedy Stewart to wonder if Harper will let MacKay suck up Afghanistan torture poison to preserve leadership

The explosive allegations about transferred Canadian prisoners being tortured by Afghan officials and the stink of a government cover-up might initially seem detrimental to Stephen Harper. However these events might eventually prove personally advantageous to the prime minister. Harper's uncharacteristic low-key role on this issue hints he is throwing his closest rival to the wolves to fortify his leadership position.

More recently an article by Don Newman, suggesting that Tony Clement is being left to take the fall over the census debacle, makes me wonder if he's not doing the same to Clement, another rival for leadership.

Since everything in this government emanates from the prime minister's office, there is little doubt where this ideologically driven idea for census change came from. But as Statistics Canada reports to the minister of industry, almost all the messy fallout is landing at the feet of Tony Clement or, perhaps soon, on his head.

If you ask anyone who knows Stephen Harper to describe him, they will, besides saying that he is a narcissistic, evil freak of nature; would say that he is vengeful. During the leadership race against Clement, it got pretty heated.

Stephen Harper does not just forbid dissent from us. Clement should have known that.