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adam radwanski

Yesterday, in explaining why it is that he wants an election, Michael Ignatieff offered the following:

For more than a century, we've built our prosperity on our natural resources. But if we're to prosper in the next century, we have to turn our resources into products and technologies the whole world wants to buy.

We can't get there unless we have the vision and ambition to build a competitive, compassionate future for Canada.

We can't get there unless we open up new markets for Canadian exports in countries like China and India.

We can't get there with Stephen Harper.

Stephen Harper has been prime minister for four years, and he's never visited China. We'll be there next week. After that, we'll plan a trip to India.

That's where we need to be as a country - if we want to secure markets for the next generation of our exports - if we want to compete with the best in the world - if we want to get out of the trade deficit the Conservatives have created, the first in thirty years.

Less than 24 hours later, CP reports:

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff is cancelling a week-long trip to China due to his self-declared threat of a fall federal election, The Canadian Press has learned.

Ignatieff was to leave Friday for what he'd billed as an "imperative" international trip to Beijing and Shanghai to rebuild diplomatic relations with the Asian economic giant.

But Liberal insiders say he spoke Friday morning with Canada's ambassador to China, David Mulroney, who had been helping co-ordinate the trip, and postponed it for the time being. Ignatieff plans to reschedule the visit as soon possible, said a party source.

I'm no expert. But I'm pretty sure that if you're trying to get past criticism that you lack convictions and are prone to adopting positions of convenience, this might not be the best way.

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