Liberals, NDP set to choose Political Coventry

The National Post is carrying an article on the opposition parties cobbling a coalition together to water down the CPC crime bill:

One of the Conservative government's key law-and-order initiatives has been dealt a critical blow by opposition parties, who have effectively gutted a bill that would have severely curtailed the use of house arrest and jailed about 5,500 more people annually.

The three opposition parties on the House of Commons justice committee, which held public hearings on the bill, have dramatically amended the proposal so that the vast majority of criminals will remain eligible to serve their time in the community instead of going to jail.

It is the first of the Harper government's justice bills to be significantly altered by the opposition, who hold the balance of power in Parliament and have warned that they will not back any punishments they believe are too severe for the crime.

I can’t believe that the opposition parties want to risk having Parliament fall over their “softening” of the Conservative crime bill. I cannot believe the Liberals are so lacking in common sense that they would rather commit political suicide by running as the preferred party of both terrorists and criminals.