Sandbagged

When floods ravaged the Saguenay region several years ago, the federal government whipped out the chequebook faster than you can say "sponsorship".

When the Red River flooded at the beginning of the '97 election campaign, Jean Chretien threw a few sandbags on the pile for a timely photo-op.

But when the waters receded, Liberal votes were washed away with them.

In that vein, one Alberta Tory MP is complaining that the Liberals have neither offered relief funds nor photo-ops to Alberta flood victims:

''The real question is: where are the feds?'' said Tory MP Lee Richardson, whose Calgary riding includes the overflowing Bow and Elbow rivers and is among the worst-hit areas.

''If this was happening in central Canada, the Prime Minister would have been there 20 minutes later.''

Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan said it's up to Alberta -- not Ottawa -- to decide whether federal flood assistance dollars will start flowing toward the waterlogged province.

So far, she said, the federal government has heard no calls for help.

The Alberta government has announced $55-million in provincial flood assistance, but observers estimate the total price tag to clean up the damage will soar far beyond that number.

It seems that "let the Eastern bastards freeze in the dark" has been met with "let the Western bastards drown in the flood".

Source: National Post