Remedial media

Michelle Stewart of The Aurora, special to The Telegram, popped Glorious Leader's balloon real nice in her coverage of The Big Announcement:

Money announced for Labrador highway
Province accused of not co-operating with feds on project

Premier Danny Williams sounded his government's horn in person Wednesday while at the same time trumpeting a blow to the federal government.

He, along with Minister of Transportation John Hickey and Labrador West MHA Jim Baker, met in Wabush to announce $15 million from the provincial purse for the Trans-Labrador Highway (TLH) with work to begin by August.

Unlike the headline on the government news release, the $15 million will not be dedicated to hard-surfacing. Rather a portion, eight kilometres in the Churchill Falls section, will have a double layer of chip seal with the remaining money to be spent on widening the highway.

The press release in question, complete with dubious headline, is available here.
Her article continues, with the following odd indirect quote:

Hickey said he had nothing in writing that the federal government will sign off on a cost-sharing agreement with the province.

"Odd", because remember, it wasn't that long ago that "the signed deal was in front of him."

That deal would, one presumes, have been written in some language or another.

Meanwhile, healthy skepticism, if partisan, is still alive in Labrador West, even if it's a moribund quality elsewhere in Dannystan:

In the meantime, Darrel Brenton, the Labrador West NDP candidate for the October election questioned the premier and Hickey on the type of chip seal to be used on the TLH.

"I guess a half a loaf is better than none, but the half loaf you do get should be edible," Brenton said. "We have come to know what chip seal is and we are not satisfied with the half a loaf we are getting."

Brenton asked why ordinary pavement rather than chip seal is the government's choice given the test chip seal is not holding up after only three years being laid on the section near Labrador City.

"I challenge Jim Baker and the minister to take the premier over the chip seal we have on the road," he said.

"Mr. Hickey said he came over the road and it's in good shape, but I don't know if he flew over the road or what, but he certainly didn't hit the potholes I encountered last night."

In response the premier said, "Well, the chip may be on your shoulder Darrel, that might be where the chip is. But let me tell you something, we are doing what ever we can here to try and do what we can for Labrador. We have limited funds available and in the last couple of years we managed to turn the fiscal situation around and we expect even better in years to come. When money becomes available we intend to put it back to the people of this province."

Contrast that with the CBC's coverage:

Williams pushes ahead with Labrador highway work

"Williams pushes..." Personally? L'état, c'est lui?