On message management

It was just a few weeks ago that Harper claimed that the public comments one of his more rabid MPs couldn't be taken to represent the views, or be the responsibility, of his government:

(T)he member for Saskatoon—Wanuskewin has already said that these are his own personal views and that they do not represent the position of the government. They certainly do not represent the position of the government...

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, as the member himself said, his position does not reflect that of either the Conservative Party or the Conservative government.

But it hasn't taken long for the government to take full control over the message of its non-cabinet members:

The Prime Minister's Office has warned Conservative MPs not to comment on the marriage next month of two gay RCMP constables.

The gag order went to all MPs but was aimed at "the small minority who might say something stupid," said one caucus member.

In other words, the precedent has been set for Harper determining what may and may not be subject to a Con comment. Which means that next time one of the Cons goes off the deep end, it can fairly be said that Harper either wasn't paying enough attention to anticipate the comment in keeping with past practice, or didn't disagree with the message enough to try to stop it. Either way, the result should be all the more residual responsibility lying with the government as a whole.

Greg at Sinister Thoughts has more, including the exciting "guess who's being specifically muzzled" game.