The federal Conservatives are choosing to respond to the threat to their survival by becoming more, not less partisan.
For instance, today the Conservatives announced planned rallies in 12 Canadian cities, including in front of Stephane Dion's office in Montreal.
The attempt to delegitimize the British Parliamentary process worries me. But more troubling is its futility.
While it's possible these tactics may poison the public opinion environment to the possibility of a new government, it does not seem likely to dissuade the MPs in the House from voting that they have lost confidence in the regime.
What I am hearing from MPs and senior insiders is that it is that very partisanship of Stephen Harper that is forcing them to bring the government down.
Rather than responding to threats, rallies or leaked private conversations, these moves are only strengthening these MPs' resolve to remove the Prime Minister from office so the focus can revert to the economy.
What these people are telling me is that the only course that could avert this disaster for the Conservatives would be a show of humility and non-partisanship from the Prime Minister.
They are saying this would require the removal of Jim Flaherty as Finance Minister, significant changes in the PMO, and a heartfelt statement of apology from the Prime Minister.
It would also be critical for the Prime Minister to make a number of unifying gestures to reduce the toxic atmosphere in Parliament.
Options would include inviting a Liberal Senator or MP to join his Ministry, taking on a prominent moderate public intellectual as a senior advisor, consulting the opposition routinely for advice on the budget, shuffling his Cabinet to introduce more moderates to senior roles, and simply adopting a more collegial tone in the Commons.
But these sources agree that such a move from Stephen Harper would be so uncharacteristic as to be unimaginable.
It's as if the Harper government has found itself in quicksand, and rather than relax and slowly work their way out of the trap, they are struggling to their doom.
