http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/home.aspxReporter Katie Franzios keeps you up-to-date on the happenings in the Provincial Legislature at Queen's Parken-usCopyright 2012, CFRB-AMSat, 25 May 2013 20:52:10 GMTTue, 13 Nov 2012 22:04:26 GMT1http://emmisinteractive.comIt's been almost one month since Dalton McGuinty prorogued the legislature and I doubt the opposition will get him a cake to mark the occasion. There have been almost daily calls to bring Queen's Park back and they have fallen on deaf ears. But did we really expect otherwise?McGuinty had a course already mapped when he announced his plan to prorogue minutes before he revealed he would be stepping down. And while many say it had to do with the gas plant controversy (which I don't doubt), it was also to make sure the province wasn't thrust into an election with the Liberals leader-less.The premier left the decision up to the next guy or gal in charge as to when to come back and unless the opposition can find an urgent matter worthy of recalling the legislature, it will stay as-is until at least the end of January ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10465576kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10465576Tue, 13 Nov 2012 22:04:26 GMTFamily. We've heard it used over and over again as a reason/excuse to get out of politics. Former mayor David Miller propped it up as one of the reasons he decided not to run for re-election. And now, take what's been going on with the Liberals:Dalton McGuinty: He said one of the reasons he was resigning was to send more time with loved ones. He did speak about his kids but they are adults. George Smitherman: Along with some new businesses he's working on, he said he wanted to raise his two young kids.Brad Duguid: Despite joking about everyone saying they want to spend time with family when announcing he wouldn't run for the Liberal leadership, he noted he wanted to be there for his teenagers in case they ever needed him. Family is an easy reason/excuse and while it may be true for some, not just cynical ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10459981kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10459981Tue, 13 Nov 2012 21:59:56 GMTJust 24 hours ago, I blogged about the silence heard most mornings at Queen's Park. Little did I - or anyone else - know, it was to be the calm before the storm. There are many out there praising or slamming down Dalton McGuinty's political motives for stepping down, all expected to happen now and in the days and weeks ahead. But no matter what your political stripe, many out there also know he was a nice guy. On one of my first days on the Queen's Park beat, something happened to me that didn't happen when I started covering city hall under Mayor David Miller. It also didn't happen to me when Mayor Rob Ford took office. The guy in the top political spot almost made me dribble my soup. I was writing a report after Question Period and having lunch at my desk, as I usually do. There ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10451174kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10451174Tue, 16 Oct 2012 14:03:52 GMTI like coming in early to Queen's Park, especially when I know I'm going to have a busy day ahead of me. The hallways are emptier than when proceedings in the legislature start, the only sounds you hear are the ding of elevators and the pouring of coffee in the downstairs cafeteria. It's easy to read a few things and set your office up when you know you don't have to keep watching the clock for when the next news conference or when question period will start. Above all, the insanity that makes up a busy day can be cast aside for just a little bit. In a way, it's like waking up early on the weekend to drink coffee and read as the sun comes up. You know you'll have a lot to do later in the day but that's your moment of solace. As I type this, I ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10450398kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10450398Mon, 15 Oct 2012 12:52:36 GMTOn Tuesday, in the middle of the budget vote, time seemed to stop. It was between when the Liberals got up to vote in favour of it and the Tories, against. It was when the NDP stayed seated and know one knew if they were going to get up. Just under 24 hours earlier, the Liberals and NDP made a deal and while NDP leader Andrea Horwath underlined she wouldn't make the government fall rather than state her full-out support for the budget (meaning the party would likely abstain), that one moment in the budget vote was full of doubt. Sidebar: in order to vote in the Legislature, an MPP has to stand. Once the clerk has read his or her name, they will sit back down and their say is counted. So thoughts were swirling: Did NDP members change their minds? Will they really abstain? Will there be another ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10377515kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10377515Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:12:05 GMTFor those caught in the vortex that is Twitter, a "retweet" - or "RT" for those in the know - can be the best compliment in the world. That's when one of your followers forwards along what you've written or posted online. A RT means people care about what you're reporting on or like a picture you took. A RT can mean more people will follow you. But when do RTs make you question what you just wrote? When a political staffer or - gasp! -  politician decides to forward along your tweet to their legions of fans (or haters, because Twitter is like that sometimes). On the rare occasion, it's all in good fun - like my recent story on if MPPs would start up a boxing match like the folks on parliament hill did. Other times, when it's honest-to-goodness news, you start questioning whether your report or online ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10366756kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10366756Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:11:40 GMTAs political staffers scramble to either defend the budget or put out spin about tweaking it to their party's liking, journalists can relax for a nano-second. Both the provincial and federal budgets have come down, so the research and the quest to find out what is in them have come to an end.That doesn't mean we can go to a tropical island and ignore email for a week (trust me, I've thought about it! Or Paris. But that's another blog post...). We still have to watch out for any opposition party amendments to the budget and the actual vote. Not to mention there's keeping a close eye on the NDP's Andrea Horwath, whose decision to support the budget will be the difference between keeping a Liberal minority and going to the polls. So I guess this means it's still crazy down here at Queen's Park, just *less* so. It ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10366037kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10366037Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:11:21 GMTSpring break at Queen's Park isn't as much about getting time off as it is being a little more casual when doing things. Monday's OLG announcement aside, you can usually count on a few things during these mid-session week-long breaks:1. You see a few political staffers wearing jeans or, if they do still have their suits on, their ties will be just a little looser;2. You will randomly hear music streaming from an MPPs office (on Monday I heard one office blaring rock music);3. It will be hard to access party leaders or anyone for that matter, unless there's an announcement to be made.Of course, that last point could lead to frustrated journalists pulling their hair out while they try to find someone - anyone - to get a quote from. So nope, no vacations down south this spring break and no visits that include a ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10359524kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10359524Tue, 13 Mar 2012 22:33:38 GMTSometimes being at Queen's Park seems like an episode of Iron Chef. The host will throw an ingredient (issue) out there, and the contestants (politicians) have to do their best with what's given to them. Tuesday's secret ingredient was subways and transit. It involved a lot of muddled information and back and forth that leaked into Wednesday, with the PCs pushing the point that they want to do what's best in the long-term for Toronto and the Liberals and NDP accusing them of playing politics since the Tories don't have any Toronto seats. While Tory leader Tim Hudak's strategy was to gain seats in Toronto, cozy up to Mayor Rob Ford & Co so they can unleash "Ford Nation" for the next campaign (as they said they would do during the last) or just to up tourism numbers, it may have hurt Ford's cause. Since elected, Ford has boasted both ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10357291kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10357291Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:31:13 GMTYou may have all heard about the "five foot" rule, where the press shouldn't come within five feet of the Premier when asking questions, basically eliminating those clips you see of hoards of journalists surrounding a politician, sticking our microphones in their faces (called a "scrum). There's another constant here at Queen's Park you can always make a safe bet on: if you're waiting for a news conference with a politician, it will start late. It happens so much now that press are often shocked if it starts on time. Now, in this age of social media, those who are impatient can easily take to Twitter and complain. I did that on Monday, as did a few others.And the Premier called us out on it. "Note that I have never Tweeted about the camera guys being late but on several occasions you have Tweeted about my rare tardiness," he ...http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10355965kfranzios@astral.com (Katie Franzios)http://www.newstalk1010.com/blogs/katiefranzios/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10355965Mon, 05 Mar 2012 22:29:09 GMT