Dual partisans

Wajid Khan's defection to the Tories is old news, of course, after Stephen Taylor's world exclusive of the previous day. But I couldn't help noting Stephane Dion's take on it:

After Khan and Harper made the joint announcement, Dion released a statement saying it was “with regret” that he received the news. “As a member of the Liberal Party of Canada, I was never comfortable with Mr. Khan serving as an adviser to a Conservative Prime Minister, as Mr. Khan has done since August of last year,” the statement read. “As Leader of the Party, I felt it imperative that he decide to which party he would ultimately be loyal. Mr. Khan has now made that decision.” On Thursday, Dion said publicly that Khan should make a decision about his loyalties. "You can't have a foot in the government and a foot in the opposition," Dion told reporters yesterday.

No, indeed. The idea's absurd. It's like, I don't know, being Prime Minister of one country and a citizen of another. UPDATE: It's encouraging that Khan was not given a cabinet post or other inducement to cross the floor, unlike the Stronach and Emerson affairs. But should he be so honoured in the future, people will naturally wonder if that sound they hear is the other shoe dropping. As before, the best course would be for Khan to consult his constituents, the ones who sent him to Ottawa as a Liberal less than a year ago, via a byelection.