Whatever the debt was. Wasn't the point of my comment and I use the 170bn figure because it is the most agreed upon by the left and I don't want to argue that minor point Also my point wasn't to discredit you. Harper however was certainly no economic genius. Well he was when compared to Obama or Trudeau or any EU member who were/are absolutely atrocious but not a genius when it comes to running my tax dollars. A genius would realize the mistakes of running off a central government in the first place. A genius would have paid off debt and told the imf and BOC to buzz off after paying off the debt.  His GDP growth rate was also subpar,certainly not indicative of a genius. Don't get me confused though he certainly handled the situation faced far better than any liberal today would have. He also wouldn't have given in to khadr which I respect. I said the same thing then as I do now in respects to us being topin g8. Being the sharpest spoon is nothing to brag about.