After salary raise, Trudeau will earn $406,200, Poilievre $299,900, and Singh, Blanchet $271,700 each year

After MPs’ salaries increased on April 1, Trudeau will now earn $406,200, Poilievre $299,900 and Singh, Blanchet $271,700 each year. The raise for MPs may not be popular with Canadians struggling to deal with affordability issues, but in order to attract top talent in politics, MPs need to be paid competitively, say politicos.
Liberals ‘between the devil and the deep blue sea’ on carbon tax and caucus fissures on Mid-East war, say political players

Without pausing the upcoming carbon price increase on April 1, it’s hard to find a way to get the Liberals out of their public support slump, says pollster Greg Lyle.
America’s worrying political trend

No matter who wins the presidential election on Nov. 5, the majority of Americans will probably feel like they lost, and that’s not good for democracy.
If Conservatives follow their own rules, 32 incumbent MPs including Poilievre, Uppal, and Hallan may have to go through nomination contests: riding redistribution analysis

The Conservative Party will have to follow the nomination rules fairly or it will cause fissures in the caucus, says Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs
Expected Conservative win in Monday’s Durham byelection will be measured against O’Toole’s winning margins, say political players

In Durham, the Tories have been outperforming the national party average by about a 12 per cent margin, so it remains to be seen if Jamil Jivani can meet this benchmark, says Fred DeLorey, former Conservative campaign director.
Oliphant’s leaked private conversation could have a ‘chilling effect’ on MP-constituent relations, say some Liberal MPs

Unforced errors like Rob Oliphant’s leaked audiotape will make it harder for the Liberals to win the next election, says Greg Lyle, president of Innovative Research.
Like ‘Tragically Hip song Boots or Hearts,’ Trudeau government getting ‘whipsawed’ every day, leadership change seems to be only option left, say political players

The almost daily controversies are majorly distracting the Liberal government from communicating its messages to Canadians, says Abacus Data CEO David Coletto.
Two GTA Conservative ridings call out party’s top brass for ‘interference’ in nominations, but HQ denies allegations

Georgetown Councillor D’Arcy Keene has launched his Conservative nomination campaign in the newly created riding of Milton East-Halton Hills South, Ont.
Rebranding the carbon tax won’t help the Liberals

If people don’t like Justin Trudeau, it follows they won’t like his policies, either. It’s guilt by association. If the rebate had another name, the carbon tax would still smell the same.
Pollsters skeptical NDP would force an election over pharmacare

Meanwhile, former Liberal staffer Dan Arnold says the government has to decide whether it wants to invest big money into pharmacare versus its other policy priorities in advance of the next election.