Liberal handgun-ban study could put 2019 seats in play, but not enough to topple majority: strategists
Firearms enthusiasts are vowing that the government’s examination of a nationwide handgun ban will cost the Liberals in the next election, but political strategists say they aren’t so sure the issue will be enough to boot them out of office in 2019. In his mandate letter, published Aug. 28, new Minister of Border Security and […]
Minister Joly hires operations director as she staffs up new office
Tourism, Official Languages, and La Francophonie Minister Mélanie Joly has finalized a few more staffing decisions in her new ministerial office, including hiring Maximilien Roy as her director of operations. Mr. Roy joined Ms. Joly’s growing staff team straight from Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s office, where he’d been working as a policy and Quebec regional […]
NAFTA and Trump’s Great Game show
Sometimes, during those occasional moments when I remind myself that I didn’t become a journalist to end up parsing tweets written by Donald Trump or, more despairingly, by someone ghost-ranting in his name, I tell myself it could be worse. I could be Chrystia Freeland, who surely didn’t become a journalist to end up having […]
Losing NDP incumbents not a ‘five-alarm fire,’ but cause for concern: strategists
The NDP should be concerned that seven of its MPs have said they’re not running again in 2019, but it’s not yet a negative trend to lay at the new leader’s feet, say strategists. While two won’t be returning to the House of Commons this fall—Thomas Mulcair (Outremont, Que.) and Kennedy Stewart (Burnaby South, B.C.)—five […]
Can small-town Canada survive?
KAMOURASKA, QUE.—One small challenge of summer life in small towns is finding a trusted person to do skilled work one cannot do. I can sand, paint, cut the grass, and do some small DIY projects. But for the complex carpentry, electrical, or plumbing projects, I rely on people with real skills. This year, my relatives […]
It was Trudeau’s bad week, but we may all pay for it
OTTAWA—Let me partially join the pile-on. Yes, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had a bad week last week. Having United States President Donald Trump push Canada’s back, at least in public, against the wall on NAFTA negotiations, as well as the Federal Court of Appeal’s decision on delaying the construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline, were […]
After MRIA’s demise, new polling industry group aims to set ‘high bar’
A month after a national polling association shut its doors, a new one has popped up. The who’s who of Canadian polling joined forces to open the currently nameless new polling association on Aug. 30. “We have a rare opportunity here to start fresh as an emerging industry association and to set a really high […]
Roma community campaigns for feds’ official recognition of genocide during Holocaust
Gina Csanyi-Robah was around 13 years old when her grandmother first told her that her relatives were genocide survivors during the Holocaust. But unlike the Jewish community, the Roma community has a different name for the atrocities they faced under the Nazis: “the devouring.” The word Holocaust, which translates to “completely burnt offering to God,” applies […]
Conservatives and Liberals question GTA-resident NDP Leader Singh’s run in Burnaby
The federal Conservatives and Liberals are questioning why NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is planning on running in the yet-to-be announced byelection in Burnaby, B.C. when he lives in the Greater Toronto Area and represented a Brampton seat provincially. “The place where he resides is Brampton: starts with a B, and the place where he’s going […]
Mexico’s betrayal won’t be forgotten
TORONTO—As a narcissistic and vengeful bully, U.S. President Donald Trump has pursued a revision of the North American Free Trade Agreement based on false claims and the strongly protectionist goal of America First, accompanied by ugly personal attacks on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and bullying threats of severe economic punishment if Canada doesn’t do what […]
