If this week’s dumb shrieking battles are any sign, this election won’t be pretty
OTTAWA—The past week provided a sadly predictable look ahead at this fall’s federal election. Dynamism was eschewed for dumb shrieking battles that we have seen a million times before and ultimately advance nothing but the same old partisan pepper spray. Sprinkle in the silly and you get a feel for what is coming our way. […]
Trying to derail serious climate change action will someday be viewed as the crime it is
OTTAWA—Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer kept joking at the press gallery dinner the other night about the persistent questions about his party’s lack of a climate-change plan six months before a federal election. Yes, yes, it’s coming, he chuckled. This while newly elected Alberta Premier Jason Kenney, now considered the leader of the right-wing “opposition” to […]
Are Canadians really prepared to embrace Trumpian politics and give the Liberals an October surprise?
HALIFAX—Before anyone concludes that the “Little Potato” is about to be peeled, they should consider this question about Justin Trudeau’s possible demise: are Canadians really prepared to embrace Trumpian politics and give the Liberals an October surprise? Make no mistake about it, the federal Conservatives are banking on it, with a little help from their […]
‘For the people’? Ford’s health cuts show disconnect between rhetoric, reality
OTTAWA—It’s been nearly 20 years since seven people died and 2,300 became ill as a result of water contamination in the town of Walkerton, Ont.—the worst case of its kind in the country’s history. As Justice Dennis O’Connor concluded in a 2002 judicial inquiry report, the incident could in part be traced back directly to […]
If his strategy is to declare war on everyone, Scheer will pay a price in next election
OTTAWA—Conventional wisdom dictates that Jason Kenney’s Alberta victory will boost the fortunes of Andrew Scheer in the upcoming federal election. I beg to differ. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau now has two aggressive, anti-environmental foils to run against in an election. The more Kenney fights with the rest of the country, the more people will worry […]
SNC-Lavalin nuclear contracts at risk if it’s convicted
If SNC-Lavalin is denied a deferred prosecution agreement and is convicted of fraud and corruption, this could prevent the engineering company from bidding on federal government contracts in Canada. But it could also jeopardize its current and future contractual obligations with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), power producers Bruce Power, China National Nuclear Corp., […]
Canada can’t coast through this climate catastrophe
Canada is always trying to punch above its weight and prove itself from under the shadow of its southern neighbour. Well, congratulations, Canada. We’ve managed to shine once again, by being a world leader in how quickly we can warm our section of the globe. Canadian scientists have determined, in a report released April 2, […]
A new role for media, academics, and experts: call it Corrections Canada
CHELSEA, QUE.—There has always been distortion and exaggeration in political campaigning—along with personal slurs, simplistic slogans, and misleading advertising. What is different now is the level of shamelessness that attends this dispiriting ritual. Even when blatant errors are pointed out, political leaders are loathe to retreat, or withdraw. Often, they merely double down. So, when […]
Adam Vaughan apologizes for ‘whack’ tweet
Liberal MP Adam Vaughan apologized for a tweet he wrote on Saturday saying to “just whack” Ontario Premier Doug Ford. In the tweet, the Toronto-area MP also misspelled his former Toronto city council colleague calling him Doug “Frod.” “So Frod’s gang could get folks upset over hurting Kindergarten students instead of being angry over the […]
Here’s a thought: how MPPs could oust Ford before next election
What do you do when you want to change a government in this country? If you’re like most of us, you follow the rules, wait for the next election call, cast your vote for another party and pray. But what if those rules included a provision to oust a first minister without having to go […]
