Politicians might not be keen for 2019
This year was a bad year for provincial incumbents in Canada. In Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick, voters fired their premiers after single terms in office. Year-end polls suggest the same fate could await the premiers of Alberta and P.E.I. in 2019. In just the past six years, Quebec has disposed of three premiers. None […]
This just in: a carbon tax won’t kill jobs
CHELSEA, QUE.—How does the old expression go? A lie is halfway around the world before the truth gets its pants on in the morning. With social media, as we see every day, the lie travels even farther and faster. One of the most dangerous current lies—although it has been around at least a decade—involves the […]
Is Hillary right? Do progressives need to back away from some principles?
OTTAWA—“I think Europe needs to get a handle on migration because that is what lit the flame,” Hillary Clinton recently said in what is perhaps the most important message to progressives by any senior progressive leader in recent times. In other words, rethink your progressive principles, or you run the risk of not only losing […]
For politicians, reverting to the default position is the easy way out
In politics, there is usually a stark, very noticeable, default position. The term “default position” refers to a belief (or lack of belief) that is preferable prior to debate or before any evidence is considered. Many people claim that some beliefs (or lack thereof) are default positions, so everyone who disagrees with those positions has the […]
First ministers’ meetings have gone from Kumbaya to Welcome to the Jungle
OTTAWA—Lightning has struck. Time is standing still. Former prime minister Stephen Harper might have been right by suggesting first ministers’ meetings (FMM) are generally a waste of time and the only benefit is for fans of theatre. Last week the current prime minister, Justin Trudeau, convened the fourth FMM of his first mandate. When he […]
Pipeline politics will keep Ottawa, Alberta divided
All is far from well between Rachel Notley’s Alberta government and Justin Trudeau’s Liberals. With the prime minister in the eye of the storm over the failure to get more oil to tidewater, no federal gesture between now and next fall’s election is likely to really lower the temperature between the two capitals. The combination—within […]
Appealing to ‘the base’ may be a recipe for electoral failure
“It’s all about the base.” That was the refrain of the Conservatives under Prime Minister Stephen Harper from 2006 to 2015, when policies were examined through the perspective of right-of-centre Conservative partisans. Whether suppressing scientists from speaking publicly, changing the rules for the long-form census, supporting the Likud government in Israel, or cutting development funds […]
CAQ’s agenda could challenge federal parties
For the first time in 42 years, the curtain rose on the opening speech of a new party governing in Quebec’s National Assembly on Nov. 28. The circumstances could not have been more different than in 1976. Back then, the election of a Parti Québécois government had sent shock waves across the country. It propelled […]
Ford’s French-language smack down has just begun
OTTAWA—Premier Doug Ford’s French-language smack down has just begun. And if he thinks his problem is going to go away any time soon, he does not understand the deep roots and the strength of the francophone community in Ontario. The last time the provincial government moved to reduce services was when the government of Mike […]
NDP fundraisers need a darker tone
OAKVILLE, ONT.—Sometimes I get the sense Canada’s New Democratic Party doesn’t fully understand the urgency of its situation. And yes, the NDP’s current situation is pretty darn urgent—at least when it comes to the all-important task of raising political donations. Indeed, in that regard the NDP is badly trailing its political rivals. According to the […]
