Dynastic politics is alive and well in Ontario
OTTAWA—The saga of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party, from the resignation of Patrick Brown now to the race to replace him, has captured part of the national political stage. The plot twists are many and they seem to keep on coming. No one can reasonably guess whether this will be boom or bust for the […]
Leadership: in the eye of the beholder
In my time as a reporter, UN worker, and public servant, I have met many people in public life. The three most memorable were Peter Lougheed, Pierre Trudeau, and René Lévesque. When I arrived in Calgary in the summer of 1978, I was assigned to cover a speech by then-premier Peter Lougheed at a political […]
Can political rivals find common ground after going on a date?
There’s a new TV show that could have Hill-goers binge-watching once it starts next month. Political Blind Dates premieres on Nov. 7 at 9 p.m. on TVO. A Toronto Star article compared it to Tinder for policymakers. The show’s website says each episode will bring together two politicians who have two very different points of view […]
Former eight-term Liberal MP, Toronto city councillor Karygiannis considering a run for mayor of Toronto
Former eight-term Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis, who is now a Toronto city councillor, is considering running in Toronto’s mayoral race in next year’s municipal election. “The desire is always there,” Mr. Karygiannis told The Hill Times last week, but declined to get into details of his decision-making process. The next mayoral election is scheduled for […]
Twitterverse has something to say about Trudeau’s favourite beer
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is knee-deep in scandal after an interview he recently did with a U.S. website, and not just because he’s again granted access to foreign journalists while Canadian scribes settle for emailed talking points from his staffers. He’s featured in a video interview by Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin, founders of an […]
Deep freeze sets in Quebec’s sovereignty issue
There was time not so long ago when the very notion of a federal government funding some June 24 festivities in Quebec would have raised eyebrows on both sides of the federalist-sovereigntist divide. Ottawa has long contributed to the financing of St-Jean-Baptiste celebrations in the rest of Canada, but it had abstained from associating itself […]
Christy Clark could make history (again) with a B.C. election win
If Christy Clark wins the British Columbia election on May 9, she will be the first woman premier to win two general provincial elections. Even though Canada has had several female premiers, and one female prime minister, none have been elected twice. The first woman to become premier was Rita Johnston, who won the leadership […]
Wynne’s housing plan a potpourri of politics
TORONTO—Ontario’s new Fair Housing Plan is a potpourri of politics with a few good ideas mixed in. If Toronto and surrounding areas are indeed caught up in an irrational real estate bubble, the measures announced Thursday may well burst it. As the Dutch discovered during the tulip craze of the 17th century, bubbles based on […]
We need to talk about Kevin
GATINEAU, QUE.—Imagine, for a moment, prime minister Kevin O’Leary presenting his first Speech From the Throne, amid the smouldering ruins of politics as we know it. He’s not going to like it. First, the timing will be all wrong: mid-afternoon ratings suck. Second, the venue—the Senate Chamber—is too cramped, the decor too Victorian. There is […]
The good and bad of family dynasties in politics
OTTAWA—While elements of the American and British electorate seem repulsed by elites in politics and empowered by their rejection the Canadian environment is still different. If anything, political dynasties remain very much alive in Canada. A second Trudeau is our prime minister and another man named LeBlanc is a senior minister in his government. We […]
