Poilievre better figure out how to talk about Trump or it's over for him
Pierre Poilievre did a lot right at the CPC convention last weekend. He got an 87.4 per cent approval rating, higher than most pundits predicted. He revealed a human side when he spoke about his autistic daughter and the family time he has sacrificed for politics. And he pledged to give the party’s grassroots more control over nominations, an issue that has festered since the last election. But there was one thing Poilievre did not do: tell Canadians how he would handle U.S. President Donald Trump.
L’Alberta prépare-t-elle le démantèlement du Canada ?
La première ministre de l’Alberta, Danielle Smith, pourrait être en train de tracer sa propre « troisième voie » pour l’Alberta, en insistant pour qu’Ottawa inscrive un deuxième oléoduc vers le Pacifique sur sa liste de « grands projets » d’intérêt national. C’est un pari qui pourrait conduire la province à se détacher du pays – voire à rejoindre les États-Unis.
Le tourisme médical m’a peut-être sauvé la vie
« Nous devons vérifier s’il s’agit d’un cancer. » S’il y a des mots que l’on ne veut jamais entendre de la bouche de notre médecin, ceux-là figurent en tête de liste. Je les ai entendus le 3 juillet. J’étais abasourdie. On m’avait diagnostiqué deux gros fibromes utérins, une affection assez courante : de 70 à 80 % des femmes âgées de plus de 50 ans en souffrent. Ce sont des tumeurs bénignes qui peuvent causer des menstruations abondantes, des douleurs abdominales, des ballonnements et des troubles digestifs si elles exercent une pression sur les intestins.
Don't believe Carney when he says he isn't planning an election
Prime Minister Mark Carney has had a busy week. A major international speech at Davos that garnered plaudits around the world. An address to the nation designed to rouse Canadian patriotism and rebut U.S. President Donald Trump. An announcement of GST relief to steal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s thunder on affordability, one week before Poilievre faces a leadership review vote. And polls that show Carney’s approval rating soaring, and his party in majority territory.
America’s WHO exit leaves a leadership vacuum
Seventy-eight years after helping found the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States has formally withdrawn from the agency, following through on a pledge President Donald Trump made on his first day back in office.
In a joint statement last week, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of State said the WHO had "abandoned its core mission,” and repeatedly acted against US interests. The administration pointed to what it says was the WHO’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, its failure to adopt reforms, and an “inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence” from member states, notably China.
Carney must show force in the Arctic to ward off Trump's designs
If there was any doubt that U.S. President Donald Trump is operating outside all norms of law and common sense, he put it to rest this week with a letter to the prime minister of Norway. “Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace,” Trump wrote. “The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.”
Legault's departure may signal a return to the past for Quebec
Quebec Premier François Legault announced Wednesday that he is resigning as leader of the Coalition Avenir Québec and as premier, to step aside once a successor is chosen. In a hastily-called press conference (his own caucus was only brought in the loop that morning), Legault said, “I can see that many Quebecers currently want change and a change of premier, so I am announcing that, for the good of Quebec, I will be stepping down.”
Indigenous leaders put Carney's dreams on notice
Will Prime Minister Mark Carney’s national infrastructure dreams be kiboshed by Canada’s First Nations? That’s the question hanging over Ottawa this week — and if Carney’s not careful, the answer could well be yes.
Après la chute, les conservateurs réfléchissent à la suite
« Je vais apprendre et évoluer. » C’est ainsi que le chef conservateur, Pierre Poilievre, a résumé son message lors de sa première rencontre de caucus depuis la défaite de son parti aux élections générales du mois dernier. Il a reconnu que les résultats étaient « décevants », tout en promettant d’« élargir l’équipe ».
Il n’a toutefois pas annoncé de changements concrets, laissant plusieurs membres du parti se demander ce qui sera réellement fait pour changer la dynamique, rendre le parti plus inclusif et élargir l’appui électoral afin de remporter la prochaine élection.
Le parti amorce maintenant cette introspection, et j’ai pensé lui donner un coup de main avec ce texte. J’ai discuté avec une douzaine d’organisateurs, de candidats, d’anciens députés, de conseillers et de vétérans de campagne afin de comprendre ce qui n’a pas fonctionné et ce qui doit changer.
Carney has no choice but to listen to Danielle Smith
On the eve of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s critical trip to Washington to meet U.S. President Donald Trump, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith stole the spotlight and turned it firmly on herself. In a twenty-minute “address to Albertans,” she aired grievances against the federal Liberal government, from carbon taxes to Justin Trudeau’s infamous “no more pipelines bill,” C-69. Smith also presented a list of demands, from resource corridor development to greater provincial control over energy and immigration. And she pledged to hold a referendum on Alberta independence should “enough” citizens demand one — while insisting multiple times that she doesn’t support secession herself.
A National unity crisis is brewing
If you thought the past Parliament was dysfunctional, buckle up for 2025.
Mark Carney has pulled off a rare political feat: winning a fourth consecutive mandate for the Liberal party, despite not even holding a seat when he became leader. At the same time, the leaders of the NDP and Conservatives, Jagmeet Singh and Pierre Poilievre, both lost their ridings, meaning they won’t sit in the House, and Singh has announced he will resign.
But while Carney smiled for the cameras, and promised to “work with everyone,” behind the scenes, he must have been grimacing. Because what he’s really won is a poisoned chalice, which will make “standing up for Canada” a Herculean task.
Trump can't be trusted, Canada must be ready
It’s over. For now. Until he decides to hit us again. After a weekend of pain, Canada has 30 days before the United States decides if we’ve been good enough, or we deserve another beating. Tariffs? Takeover? Who knows what President Donald Trump has in store for us. But one thing is clear: we can never trust him again.
Back off, Donald Trump. Canada's not for the taking.
Trump wants to use tariffs to break Canada. Our GDP could drop by two to four per cent and put us in an official recession. Two and half million jobs would be at risk. People would get poorer at a time when two million of us are already using food banks. Throw in a simultaneous diet of pro-annexation propaganda pumped out by Trump’s friends on social media, and the blathering of front groups funded by vested interests, and the 13% of Canadians who favour joining the US could swell to the point where they put political pressure on Ottawa to cave to Trump’s demands. Here’s what we have to do.
The sharks are circling Trudeau. There's blood in the water
The sharks are circling the tank.
Yesterday, former BC premier Christy Clark made headlines for eyeing the Liberal leadership, when it eventually opens up. Clark is taking French lessons, and according to sources who spoke to the National Post, several Chrétien and Martin-era Liberal organizers are supporting her potential candidacy. Clark tempered the speculation on X, writing that “The Prime Minister has earned the right to make any decision about his leadership on his own — the position of leader is not open.” For now.
Tasha Kheiriddin: Trudeau's interference allegations a dramatic act of self-preservation
Love him or hate him, you’ve got to give Justin Trudeau credit. He is the political equivalent of a cockroach. You can spray him with invective, stomp on him with slogans, drown him in bad polls, and still he scuttles along, fighting to survive. And not only survive, but attack, accusing his opponents of the greatest sin in politics: being traitors to their country.
Foreign interference hearings are the best spy show going
As Parliamentarians spar over a DOA non-confidence motion and the prime minister chats with late-night host Stephen Colbert, the drama Canadians should really be watching is Season Two of the Hogue Commission on foreign interference. From a clueless Liberal party apparatchik to the Speaker’s refusal to prioritize issues of national security, it is the best spy show going — if only Canadians would tune in. So here are the highlights from the latest instalments.
Carney should be careful. We all know what happens to Trudeau's friends
As if former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney’s resume wasn’t long enough, he has added a new title: Special Advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. On Monday, Trudeau appointed him as Chair of a Leader’s Task Force on Economic Growth, to “develop new ideas for the next phase of Canada’s strategy for near-and longer-term economic growth and productivity.” Carney will hold “meetings and events to hear ideas from Canadians in the weeks and months ahead” including “foremost experts in the business community, labour movement, Indigenous economic leadership, innovators, and more.” He will then report on these to the leader and Liberal Party Platform Committee.
Le Canada n’est pas à l’abri des violences politiques
Les campagnes, les débats et les élections canalisent les conflits sous des formes non violentes, permettant aux citoyens de régler leurs différends par des bulletins de vote plutôt que par des balles. Mais tout le monde n’accepte pas ces règles du jeu. Le plus grand échec des démocraties est de supposer que tout le monde priorise le discours et renonce à la violence. Il y a beaucoup d’individus, de groupes et de sociétés qui considèrent l’usage de la force comme un moyen légitime d’atteindre des objectifs politiques. Et lorsque les conditions sont réunies, ils peuvent renverser une démocratie.
Kamala Harris, Populist
Watching this week’s coverage of the Democratic National Convention, three things stood out. The first was the endless loop of Beyonce’s song Freedom (and no, despite the hype, Queen Bey did not make an apperance). The second was Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz declaring that the government should "mind (its) own damn business" on issues like reproductive rights. The third was the mind-numbing repetition of the phrase “Kamela Harris, for the people”, including by Presidential nominee Harris herself.
Trudeau's 'independent' Senate is a sham
Who knew Canadians cared so much about the Senate? Congratulate an old friend on his appointment to the Upper House, as I did to veteran broadcaster and newly named Senator Charles Adler, and you unleash a volley of cheers — and a torrent of vitriol. The most recurrent slurs were “Liberal” and “hypocrite,” referencing Adler’s trenchant criticism of the Conservatives, anti-vaxxers, and the institution he is now joining. The implication is that appointees must curry favour with the prime minister, and that if you say a bad word about the Red Chamber, you shouldn’t accept an appointment there.