I’m starting a new thread here for the latest developments in the NAFTA negotiations and the unfortunate fallout from the G7 summit.
I have been supportive of Trump in the past but this situation demands that everyone park their egos and get the job done. Name-calling on either side isn’t going to help.
Brian Lilley provides a backgrounder here on how tensions escalated to this point: Justin Trudeau’s childish antics won’t help on NAFTA/Trade files.
Meanwhile we are reminded how good we had things under PM Stephen Harper:
Update:
Good read here – Why Trudeau doesn’t have the high ground on trade by J.J. McCullough (Washington Post).
And this! Diplomacy Trump-Style: Understanding Narcissism – Don Lenihan (via NNW):
“CBC’s Rob Russo provides further details. At that meeting, he says, Trump unexpectedly waived his demand for a sunset clause, which was the main obstacle to an agreement. Suddenly, the logjam broke and a deal was within reach. When Trump took off for Singapore, the understanding was that the NAFTA negotiations would quickly resume. Everyone was optimistic.
Kudlow believes that at this meeting Trump and Trudeau effectively made an agreement to move on from their differences, but that Trudeau then violated it at the press conference.
In Trump’s mind, the decision to waive the sunset clause had been a generous act of reconciliation. Yet Trudeau publicly denigrated him just to score political points with Canadians.”
So now we can see why Trump reacted the way he did to Justin’s ‘we will not be pushed around’ presser moments after he left.
This Rebel segment with Ian Lee is well worth checking out:
Blue Like You2 
Trump is over the top, but everyone knows that. We need a leader who can deal with that, and Trudeau is not that leader. He’s more interested in playing to his base which is anti Trump even if Trump was playing nice. Another negative politically is our media reaction. It seems even the few who might be mildly negative of Trudeau’s actions are circling the wagons in support, which may cross over into other areas of policy besides trade. Very few like Lilly are not in full support.
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I’ve always believed in the idea of country first party second. No matter who is in power, we need to stand united when our country is under attack which it is with Trump’s illegal and economically illiterate tariffs which will hurt both countries (Americans due to retaliation, but also American consumers too who will see higher prices. Trade means more choice and competition thus better products at lower prices). I don’t think supporting the PM here is being disloyal to the conservative cause, after Jason Kenney, Brad Wall, and Doug Ford support the PM on this and they are all conservatives who want to see Trudeau defeated in 2019. I think Trudeau’s virtue signaling was dumb and unhelpful, but it is also clear to me Trump has never taken econ 101 and doesn’t understand comparative advantage since if he did he will realize how trade benefits both sides. Never mind a lot of traditional Republicans are opposed to this, after all let’s remember it was a conservative PM and a Republican president who brought in FTA and NAFTA so conservatives are supposed to be pro free trade not protectionists.
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Some kind of compromise is needed that allows everyone to save face.
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Agreed. And when it comes to international relations and trade, I would say I am more of a Ronald Reagan type than a Donald Trump, otherwise still a conservative just a different style. Since Doug Ford knows Trump and has offered to support Trudeau on this, I think reaching out to him since Ontario is the province most impacted by steel tariffs might not be a bad idea. Likewise the Mulroney family has ties with both families so perhaps Ford should consider giving her whatever cabinet position is trade related.
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Good point about Caroline Mulroney. She’d be excellent on the trade file.
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Excellent post Jo. I hope that the Liberals take note and can cool down the childish rhetoric. Canada must get down to serious negotiations. This is not a game and we need to be prepared to start serious give and take. We need to put the things Canada cannot give up and the things Canada can negotiate clearly out for the Canada negotiating team. This needs not to be leaked.
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Agreed. I think supply management is something we can put on the table, but we need major concessions from the US such as not just dropping steel and aluminum tariffs but also a permanent end to the lumber dispute which has been ongoing for 30 years. On the other hand the five year sunset clause clearly crosses the red line and we must make it clear, we will not agree to any sunset clause under any circumstance.
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Thanks Florence. Yes this is by far Justin’s biggest challenge. Flashy socks just won’t cut it.
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It’s not just his socks that will not cut it but in that interview the Harper did for FOX he showed more leadership and in language that the business community understands than Trudeau has so far. Don’t forget Trudeau has to be schooled on economics and how to deal with the big boys. Stephen Harper didn’t.
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It’s a little late in the game for us to expect smart moves when dealing with serious business between and or among our trading partners. We elected Trudeau, we really do not know who is taking care of business, calling the shots. We do know Trudeau is the delivery person. It’s beyond hair, fancy socks and whatever costumes suits the region of the world he travels.
Whatever we think of Trump, he isn’t taking “Justin” seriously, he’s playing him.
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I don’t know what strategy would be best but I would have more confidence if Harper & co were in command; Freeland’s scolding school teacher routine doesn’t seem to be working and Trump obviously sees Trudeau’s phony friendliness act for the sham it is
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One thing for sure Justin should be much more careful in the future about what he says to media about Trump. If NAFTA totally blows up then he can say whatever he wants but he should keep his mouth shut right now.
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It’s too late for that now, Joanne, the cat’s out of the bag. Trump will never trust him again. We also need to remember that Scheer owes his leadership position to the Quebec dairy cartel and must protect it at all costs. Because the industry is based primarily in Quebec and Ontario it wields enormous political influence in the two most populous provinces where governments of whichever stripe roll over and do their bidding. These two articles should be required reading for all.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/rob-commentary/canadas-supply-management-system-for-dairy-is-no-longer-defensible/article36029788/ (written by Liberal Martha Hall Findlay)
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canadas-dairy-industry-is-a-rich-closed-club/article25124114/
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Looks like Trudeau is meeting with Canada’s top dairy people this afternoon.
On the issue of the claim that Trump waived his demand for a sunset clause, then reneged after Trudeau’s unfortunate news conference, Lisa Raitt was all over Trudeau in QP about that this after. The PM did not answer her questions to any great satisfaction. What Lisa got were talking points.
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Doug Ford, Chrystia Freeland, and Ambassador to US David McNaughton are meeting this Thursday so good to see Ford get a jump start on this which is a major issue that will impact Ontario.
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IMO Trudeau needs all the help he can get from leaders who exude confidence, know economics and have been around the block on large negotiations. THAT in my opinion isn’t our PM. Freeland is stronger than Justin for Pete’s sake.
Andrew Scheer was in Toronto yesterday meeting with Ford as well.
All of the usual MSM, particularly the Globe print are suggesting that Trump may have just won Justin a second election. Nope. I don’t see it. He can be beaten even though the usual suspects will rally to his rescue.
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It would be so ironic if Doug Ford ended up being instrumental in saving NAFTA.
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Wouldn’t it though. Can you imagine the left-leaning media having to give Doug kudos for his leadership?……….Wait, what?………Me neither 🙂
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I don’t want to link it here but go have a look at Kinsella’s latest “O Lucky Man”. Here we were thinking that the Liberals were grateful for ALL parties non-partisanship on this issue and the Liberals themselves torque the spin and make it political. Typical of what we’ll see and hear over the next while IMO.
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Well it’s still a long time til the next election. Anything can happen.
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I think Scheer has made a big mistake in demoting Bernier. I understand why, but he’s also telling a significant number of the conservative base that thinking differently is not welcome in the party
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Seems to be quite a backlash on twitter for demoting Bernier. I don’t remember all this when Stephen Harper did it, but maybe twitter wasn’t as active then.
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Bernier resigned, not sure if Harper asked for it, but I don’t think so. Plus at that time he was found to have mishandled confidential information as Minister of Foreign Affairs, not just having a different opinion of something.
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Doesn’t the country already have a leader who also believes in castigating those who think differently? Andrew Scheer has already whipped the vote on at least one important issue where there was no consensus among his caucus. If he doesn’t tread a little more carefully he may cause existing rifts to widen. Since everyone in the HofC has expressed solidarity with the PM what difference would one dissenting opinion make? Scheer is already aware of the impact Quebec dairy farmers had on the party leadership vote. There really is no need to draw further attention to that fact other than to mollify the press and cut them off at the pass. How disappointing.
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You’re right Anne. This is a mistake by Scheer. We can already predict that the Liberal war room types and MSM will go out of their way to point this out too.
He should have left Bernier alone. We have much BIGGER issues to tackle as an opposition. Next thing we’ll know is that Scheer will be accused of Conservatives of pandering to Trudeau. Stranger things have happened.
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http://brianlilley.com/what-trudeau-did-to-set-trump-off-it-will-surprise-you/
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Like others and me have said, Trudeau is way more interested in playing to Trump haters and his base voters than getting a good deal for Canadians.
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I’m thinking this would be advice from Butts who I would guess is not enamoured with the Donald. In the case of Butts and Trudeau we can’t invoke the saying “two heads are better than one”.
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John Ivison asks a very logical question via this tweet: “How can @AndrewScheer kick @MaximeBernier out of “shadow cabinet” for opposing supply management? He opposed it when he was put in. He’d look like an idiot now if he didn’t.”
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Listening and reading various accounts it seems like Bernier broke some sort of a promise to Scheer to not raise his opposition to supply management. It’s all very strange at a time of strange politics……period.
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I can’t help but note Doug Ford’s stance on supply management is the same as Scheer’s so there’ll be no hope of relief from the artificially high prices on eggs, chicken and dairy for us. Chrystia Freeland decries what she refers to as American protectionism yet can’t see the hypocrisy of our own behaviour. We don’t even have free trade between provinces. Combined with supply management and restrictions on what can and can’t be taken across provincial borders (e.g. Quebec beer) we have our own forms of protectionism right here inside Canada.
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I’m starting to see active promotion of a boycott of the US by the likes of Torstar (who still sucks as bad as ever), MacLeans, Global and the usual suspects. They are indeed using this to prop up the failing Trudeau. It is also the absolute worst strategy they could possibly use to fix the situation.
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Let them try to convince those of us near the border to cut off our noses to spite our faces and forego the lower prices of poultry, eggs and dairy, not to mention a gas tank fill-up to join a boycott. That’s not going to happen.
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I think someone needs to explain supply management to a lot of people. All they talk about is Quebec millionaire farmers. As far as I know, Oxford County in Ontario is still the dairy capital of Canada. No one is going to get 32 cent a dozen eggs like I saw posted somewhere, obviously a lost leader for that store because the carton alone would cost more than that. No farmer can invest in big dairy or laying hen barns for millions of dollars and not get a fair return on their product. Our farmers won’t be able to stay in business long.
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You raise an excellent point Ruth. Not too many even understand supply management. Rural and small town Canadians sure do.
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Agree totally Greg. We shouldn’t be the least surprised that the MSM is running to Trudeau’s assistance. They made him, they now need to try to keep him.
I hope that the failing team that was behind Wynne’s historic loss in Ontario gets scooped up by Trudeau’s re-election team. That would be good for Scheer.
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Regarding Bernier and supply management, I’m sure this revolves around the upcoming byelection in Quebec on which all three leaders are concentrating. For some reason it is a highly-sought prize. https://ipolitics.ca/2018/06/14/trudeau-scheer-on-campaign-trail-ahead-of-quebec-byelection/
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Makes total sense Joanne.
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Here’s Coyne’s take on this issue. Not sure I agree with it completely.
http://nationalpost.com/opinion/andrew-coyne-we-all-pay-for-supply-management-but-bernier-pays-the-political-price
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You’re right, Joanne, that’s the riding Trudeau poured millions of dollars into just days before he called the by-election and the story appeared to develop legs for days.
“Trudeau announced the byelection on Sunday, three days after visiting the riding with Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard, where the two offered financial support for a $558-million prototype aluminum smelter.
The project, a joint venture between aluminum giants Alcoa and Rio Tinto, has been billed as the first carbon-free smelter in the world.
Several Liberal cabinet ministers and MPs have also visited the riding in recent weeks to distribute millions of dollars in interest-free loans to local businesses.”
I’m sure it’s just coincidental that it contains lucrative dairy farms and cheese production facilities as well, thus the flurry of all-party support for supply management. The NDP held the riding prior to losing it in a close call to the LPC in 2015.
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It’s an issue that the usual suspects are using to suggest a division in the CPC ranks. It seems to be working. Scheer ability to mitigate the spin and move on is being tested now.
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Here’s something that was predictable and what Greg touched on earlier. This isn’t happening without the help of the left-leaning media and spinners (Kinsella).
Meanwhile the same media look for and take every opportunity to stick it to Scheer.
http://angusreid.org/federal-issues-june2018/
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Wow Liberals they do not care about Canada. They are using their failure to get a trade deal to manipulate Canadians to turn on President Trump.
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And cavalierly putting the Canadian economy at risk to boost their failing numbers and their leader’s appearance of competence!
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Indeed and the Conservatives have done a great job in QP this week trying to get this point across in their questioning. All they get in return are talking points.
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The media and their endless tirades against Trump and his administration need to accept that they have played a strong role in stirring up animosity by certain of the Canadian population. Now we have an unhinged person or group threatening the life of the US ambassador to Canada. The letter sent to her contained what has been determined to be a harmless white powder with Quebec being its assumed origin. What has happened to this country and its ‘sunny ways’?
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We’re supposed to be a big grown-up country ready to stand with the big guys but we’re buying almost obsolete F-18s from Australia and still need permission from the US, a country with which we are embroiled in a trade war, to do so. That’s so pathetic I can’t decide whether to laugh or cry. Come back, Mr. Harper, we need you. http://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/canada-to-purchase-25-used-australian-fighter-jets-if-states-says-yes/wcm/c782e170-823a-4f0c-a6e3-9922abdd1782
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I am not totally surprised in Trudeau’s jump in approval rating as usually when one feels they are being attacked they tend to rally around their leader. I think if you had a Democrat president and Conservative prime-minister you would see the same thing too. That being said the election is still 16 months away so lots of time for polls to change due to events that will happen. I actually think the PC’s winning in Ontario (which is a good thing) is probably more of a barrier to a Tory win federally as Ontario has a long history of alteration where you have a different party in power in Ottawa than Queens Park. But hopefully that won’t be the case in 2019
The Trump Tariffs are illegal, immoral, economically illiterate so I think no matter what our political persuasion we should stand against them. We don’t need to be belligerent, but we cannot be a pushover otherwise US will see this as open season to target other industries. I do think though we should strengthen ties with congress. They are our best hope now and Tennessee Republican Bob Corker already has a bill to repeal the tariffs, just needs to get to the floor. Trump may be a protectionist, but many Republicans are Reagan types who are strong supporters of free trade unlike Trump. I am also glad to see Ford working on this and feel he is making the right moves and can hit the ground running once he becomes premier on June 29th.
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“Ontario has a long history of alteration where you have a different party in power in Ottawa than Queens Park. But hopefully that won’t be the case in 2019.” It certainly wasn’t the case in 2015. Ontario voters apparently lost their collective marbles and went heavily Liberal despite being painfully aware that federal Liberal policies were a carbon copy of Ontario Liberal policies. Most of the powerful, destructive McGuinty/Wynne architects of Ontario’s downfall are firmly ensconced in the PMO and are not yet finished masterminding the downfall of the rest of the country. Is it too cynical to suggest that those operatives just might be capable of exploiting or manufacturing another crisis for the PM to appear to be a David type taking on some other Goliath?
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With events changing weekly I think it’s anyone’s guess on what the ballot question will be. I do think the Conservatives can replicate Ford’s success vote wise, but seat wise might be tougher as the Liberal vote is far more efficient than the NDP vote. NDP vote is very concentrated so that is why even when they get 15 to 20 percent they still win 15 to 20 seats unlike the Liberals, but when they get in the 30s they don’t have the same impact as the Liberals. In terms of voter efficiency, Liberals are most efficient, followed by Tories, while NDP least so, otherwise if you flipped NDP and Liberals while kept Tories the same you would have a PC minority. Also I’ve found for whatever reason the 905 in a Liberal-Tory battle usually goes Liberal, but in a Tory-NDP battle goes Tory as NDP is perhaps a bridge too far. Yes Trudeau and Wynne are very NDP like, but few read party platforms and Liberals still have a stronger brand of being seen as centrist (probably a hold over from the 90s when they were actually centrist) while NDP brand is they are too left wing and too fiscally irresponsible. I think that is a big reason Harper wanted to get rid of the Liberals as he felt in an NDP-Tory battle, they would win most of the time as is the case in most Western provinces.
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I agree Anne. Further if the Liberals are getting a bump in the polls it’s got more to do with Chystia Freeland. He’s earned his support because he is the PM. I would wager that any PM, no matter the party would show similarly.
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Absolutely, it would have happened with any PM including a Conservative one. However election is still 16 months away so plenty of time for those to change.
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I know this might put me offside with some conservatives, but I actually think having a Democrat president is better for conservatism in Canada than a Republican one. In the last 20 years, GOP has swung too far to the right for most Canadians so when they win, just an easy whipping boy to compare us to while when Democrats are in power they lose that whipping boy. Off course that doesn’t mean conservatives cannot win when US has a GOP president just more difficult. And woul probably be impossible if Liberals had a serious leader but since they have an incompetent fool, that is why we can still win in 2019.
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On the other hand I wonder whether we, as a country, are the ‘day late and a dollar short’ type. We always seem to be playing catch up. In the past it was mainly with the US and now it’s mainly with the EU. I first noticed the trend in the field of education with the ‘open classroom’ plan which proved to be a massive dud.in the US. But we Canadians would do it right so we barrelled ahead only to discover that we, too, would reach the same conclusion. Fast forward to today. Masses of so-called ‘irregular immigrants’? The US failed spectacularly with that but we’ll do it better. The US elected a handsome, young, progressive community organizer in Obama whose push for globalism and belief that the US was no better than any other country is now being repeated in our own country with Trudeau and his assertion that Canada is the first post-national state and we can welcome the world to ignore our borders because we will do it better. How many election cycles will it take to catch up to where the US is now?
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Off topic – @spaikinn is reporting that “the order has gone out to all Deputy Ministers at Queen’s Park; hiring freeze is on, cancel all paper-based subscriptions, new restrictions on out-of-province travel, no food at taxpayer’s expense. ” Doug Ford’s working quickly.
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Wow! Amazing he can do that before being formally sworn in.
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Wynne is a lameduck premier for the next 11 days. Otherwise since it takes time to put together a cabinet, the previous cabinet is basically there to deal with an emergency, but otherwise it is the incoming government not outgoing who sets policy.
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Aha. Yes that makes sense.
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Looks like Justin and Gerald (Butts) are picking a fight with Ford over his nixing of Ontario’s cap-and-trade. Let the games begin. https://ipolitics.ca/2018/06/18/top-trudeau-advisor-slams-ford-on-cap-and-trade/
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As per the last update, it appears more and more like Trudeau messed up a NAFTA deal for no other reason than to try to look tough against Trump. The only real question is whether it was a calculated move to risk the trade deal in order to bump the polls by fighting Trump, or just stupidity and incompetence which his advisers have told him to use for whatever political advantage he can garner.
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Well, well, well – is this the start of something? “With 165 of 188 polls reporting, the well-known former junior hockey coach has captured just over 52 per cent of the vote, well ahead of Liberal Lina Boivin with 29 per cent.” This is the riding the LPC poured all that money into and it seems to be backfiring on them. http://montrealgazette.com/news/quebec/chicoutimi-le-fjord-byelection-results
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This is encouraging for the Conservatives. A harbinger of things to come I hope. Of course the usual lefty media and the Liberals themselves will downplay this win saying that by-elections don’t really matter much.
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While one needs to be careful in reading too much into by-elections, this was a big win so perhaps Scheer’s efforts in Quebec are paying off. If most of the regions of Quebec go Conservative and if he can win the same seats Doug Ford did, we’ve got a Conservative majority. Off course the election is still 16 months away so don’t want to get too excited yet, but definitely encouraging. BTW, I saw a poll showing this would be the outcome, but it seemed too good to be true for me never mind riding polls have a pretty poor track record so was quite happy to see it actually play out.
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Incredible win for the Conservatives in Chicoutimi-Le Fjord! Well no matter how you feel about supply-management Scheer knows the way to a majority is through Quebec. From 4th in 2015 to first!! Amazing.
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I agree his stance on supply management might help in some Quebec ridings further south, but considering Chicoutimi-Le Fjord is mostly urban and the rural areas are more forestry and aluminum, doubt it made much difference here. In fact Chicoutimi is a similar latitude to Thunder Bay so kind of like Northern Ontario which was the one non-urban part of the province Ford struggled in.
I think Scheer’s appearance on Toute Parle le Monde which has a viewership of 2 million played a much bigger role. This was the same show Jack Layton went on shortly before the orange wave in 2011 so this is a great way to introduce one to Quebecers. I think Scheer should also go on the show during the 2019 election. In addition I think this result will help attract more high quality candidates in Quebec instead of nobodies like you saw with the NDP in 2011 and that will mean if Quebec swings Tory, there will be lots of talent to choose from when forming the cabinet whereas surges during the campaign often mean many weak candidates who ran as placeholders end up getting elected.
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Indeed Joanne. This is just the beginning. I like that the left and their media puppies are under-estimating Scheer. I hope they keep it up. I’m excited by this because I believe Trudeau is beatable and growing more so by the day in fact.
Here’s a good column from the Globe & Mail on why this under-estimating this win is a mistake. More to it in fact. I agree. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-tory-by-election-landslide-in-quebec-more-than-a-local-race/
Oh, and by the way. For those following the latest on Trump detaining migrants, separating children etc. have a read of Brian Lilley’s latest offering on his blog.
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Even CNN https://cnn.it/2tdraJp pointed out that the purported “children in cages” narrative is inaccurate.
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The CPC win in this specific riding definitely shows Trudeau’s NAFTA strategy may need a rethink. Trump’s attacks on both the dairy (a bone of contention for Trump) and aluminum (a target of Trump’s recent tariffs) industries of the riding should have mobilized voters to support the Trudeau Liberals. Why didn’t they? The winning candidate is well liked and has greater name recognition but that can’t be all it took to swing voters to the CPC. I’ll bet all parties are analyzing the heck out of this one.
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More alleged trouble for a Liberal MP. Collingwood this time. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/collingwood-project-payment-mp-bonwick-1.4708054
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Collingwood is in Simcoe-Grey which has gone Conservative every election since 2004 so I think this is referirng to the MP during the Chretien era. Only when the right was divided was a liberal win plausible there, when the right is united they always win that riding.
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Ridings have changed a lot in that area. I think when I lived in Barrie there was only Simcoe North and South (in the early 90’s) in what is now 4 ridings. We elected the first Reform MP outside of Alberta. Ed Harper was his name if I recall.
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Two things:
1. I read somewhere many Liberals in Ontario are blaming their move to the left for their drubbing, so hopefully they do move back to the centre as while I hope the PC’s are in office for 8 to 12 years, I hope that it is a centrist, not left wing party who replaces them when people tire. Greg Sorbara even went as far to say had he still been finance minister he would have never agreed to table the big spending budget. I am hoping this is a message to Liberals that copying the NDP loses elections. There is a reason the NDP rarely wins; they are too left wing so why would anyone think acting like them would deliver different results?
2. Gerald Butts is now lashing out at Ford over his climate plans. Talk about insulting voters. Most want action on climate change, but more importantly most who are having enough time paying the bills don’t want even higher prices and if you live in the suburbs or rural areas, this means higher gas prices which is bad for the middle class. In fact in an exit poll, Ford’s most popular policy was reducing gas prices by 10 cents a litre. So Liberals need to find a way to deal with climate change without making life more expensive for the middle class, otherwise people will quite understandably vote against their plans. Off course Butts like McKenna is an urban elite who doesn’t have a clue about people living living beyond Ottawa’s greenbelt and north of Steeles Avenue.
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I would agree about McKenna being an urban elite, and Butts as well. But he is also a fringe ideologue to whom the end goal of deindustrializing the economy is more important than the effect it may have on people. McKenna just doesn’t know any better.
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I don’t know if these people who want climate action actually know what that means; if everything we’ve been feed on man made co2 is correct, then a complete shut down of every co2 emitter on earth gives an 80 year or so timetable to the pre-industrial “ideal” and that is a best case forecast; the tinkering of Trudeau and McKenna is utterly insignificant and ineffective except maybe on timescales of several hundreds of years; so the people who want “climate action” actually don’t, what they really want is the optics of looking as if “something is being done”, they are simply not prepared or willing to what it takes on any kind of a meaningful timescale, I know Gerry Butts and the Trudeau-lings certainly aren’t but they surely know a revenue tool when they see it; what is really sad is that the climate hysterics on the left can’t see the blatantly obvious
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Posted about the Butts going after Ford item yesterday. For those who missed it….https://ipolitics.ca/2018/06/18/top-trudeau-advisor-slams-ford-on-cap-and-trade/
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Is it now just a matter of time before before Maxime Bernier is ousted from the CPC? “Shortly after being stripped of his industry critic portfolio, Conservative MP Maxime Bernier has lost his seat on the industry committee as well.
A report was quietly tabled in the House of Commons on June 14, two days after Bernier got the boot from Conservative leader Andrew Scheer’s shadow cabinet. It called for Conservative MP Mike Lake to replace Bernier on the committee, while Tory MP Matt Jeneroux – who is also taking over Bernier’s former critic portfolio on an interim basis – will take over for Bernier as vice-chair.” https://www.nationalnewswatch.com/2018/06/19/maxime-bernier-quietly-booted-from-industry-committee/#.WylYd8QnZy0
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Trudeau claims that when marijuana becomes legal in a few short weeks it will make it more difficult for children to get access to it. Did he ever consider they may now be able to swipe it from Mom and Dad’s stash or from older teenage family members?
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I can also envision parents thinking it’s ok to let kids have just one toke from a joint. Remember how some parents enable their kids with alcohol? That first cute sip? I think this is one huge mistake.
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I forgot to mention that this whole pot thing is likely to hang us up even further with Trump and the USA. Trumps going to crack down on border-crossers for sure.
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Be prepared for long lineups and an increasing number of searches, both vehicular and personal. Just a faint whiff will be all it takes.
Gabby, I’d be interested in your take on the Quebec by-election results. Does a CPC win signify anything?
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I am not overly worried as living in BC, I suspect with how popular marijuana is there, they already are checking a lot. Most border guards also profile so if a senior or a family it’s possible but not likely, but if one looks like a pothead than yeah, although those types probably already get searched. Our gun laws are radically different than the US yet has not led to a massive slowdown, so I suspect any slowdown will be short term. We are a sovereign country so whether we legalize marijuana or not should be based on what Canadians want not what the US administration wants.
I do however hope in Ontario Ford will allow private sales of marijuana and not limit it to a government monopoly as I am generally against government monopolies. But should be limited to stand alone shops and not near any school, unlike beer and wine, I don’t support selling marijuana in corner stores.
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I can almost guarantee that the slowdowns will be on entry into the US and although BC travellers may not notice it much, such will not be the case in other provinces. US border officials are expected to strictly adhere to protocol.
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I’m afraid I’m not much of an analyst, so I’ll repeat what I hear on an Anglo station which is daily becoming more of a Liberal & anti-Trump mouthpiece: a lot of praise for Trudeau for his supposedly strong stance vs Trump, despite the loss of the recent by-election, which commentators describe as the Conservatives “stealing” the riding from the Libs. They rationalize the Liberal loss with the usual cliche that by-elections are meaningless anyway & that there’s usually a poor voter turnout. In this case, commentators also point out that it’s more of a win for the candidate himself (a well-known hockey coach) rather than for the Conservative party.
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Gabby, good to hear from you! Well you can be sure that that “Liberal mouthpiece” would have been touting the value of a by-election if their candidate had won. 😉
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Chantal Hebert offers an interesting analysis on the results in this riding boiling it down to two important takeaways regarding the leadership of the LPC and the CPC. First, Scheer seems to be looked upon as a less polarizing leader, so comparisons with Harper failed to sway voters. Second, the fact that Liberal “Quebec MPs lack presence in their province,” seems to indicate that voters want more than good looks and a French name in a leader. They’re seeing that the LPC is all about Trudeau and that’s not enough. The collapse of the BQ and the NDP rates barely a mention. https://www.thestar.com/opinion/star-columnists/2018/06/19/lessons-for-other-parties-in-quebec-byelection-win-by-conservatives.html (h/t @bcbluecon)
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I see one of the amendments from the senate that the liberals rejected was one that asked that all investors in the pot industry had to register and be on a list. It was meant to prevent organized crime from getting involved by using offshore accounts to invest in approved pot growers and suppliers. It made sense to me. I wonder if the liberals rejected it because if anyone were to see such a list they might find that approved growers and suppliers have a remarkable correlation with known cronies of the liberal party?
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Marijuana legalization comes on October 17th so good news for the Ford administration as it gives them time to make changes. Bad news however in New Brunswick (election September 24th) and Quebec (election October 1st). I think January or February next year makes more sense as gives provinces more time as well as any changes in government won’t necessarily have to be hamstrung by policy of the previous government.
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October 17 happens to be my birthday. While I will ever forget the date Trudeau and company chose to legalize pot, I will not however be having a pot party!
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I wonder if Environment Canada will issue an air quality advisory for that day with a warning of a possible countrywide haze. Where’s Catherine McKenna when this may be the only time Canada needs her?
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This is interesting from David Akin “David Akin
22 hrs ·
CBC cancelled its afternoon business program “On the Money” today citing “budget constraints”. Here’s what budget “constraints” looks like to the CBC — an annual federal subsidy that keeps getting bigger and bigger. Not smaller. Bigger. Bigger when it was already really, really, really. From $1.1 Billion — that’s billion with a B — to $1.2 billion this fiscal year. There is absolutely no other media organization in Canada (maybe on the planet) that is getting $100 million more to do stuff this year. Source for this chart, FYI, is the government’s own spending plan, tabled in Parliament in April.”
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Thank you, Joanne @ June 21, 2018 at 9:17 pm. And you’re quite right, they would have been touting a Liberal win as the greatest event ever. Evan Solomon, who has a 2-hour show on that radio station and a quickie morning review of things political, said Justin Trudeau had not lost any by-elections to date. I guess these ones don’t count (Conservative wins, with higher percentages than previously & lower percentage for Libs):
October 24, 2016 Medicine Hat-Cardston—Warner
April 3, 2017 Calgary Heritage & Calgary Midnapore
Oct. 23, 2017 Sturgeon River-Parkland
Dec. 11. 2017 Battlefords-Lloydminster
Granted, they were Conservative ridings but to say Trudeau hadn’t lost any by-elections to date was nevertheless inaccurate on Solomon’s part..
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Yes, the Liberal media is only too happy to catch Justin when he falls and prop him up all over again.
It’s something we should have become used to I guess, but I sure haven’t.
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I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it, shrugging it off.
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I think they might have meant no Liberal held seats as those were all Conservative held seats, but that is no longer the case anymore as they did lose Chicoutimi-Le Fjord which was Liberal held and hadn’t vote conservative or any of its predecessors since 1997. Mind you I remember some in the media speculating Harper’s seat would go Liberal when he stepped aside for a by-election and it wasn’t even close.
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“I think they might have meant no Liberal held seats as those were all Conservative held seats …”
True enough, but the average Joe & Jane Canadian who doesn’t spend time on political blogs doesn’t know that, so they take statements’ like Solomon’s literally, probably thinking “This guy Trudeau is something else, eh? A real winner. Must be doing something good, eh?”
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Yes indeed Gabby and the left and their minions count on exactly that.
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Quebec radio host, Eric Duhaime, told Ezra last night that where the NDP and BQ vote is collapsing throughout Quebec, and in areas where it comes down to a two party race, the CPC stands a chance to take 30 to 40 seats outside of Montreal in the next federal election. Trudeau’s apparent open border position on illegal migration is also of concern. Eric also said that it’s not a left or right situation but rather a centralist vs nationalist one. There’s also a rift developing between the federal and provincial liberals over this issue. If you’re a subscriber go to the 30 minute mark of last night’s show to hear Eric’s entire commentary.
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Sounds promising, handled right the immigration issue could be a real winner. Just need to protect possible wins in GTA outside of Toronto proper.
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Stephen Harper
Verified account @stephenharper
41m41 minutes ago
We mourn the loss of Charles Krauthammer’s thoughtful conservative voice. His legacy will live on through the countless leaders and individuals he inspired. Laureen and I extend our heartfelt condolences to his family.
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So sad about Krauthammer! I used to enjoy his commentary on Fox.
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As if any more proof were needed that many MSM outlets & their people lie …
“Crying migrant girl on TIME magazine cover was not separated from mother, family says”
By Adam Shaw | Fox News (June 22, 2018)
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/06/22/crying-migrant-girl-on-time-magazine-cover-was-not-separated-from-mother-family-says.html (via Jack’s Newswatch tweet)
They’re the same kind of lies that derailed Stephen Harper’s 2015 election campaign, when the pictures of Alan Kurdi, the dead toddler found on a Turkish beach, were plastered on the front page of practically every publication. I know … it’s a bitterly useless exercise to revisit that but why is the lying and misrepresentation allowed to continue? And what can be done about it?
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I read that earlier. It’s all about the set-up and take-down. Facts be damned.
What can be done about it?
Continuing to identify it for what it is and calling them out. However the left-wing media by the numbers is just has a far greater reach…..in Canada at least.
You said it previously Gabby. The media count on the people not paying attention or having the time or inclination to dig down to question what’s been offered them by the media.
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Looks like this is turning out to be a soft landing for Justin as well, not to mention the tidbit that he was found guilty of an ethics breach and made to pay a penalty. Nothing to see here folks! Just carry on and have a nice summer. http://nationalpost.com/news/politics/why-an-18-year-old-groping-allegation-against-justin-trudeau-is-not-a-metoo-moment
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Hopefully all these ethics violations will start to add up in the court of public opinion. The Conservative party should definitely plan to use this in truth ads for the 2019 election.
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Jo have you noticed MSM are accusing Andrew Scheer of misrepresenting the facts about swing set. Why did Trudeau not state he paid for swing set when Andrew Scheer asked him in question period. Does Trudeau not know how to manage his own money.? How can taxpayers trust Trudeau to manage taxpayers money.
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What I am noticing is a full-on media assault against anyone not Liberal, and a general protection of Trudeau and his party. Makes you wonder who’s behind it. Mmmm… I think I have an idea.
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Some in the media are speculating on a snap election call by Trudeau and company.
Thinking about it there are very good reasons why they might do just that. Things are not going to get any better them them as the countdown proceeds. We can expect to hear the name Trump, he’ll be figuring in their scare tactics big time. Justin will be Mr Canada all wrapped neatly in the Canadian flag as savior of our bacon.
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He might want to ask David Peterson, Jim Prentice (yes I know he is dead, but you get the idea) and Theresa May how well early election calls worked. Both had much bigger leads than he does. Heck Chretien in 1997 lost 12 points during the campaign when he called an early won, but he at least had a divided opposition and massive lead that Trudeau lacks. I think an early call could backfire as people will see it for what it is.
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Just got my invite to join Doug Ford and his PC’s on the steps of Queen’s Park on the 29th for the swearing in of “Ontario’s first government for the people’! How novel is that, ?
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What time is the swearing in at?
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Remember when Stephen Harper was dragged over the coals by all and sundry for meeting with the Fords during the 2015 campaign? Remember when Trudeau said, “The Ford brothers should have no place on a national campaign stage much less hosting a prime minister at an event this weekend. That is just completely irresponsible of the prime minister.” Do you think Premier Ford remembers?
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Starting to hear a little more about an 18 year old groping allegation against our self described feminist Prime Minister. It’s going to be tough if he’s forced to come forward with excuses and not look like a phony and a real jerk.
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Stephen Harper is going to the White House July 2nd (?). Wonder how that will play out in the media?
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The media already has its knickers in a twist implying that Mr. Harper is undermining Trudeau and his government. The reality is quite different according to Norman Spector who asks CTV’s Don Martin, “Would that be the same Stephen Harper who’s Chair of the IDU, meeting with Bolton, the National Security Adviser, who’s prepping Trump’s meetings with Nato and with Putin?”
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Liberals can’t stand it when they’re not the centre of attention.
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Just one more sleep and even the thought of liberals, albeit only the Ontario variety, won’t enter our heads.
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Yes indeed! Something to celebrate. 🙂
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Look forward to hearing who makes it. It will be at Noon, so 5:00 in the evening for me as I am in England now. Maybe after that go out for a nice pint of a cask ale at an English pub to celebrate the beginning of a new Era in Ontario.
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That sounds like an excellent way to celebrate, Miles!
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On the cabinet I think Ford did a reasonably good job, not perfect but if you want a smaller cabinet (which I fully support) pretty tough to tick off all boxes. I think the main theme was experience as the focus seemed to be most on who was most qualified and less on geography or meeting quotas. No doubt the fact his cabinet wasn’t gendered balance or had only one visible minority will get criticism from the left, but I think what matters is not the cabinet’s image today, but how they perform and Ford checked that box off well. Also there will be parliamentary secretaries and I think of the new MPP’s probably some will get a promotion whenever the next shuffle happens. Best to see who are your strong performers and not so and then go from there. Will it was gains in the GTA that gave Ford his majority, a lot were newbies so some next time will get a promotion and at least they will have earned it, not got it to fill some quota. Also his remarks after swearing in are very premier like so I think this was a good start. But now the difficult work as with the mess the Liberals left us, it won’t be easy fixing that and I suspect he will have to make some unpopular decisions to fix the mess we are in.
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What a great group of Ministerial choices made by Ford. We are in good hands in Ontario, Ford has already shown he means business across the board.
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And we need this with the mess the Liberals left us. It is going to be a tough job fixing 15 years of recklessness.
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Exactly right Miles, it’s going to be a tough job. With all the flak taken by Ford he is looking very much like a person in charge with a plan that will make life much better for all Ontario residents.
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I’m feeling pretty optimistic tonight! Love the choice of Christine Elliott as Health Minister and Deputy Minister. Vic Fedeli is perfect as Finance Minister. Many other great choices. Hoping Ontario gets back on track now.
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What a difference five short months makes! We’ve gone from a party in complete disarray to the strongest display of unity I can recall in what seems like forever. And it all came down to the one man with the right policies at the right time to tap into the real needs of the people of Ontario. To think ‘they’ said it couldn’t be done, that the bottom had fallen out. Hah! Five months ago many of us were struggling to find something, anything in Patrick Brown’s vision for Ontario we could get behind. Look at us now!
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Here is the list of Parliamentary Assistants: https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2018/06/premier-ford-announces-parliamentary-assistant-assignments-as-part-of-ontarios-government-for-the-pe.html My MPP, Bob Bailey, becomes the Parliamentary Assistant to Todd Smith, Government House Leader and Minister of Government and Consumer Services. Way to go, Bob!
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Oh cool! I recognize a few names in that list too.
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There have been several stories about the Kokanee Grope (sounds like a wrestling term, doesn’t it?) by various journalists but this is the first one I’ve come across written by someone who actually held an important position in government. Former CPC finance minister Joe Oliver’s opinion is worth reading. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/joe-oliver-groping-allegations-snare-justin-trudeau-in-a-trap-he-created-himself
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Interesting. So far Justin has been able to escape an intense interrogation on this one. The drip-drip-drip is escalating though.
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This new government is already finding efficiencies and getting results. Health Minister Christine Elliot is hard at work for us. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/pcs-announce-changes-to-ohip-1.4729873
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It’s strange that the PMO and the press breathlessly broadcast Stephen Harper’s impending visit to the White House but ignore where he is now. So what nefarious shenanigans is he up to behind the backs of the Trudeau government? “Canada’s @stephenharper tells #FreeIran2018 event: “Our Gov took a strong stand against the regime. We sponsored annual resolutions at the UN against Iran’s human rights abuses… We closed the Canadian embassy in Tehran and told the mullahs to get out of Canada!” Mr. Harper spoke at the event in Paris yesterday along with John Baird and Newt Gingrich. Video clips can be seen on the twitter feed of @HanifJazayeri as mentioned by Sheila Gunn Reid from the Rebel currently in Israel.
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Trudeau is playing politics on Canada Day, He’s in Leamington where tomatoes grow and we are all familiar with Heinz ketchup. I’m wondering if he will suggest we switch to French’s ketchup?
He could have stayed in Ottawa, people from across the country have been known to visit our
Capital on this day. They did get to see and hear from his wife, she calls him “honey” and his cute children who looked like they were having more fun than on their family vacay to India!
Anyway, God Bless Canada! Happy Canada Day wherever and however you celebrate this great land of ours.
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Our Governor General is like no other we have had, seems to have created her own protocol to represent our Queen.
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You thought that too eh?
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I’m waiting to see if any of the media pick up on the subject!
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Oh they won’t say anything I’m sure. However the Kokanee Grope story seems to be picking up steam.
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I think he put his foot in his mouth when he said he remembers the day very well, he just has no memory of groping the reporter.
He may want to keep his hands in his pockets and his elbows close to his sides from now on. I’m sure Butts will be working on the matter.
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Having sworn off watching the politically correct Canada Day celebrations on TV since 2015 I obviously missed something of note re: the GG. Do tell. I know that she failed to acknowledge either the Queen’s actual or official birthday on her twitter feed, that she tends to dress almost exclusively in black which suggests mourning and there’s a dearth of news about her activities.
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Haha! Well I could only stand watching for a few minutes but she didn’t look very Governor General-ish. I thought her choice of a plain white sleeveless dress was rather underwhelming. Might have been nice to see a hat or something. I’m just not a big fan I guess. Maybe Liz can chime in with her observations.
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She accepted the role as Queen’s representative in Canada but it appears more of a maverick. I don’t expect her to carry an old lady’s purse but maybe a little touch of queenly class, a hat would have done that for sure.
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That should read “she appears more of a maverick.”
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The Queen is seldom, if ever, seen in public not carrying her purse so when the day comes that the Queen doesn’t carry that iconic purse it will mark the end of her reign. Long may she reign over us. God save the Queen. We were truly spoiled when David Johnston was our GG.
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