Oct 16 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — In the course of an interview for my book on Justin Trudeau, Gerald Butts made a comment that crystallizes the Liberal leader’s challenge in the coming days – convincing people who voted for him in 2015 that he is still committed to doing politics differently. “I honestly think we’ve lost 5 per cent of the […]
Oct 15 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — Barrelling down the freeway from Fredericton toward Nova Scotia it becomes clear why Canada was born as a nation of hewers of wood and drawers of water. The riot of New Brunswick’s fall colours — leaves of amber, flaming burgundy and copper — lined the route as Justin Trudeau made a whistle-stop tour of Atlantic […]
Oct 14 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — The Liberals feel the disturbance in the Force that saw the NDP and the Bloc Québécois surge after the leaders’ debate has passed, and they’re convinced they will now progress to victory as relentlessly as Justin Trudeau cruised up Highway 401 on Monday. The Liberal tour started the day in Windsor, Ont., where the party […]
Oct 13 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — Suddenly the warning that “somebody’s going to get shot” doesn’t sound so preposterous. Michael Wernick, the former clerk of the Privy Council, cautioned last spring that the state of public political dialogue in this country could result in assassination. The admonition was dismissed as hyperbole. But the events at a Mississauga conference hall on Saturday […]
Oct 12 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — Andrew Scheer unveiled his party platform on the Friday afternoon of a long weekend in Tsawwassen, B.C., with the Georgia Strait lapping up behind him. It was almost as if he didn’t want anyone to clock the launch. If so, that hope was forlorn. Progressive Canada noticed and proceeded to lose its mind, as it […]
Oct 9 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — The Liberals are waiting with bated, if slightly malodorous, breath to pounce on the Conservatives and NDP when they release their platform costings in the next few days. The Conservatives will say they will balance the books within five years, leaving themselves open to apocalyptic comparisons with Doug Ford’s Ontario government and Sauron. The NDP […]
Oct 8 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — The NDP is revelling in the positive publicity surrounding the performance of leader Jagmeet Singh at the English language leaders’ debate, notably around his gibe that Justin Trudeau and Andrew Scheer were engaged in a discussion over who would make Canada worse. “I want to say this directly to Canadians. You do not need to […]
Oct 7 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — It is a strange paradox that there is a decline in trust in federal political parties at the same time as there is a rise in partisanship. Far from restoring confidence in the system, the English-language leaders debate reinforced that contradiction, offering a cacophony of sectarian thunder but very little illumination.
Oct 4 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — “I never want to hear one single Liberal pronounce the word ‘reconciliation’ ever again,” said former NDP MP Romeo Saganash on hearing that the federal government is appealing a ruling to compensate First Nations children harmed by the on-reserve child welfare system. Justin Trudeau was elected in 2015 partly on a pledge that “no relationship […]
Oct 2 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — The parallels between the drab 2019 federal election and the equally dismal 1972 campaign have been noted — in both cases, a prime minister called Trudeau, who came in on a wave of wild optimism, was fighting for his political life against a decent but dry Conservative leader. In that earlier campaign, Pierre Trudeau squeaked […]
Oct 1 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — Andrew Scheer may be getting hot — okay, warmish — at just the right time. The most recent Nanos Research tracking poll has him as preferred prime minister, ahead of Justin Trudeau for the first time since May. A year ago, Trudeau was out-polling the Conservative leader 41 per cent to 25 per cent when […]
Sep 30 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — It may just have been the universe having a laugh but as I was reading the Liberal election platform, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” fired up on my random playlist. It was a timely reminder that the fiscal projections the Liberals swear you can take to the bank are likely to prove as reliable as a […]
Sep 29 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — Andrew Scheer’s policy offerings to this point have been modest, with much to be modest about – a tax credit here, a tax cut there, with the hope that the cumulative package persuades voters they will be better off under a Conservative government. Not for him the sweeping schemes and bold visions put forward by […]
Sep 27 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — Andrew Scheer quit Montreal under cover of darkness, just hours before hundreds of thousands of mainly young Canadians took to the streets to protest climate inaction. Justin Trudeau, who is trying to rebuild his tattered credibility post-blackface with the young voters he needs to win, flew into town and may have wished he hadn’t. He […]
Sep 26 2019 — John Ivison — Postmedia — At a Conservative campaign rally the other evening, local candidate Krystina Waler talked about her goal for her riding: “To make St. Catharines the best place to live, work and raise a family.” That seemed to me to be a pretty good encapsulation of what governments should aim to do – lay solid foundations upon […]