Sep 29 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. When it comes to electoral reform, that ought to be the attitude of both Justin Trudeau’s Liberals and Jagmeet Singh’s NDP. After failing to reach an agreement on the best way to replace Canada’s first-past-the-post system, both sides have since moved on to other priorities. But […]
Sep 26 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Michelle Rempel Garner may be the MP for Calgary-Nose Hill, but for a brief moment in the House of Commons the other day, she represented millions of Canadians beyond her own riding. Her seating assignment on the Conservative bench one row behind and just a bit to the right of fellow Albertan Garnett Genuis put […]
Sep 13 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — You don’t have to squint too hard to see the parallels between former U.S. president Donald Trump and newly crowned Conservative Party of Canada Leader Pierre Poilievre. Both are economic populists with a gift for weaponizing working-class grievances and an unusual ability to connect with their audiences through social media. But that comparison does a […]
Aug 31 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — If there’s a defining aspect to Justin Trudeau’s tenure as prime minister, it’s his fondness for big promises and soaring rhetoric. But as supporters of electoral reform can attest, those words haven’t always been backed up by deeds. Now, the Laith Marouf scandal is providing yet another reminder — perhaps the most important one yet […]
Aug 29 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — It’s an iron law in Alberta politics: when Premier Jason Kenney tries to spike the football, it inevitably finds its way back into his face. And while it seemed impossible at the time that he’d be able to top the fiasco that was his “Best Summer Ever” from 2021, he may have outdone himself with […]
Aug 23 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — If you aren’t already familiar with something called the “Diagolon” movement, well, you will be. That’s because Pierre Poilievre, the prohibitive favourite in the Conservative Party of Canada’s leadership race, was photographed at a recent event with its founder, Jeremy MacKenzie. A far-right activist and former member of the Canadian military who was arrested earlier […]
Aug 8 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — In the three Conservative leadership races and nearly seven years that have transpired since Stephen Harper took his drubbing in the 2015 election, the prevailing formula for those trying to replace him has been the same: campaign on the right to win the leadership, then pivot to the centre in time for the general election. […]
Aug 3 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Another day, another attempt to manufacture outrage by Canada’s conservative media ecosystem. This time, it’s over the prime minister’s two-week summer vacation, one that has outlets like True North tweeting: “Amid concerns about a looming recession in Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is hitting the beaches of Costa Rica for a two-week vacation — and […]
Jul 28 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — In 2016, Donald Trump showed the world just how powerful a simple catchphrase can be. It’s safe to assume Pierre Poilievre and his political advisers were paying close attention to the rhetorical power of the former U.S. president’s call to “Make America Great Again.” After all, Poilievre has developed a catchphrase of his own with […]
Jul 26 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Last week, millions of Canadians received their carbon tax rebates — some as big as $550 — in the form of a direct deposit from the federal government. But the number of people who understood where the money came from and why it was being given to them is surely much smaller, given the confused […]
Jul 21 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Canada’s oil industry has never shown much of a talent for reading the room, but it took its political tone-deafness to new depths this week. With parts of Europe literally ablaze and the United Kingdom having faced the hottest temperatures it’s ever seen, our oil industry’s leaders decided it would be a good time to […]
Jul 19 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Sometimes, all you can do is laugh. That’s certainly how many Canadians responded to a clip in which American podcaster Joe Rogan described their country as “communist,” one that had the hashtag #CommunistCanada trending over the weekend. “Today in Communist Canada, we were permitted to travel in a government-allocated vehicle to a government-approved beach,” one […]
Jul 14 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Nelson Mandela. Mahatma Gandhi. Vaclav Havel. And … Tamara Lich? In the wake of her recent arrest for violating the terms of her bail, one of the key architects of the occupation of downtown Ottawa earlier this year is being described by her supporters as a “political prisoner,” with the loopier corners of the internet […]
Jul 7 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Ottawa residents were understandably concerned about a Canada Day repeat of the anti-vaccine protests that gridlocked their city’s downtown at the start of this year. But while our nation’s capital managed to survive the festivities mostly unscathed, the so-called convoy’s creeping takeover of this country’s official Opposition continues apace. Leadership race front-runner Pierre Poilievre made […]
Jul 6 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — In an age of widespread polarization, everyone can at least agree on one thing right now: travelling absolutely sucks. While rising gas prices are making summer road trips far less enjoyable, trying to board an airplane in Canada right now would test the patience of the Dalai Lama. From delayed flights to excruciatingly long lines, […]