Jun 27 2019 — Marni Soupcoff — National Post — In a recent summary of federal political lobbying activity, iPolitics reported that the Canadian Association of Stand-Up Comedians (CASC) has hired a lobbyist to convince the powers that be in Ottawa to classify stand-up comedy as an “art form.” The goal, according to lobbyist Sean Casey’s registration, is to make stand-ups eligible for government arts […]
Jun 27 2019 — Andrew Coyne — National Post — Phew, that was close. Or: darn, that was close. That sums up the reaction to the Senate’s near defeat last week of two important, if controversial government bills: C-69, establishing a new regulatory approval process for major infrastructure projects, and C-48, banning oil tankers from the northern coast of British Columbia. That the Senate did […]
Jun 26 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — A casual glance at the Canadian political landscape suggests Andrew Scheer’s Conservatives should be preparing for government. They have been comfortably ahead in almost every opinion poll in the past four months and one projection gives them a 64 per cent probability of winning the most seats in October. But rather than cruising to victory, […]
Jun 25 2019 — Andrew Coyne — National Post — Each policy disaster, it would seem, must be revisited every 30 years or so. Debates one thought long settled — over deficits, inflation, socialism — are revived, as memories fade, the original participants die, and a new generation takes up the same discredited ideas, untainted by actual experience of their consequences. Hence the current vogue […]
Jun 22 2019 — Andrew Coyne — National Post — The second clue that the Conservative climate change plan is a work, essentially, of mischief — an intentionally pointless bit of misdirection — is to be found on the inside title page. “Please consider the environment,” it reads, “before printing this document.” How they all must have laughed. Boilerplate though it may be in other […]
Jun 20 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — Whatever reversals of fortune have befallen the prime minister, he’s still Justin Trudeau. The atmosphere still crackles when he enters a room, as even those who profess malicious intent are drawn to him like moths to a flame. Yet that intoxicating mix of colour and confidence seems to desert him in the company of Donald […]
Jun 20 2019 — Marie-Danielle Smith — National Post — After making almost $35,000 from selling odds and ends such as mittens, headphones and chairs at an Ottawa sale Saturday, the federal government is considering opening the doors to more of its surplus warehouses. GCSurplus’s first “Cash and Carry” sale attracted more than 1,500 people, according to a spokesman for Public Services and Procurement Canada. […]
Jun 19 2019 — Andrew Coyne — National Post — Honestly, what did anyone expect? Was it ever in doubt that Justin Trudeau would approve construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion? Was it really imagined his government would reject a project it had not only previously approved, but now owns? And yet the government was obliged to pretend it was “a difficult decision,” as […]
Jun 19 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — It should come as no surprise that the new Conservative climate plan is a Potemkin village of a policy, designed to give the impression of solidity to a fake, precarious construction. That’s because Andrew Scheer is giving voters what they want: expressions of concern about climate change, without the imposition of any financial pain. The […]
Jun 19 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — The Trans Mountain pipeline expansion lives — at least until the next court challenge. Justin Trudeau was flanked by his most senior cabinet ministers as he announced his government has approved TMX, the twinning of the pipeline between Alberta and British Columbia. The project, which was blocked last year by the Federal Court of Appeal, […]
Jun 18 2019 — John Robson — National Post — Don’t make friends of your enemies by making enemies of your friends. And don’t say things you aren’t prepared to defend. Dear Ms. Raitt: How’s it going? No, I shouldn’t ask. You tweeted something about climate change without thinking then retracted it in a panic and now look spineless and clueless. So here’s some advice. […]
Jun 17 2019 — Andrew Coyne — National Post — According to the premier of Quebec, it’s all about pride. Quebecers, Francois Legault claims, are forever stopping him in the street to tell him “‘Mr. Legault we are happy.’ I say why and they say ‘it’s because we are proud.’… To feel this regained pride among our people, who are standing up, advancing, makes me […]
Jun 17 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — In mid-June 2015, before that year’s federal election campaign began in earnest, Justin Trudeau released a package of 32 promised democratic and government reform measures. They were designed to provide a contrast with the incumbent Conservative government and, more importantly, garner the Liberals some publicity at a time when there was a very real risk […]
Jun 14 2019 — Andrew Coyne — National Post — Wait, what? What did the federal environment minister just say? If I heard her right, Catherine McKenna announced there would be no increase in the federally-mandated levy on carbon dioxide (and equivalent) emissions — the carbon tax — beyond the $50 per tonne it is scheduled to reach in 2022. Here’s the quote: “The price […]
Jun 13 2019 — John Ivison — National Post — The Conservatives have been raising expectations over the climate change plan that leader Andrew Scheer will unveil next week. In a short video released to promote the speech next Wednesday, Scheer promised a “real plan to protect our environment, fight climate change and reduce global emissions.” To underline the emphasis on the international aspect of […]