Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says Canadian voters know he’s a “fighter,” but that he needs to do a better job explaining what he’s actually fighting for. In a year-end interview with Global News anchor and executive editor Dawna Friesen, Poilievre said he has reflected on his leadership and approach after April’s disappointing election loss. One of his conclusions was that he needs to make clear he’s not “fighting for the sake of fighting.” “It’s fighting for the people,” Poilievre said ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

The Conservative Caucus of BC is entering a new era of focused, united leadership under Trevor Halford, MLA for Surrey–White Rock , who has stepped into the role of Interim Leader of the Conservative Party of BC and Leader of the Official Opposition . Halford thanked MLA John Rustad for his tremendous leadership and stewardship of the Conservative Caucus of BC, noting that Rustad took the party from not having elected an MLA since 1975 to coming within one seat of forming government. “John has worked tirelessly to champion common-sense government and built a movement that we can now take forward to defeat the NDP. Our entire caucus is grateful for the sacrifices he has made for this team and for this province.” Halford says the Conservative Caucus of BC is focused, disciplined, and ready to provide the stability and accountability that British Columbians desperately need after a fall session defined by government turmoil and worsening crises. “This government’s agenda was defined by d...

As BC politicians return to Victoria for the fall session of the legislature, there is mounting speculation that BC Conservative leader John Rustad is in the fight of his political life. After a chaotic summer for the opposition party that included a long, drawn-out leadership review shaped by a fake membership scandal, the firing of Elenore Sturko over allegations she was organizing against him, and mounting criticism of his leadership ... CLICK HERE for the full story

I've followed, studied, and commented on politics for decades. I've been at this a very long time. I'm rarely surprised. Elenore Sturko was one of the MLAs in the BC Conservative caucus that tried to bridge the socially moderate BC Liberal wing of the party to the more fiscally conservative BC Conservative wing of the party. She was and still is an outspoken MLA and here's the thing: she's almost always right. She gives the party a very good public image. Yesterday party leader John Rustad won his leadership review with just over 70% support. Normally a leader wants 70% as a bare minimum with an eye to for 80%. But 70% will suffice. You may remember a couple of weeks ago when the Ontario Liberal leader resigned after receiving around 65% of the vote in her leadership review. Rustad came off that win and then kicked Sturko out of caucus. This was a unilateral decision by him. He claimed she as trying to undermine his leadership. Why is this so surprising? Well it is ...

Harvey Nahirniak walks toward his paddock of cattle, his tall rubber boots caked with rich, black soil. Cows, dusted with mud, huff in the afternoon heat. His beloved workhorses stand in the sun like statues while the farm's fat, white guardian dog, Marvin, pants in the shade. Nahirniak's expertise lies in crops and cattle. His family has farmed the same stretch of land in the sleepy hamlet of Round Hill, Alta., for generations.  Election signs, many conservative blue, dot the roadsides of the rolling hills that surround his property in the heart of the Battle River-Crowfoot riding, where a byelection is underway.  While at first reluctant to talk politics, Nahirniak has come to some strong conclusions about the unusual federal race now underway within the vast federal district he calls home. "I have a feeling we're going to lose some of our representation," the 78-year-old said. "I think we're kind of at the losing end"   ... CLICK HERE for the ful...

Opinion: There are no settlers or uninvited guests; there are just British Columbians The NDP government’s oft-used tactic to silence disparate viewpoints is parroting David Eby’s favourite accusatory line of “racist posturing.” Yet the reality is that they are the biggest perpetrators of radical, ideologically empowered race baiting. This past week, we received confirmation of their brand of divisive and destructive wedge politics ... CLICK HERE for the full commentary

Liberal leader Mark Carney and Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre recently visited two very different British Columbias as their campaigns zeroed in on distinct groups of voters in this deeply divided province. Poilievre on Monday toured the massive LNG Canada natural gas export facility in Kitimat, meeting workers while talking up natural resource jobs. At the same time, Carney toured leafy urban Victoria, discussing national park expansion and aid for seniors at a hipster apple cidery. They might as well have been on two different planets ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre mounted a defence of his campaign messaging Monday, saying he has no qualms about focusing on issues like the housing crisis, cost of living concerns and relatively weak economic growth, even as some of his critics say he should go all in on Canada-U.S. relations. In the first week of this federal campaign, Poilievre has so far largely stuck to the playbook that catapulted him and his party to the lead in the polls for much of the last two years ... CLICK HERE for the full story

As Mark Carney returns from his first official state visit to Europe, Canadians appear to be viewing their new prime minister in a favourable light. New polling from the Angus Reid Institute suggests that public opinion of the newly minted Liberal leader has improved over the past several weeks, with a growing number of Canadians expressing a positive view of him. Let’s break down the numbers ... CLICK HERE for the full story

CBC/Radio-Canada’s new CEO, Marie-Philippe Bouchard, is warning that Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s pledge to defund the state broadcaster is an “existential threat” to its survival that could “cripple” its programming in both official languages. Bouchard said that if Poilievre were to slash $1 billion of the organization’s $1.4 billion annual government subsidy, the French services of CBC might not survive even if the English service was eliminated. “The math just doesn’t work. There’s a serious risk that it would cripple not only the English service but also the French service. So I’m just having difficulty reconciling all of that" ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's path to power may be by prosecuting Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's past eight years in government, but his road to victory is painted NDP orange. Appealing to working-class voters in rural and northern ridings — like those held by New Democrats across British Columbia and Liberals in northern Ontario — is part of what Poilievre sees as a winning formula. That offensive was on full display on Vancouver Island recently as he traversed NDP turf, rallying supporters in Nanaimo and snapping photos with mill workers in Port Alberni. He also stopped at a steel plant and port in BC's Lower Mainland to rub shoulders with workers, images of which lit up his social media . . . . CLICK HERE for the full story

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has shot back at B.C. Premier David Eby’s comment that his plea to halt a federal carbon price increase is a “baloney factory” campaign tactic. Poilievre told The Roy Green Show on Saturday that Eby’s “constituents can’t even afford to buy baloney after eight years of him, and the NDP and Liberal coalition.” “He should talk to his own citizens in British Columbia who can’t afford to eat, heat and house themselves and join with the seven other premiers who have called on Trudeau to spike this April 1st tax hike,” he said . . . . . . . . But Eby, speaking at an unrelated news conference in Terrace on Friday, said B.C. residents would end up with less money returned to them if the government accepted Poilievre’s “campaign office and baloney factory” request . . . . CLICK HERE for the full story

The way I see it ... it’s all about power       The report of the federal Ethics Commissioner on PMO dealings with the Solicitor General of Canada is not a “bombshell”, except in the minds of the media. Many if not most of us suspected that was the case last February. Government stonewalling of all efforts to inquire into the SNC-Lavalin affair confirmed our suspicions that the PMO had some nasty dealings to hide. Now that the cat has escaped the bag, the Prime Minister has publicly stated that he accepts full responsibility for events that in his words “should never have happened”. However, he is lying again. Mr. Trudeau cannot accept responsibility for a breach of ethics and also refuse to apologize; refusal to apologize is a rejection of responsibility. Mr. Trudeau claims his action were honorable; to protect Canada and “save jobs”. He was trying to protect SNC-Lavalin from criminal prosecution and save future contacts w...

Canadians are upbeat about the economy, but jittery about their own prosperity - Pollara survey uncovers a mixed mood that offers openings for contrasting economic pitches in the upcoming federal election John Geddes ~~ MACLEAN’S ~~ Jul 9, 2019 A new poll on how Canadians think about where they fit in the economic scheme of things offers support for both Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s pitch that Canada is prosperous under his Liberal government and Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer’s contrasting claim that too many families just aren’t getting ahead. In an online survey of more than 1,000 adults, conducted from March 27 to April 1, the firm Pollara Strategic Insights .... found that about six out of 10 Canadians say they’re confident that a middle-class life is attainable for them through hard work. Of parents polled, 77 per cent were optimistic about their children’s chances of landing in middle-class bliss. Overall, about half were optimistic about th...