If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
Hopefully the summer break will allow all the parties to reflect on the good and the bad of this past session. When they return let's hope they can tone down the hyper-partisanship a bit and work in the best interests of all Canadians. After all that is why we sent them there.
Between NDP MPs not paying their income taxes and members of the federal Conservative caucus being accused of defrauding taxpayers through false spending claims, neither party has the moral authority to determine whether Justin Trudeau acted inappropriately in being compensated for speeches he was being asked to deliver that were outside his mandate as an MP. At its core the vitriol and stunning rhetoric regarding this issue has little to do with Trudeau's actions and far more to do with the fear of what Justin Trudeau at the helm of the Liberal Party of Canada could do to the government and official opposition.
From the beginning of his leadership campaign, that has been Justin Trudeau's strength -- giving Canadians good reasons to vote FOR him, not just AGAINST the other guy. In that constructive spirit, he has also developed an aggressive agenda for Parliamentary, electoral and political reform to strengthen Canadian democracy and improve financial transparency.
I predict that Mayor Ford would be more than happy to do as Justin Trudeau has recommended and post his office budget and expenses. Although Mayor Ford represents about 23 times the voters, spread over 25 times the area, as Olivia Chow, his budget is only 4.43 times greater than her total expenses.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to take part in an unofficial focus group. I say unofficial as it wasn't organized by any of the research or polling c...
With the next federal election a little more than two years away, it is time we started asking the Liberals and New Democrats what kind of government they would deliver if either one could bounce the Conservatives from power. So, it's time to begin pressuring both Justin Trudeau and Tom Mulcair to articulate exactly what they would do, and the challenge is huge. We need to know which party will be prepared to do the most to oppose the business-controlled agenda.
If elections were held today, the Grits would likely romp to victory, according to a recent poll. We would then be faced with the scary prospect of drama teacher Justin Trudeau hamming it up in the role of the next Prime Minister of Canada.
Canadians caught a glimpse of what "could be" in the 1992 Charlottetown Accord; the closest we have come to real Senate reform since Confederation.The prime minister who wrought this was Brian Mulroney. But even he was surprised. I know, because I was the one who informed him an elected Senate might just happen.
Over a 20-year period, the term of the lease now being renewed by ICAO and Quebec/Canada, ICAO will generate several billion dollars of revenue for the city of Montreal. This is a fight that Harper had to win. And he, Baird and the whole Team Montreal, won decisively. A huge international victory.
Trudeau needs to attack Harper's strongest point: the economy. While he has been doing that in the House of Commons, only avid politicos will be aware of it. He needs to bring those criticism on a larger scale and reach more Canadians via advertisements.
Culture, simply, is your life. So what's "national" culture? Culture is all around you. From bilingual cereal boxes to "Canadian Tire" money. I love American pop culture, but I champion the idea of Canadians recognizing they have a place at the table, too.
Justin Trudeau is our ink blot, a psychological device that lets us project our beliefs onto him, letting us think he stands for us. While he speaks in broad platitudes, his name is also a powerful symbol of Canada, so he is able to bring along voters regardless of substance.
Whether we choose to think about business, health care, education or war, all have undergone transformative change brought about by the information revolution. In fact, every area of modern life is going through this change. Every area except our formal structures of politics and government, that is.
Justin Trudeau's latest ad, in which the 41-year-old leader of one of the western world's leading political parties appears wearing the sort of outfit a fratboy might toss on to take out the trash, was offensive not for any sartorial prissiness, but because it reflected an unsettling lack of dignity for a supposed prime minister-in-waiting. For a man who's already benefited enormously from exploiting sex appeal for electoral benefit, now that he's a parliamentary leader, the least the guy could do is at least pretend he's got more to offer voters than the suggestive outline of his pecs. But then again, the Tories already declared J-Tru's body fair game in ads of their own, didn't they?
In his most recent video where he thanks donors for their money, the Liberal leader Justin Trudeau looks like a college sophomore playing hacky sack in the quad. What Trudeau says in the video is of little import -- as so often with the aspiring prime minister -- but it's how he presents everything that makes this ad -- initially (and easily) thought to be a joke -- so downright clever.
Trudeau is trying to find a new niche for the Liberal Party. A preliminary look indicated that he is trying to take the Conservative party's old right-of-centre spot on the ideological spectrum. With fewer differences between the two parties, Trudeau's youth and vitality may come as an asset in 2015 when Canadians go to the polls.
