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Mar 10 2024

Big lead. Tax pause. Pension fight: The Roundup

Mar 10, 2024
David Akin's Roundup
Clippings of #cdnpoli, #media, and #tech content aimed at those with an interest in Canadian politics and policy. And sometimes Canadian postage stamps.
Canada
Big Conservative Lead Stablizes as Evaluations of Trudeau Government Performance Drop
Conservatives lead by 18 over the Liberals. It’s been 658 straight days that the Conservatives have led the Liberals in Abacus Data polling. If an election were held today, 42% of committed voters would vote Conservatives with the Liberals at 24%, the NDP at 18% and the Greens at 4%. The BQ is at 34% in Quebec. [Abacus]

The federal government is reducing its national beer tax that was set to increase on April 1, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced Saturday. [Global]
The search is on for the next leader of the Canadian Armed Forces — and it's long past time that a woman became chief of the defence staff, observers say. [CP]

More than 90 CEOs of some of the country’s largest companies have signed a letter urging the government to amend rules around pension funds to encourage Canadian investment. [Globe and Mail]
The question we should ask ourselves is not whether Canadian pension funds invest enough in Canada, but instead how we can make Canadian assets more appealing to investors. Reducing the barriers to investing in Canada will unlock capital not only from our own pension funds but also from a much larger pool of international investors. [Globe and Mail]
After nearly a decade on the sidelines of federal politics, Pierre Lemieux, former Member of Parliament for Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, is once again seeking the Conservative Party of Canada’s nomination for the newly-formed riding of Prescott-Russell-Cumberland in the upcoming 2025 federal election. The incumbent is Liberal Frances Drouin and if there's a Drouin-Lemieux re-match, my model gives the edge right now to the CPC challenger.  [Les éditions André Paquette]
Daria Juüdi-Hope is a Registered Nurse and educator with with experience at both St. Lawrence College and Queen’s University, she was announced as the new local candidate on Thursday night at Seaway Coworking. Kingston has been Liberal since Peter Milliken won it in 1988. The incumbent is Mark Gerretsen. But Liberal fortunes have fallen so far that I have the NDP taking Kingston if an election were held today in a toss-up race. [YGK News]
The Mulroney family watches as the Rt Hon Brian Mulroney is returned to Canada. This photograph was taked by Adam Scotti, the official photographer of PM Trudeau, and distributed by the Department of Canadian Heritage. 
From the Provinces
Le PLQ lance une offensive pour remobiliser ses militants
 À quelques mois du déclenchement d’une course à la direction déterminante pour le Parti libéral du Québec (PLQ), la commission politique présidée par l’ex-sénateur André Pratte lance une offensive pour préciser les positions politiques défendues par les libéraux. Ce nouvel exercice envoie également un message aux aspirants chefs, dans le contexte où Denis Coderre déclarait récemment son appui à la Loi sur la laïcité de l’État, pourtant pourfendue par le parti. « Il faut écouter nos militants », affirme le chef par intérim Marc Tanguay. [La Presse]
Meanwhile, Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie said she hasn't yet decided whether or not to run for a provincial seat in Milton. [The Trillium]

Patti MacAhonic wins NDP nomination for candidate in Chilliwack riding. [Chilliwack Progress]
Elsewhere
US prepared ‘rigorously’ for potential Russian nuclear strike in Ukraine in late 2022, officials say
In late 2022, the US began “preparing rigorously” for Russia potentially striking Ukraine with a nuclear weapon, in what would have been the first nuclear attack in war since the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki nearly eighty years before, two senior administration officials told CNN. [CNN]

As the election campaign begins, the ruling party’s Claudia Sheinbaum has a strong lead. Her opponent Xóchitl Gálvez will have to take advantage of every opportunity and play catch-up. [El Pais]
Neither the governing Socialists nor conservatives may win outright, boosting the populists' power. [BBC]

The proposed law targets political offenses like treason and insurrection with penalties as harsh as life imprisonment, giving officials more power to curb dissent. [NYT]

Nikki Haley says she's suspending her presidential campaign. Not ending, not concluding, not terminating — suspending. There are reasons candidates use that term. [AP]
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Media

Global Lethbridge is looking for a full-time Video Journalist (Videographer) to join their team. Reporting to the Newsroom Manager, the successful candidate would be responsible for reporting, shooting, and editing ENG material, and producing local and network online content. [Corus]
Sci/Tech

Documents released under access to information laws show that in 2016 the Canadian Armed Forces had a “relatively poor” understanding on long-term reliance on cyber operations. [Global]

Per Google's release notes for Wallet this week, the app can now pull some movie tickets and boarding passes from users Gmail inboxes automatically. Once a confirmation email has shown up, the pass should be added to the user's Wallet. [Endgadget]
The Calendar
  • 1100 ET: National War Memorial - Veterans Affairs Min Ginette Petitpas Taylor and LPC MP Marie-France Lalonde mark the 10th anniversary of the end of Canada's mission in Afghanistan
  • 1330 ET: Toronto - Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre speaks to supporters.
  • 1345 ET: Esquimalt, BC - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and NDP MP Laurel Colllins speaks about housing costs.
  • 1800 ET: Oakville, ON - CPC MP Marilyn Gladu speaks at a CPC event in support of the CPC candidate for Oakville.
  • 1900 ET: Victoria, BC - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and NDP MP Laurel Colllins meet with Mayor Alto.
Issued this day ...
...  in 1961: Scott #392: Pauline Johnson. Design: Bernard James Reddie.
Issued to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of E. Pauline Johnson (1861-1913), described by Canada Post in the press release of the day as a “Mohawk princess and poet.”

This stamp is also notable in our philatelic history as it was the first ever to feature a woman who was not a member of the Royal Family. Not only that, it was the first stamp in Canada’s history to feature or honour an Indigenous person. 

Here is more from that 1961 press release:
“In announcing this stamp, the Postmaster General said that in commemorating Pauline Johnson, we pay tribute to all Canadian Indians for their contributions of our Canadian way of life. It is generally agreed that Miss Johnson, a Mohawk, was born on the 10th March, 1861, at Chiefswood, near Brantford, Ont. She was the daughter of Chief George Henry Martin Johnson and of Emily Howells of Bristol, England. She was educated at Brantford Model School and at a very early age she contributed verse to periodicals. In 1895, she published "White Wampum" and in 1903, she added "Canadian Born" to the world of Canadian writings. In 1912, she gathered a collection of her poems and added a biographical sketch which she published under the title of "Flint and Feather". This was followed by her first novel in 1913, "The Shagganappi". Although her contributions were numerous, she is perhaps better known for her volume of prose tales which she called "Legends of Vancouver" published in 1911.”

“Emily Pauline Johnson (a.k.a. Tekahionwake, “double wampum”) poet, writer, artist, performer … was one of North America’s most notable entertainers of the late 19th century. A mixed-race woman of Mohawk and European descent, she was a gifted writer and poised orator. She toured extensively, captivating audiences with her flair for the dramatic arts. Johnson made important contributions to Indigenous and Canadian oral and written culture. "

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