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Feb 12 2024

Hstoric lead. Rafah plea. Cute bear: The Roundup

Feb 12, 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
Conservatives open up a 19-point lead over the Liberals
Conservatives lead by 19 over the Liberals, tied for the largest national lead we’ve ever measured for the Conservatives. [Abacus Data]
Pierre Poilievre has accused the Liberal government of “incompetence” on the auto theft crisis, but public safety minister calls his proposed fixes “absolutely unrealistic.” [Global]
Canada's ambassador to the United States said she and her team are working to strengthen relationships with lawmakers from both parties ahead of the 2024 election. [Global]
From the provinces
Alberta NDP leadership candidate says federal carbon levy is 'dead'
Alberta's former deputy premier entered the province's NDP leadership Sunday with criticism of the federal carbon levy and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. [CP]

Ontario's Ford government is preparing to implement new systems for international students and strongly considering new financial support for struggling colleges and universities. [Global]
Impassable winter roads are delaying vital shipments and threatening the safety of First Nations across northern Ontario, leaders warn. [Global]
Elsewhere
Couple expecting baby in Rafah plea to Canada for help as Israel plans next move
A family member in Montreal has applied for a temporary visa on behalf of the couple, who remain stuck in Rafah with mere days before their second child is due for delivery. [Global]
Israeli forces rescued two hostages early Monday, storming a heavily guarded apartment in the Gaza Strip and extracting the captives under fire in a dramatic raid.  [Global]

At the outset of the conflict, there was a 10-point gap between Canadians who said their sympathies were mostly with the Israelis (28%) and those whose sympathies were more with the Palestinians (18%). Now, the number of Canadians saying they sympathize with one side or the other has drawn near-even. One-third (33%) say their sympathies are “about equal” between both sides. [Angus Reid Institute]
Trump’s NATO-bashing comments rile allies, rekindle European fears
Former president Donald Trump’s claim that he would encourage Russia to attack U.S. allies if they failed to spend enough on their defense pact set off fresh tremors Sunday across Washington and in European countries already worried about America’s reliability as an ally in a potential second Trump administration. [WaPo]
Finland has a new president after former Prime Minister Alexander Stubb narrowly won a runoff vote on Sunday. Her will take over for the next six years in March. [AP]

Last month surpassed the previous warmest January, which occurred in 2020, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service's records going back to 1950. [Global]
Media
Wildlife Photographer of the Year 59 People’s Choice winner announced
British amateur photographer Nima Sarikhani, captured this pic while on an expedition vessel off Norway’s Svalbard archipelago. [Natural History Museum]

Thousands of guests appeared on the top-ranked podcasts in 2022, but a relatively small number accounted for a majority of appearances. 76% of top-ranked podcasts brought on at least one guest in 2022, and 27% almost always or regularly featured guests. [Pew Rsearch Center]
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Sci/Tech
Here are some easy instructions on how to check your iPhone’s data usage. [The Verge]
Quickly rename files in Google Drive with Apps Script and Google Gemini AI. The script will automatically rename the files with a descriptive name based on the image content. [DIgital Inspiration]
The Calendar
  • 1000 ET: 135B West Block - The Canadian Health Coalition speaks to reporters.
  • 1030 ET: 135B West Block - The First Nation Wild Salmon Alliance speaks to reporters.
  • 1100 ET: 330 Wellington - Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) | Meeting  91 - Drafting report
  • 1100 ET: 415 Wellington - Indigenous and Northern Affairs (INAN) | Meeting  95 - Drafting report
  • 1100 ET: 315 Wellington - Industry and Technology (INDU) | Meeting  110 - Bill C-27
  • 1100 ET: 425 Wellington - Justice and Human Rights (JUST) | Meeting  94 - Proposals for the 2023 Corrective Act
  • 1100 ET: 410 Wellington - National Defence (NDDN) | Meeting  92 - Transparency within the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces. Defence Min Bill Blair to testify.
  • 1100 ET: 125-B West Block - Veterans Affairs (ACVA) | Meeting  82 - Transition to Civilian Life; Committee Business
  • 1115 ET: 035-B West Block - Public Accounts (PACP) | Meeting  98 - Report 1, ArriveCAN, of the 2024 Report 1 of the Auditor General of Canada Amended
  • 1430 ET: Vancouver - Health Min Mark Holland makes a funding announcement. 
  • 1530 ET: 315 Wellington - Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE) | Meeting  94 - Canada's Diplomatic Capacity. Sen Peter Boehm to testify.
  • 1530 ET: 025-B West Block - Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) | Meeting  102 - Committee Business
  • 1530 ET: 415 Wellington - Health (HESA) | Meeting  101 - Women's Health; Committee Business
  • 1530 ET: 330 Wellington - Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA) | Meeting 100 - Bill C-319
  • 1530 ET: 035-B West Block - Natural Resources (RNNR) | Meeting  85 - Bill C-49
  • 1530 ET: 125-B West Block - Official Languages (LANG) | Meeting  86 - Economic Development of Official Language Minority Communities
  • 1530 ET: 425 Wellington - Public Safety and National Security (SECU) | Meeting 94 - Bill C-26
  • 1600 ET: B45 Senate Building - Senate Committee on Human Rights meets to consider the Government response to the fourth report of RIDR, entitled "Human Rights of Federally-Sentenced Persons".
  • 1700 ET: B30 Senate Building - Senate Commitee on Official Languages meets to Study matters relating to minority-language health servic
  • 1815 ET: Ottawa - PM Trudeau and International Trade Min Mary Ng attend a Lunar New Year reception.
  • 1830 ET: 025-B West Block - Special Committee on the Canada–People’s Republic of China Relationship (CACN) | Meeting  33 - Canada–People’s Republic of China Relations
Issued this day ...
… in 1988: Sc # 1196a se-tenant pair : 1988 Olympic Winter Games. Design: PIerre-Yves Pelletier.

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