Tories raise $20.1-million in 2014, 11 per cent increase
The Conservative Party raised $20.1-million in 2014, the most of all parties, and an 11 per cent increase from the previous year, according to its annual financial transactions report filed with Elections Canada. The Conservatives received donations from 91,736 individual contributors in 2014, almost 11,500 more than the previous year. The Liberal Party made the […]
Politics This Morning: What is government good at?
“Parliamentary democracy is sick, tattered and needs help.” That’s according to an anonymous sitting MP, quoted in Université de Moncton professor Donald Savoie’s new book, What is Government Good At?: A Canadian Answer. “MPs have all but abandoned their roles other than to represent their constituents by promoting local projects in Ottawa and to support […]
Questions raised over third-party advertising in Canada as one group bows out
The conservative third-party group HarperPAC shut down just days after its launch last week, but it raised hundreds of thousands of dollars and put a spotlight on the role of third-party advertising in the long lead-up to the Oct. 19 federal election. The group’s sudden arrival and departure on the political scene generated speculation last […]
NDP battle with BOIE could hurt upcoming campaign
With MPs’ expenses still accumulating in their ridings during the summer recess and the House administration reportedly set to reject claims starting July 1, sources say the Board of Internal Economy’s battle with the NDP could hurt the party’s finances as well as its messaging in the upcoming election campaign. “If the Board of Internal […]
Independent MP Andrews slams Trudeau for ‘unprofessional’ sexual harassment investigation
Liberal-turned-Independent MP Scott Andrews, who was accused of sexual harassment by an unnamed NDP MP last year, sent out a letter to his constituents slamming Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau for investigating his case “unprofessionally” and denying him the presumption of innocence. “Mr. Trudeau’s actions from the beginning were unprofessional and any number of alternative solutions […]
Duceppe’s return changes dynamic
By the looks of it, the long-awaited NDP-Liberal battle for Quebec next fall is on ice. With Gilles Duceppe back in the game, the upcoming federal campaign is turning into a replay of the 2011 fight between the Bloc Québécois and the NDP. A CROP survey published last weekend gave the NDP (38 per cent) […]
Conservative ads grinding down Trudeau
The Conservative Party attack ads directed against Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau remind me of the mills of the gods. That’s to say, they grind slowly but exceedingly fine. Or to put it less poetically, it may have taken a long time but it seems the Conservative attack ads are beginning to seriously degrade the Trudeau […]
Canada mimicking slash-and-burn tactics in American politics
Summer heat is here to stay. The political temperature is rising as fast as the thermometer. With the onslaught of attack ads, increasing in number as the first fixed election date approaches, the question begs: why legislate advertising during the election and ignore it in the run-up? Stephen Harper’s Conservatives have made no bones about […]
Too early to dismiss Trudeau: there is guile behind the smile
The prospect of a Liberal victory in October seems less likely these days, but it would be rash to dismiss Justin Trudeau’s charm and his guile. That charm may be lost on the flinty-eyed media corps, opposition cynics and political luminaries of another era (and gender). But any casual perusal of social media suggests it […]
Close race, changing polls making for tentative summer campaign plans
Recent polling numbers and events like the NDP surge in Alberta are changing the electoral map so significantly that leaders’ summer strategies are still a work in progress and will remain as flexible as possible to respond to opponents, strategists say. As Parliament winds down and the campaign gears up, the federal parties are poised […]
