Canada General Discussion: Trudeau II

[Hatman 🍁]

So, there's a giant sinkhole not too far from parliament...

[Hatman 🍁]

So, there's a giant sinkhole not too far from parliament...

I guess they'll have to hold their sessions in the other part of Rideau Hall.

[Hatman 🍁]

NDP now ahead in latest Newfoundland poll:

38-34-27: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/cra-poll-dwight-ball-popularity-down-1.3624034

[Hatman 🍁]

Gordie Howe has died. RIP.

[Hatman 🍁]

15 minute longer commute. THANKS, OBAMA.

[Hatman 🍁]

Meanwhile, in Australia:

[Hatman 🍁]

It seems likely the Liberals will win the next election. Conservatives at the earliest may have a chance of forming government in 2023.

In January 2012, there was serious talk whether the Liberal Party would become a permanent third party like its British cousin. Hell, they were polling in 3rd last summer.

Yeah, but the Liberals have more built-in advantages than the CPC. The ability to pretend to be many things at once is a huge asset. And the only thing that was holding them back during their last slump was an apparent loss of credibility thanks a combination of poor leadership for almost a decade and the NDP projecting strength. The likes of Nikki Ashton won't be able to help make the NDP look like a serious party, and Trudeau will be a popular progressive/centrist incumbent.

Hell, Justin has the potential to beat Laurier's record as longest-serving consecutive prime minister... especially if we get some kind of preferential voting. It's a bit sad, really. But I doubt I'll have very compelling reasons to vote against him myself.

lol @ bringing up Nikki Ashton for no reason.

[Hatman 🍁]

Nikki Ashton will not win, so it's plain ol' trolling to bring up her name. Might as well keep talking about Brad Trost for leader of the Conservatives. But that would be intellectually dishonest.

RB is right re Julian and Boulerice. I also keep mentioning Jagmeet Singh as well as a potential candidate. The NDP has some strong leadership potentials, they're just not household names yet.

[Hatman 🍁]

Headline "NDP still won the First Nations vote " is misleading, but what else to expect from Grenier? Article is about the reserve vote. I suspect the urban First Nations vote was more Liberal (look at Winnipeg Centre for example).

[Hatman 🍁]

Maybe; but I'll take any excuse to complain about him

[Hatman 🍁]

Will we see a BC or NS election first?

[Hatman 🍁]

To be fair, there are a few female politicians that I have swooned over in the past, even Conservative ones (e.g. Helena Guergis).

[Hatman 🍁]

While it is very likely he'll win re-election in 2020, nothing is certain in Canadian politics, so I would be very cautious about making bold predictions.

[Hatman 🍁]

Do the Greens have anybody even remotely notable besides Elizabeth May?

They've elected a couple MLA's who are semi-prominent.

In otherwords, no.

[Hatman 🍁]

I think it's important to remember that Elizabeth May wasn't too widely known when she was first elected leader. It wouldn't surprise me if the Greens picked a relative unknown with some political experience. Gord Miller (former Environmental Commissioner of Ontario) is a likely contender and the kind of person who would likely succeed her. David Chernushenko (Ottawa City Councillor) is another possibility, along with Andrew Weaver (BC MLA and BC Greens Leader).

This is a rather remote possibility, and is speculation, but if May were to have a particularly rocky exit from the leadership, I could see her crossing the floor and joining the Liberals.

Chernushenko has been a rather lacklustre city councillor. She probably doesn't speak French, but Adrienne Carr in Vancouver is the strongest Green city councillor in the country.

[Hatman 🍁]

It's not like the Green Party actually exists in Quebec, though.

True, but the leader should at least be able to speak broken French, if they want to participate in t he debates. Only a right wing populist type (e.g. Preston Manning) can get away with not speaking French as leader, as part of their appeal would be not wanting to appease Quebeckers.

[Hatman 🍁]

A new opinion poll for BC today by Innovative Research - a CATI poll (landline/cell) with these results:

BC Lib: 38%
BC NDP: 29%
BC Green: 16%
BC Con: 15
Other: 2%

https://www.scribd.com/document/321630168/Innovative-Research-Group-Survey#from_embed

That's incredibly sad.

Also, it's incredibly interesting that the BC Conservatives are starting to poll somewhat highly (higher than they got in the last elections, at least). I'm really not sure what they would have to run on, though.

The high Green numbers are hurting the NDP. I suspect come election time, the Green vote will go down as left of centre voters rally behind the NDP in a futile effort to stop the Liberals from winning.

Hopefully if the Liberals do lead for most of the campaign, the Conservative will remain high.

[Hatman 🍁]

Not really politics (though Trudeau was there) but the Tragically Hip's final concert was quite....lovely?  Didn't quite realize how popular the band was up there.

It was very touching. Was nearly in tears. How do you know about them? From what I gather they aren't well known in the US.

[Hatman 🍁]

Not really politics (though Trudeau was there) but the Tragically Hip's final concert was quite....lovely?  Didn't quite realize how popular the band was up there.

It was very touching. Was nearly in tears. How do you know about them? From what I gather they aren't well known in the US.

Well, I've lived in New Orleans for some time now and they wrote one song that wasn't about Canada.  Actually saw them play in New Orleans back in the early 90s.  Can't say that I had kept up with them over the years, but I started seeing stories about Gordon and his cancer and the final show, so I tuned in.

Interesting; how many people were there?

Elsie Wayne has died. RIP.

Oh wow. RIP

[Hatman 🍁]

Richard Hatfield: "very much a bachelor".  I suppose it was common knowledge what this was code for?

[Hatman 🍁]

No one will be naming their party "labour" in the 21st century (let alone a neo-liberal one). Sorry, comrades.

[Hatman 🍁]

lol at the childless non-Ontarians criticizing the curriculum. Worry about your own repressed right wing backwaters.

[Hatman 🍁]

Worry about your own repressed right wing backwaters.

Uh, okay?

Don't you know? Democrats = conservatives in the Canadian context

[Hatman 🍁]

Woah,  and the Newfie grits were starting from behind after their landslide victory. I assume some oil induced austerity?

Literally closing half of the libraries in the province wasn't very popular to say the least.

Disappointing to see they've rebounded a bit

[Hatman 🍁]

Never, ever consider not voting.