Everyone is going to spend the day obsessing about the US election, and while I just can’t, I figured that I should at least make the point that I’m hoping that in this government’s preparations, there includes some for the border because if there is a Trump victory (or violence that breaks out if the result is unclear or a narrow enough Trump defeat), I would expect a rush of would-be asylum seekers heading for our borders, particularly vulnerable minorities who are already in precarious situations in the US and are likely to become targets of violence if things degenerate. That means that this government is going to need to have proper quarantine protocols in place, as well as hopefully a plan that involves more than simply turning them back as they have been since the border closure in March, because a deteriorating situation in the US would mean that sending them back would almost certainly be unconstitutional – this as the government is already fighting with a Federal Court decision that says that the US is not a safe third country and that the agreement to turn these claimants back violates the constitution. This may all be for naught, but the US is on the verge of becoming a failed state, and we need to be ready for how that will affect us, in the short and long term.

Good reads:

• The government has tabled their bill on extending the wage subsidy and creating a new commercial rent subsidy that won’t be delivered through landlords.
• Bill Blair and the RCMP Commissioner appeared at public safety committee, and promised updated de-escalation training and new anti-racism programmes.
• Natural Resources has not yet been given a budget to plant the promised two billion trees by 2030 – but it may take up to four years to grow enough seedlings.
• There are questions as to why it’s taking the government so long to consult and draft regulations to implement the victims bill of rights for military personnel.
• The Commons ethics committee is once again circulating motions about examining Trudeau’s speaking fees, but now adding in other non-scandals as well.
• The Heritage committee is mulling a motion to study Facebook Canada’s plans to recruit promising public servants for temporary positions.
• Surprising nobody, Peter MacKay announced he won’t run in the next election.
• Here’s a look at how Yves-François Blanchet is trying to put a wedge between Trudeau and Quebec voters, including with his October Crisis motion.
• After a by-election win, the Progressive Conservatives in PEI now have a slim majority rather than a hung legislature.
• Susan Delacourt looks to the West Wing to remind us that even if Trump gets defeated this week, it won’t mean smooth sailing for Canada going forward.

Odds and ends:

For the CBA’s National Magazine, I look at the recent Supreme Court decision in Fraser, and what it means for substantive equality challenges going forward.

My latest Loonie Politics video looks at just which group of voters Erin O’Toole was hoping to target in his speech to the Canadian Club on Friday.

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