Roundup: Still not finding the right tone

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Justin Trudeau continues to struggle to find the right tone to respond to the allegations of Chinese interference in the previous couple of elections, and still hasn’t managed to find it. Yesterday he made the point that this is serious, and that’s why it shouldn’t be made a partisan issue of, and that doing so is doing the work of these autocratic countries for them because it weakens trust in democratic institutions…but he’s not exactly doing much to engender that trust either, because the response is once again some feel-good bromides that don’t worry, they didn’t actually affect the election outcome. Okay, but you’re asking people to take your word for it, and doing so with the same pabulum that they shovel in everyone’s direction for absolutely everything, so it’s hard to take these assurances seriously. It’s time to drop the feel-good talking points and be utterly frank, as much as can be allowed given the nature of the situation, and that’s what they’re not doing.

And because they’re not being frank, the Conservatives are shrieking “collusion,” and “you turned a blind eye because you benefitted” (as though a hung parliament is the real benefit here). But part of the problem is that the Liberals never think that they’re partisan, even when they are, and while Jennifer O’Connell may not have been wrong in saying that the Conservatives sure sound like they want to build this up as a “big lie”/illegitimate election campaign, it wasn’t the right tone to strike. At all. I did find it interesting that a former Conservative candidate did talk to the Star, and said that he didn’t think that this alleged interference did much with the Chinese-Canadian population because Conservatives themselves were doing their best to alienate that community.

I would also like to note that poll analyst Éric Grenier was on Power & Politics yesterday to provide a bit of a reality check to these ongoing allegations, and how the ridings that the Chinese diplomats allegedly targeted had no bearing on the election. For the Liberals, they didn’t get a majority because of Quebec, thanks to debate moderator Shachi Kurl playing into Yves-François Blanchet’s hands and phrasing her “tough question” to sound like Quebeckers are racists, and it gave Blanchet the ammunition he was looking for. For the Conservatives, the GTA remains elusive to them, and that’s why they couldn’t win. None of the alleged Chinese interference did anything to change that, and the Globe and Mail should have included this kind of analysis in their original story, but they didn’t, because they wanted this to be as sensational as possible. This continued narrative that the Chinese government attempted to engineer a minority parliament remains frustratingly moronic because you can’t do that. It’s as dumb as when the Globe endorsed the Conservatives but not Stephen Harper in 2015. It doesn’t work like that, but hey, why should the so-called newspaper of record understand how our gods damned political system works?

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 365:

Russian shelling of Kherson in the southern part of the country has killed two civilians, with two civilians injured by missile strikes in Kharkiv. Meanwhile, the CBC talks to front-line Ukrainian soldiers about the training they got from Canadians, and the praise is coming particularly for battlefield medicine, as well as leadership for junior officers learning to take the initiative (unlike the old Soviet system).

https://twitter.com/ukraine_world/status/1628484262994362370

Good reads:

  • Justin Trudeau reiterated that there are no simple solutions around irregular migration, and that we can’t close Roxham Road without the help of the Americans.
  • Trudeau also told a group of Quebec farmers that they were looking at targeted financial aid for farmers struggling with inflation.
  • Mélanie Joly told the UN General Assembly that Putin is losing his grip on reality, as she urged support for a motion to condemn Russia.
  • With the attention on Chinese surveillance in the Arctic (including monitoring buoys), Anita Anand has reiterated the investments into modernising NORAD.
  • The government announced key appointments to the revived Law Commission of Canada, which will provide independent advice on legal reform.
  • CSIS is warning that China and Russia are targeting the know-how in Canada’s burgeoning AI sector (as with any proprietary technology).
  • Google is testing a plan to block Canadian news from their search engine as part of their planned retaliation for the online news bill.
  • In case you had forgotten, there is still a Federal Court challenge on the federal government’s invocation of the Emergencies Act underway.
  • Four Liberal MPs want the transport minister to direct his department to mediate a dispute between the Vancouver Port Authority and truck companies.
  • NDP MP Leah Gazan wants the federal government to create a “Red Dress Alert” programme to send alerts regarding missing Indigenous women.
  • New Brunswick is moving to cap the assistance given to homeowners whose properties repeatedly suffer damage from climate-related disasters.
  • François Legault says he can’t meet his promise to institute pre-kindergarten in the province because of a shortage of teachers.
  • Some Ontario doctors are charging $30/month for rapid access to nurse practitioners, which is basically a loophole in the Canada Health Act.
  • Stephen Saideman offers the apparently needed reminder that culture change in the Canadian Forces doesn’t come at the expense of effectiveness, but it enhances it.
  • Althia Raj talks to Jean-Yves Duclos about how the government plans to ensure all Canadians have access to primary care, but the provinces have a bit role to play.
  • Raj also takes note of how Justin Trudeau’s tone has changed when it comes to the subject of Roxham Road, as his fortunes wane in Quebec.
  • Susan Delacourt points out how the Liberals are engaged in a strategy of trying to paint Pierre Poilievre of the guy who will bring Trumpism to Canada.

Odds and ends:

https://youtu.be/pDpxc6w6SDM  

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