Roundup: The heresy of well-wishes

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It began with Anita Anand writing that she was not only going to stay out of the Liberal leadership race (which was a surprise given that she had previously been organizing an effort before the job was even open), but was also not going to be running again in the next election—which is a shame, because she was not only an extremely competent minister, but probably the best defence minister the country has had in a couple of decades at least. Former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole did the classy and dignified thing and saluted her work.

https://twitter.com/erinotoole/status/1878482424193073181

That simply wasn’t going to be on.

https://twitter.com/jenni_byrne/status/1878513929229320380

Whether Byrne misgendered O’Toole by accident or deliberately (because Conservatives thought it was hilarious to call Trudeau “Justine” and feminise him at every single opportunity), or if she was referring to Anand, it almost doesn’t matter because this is the kind of toxic, purity-test bullshit that she thinks the party really needs—and make no mistake, she is running the party. (If people thought it was bad that Katie Telford was running the PMO, should Poilievre win it’ll be Byrne doing the same). There’s a reason why Conservative MPs aren’t allowed to travel with anyone from other parties anymore, or why Byrne is attacking O’Toole for showing a modicum of human decency is praising someone from the other side—because in her conception of the world, they are not rivals or people who disagree on matters of policy, but rather they are the enemy, and if you don’t realise that you are a heretic and the problem. This is going to make Canadian politics even more toxic the more this takes hold.

This in turn led to people praising O’Toole for being a decent Conservative, which is in and of itself revisionist history, and ignores his own behaviour during his leadership contest and right up until his ignoble ouster as leader, where he lied about everything under the sun, and acted imperiously with his own caucus, going so far as to kick Senator Batters out of caucus for daring to challenge him. That, in his retirement, he did the classy thing to wish Anand well, doesn’t change his prior behaviour, and it makes me feel like I’m taking crazy pills that everyone else has memory-holed his actual record.

Ukraine Dispatch

Russian forces shelled Kherson, targeting power systems that left tens of thousands without power. Russia also claims it captured Shevchenko, near Pokrovsk. South Korean intelligence says that North Korean troops captured by Ukrainians in Kursk haven’t expressed a desire to defect. It is believed there have been there have been more than 3000 North Korean fatalities to date (which includes suicides to avoid capture).

Good reads:

  • In an MSNBC interview, Justin Trudeau says that the “51st state” stuff is an attempt to distract from the impact the tariffs will have on the American market.
  • Harjit Sajjan says that dozens of firefighters from BC and Alberta are deploying to California to fight wildfires, starting today.
  • There are questions whether the government’s plans to reform the CBC’s mandate will be presented before the next election is called.
  • There are concerns about what might happen if the “Lost Canadians” bill doesn’t get passed when Parliament resumes, and the courts don’t grant another extension.
  • The Star has a behind-the-scenes look at the Freeland resignation and how it all led to Trudeau’s resignation.
  • Anita Anand says she won’t run for the leadership and isn’t going to run again in the next election. Steve MacKinnon has also declined to run for leadership.
  • The Quebec Liberal leadership race also gets underway today.
  • Danielle Smith went to Mar-a-Lago and hung out with Kevin O’Leary and Jordan Peterson before meeting Trump, because of course she did.
  • Kevin Carmichael listens to Poilievre’s interview with Jordan Peterson, finds holes in his arguments, and finds his plans wanting.
  • Dan Gardner makes a few strong zingers about America’s strange horny obsession with possessing Canada over the course of history.
  • Susan Delacourt and Matt Gurney debate on how they see a future Poilievre vs Trump battle, particularly given how thin-skinned Poilievre can be.
  • My weekend column points out that yes, we do still have a functioning government, despite what certain Toronto columnists and talking heads seem to think.

Odds and ends:

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