The fallout from Jagmeet Singh’s confrontation with members of the Asshole Brigade who are harassing people in front of Parliament Hill has taken a couple of strange twists. In his post about the incident, Singh said that “That’s the country that Pierre Poilievre wants,” which of course sent the Conservatives into the usual bit of performative victimhood. Among those was Michael Cooper, who was seen hanging out with some of those members of the Asshole Brigade, and he tweeted out that he didn’t know them, that they approached him at the restaurant he was eating in…but there is video that shows him meeting with them before the restaurant, so perhaps that’s a very judicious use of the truth.
Some additional context: https://t.co/AJnjgh5Qrn
— Luke LeBrun (@_llebrun) September 18, 2024
Notice the complete BS about “their media friends,” as Cooper fails to mention anything disavowing the group itself https://t.co/mRhNxul8Y0
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) September 18, 2024
The stranger part was that Anaida Poilievre wrote a long Twitter missive to rebut the accusation and to praise Poilievre’s good character, while taking shots at Singh and Justin Trudeau. There has been a long-held convention in Canadian politics that spouses stay out of things, and they get a semblance of anonymity as a result. The fact that she has been very active in Poilievre’s campaign is a sign that she could be much more active in a future where Poilievre becomes prime minister, and that’s a bit of a problem because we don’t have “First Ladies” in this county like the Americans do, because our “First Lady” is Queen Camila. If she plays an active role, does she then become a target for other parties? Does that open up attacks for their spouses? I worry about that given the coarsening of politics as it is, and the fact that far too many people are already targeting MPs’ homes as part of protests. We don’t need them to become fair game as things continue to race to the bottom.
https://x.com/AnaPoilievre/status/1836225640938508466
Ukraine Dispatch
Russian shelling in Zaporizhzhia killed one woman and injured two others, while another attack targeted energy facilities in the central city of Kropyvnytskyi. Ukrainian drones have struck a Russian military base north of Moscow, causing an “earthquake-sized” blast. President Zelenskyy will be addressing the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday.
Systemic problems and shortages among the defending Ukrainian force and a never-ending flow of assaulting Russian units make for a difficult autumn campaign for Kyiv in Donetsk Oblast, writes @francisjfarrell in his latest field report.https://t.co/MTe0AnF5po
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) September 18, 2024
"They tried to attack from the flanks, but they were stopped there," spokesperson Oleksii Dmytrashkivskyi told AFP.
"The situation was stabilized and today everything is under control, they are not successful."
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) September 18, 2024