Hello,
Patrick Brown says he was disqualified as a candidate to lead the Conservative Party of Canada because of an allegation that someone was being paid by a corporation to work on his campaign.
The Brampton mayor was ousted late Tuesday for what the party called “serious allegations of wrongdoing.” However, it has not provided any specifics. The development leaves five candidates in the race, the winner of which will be announced on Sept. 10.
“We have no information about who that was or who that corporation was, so it’s impossible to respond to a phantom,” he said Wednesday during an interview on CTV.
Mr. Brown, who had reported signing up about 150,000 supporters during the race, said it is clear to him that the party establishment wants his rival, Ottawa-area-MP Pierre Poilievre, to be leader.
“I am shocked that they would take lengths this extraordinary to rob members of the party of a democratic election based on an anonymous complaint we have no information on.”
He added, “Frankly, if Pierre Poilievre was going to win this race, if he had gone through a fair leadership contest, he would have a stronger standing afterwards, post Sept. 10.”
Full story here.
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TODAY'S HEADLINES
SPORT MINISTER CITES CULTURE PROBLEM IN HOCKEY CANADA – Hockey Canada’s handling of sexual-assault allegations involving eight Canadian Hockey League members, including players with the gold-medal-winning world junior team, reveals a culture problem within the organization that needs to change, federal Minister of Sport Pascale St-Onge says. Story here.
PREMIERS SEEK FEDERAL HEALTH FUNDING AS MEETING LOOMS – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said early last year that provincial demands for major increases in health care transfers would have to wait until Canada was “through the worst” of the pandemic crisis. That time is now, say provincial and territorial premiers preparing to meet next week as the Council of the Federation. Story here.
ARCHIBALD MAKES CASE – RoseAnne Archibald has made her case to the Assembly of First Nations annual general assembly after weeks of political uncertainty that followed the National Chief’s suspension last month. Ms. Archibald faces competing efforts at the assembly to remove her from her role or to support her continued leadership. Story here.
WON’T SHAKE LAVROV’S HAND: JOLY – Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says she won’t shake the hand of her Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, at a G20 meeting in Bali, Indonesia, this week. She told The Canadian Press she plans to instead take aim at the Russian Foreign Minister’s falsehoods about the invasion of Ukraine. Story here.
QUEBEC CONSERVATIVE PARTY SURGING – Quebec’s provincial Conservative Party is surging as a “protest vote” against the province’s heavy-handed government, with Eric Duhaime’s party’s staunchly populist messaging about personal freedoms after two years of COVID-19 seeming to be resonating now more than ever. Story here from The National Post.
NEW NEWFOUNDLAND HEALTH MINISTER – Newfoundland and Labrador’s health minister has been replaced after seeing the province through the COVID-19 pandemic. John Haggie, a former surgeon, is out as health minister and now education minister. Meanwhile, former education minister Tom Osborne is taking over as health minister. Story here from CBC.
DON’T CALL ME ‘YOUR WORSHIP:’ GONDEK – Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek wants councillors and city administration to stop using the title “your worship” when referring to her. Story here from The Calgary Herald.
CONSERVATIVE LEADERSHIP RACE
CAMPAIGN TRAIL – Scott Aitchison is in Ontario. Jean Charest is in Calgary. Leslyn Lewis is in Edmonton. Pierre Poilievre is in Toronto. No details on Roman Baber campaign whereabouts.
CANDIDATES CALGARY BOUND – In the days ahead, Conservative Party leadership hopefuls will be filing into Calgary alongside other public figures for the busy politicking season that is part of the annual Stampede. But as most candidates square off in a downtown debate shortly after the Stampede parade ends on Friday afternoon, Pierre Poilievre will be at a nearby party with entrepreneur Brett Wilson. Story here.
THIS AND THAT
The House of Commons is not sitting again until Sept. 19. The Senate is to resume sitting on Sept. 20.
FREELAND IN GRIMSBY – Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was scheduled to meet, in Grimsby, Ont., with union workers, and then hold a media availability.
WILKINSON IN ST. JOHN’S – Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson is to hold a media availability with Newfoundland and Labrador Industry Minister Andrew Parsons in St. John’s at the end of the Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference.
BIBEAU IN COMPTON – Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, in Compton, Que., appearing on behalf of Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge, is to announce federal government funding to support the Club Lions de Compton for a new project.
KAHLON NOT SEEKING TO SUCCEED HORGAN; BACKS EBY – In British Columbia, Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon has ruled out a bid for the leadership of the provincial NDP, citing discussions with his family, and suggested Attorney-General David Eby seek the job. Premier John Horgan has said he will step down once his replacement is selected by the party. “David is someone who I admire, someone with integrity, passion and is the right person to be our next Premier,” Mr. Kahlon said in a statement.
THE DECIBEL
On Wednesday’s edition of The Globe and Mail podcast, Globe columnist Andrew Coyne talks about what has happened with the situation around RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki. She allegedly pressed senior officers to publicly release information about the kinds of firearms that were used in the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting, where 22 people were killed, in order to bolster Liberal gun legislation. The Commissioner, the former public safety minister and the Prime Minister all deny there was political interference – but a paper trail strongly suggests that someone is lying. The Decibel is here.
PRIME MINISTER'S DAY
In Vaughan, Ont., the Prime Minister was scheduled to visit a local children’s day camp. He was also scheduled to meet in Simcoe County with families at a local farm, and to attend a BBQ with members of the Canadian Armed Forces in North Bay.
LEADERS
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in Burnaby, B.C., met with United Steelworkers District 3, and was later scheduled to meet with Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights and participate in a Korean community roundtable with Peter Julian and Bonita Zarrillo.
No schedules released for other party leaders.
OPINION
Andrew Coyne (The Globe and Mail) on reasonable limits – the antidote to U.S.-style extremism in high-court decisions: “Partway through the majority opinion in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, in which the United States Supreme Court struck down a century-old state law restricting the carrying of handguns in public, one is struck by the realization: these people are guided by no coherent judicial philosophy whatsoever. The case is one of a handful of rulings in the past few weeks – on school prayer, on environmental regulation, and of course on abortion – with which the conservative majority on the court has begun to rewrite decades of jurisprudence. But in its recklessness, in its single-mindedness and above all in its determined opportunism can be found the seeds of the others.”
John Ibbitson (The Globe and Mail) on how Patrick Brown’s exit all but guarantees Pierre Poilievre’s coronation as the next Conservative leader: “Patrick Brown’s forced departure from the Conservative leadership race means an almost-certain first-ballot victory for Pierre Poilievre. Many traditional Conservatives are appalled by the thought. They fear the party could fracture under the Carleton MP’s leadership. They’re wrong. For better or worse, the Conservative Party is about to become Mr. Poilievre’s personal possession, just as the Liberal Party belongs to Justin Trudeau. Mr. Poilievre will be the strongest leader the Conservative Party has seen since the days of Stephen Harper. Whether he is the right leader for the country is a different question.”
Susan Franceschet (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how the ‘role model effect’ can transform how women and girls think of political leadership: “The good news is that women’s heightened visibility among UCP leadership hopefuls sets the stage for a transformation in how girls and women see political leadership. That’s because the many women in the race will generate a “role model effect,” activating women’s political interest. Researchers have documented this in several studies from around the world.”
Catherine Tait (Contributed to The Globe and Mail) on how CBC’s licence renewal shows how the traditional broadcaster has evolved into a modern digital service: “You may not have seen it, but for Canadians interested in the future of their public broadcaster, the recent CRTC renewal of the CBC/Radio-Canada television and radio licences represents a groundbreaking decision. For the first time, Canada’s regulator has recognized how we serve Canadians today – not just as a linear television and radio broadcaster but as a multiplatform streaming service as well.”
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Ian Bailey