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Fun with Numbers: The Liberals
As we learned last election, when the political wave rises, it’s hard to avoid it. If ever you wanted evidence of just how powerless local campaigns are, look no further than some of the quality men and women who were defeated by phantom candidates who hadn’t even set foot in the riding, never mind campaigned […]
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Sixth Annual Politicians in Cowboy Hats
For a brief history of Stampede fashion, you can read the 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 round-ups. Although Rick Hansen served as Stampede Parade Grand Marshal, all eyes were on Will and Kate this year. I do find it somewhat perplexing how many of the same people who lambasted Ignatieff for his time outside […]
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Summer Time News Stories
1. Stephen Gordon reminds us about the Census, and gloomily points out that the Tory majority means we’ll likely find ourselves without credible data from 2006 to 2021. 2. Stephen Harper will be guest staring on Murdoch Mysteries next week – presumably detective Murdoch will attempt to get a clear answer about the government’s mysterious […]
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About that Liberal Arrogance…
I remember a time, 5 or 6 years ago, when a young Stephen Harper was aghast that Paul Martin would have the nerve to suggest Liberal values were more Canadian than Conservative values. Young Harper railed against “Liberal arrogance” every chance he got. Now? Harper spends his time predicting his opponents’ demise, and telling Canadians […]
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Liberal Leadership Marathon Runners
I posted 8 Simple Rules for the Liberal Leadership Race a few weeks ago, prompting a few readers to ask for my thoughts on the candidates. The short answer to that is simply: it’s too early to tell. This thing won’t be decided for nearly two years, so predicting the outcome at this point is […]
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Fun with Numbers: Most Volatile Ridings
Unless Stephen Harper breaks his own fixed election date law (ha ha ha!), we’ll have a new set of ridings for the 2015 election. So for kicks this summer, I’m looking back at life in the old ridings over the past four elections. I already posted a list of the most exciting ridings in the […]
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"I’ve got to say that meeting celebrities isn’t my shtick, that was the shtick of the previous guy"
That was Harper’s dig on Paul Martin four years ago, after turning down a meeting with Bono. Since then, Harper has been a bit more hot and cold on the issue.
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A Tale of Two Cities
I had some fun last fall comparing the elections of Naheed Nenshi in Calgary and Rob Ford in Toronto. Fairly or unfairly, it appears the two will be forever linked. We got yet another example of that this week with the news that Nenshi will become the first Mayor to lead Calgary’s pride parade, after […]
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Bart’s Books
The good folks in Samara are hosting a fun contest this summer, asking Canadians to vote for their favourite political books. I for one think this is a great idea, and it’s something I’d considered doing as a bracketed summer contest on this blog in the past. After soliciting nominations, they’ve named 12 finalists and […]
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The Filibuster Comes To Canada
Last week’s postal filibuster is the first real case study of the new political reality. If it’s a preview of the next four years, I’d say Stephen Harper’s 2015 re-elected chances look quite rosy. Personally, I don’t know who was on the side of the angels on this one. I’m not up on the specifics […]