It was barely a month ago that American President Joe Biden, under huge pressure from his own party, announced that he would not seek a second term in office. So much has changed in that country since then.
Prior to bowing out of the presidential race, it appeared more and more that Joe Biden could not defeat Donald Trump in the election that will be held in November and that down-ballot elections for the Senate and House of Representatives would also be negatively affected.
It was a race between two old men, one relatively decent but with apparent cognitive issues and the other seriously flawed in numerous ways. With the exception of Donald Trump’s cult-like MAGA followers, who gave him the edge, few Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, were happy with the choices they had been given. Optimism was at a low ebb.
But then things changed almost overnight. It was like a dam burst. Current American Vice President Kamala Harris, who was pretty much a non-entity before this (as most vice presidents are), locked up the delegates to the Democratic Convention, which will be held in Chicago this week, and became the presumptive Democratic nominee for President of the United States.
In her wake, while accomplishing this, Harris has managed to convert apathy about the coming presidential election into hope. This is not because she is a shoo-in to win that election but rather because there is a real race now with very definitive differences. While polling between Harris and Trump is improving for the Democrats, the race is still neck and neck and within the margin of error.
However, what has changed dramatically in the United States in the past few weeks is the level of optimism. Polling has shown that this has grown substantially. People are more excited about the November elections and more likely to participate in events leading up to them. They are drawn to messages of hope and positive initiatives for the future, and they now have a contest of clear contrasts in that regard.
Compare all of this to what is happening currently in Canada, and there are some similarities. Apathy about political leadership here, in my view, is at a high level. A significant number of Canadians believe that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is well past his best before date, and many other Canadians are wary about the prospect of Pierre Poilievre becoming the next Prime Minister of Canada.
There is little doubt that if a national election were held in Canada today, the Conservatives, currently with a twenty-point lead in the polls, would form the next government. The two really pertinent questions, however, are first, how much of that current lead for the Conservatives is because people want Trudeau to go, and second, will it, in fact, be Justin Trudeau leading the Liberals into the next election?
I continue to believe that, barring a snap election, Justin Trudeau will announce his retirement this Fall. The Liberal Party and the people in the back rooms who run it are not suicidal, and they know, short of a miracle, that they cannot win another election with Trudeau at the helm. Once they have it, power is not something any political party gives up without a fight. They will put as much pressure on the Prime Minister to go as Democrats have put on President Biden in the United States.
If the Liberals have a credible new leader with sufficient time before the next election to set a new and positive direction for Canada, that election, in spite of current polling, will become a horse race.
Whether or not there is a new Liberal leader, Pierre Poilievre will lead Conservatives into the next federal election. His opponents are doing everything they can to paint him as another Donald Trump, and while the jury is still out for me in relation to Mr. Poilievre, that is neither accurate nor fair.
J.B. Pritzker, the Governor of Illinois, recently said this: “Donald Trump is a convicted felon, an adjudicated rapist, a congenital liar. He is a racist, misogynistic narcissist who wants to use the levers of power to enrich himself and punish anyone who dares to speak a word against him.” That may be Donald Trump, but no matter how much one dislikes or fears Pierre Poilievre, that is not him.
What needs to be determined about Pierre Poilievre is how far to the extreme right he is on the political spectrum. That is not yet clear. Recently, he said the party he leads into government will be a centrist Conservative Party, and Conservative friends of mine here in Muskoka have also echoed that. Now, Poilievre needs to prove it.
I don’t believe a centrist government would “axe the carbon tax” without both acknowledging that climate change is real and having a specific plan to address it. While I believe that the CBC needs serious reform, continuing a pledge to defund it ignores its cultural base and importance to many Canadians. It risks losing the support of some Conservatives and the support of Liberals who might otherwise hold their nose and choose Poilievre over Trudeau.
The verdict on Justin Trudeau is pretty well in. We now need less focus and attacks on him and more about what a centrist Conservative government can do for Canada. We do not need to hear how Canada is broken. What we need to hear is how a good country like Canada can become even better.
Currently, Pierre Poilievre is long on invective. What we need to see is a plan for what a centrist Conservative government would do for Canadians, including how it would fire up our optimism, give us hope for the future, and demonstrate that it has our backs, not just our pocketbooks.
In the United States, citizens are now looking to the coming election as an opportunity to erase doom and gloom and embrace hope and new opportunities. Whoever delivers on that message will likely win the election.
In this country, our general election may be officially a little further away, although, under our system, it could also happen any day. Surely, we, too, as a nation, have a pent-up hunger for optimism, hope, and even, perhaps, a little joy.
As in the United States, it is my view that whoever can best satisfy that hunger will form the next government in Canada.
Hugh Mackenzie
Hugh Mackenzie has held elected office as a trustee on the Muskoka Board of Education, a Huntsville councillor, a District councillor, and mayor of Huntsville. He has also served as chairman of the District of Muskoka and as chief of staff to former premier of Ontario, Frank Miller.
Hugh has also served on a number of provincial, federal and local boards, including chair of the Ontario Health Disciplines Board, vice-chair of the Ontario Family Health Network, vice-chair of the Ontario Election Finance Commission, and board member of Roy Thomson Hall, the National Theatre School of Canada, and the Anglican Church of Canada. Locally, he has served as president of the Huntsville Rotary Club, chair of Huntsville District Memorial Hospital, chair of the Huntsville Hospital Foundation, president of Huntsville Festival of the Arts, and board member of Community Living Huntsville.
In business, Hugh Mackenzie has a background in radio and newspaper publishing. He was also a founding partner and CEO of Enterprise Canada, a national public affairs and strategic communications firm established in 1986.
Currently, Hugh is president of C3 Digital Media Inc., the parent company of Doppler Online, and he enjoys writing commentary for Huntsville Doppler.
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The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Donald Trump is a liar. Yet he could become president again.
Pierre Poilievre is a liar. Yet he could become prime minister.
Doug Ford is a liar. Yet he could become premier again.
Trump has shown PCs in Canada that blatant lies hardly affect polling numbers at all.
I actually don’t blame politicians.
I blame the apathetic electorate.
All politicians from all parties lie occasionally.
But at least they try to be subtle about it and make it difficult to fact check.
Not since Trump.
Blatant lies that are easy to fact check yet polling numbers aren’t affected.
I also blame the media.
It used to be that the media would present both sides of a story.
Lies from politicians followed by fact checks.
Not always anymore.
Now often just the lies are reported.
For a list of 26 articles that debunk fanatical PC lies regarding the carbon tax and energy go to:
https://doppleronline.ca/huntsville/to-a-good-future/
3 more
https://southmuskoka.doppleronline.ca/letters-conservatives-are-telling-tall-tales-on-carbon-tax/
Perhaps Trudeau will do the same as Biden and step down to clear the path for Mark Carney or Melonie Joly or another strong contender to debunk Poilievre’s blatant lies like Kamala Harris is debunking Trump’s blatant lies in the US.
And make Canada’s next election a horse race.
Chrystia Freeland is too similar to Trudeau.
Search “What Pierre Poilievre and Donald Trump have in common”
“we now have a Canadian Conservative leader who trades in the same trademark combination of bombast, belligerence, and bullshit.”
Everything Poilievre said about the carbon tax and its effect on inflation is a lie.
Search ” Letters: Conservatives are telling tall tales on carbon tax”
.https://southmuskoka.doppleronline.ca/letters-conservatives-are-telling-tall-tales-on-carbon-tax/
Provincially only 17% voted for Ford’s “majority.”
A record low 43% voted at all and Ford got 40% of those so 17%.
Talk about apathy.
Why did so few vote?
“Voters are “likely to get dishonest, secretive, unethical, unrepresentative and wasteful government.”
Ford ticks all those boxes.
It’s no wonder voters are so apathetic.
Why would anyone vote when politicians like Ford renege on election promises and lie about new initiatives that weren’t part of their election platforms?
Your vote means nothing.
You have no idea what you are getting from politicians like Ford.
Everything Doug Ford said about the Science Centre is a lie for example.
Among many other lies, scandals and flip flops.
Watch the video: Original architects say Science Centre didn’t have to close.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
It has been my experience that you catch more flies with honey.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Poilievre is not Trump, but he has always been a critic. And with his constant barrage of unsubstantiated negative messaging, he and the right-wing media risk turning Canada into a nation of pessimists. An objective comparison with current data from peer countries shows Justin Trudeau has much to be proud of, and Canada is clearly NOT broken as Poilievre proclaims. The IMF and TD Economics both forecast significant rebounds in Canada’s leading economic indicators. Canada is second only to the much larger economies of scale in the US as a preferred destination for foreign investment. Being a negative critic is much easier than being a positive leader. I want to hear about some positive policies from Poilievre, if he has any.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Afraid I don’t really study or understand politics and I have no idea whether the carbon tax will help the planet or not BUT I do know that charging GST on TOP of the carbon tax is NOT FAIR. That doesn’t help planet warming but gives them more money to spend on ??
As well Trudeau has been caught on ethics a few times and doesn’t seem to see the need to resign ?? Does everyone accept the Prime Minister being unethical and think there is nothing wrong with it? and so just sits back and accepts it? Is he to be trusted to do what is best for Canada or for himself?
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
To Bob B: I agree with all your points except one: Our vote means everything IF WE VOTE. Doug Ford won because many didn’t vote. To Hugh Holland: “unsubstantiated negative messaging” is not showing any evidence; questionable practice, might as well be lying just more subtle. PP needs to get off Twitter (X) and stop fabricating an alternate Canadian reality.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Diana Mitchel, allegations of ethics violations are standard fare in politics. They are always a matter of opinion. The Trudeau government faced such 3 allegations. In the SNC case, I believe Trudeau was correct. There is no reason Canada’s most capable international construction company should not have been granted the ability to use the deferred prosecution remedy that is available to all of their international competitors. The Harper government was accused of 17 abuses of power and ethics violations including Poilievre’s bill that would have stripped power from elections Canada and made it impossible for millions to vote.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Ms Mitchell, your question about the GST being applied to the carbon tax is a very good one, and so far no one here is answering you on it. Your observation on Trudeau government ethics violations is also very apt. You may remember that Harper cabinet minister Bev Oda resigned her position over a purchase of expensive orange juice. When will we see Trudeau minister Mary Ng resign? When will we see resignations resulting from the $60 million Arrivecan scandal? When will all of the nine Randy Boissonaults resign? The culture of corruption and graft is set from the PM’s office and the rot has spread through Trudeau’s entire government
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
PCs have also resorted to fake bots and fake videos in order to fool Canadians.
“Online bot campaign backing Pierre Poilievre prompts call for probe by election commissioner”
“Conservative MP pushes boundaries with fake news video”
Ontario News Now was Doug Ford’s personal fake “news” channel.”
‘It’s not news’: Doug Ford’s Ontario News Now attempts to muzzle media, experts say”
The PC plan is to defund CBC and substitute their own fake news instead.
That way their blatant lies are not immediately fact checked.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Mr Holland, thanks for reminding the voting public about SNC. Diana Mitchell didn’t mention SNC did she?.Did any cabinet minister(s) not agree with Mr Trudeau on the deferred prosecution of SNC. Did any ministers decide to quit politics over SNC? When Justin Trudeau got elected I thought he would do a good job, but now I think we need a change. Mr. Trudeau called an election during the pandemic that did nothing but cost you and me a lot of tax dollars. Why doesn’t he call an election now? And a tax on a tax is not right!
Allen Markle says
Diana Mitchell: A tax on a tax is part of any purchase you make. If a craftsman builds a table he pays tax on the wood he chooses. He pays tax on the colorant he thinks is right. Then tax on the finish he uses. Also tax on the wax he uses to make it shine. If in that mix, like the wood, colorant, finish, wax, there is oil base or transportation, then there is carbon tax. The expression is “If you bought it, a truck brought it.” And then you pay the GST on the whole lot, carbon tax and all. Every government uses the same layering of taxes. They may use different names but it’s still tax.
And Hugh Mackenzie, as for feeling a bit of optimism, I do. Mostly because there is an American woman now with a chance of sticking it to the ‘donald’. Don’t I wish. She’ll be my ‘Hope’ for trying and ‘Joy’ should she take him down. Fingers crossed.
At home, I don’t see why everybody is getting bent out of shape over ethics. We are talking about politicians right? And there is no need to kick through long grass to find things that slither. Politicos will push the envelope ’til they get caught. Then they may get all apologetic but there are no hard and fast rules. Just a straight face, a “Sorry” and nerve might save you.
And we’re only needed for a few minutes. Put your X on the ballot and they won’t care what you say or think tomorrow.
No party has a lock on being the least ethical. It’s all perspective and most people will hold that their guy or gal is lily white; salt of the earth. And they will swear to it.
I did find it amusing that the PCs pulled their ‘Canadian Dream’ video. “It’s easy to forget what home and hope look like.” Poilievre’s words. Fact checkers found that the video shows Utah’s Rockies. Those new homes shown are actually in Slovenia. The father driving “down that suburban street” (Poilievre’s words again) was actually from American stock film footage of North Dakota. A real good bit though was the fighter jets the man says are training “to defend our home and native land” were actually Russian.
I know. None of this is unethical. But just how smart is it to try to put the shuck on people who have ‘Google’ close to hand. Not very I’m thinking. Just shows that someone in the supporting cast isn’t thinking. And good Lord. The man wants to be Prime Minister!!
Might I suggest he hires better help. Or at least thinks about it.