Canadian Politics Facing Double Whammy

September 19, 2022

Canadian Politics Facing Double Whammy: A CPC leader who mistrusts journalists and believes in conspiracy theories, and a growing distrust and reduced influence of journalists.

The degradation of Canadian politics continues with the convincing crowning of Pierre Poiliviere as the undisputed king of Canadian Conservatives. We now have a charismatic populist politician well qualified to take on Justin Trudeau who has a few years to attempt to rebuild his popularity in challenging economic times. It will be a nasty battle of the self-proclaimed ordinary adopted son of hard-working parents and his talented political immigrant wife against the privileged Prime Minister. Question Period will be a battleground like never before with Poiliviere excoriating Trudeau as responsible for and indifferent to impoverished common Canadians and Trudeau ridiculing his reckless ideas. Not a pretty sight, and it will dominate the airwaves.

 

Our politics have been an ugly sight in other ways that continue to degrade the public’s perception of how we are ruled. It started during the last election. Here is how Fatima Syed, a MacLean’s write, summed up the increasingly violent demonstrations plaguing the Trudeau campaign in September 2021: “Many of the protests following Justin Trudeau have been marked by the kind of extreme rage that became familiar in the U.S. during Donald Trump’s presidency. Protesters have yelled “Lock him up,” “Traitor,” and “piece of s–t.” They have called for Trudeau to be hanged. They have verbally attacked members of his team…using racist and misogynistic language.”

 

Our politics will take another hit with Poiliviere taking his position as Leader of his majesty’s loyal opposition. The Freedom Convoy which occupied Ottawa, provided him with his freedom war cry and empowered his demonizing of Justin Trudeau and the “gatekeepers” who are apparently denying basic rights to Canadians and sending the country into ruinous inflation. Interestingly it was also the launch of increased aggressive attacks on “mainstream media - MSM”.  

 

Brent Jolly, president of the Canadian Association of Journalists said the Association was shocked by the level of antagonism, and Brodie Fenlon, editor in chief and executive director of daily news for CBC News recounted multiple examples of violent confrontations all over Canada: “….disturbing abuse has appeared in our inboxes and social media feeds, threatening our staff with arrest, graphic violence and extra-judicial trials. References to Nuremberg and treason are common. The dialogue is rife with allegations of conspiracy and ‘fake news.’

Clearly the Trump strategy of discounting the validity of news that a leader doesn’t like has been adopted by Poiliviere who openly supported the Freedom Convoy. Aside from saying he will defund the CBC, the largest news gathering organization in Canada, he goes out of his way to discredit journalists who take a run at him. In a particularly egregious example attacking a reporter who criticized his consorting with a well-known anti-vaccer, he put out a fulsome media release which referred to “one of Global news’s so-called journalists” and said – “Canadian’s trust in news media has reached an all-time low. And when we look at your coverage of these issues it is easy to understand why. Instead of covering the news, unprofessional journalists like you try to set disingenuous traps to attack your opponents.”  


Poiliviere has paraded his messages on social media and in convincing professionally-produced You Tube videos. Using the media of information preferred by younger Canadians and appealing directly to their needs and frustrations in his rallies has resulted in some polls showing him more popular with younger Canadians than Justin Trudeau or NDP’s Jagmeet Singh. Some observers contend that Poilievre’s momentum with youth could be a factor in the next election. *


Meanwhile the Ottawa press gallery who we rely on for perspective and context have paid little attention to Poiliviere. Former Maclean’s columnist Paul Wells did do a long piece on his economic policies, the only serious one as far as I know on his paid subscription website. Others have tended to follow an early piece by the Globe’s Campbell Clark which takes the then candidate to task for blaming inflation on The Bank of Canada’s money printing and the Trudeau government’s spending habits. His promise to fire the head of the Bank of Canada has garnered him much negative press.


All this is to remind those of us who have lived in another era that informed coverage that seems to have let Poilivere’s campaign go largely un-analyzed, has been greatly diminished by the loss of so many seasoned journalists locally and in Ottawa. The outcry over the dismissal of Lisa Laflamme, the last of the real authority figures on the most watched national TV newscast is merely the apogee of replacement of seasoned veterans in our journalist’s world by cheaper less experienced reporters. Salaries have been cut and bureaus reduced. There are fewer reporters chasing fewer stories and news outlets, whether TV, radio or print with falling advertising revenue have undergone large cutbacks in staff. Bell Media which owns many radio stations and CTV news channel and CP24 News has shed hundreds to regain profitability. The Ottawa bureaus of large regional papers like

the Vancouver Sun, Halifax Chronicle Herald and Winnipeg Free Press, and sizeable radio networks like CHUM and the former Newsradio all had Ottawa bureaus which are now gone.



TV news, which does little analysis, remains an important source for news with the internet a close second. A study by the Canadian Media Research Consortium found that 38 per cent said that television is the format they prefer for news and information; and 30 per cent said they preferred the internet. When asked where they find the most interesting news items, more than 50 per cent said they find the best stuff on the net. Only 15 per cent and six per cent chose newspapers and radio, respectively. This is good news for the Poilivere’s of this world, bad news for Canadians who need informed analysis of what is really happening in Ottawa.

 

There are still strong journalistic and columnist voices like Robert Fife and Chantal Hebert, John Ivison, Andrew Coyne, Althia Raj and John Ibbitson. However, the majority of this deep journalistic talent is found in major print media, the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail and National Post. Unfortunately, fewer and fewer Canadians, and especially young Canadians, get their news from these sources and even a cursory scan of TV Ottawa coverage reveals mainly much younger reporters covering the nation’s business.

Thus, we are entering perhaps the most divisive and contentious period in Canadian political history with an angry population deeply worried about their ability to survive a punishing economy, with a popular young leader of the opposition who speaks to them with wild policy solutions, and an unpopular Prime Minister seemingly out of touch with the electorate with few convincing new policies. Exacerbating this is a less robust and influential Ottawa press gallery to provide serious context and coverage. The result is our politics is diminished for sure.

 

In the conclusion to his excellent review of the history of the Parliamentary Press Gallery, Power Prime Ministers and the Press, Bob Lewis says: “An informed media, can in Byron’s metaphor cause ‘a small drop of ink falling like dew upon a thought’ to make millions think…reporters chasing sensation, the horse race over policies, contribute to declining faith in the legitimacy of government. One might add – and one senior politician and a segment of the public questioning the very legitimacy of mainstream journalism

 

We must take Poiliviere seriously, watch his trajectory very closely, inform ourselves from journalists who seriously watch the evolving Ottawa scene, ignore the unfact checked bits and pieces on the internet, talk and speak openly about where this country is going and dialogue with our MP’s who will be in a listening mood. We are in the kind of fluid and unpredictable political situation where being a seriously informed electorate can save us from real political decline.

 

*See excellent National Post article - Analysis: Why does Pierre Poilievre appeal to young Canadians? Sam Routley, Western University,   Sept 04, 2022 

Patrick Gossage Insider Political Views

Two Opposites – Mark Carney and Donald Trump

By Patrick Gossage • March 12, 2026
One of the major differences between these two men is that Carney understands the value of well-thought-out strategy, abundantly clear in his Davos speech, which laid out one for middle powers to deal with the end of a rules-based international order and the rise of hegemony. Trump's lack of strategic understanding is clear in his bumbling attempts to justify the billion-dollar-a-day Iran war. His overall tactic of “flooding the zone” – mounting a new initiative or major announcement every day, or even several times a day to ensure press and opposition can never catch up. This tactic has served him well – confusing the world and his would-be opponents into submission under a valley of activity and harsh opinions from the leader of the world. Contrast this approach to leadership from Carney. He is systematically building a nation less dependent on US trade by travelling the world building new alliances and trading partners. And in the scare of Australia giving substance to his idea of alliances with middle powers. All laid out in the Davos speech. It is instructive to appreciate how much Trump was irritated by the Davos speech. Carney got a standing ovation; Trump’s rambling lengthy diatribe did not. He won’t soon forget being so upstaged. He surely recognized an intellectual power he could never match. Carney is a realist and pragmatic when he stated recently “We take the world as it is, not as we wish it to be.” He is dealing with the world that is being reshaped by an irrational power-mad president, a world the powerful Stephen Miller said “that is governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power. These are the iron laws of the world.” Does Carney sometimes err on the side of supporting Trump likely to ensure that critical talks on free trade and tariffs have some chance of finding a sympathetic ear? Yes; first he seemed to fully support Trump’s war with Iran. He later made his support more nuanced, saying Trump’s actions were against the rules-based international order. He now says we will not get involved unless a NATO ally is threatened. But generally, Carney is highly rational in contrast to Trump’s self-centered irrationality. Take Trump’s bizarre ill-informed letter to the Prime Minister of Norway, who had no role in deciding if he got the Nobel Peace Prize: “I no longer feel obligated to think purely of Peace (he subsequently engaged in an ever expanding war against Iran). He then reiterated his demand for “complete and Total Control, of Greenland. Thank you!”. His late-night rants, complete with caps, on social media show a mind out of control. Thay are dutifully reported on US news media and often astonish with their non sequiturs and nastiness. One of his more unpresidential quotes came as he fingered White House drapes: “I chose these myself. I always liked gold." The big question for Canadians who are more and more disillusioned with the antics of the President: could these two opposite ever sit down and do a deal that works for Canada. The two do text, and Carney has admitted that in private Trump does listen. But there is also evidence that the trade people in the White House do not like Canada, and as Trump has said, we owe our very existence to the US. And we are “difficult”. They have said that the current trade deal is not good for the US and could be trashed entirely and -deals with Mexico and Canada could be separate and the current trilateral deal may be dead.  Canada was at the brink of reducing the heavy sectoral tariffs on steel, aluminum, and lumber when Premier Ford’s unfortunate ads during the Rose Bowl that featured President Reagan speaking against the usefulness of Tariffs led To Trump suspending talks. They only recently resumed. So can our world-renowned businessman and banker hope to sit down with the unpredictable and unstable President and cut a deal? Some hope that if we extend talks, the President, weakened by the midterms, the bad economic fallout from an unpopular war, and the fragmentation of the MAGA movement may be easier to deal with. On the other hand he may badly need a “win,” bullying big concessions out of Canada and reaping so-cabled benefits from a weaker free trade deal. There is a scenario where Trump gets a black eye if Carney simply walks away with the conviction, perhaps easily shared with an increasingly nationalistic and confident Canada that “no deal is better than a bad deal.” In any case, what a decisive and challenging future we face with Canada at play. Can Carney win for Canada against his opposite by losing a deal?"

A New Canada to Fight for Our Survival

By Patrick Gossage • December 29, 2025
There has been nothing like the mobilization of our country since we went to war against Hitler “for King and Country.” Now we are mobilizing in a new war against Trump’s depredations with renewed patriotic fervour. Our building a resilient sovereignty against the word’s most irrational and powerful regime - who believe we have no right to exist - will require an enormous dedicated and concentrated effort to redefine our nation. . Make no mistake. We are not seen as important in Washington, a lesson I learned as the Minister of Information at our embassy in the Reagan years. Like Trump’s disparaging attitude to Justin Trudeau, Reagan had little use for his crusading father, Pierre Ytudeau. The difference is that with Prime Minister Brian Mulroney r Reagan actually became a key figure in establishing the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA), signed in 1988. Ironically, it is precisely the success of this pact that led to 75% of our trade going to the US, a dangerous dependence which is now under extreme threat. The future of the successor to the FTA is at dtake. The US Canada Mexico Agreement (USMCA) is about to be renegotiated and is by no means secure. Bilateral trade discussions on the sectorial tariffs that are destroying our steel, automobile, aluminum and lumber industries were going well but were cancelled on October 23 after Trump, in a fit of pique was annoyed by Ontario TV ads using a Reagan clip to decry tariffs. Prime Minister Carney clings to the hope that these issues will be addressed in the context of the USMCA talks. They are supposed to begin in January. We live in hope. Make no mistake. Trump recently suggested that USMCA’s future was not certain. His strong belief that Canada would be better as a US state _ “and there would be no tariffs” – seems unshakeable. Perhaps the most striking evidence of what low repute Canada is held in the White House comes from Vice President Vance. He has publicly criticized Canada's our generous immigration policies, blaming them for the country's "stagnating" living standards and referring to our approach as "immigration insanity". Vance pointed to a chart from IceCap Asset Management showing that Canada's GDP per capita growth has fallen behind that of the U.S. and the U.K. in recent years. He argues this stagnation is a direct result of Canada's approach to immigration and not U.S. trade policies. He specifically targeted Canada's multiculturalism model, contrasting it with the U.S. "melting pot". Vance claimed that "no nation has leaned more into 'diversity is our strength’... immigration insanity “ than Canada". The White House recently released National Security Strategy (NSS) which also note how immigrants can destroy our democracies. Thomas Friedman, a New York Times columnist signaled this: “It cites activities by our sister European democracies that “undermine political liberty and sovereignty, migration policies that are transforming the continent and creating strife, censorship of free speech and suppression of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-confidence. “‘Should present trends continue,” it goes on, “the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less.” These views are totally inimical to Canadian values.  As is this, Trump’s most outrageous recent anti- immigrant outburst as reported by NBC : “For a second day in a row, President Donald Trump launched into a hate-filled rant against Somalia and Somali immigrants living in the US, saying they’ve “destroyed Minnesota” and “our country.” Minnesota, Trump said, is “a hellhole” right now. “The Somalians should be out of here. They’ve destroyed our country.“ The NSC also can affect Canada in its focus on the Western hemisphere. an area to be dominated by US interests. The US will secure critical supply chains in its own interests; and insists on the right of the US to have access to “strategically important locations.” The US National Security Council is to identify strategic points and resources in the Western hemisphere with a view to their protection and joint development with regional partners. Obviously, Canada as a source of critical minerals, will be under US scrutiny. Some observers fear that Trump wants Canada to become a “vassal state”. A December Toronto Star editorial states coldly that “Thanks to Donald Trump, we know that nothing about our country is guaranteed anymore, not our sovereignty, our democracy, our prosperity.” We now know the Canadian policies standing in the way of a new USMCA agreement. US Trade representative Jamieson Greer said our online Streaming Act, which will make profitable US streaming services support Canadian programming is a major irritant as is our sacrosanct supply management regime for dairy and poultry products. These both are very difficult bargaining chips for Canada to play. Trump’s love affair with tariffs is unlikely to subside so Canadian products may continue to be frozen out of the US. Prime Minister Carney’s ambitious strategy of finding alternate markets for these may work. And his new policy framework for rebuilding a successful economy, major infrastructure projects and attracting important foreign investment is a significant redefinition of our national political priorities. He enjoys wide public support for his strategy which also receives good business and media support. There is already some optimism about the economy in 2026 - take Bank of Montreal’s recent outlook paper: “We’re looking for a stronger economy in 2026 than 2025. Consumer spending has helped prop up the economy. The “Buy Canadian” campaign has helped, and more people are travelling closer to home. Also, there’s no question that federal government spending has also supported economic growth. As we move into the latter part of the year—boosted by firmer economic growth and lower population growth—we expect the unemployment rate to fall in the second half. “Canada’s position in the trade dispute isn’t as bad as it appeared earlier in the year. The average Us tariff rate on imports of Canadian goods is between 6% and 7%, compared to the 17% rate the U.S. charges the rest of the world on average. (these rates are goods under the existing CUSMA) Sectorial tariffs are heavily focused on certain targeted industries, such as steel and aluminum, lumber, and auto imports and non-USMCA auto parts. These are important sectors, but they represent a relatively narrow slice of the economy. “ In addition there is good news on the overall trade front. Canada’s trade swung to a surplus of C$0.15 billion in September 2025 from a C$6.3 billion deficit the month before and well above expectations for a C$4.5 billion deficit, Exports rose 6.3 C$ 64.231 billion, the largest monthly increase since February. Nine of 11 product sections posted gains. Metal and non-metallic mineral product exports jumped 22.7% driven by a 30.2% surge in unwrought gold; aircraft and other transportation equipment rose 23.4% and crude oil exports climbed 5.8%. We just may have a more resilient economy than we thought. Nevertheless, we cannot count on Trump agreeing to a new trade regime that is as good as the original NAFTA – and the cost of reducing tariffs on key sectors may be too high, Trump’s love for tariffs and distain for us won’t change. We can only hope that a smart, well connected and determined Prime Minister can rebuild an economy that will be immune to the vagaries of our neighbour.
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