Fréchette : Les libéraux ne font que jouer la comédie.

L'examen des crédits budgétaires en commission parlementaire a démontré que la première ministre, tout comme son prédécesseur, ne maîtrisait pas particulièrement le sujet. Fréchette a pu nous donner le ratio dette/PIB en pourcentage, qui s'élève à 39 %. Elle a rétorqué que la dette avait diminué ces derniers temps. Quant au chiffre actuel, il s’élève à 259 milliards de dollars selon les libéraux. De plus, elle ignorait l’augmentation de la taxe sur les primes d’assurance automobile et d'habitation, qui entrera en vigueur le 1er janvier prochain. Le taux de la taxe sera de 9,975 %.

Ce n’est pas ce genre de spectacle qui redonnera aux libéraux leur gloire d’antan. Pour ma part, je constate que le PLQ n’apparaît pas régulièrement sur les ondes pour promouvoir son programme économique, encore moins pour discuter de son plan visant à renforcer l’État laïque ainsi que la protection, la promotion et l’épanouissement de la langue française.

Les libéraux ont beaucoup de terrain à regagner auprès des Québécois francophones. À mon avis, il est déjà tout à fait clair qu’ils devraient concentrer leurs efforts sur cet objectif plutôt que de marquer des points politiques insignifiants en commission parlementaire. Tout cela manque de sérieux, et c’est là le véritable problème pour Milliard. Et le temps presse.

Comme on dit en anglais, «it’s time to get with the program».

Mulroney: Take Her At Her Word.

Grief and sudden life changes come in many forms. I know a little bit about that myself. So, when Caroline Mulroney recently announced that she'll be leaving Ontario politics and the Ford government, I wasn't a bit surprised. Losing a close relative, coupled with children growing up and leaving the nest, is reason enough for taking a personal pause that will allow her to find herself again and strengthen family bonds, albeit in a different context. Having the time to get to know oneself again is always a worthwhile endeavour. She has earned this time to focus on herself and her loved ones as she makes this life transition.

However, no question that further down the road she could return to active politics, and should she do so, she will be a force to be reckoned with. No one really knows if she wants to serve as prime minister, but if that is her ultimate ambition, she is bound to be more than qualified should she win the leadership of her party. One day, the CPC leadership will be vacant, and our party could do a lot worse than choosing Mulroney as leader. The next leadership race is bound to be a crowded affair. I expect Mulroney to finish in the top two, either as leader or runner-up. But all of that is for another day. Sometimes you choose politics, and other times it chooses you. May her future be filled with happy surprises. 

Why Alberta Is Likely The Next Quebec.

This federation is, in essence, a de facto unitary state where the federal center truly cares only about what affects Ontario's economy. That's 2026 Canada. The federal constituency and provincial center have no genuine interest in what other regions want.  Proof of that came from English Canada, which happily derailed both Meech Lake and Charlottetown -- and then everyone went back to sleep, having given Quebec the finger. And to my great surprise, separatism did not tick up in the intervening years in this province.

So, the watchword for Alberta is the following: your requests for at least more say regarding national resources decisions, increased representation in Parliament, both in the House and Senate and other things on the AB shopping list are likely dead on arrival. The rest of Canada will treat Alberta with the same indifference and disdain that we in Quebec got during the Mulroney years, as constitutional reform went down the drain. 

Unlike a plurality of Canadians, I'm firmly in the worried camp. Quebecers folded when it came to pursuing sovereignty because they silently chose Canadian federalism, seemingly as the lesser of two evils. Not so sure that Albertans will reach the same conclusion if push comes to shove regarding provincial aspirations both at home and in Ottawa. 

If projections are accurate, thirty to thirty-five percent of Albertans are already in favour of independence; it would perhaps be advisable for negotiators not to follow the model imposed on Quebec. People largely take this country for granted. They shouldn't. 

Canadian indifference and an unjust distribution of powers are the main reasons why Canadian unity remains threatened to this very day. Never say never. Quebec choked in the wake of its constitutional humiliation. Doubt that Albertans will do the same if the Carney Liberals don't honour their commitments. Canada and its constituent parts broke their word last time. Don't be surprised if it happens again, but with dramatically different results. An eventual invitation from Trump to join the United States is in the offing. It will arrive once the end result of an actual referendum is known. Albertans finally have all the cards when it comes to their constitutional, political, and collective destiny. Address Alberta's grievances with alacrity, unlike what happened with Quebec, and preferably do it yesterday. Will Canada rise to the occasion? If the past is prologue, I seriously doubt it.

TheUndertakerTM Chickens Out On 50% +1.

And this guy is supposed to be a great leader who puts, above all else, the democratic expression of Canadians first. He's nothing more than a phoney, saying one day that he will campaign for Canada in Alberta while refusing to respect the theoretical democratic will of the people called to render a verdict on their continued participation in this country. 

I call him TheUndertakerTM because that is exactly who he is: a guy put on the Conservative Party's path to ruin our chances of forming government and burying us in the next election. And bury us he will do in the upcoming fall federal election. 

Pallas Data.

LPC: 45%

CPC: 32%

NDP: 11%

BQ: 7%

GPC: 3%

Nanos.

Liberals: 41%

Conservatives: 33%

New Democrats: 13%

Bloc Québécois: 6%

Greens: 5%

Québec : Sondage Mainstreet Research.

PLQ : 30,5 %

CAQ : 24,6 %

PQ : 22,6 %

Fréchette : +24,1 %

Milliard : +2,8 %

SPP : -6,3 %