Liberals bring out the Knives
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he doesn't think his leadership is in danger, one day before a highly anticipated Liberal caucus meeting where his future at the helm of the Liberal party is expected to be up for discussion.
Around an hour later, ministers started trickling into the room, telling reporters that they still have his back.
"I absolutely support the prime minister," said Justice Minister Arif Virani.
"The entire cabinet, and myself for sure, are 100 per cent behind the prime minister (???), who's led this country through difficult times in the past few years," said Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge. "I think it's time for caucus and for us all to really think about Canadians... It's also a good time for us to get ready for the next election." (???)
It's been reported that as many as 30 Liberal backbenchers are involved in the effort to encourage Trudeau's ouster, or at least a reconsideration of his future. Though, uncertainty remains about how many MPs are involved, and who they are???
PM Trudeau doesn't think his leadership is in danger, as ministers voice confidence in him a day before key Liberal meeting — CTV News
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he doesn't think his leadership is in danger, one day before a highly anticipated Liberal caucus meeting where his future at the helm of the Liberal party is expected to be up for discussion.
Trudeau's zero hour: Liberals gear up for high-stakes showdown Wednesday — National Post
Wednesday's caucus meeting could see multiple calls for Trudeau to resign but it is unclear what, if anything, will come of it
Mutiny.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he doesn't think his leadership is in danger, one day before a highly anticipated Liberal caucus meeting where his future at the helm of the Liberal party is expected to be up for discussion.
Around an hour later, ministers started trickling into the room, telling reporters that they still have his back.
"I absolutely support the prime minister," said Justice Minister Arif Virani.
"The entire cabinet, and myself for sure, are 100 per cent behind the prime minister (???), who's led this country through difficult times in the past few years," said Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge. "I think it's time for caucus and for us all to really think about Canadians... It's also a good time for us to get ready for the next election." (???)
It's been reported that as many as 30 Liberal backbenchers are involved in the effort to encourage Trudeau's ouster, or at least a reconsideration of his future. Though, uncertainty remains about how many MPs are involved, and who they are???
Liberal MPs are gearing up for a high stakes caucus meeting on Wednesday that could see multiple calls for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign, but it is unclear what, if anything, will come of the internal revolt or if it will simply fizzle out???
PM Trudeau doesn't think his leadership is in danger, as ministers voice confidence in him a day before key Liberal meeting — CTV News
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he doesn't think his leadership is in danger, one day before a highly anticipated Liberal caucus meeting where his future at the helm of the Liberal party is expected to be up for discussion.apple.news
Trudeau's zero hour: Liberals gear up for high-stakes showdown Wednesday — National Post
Wednesday's caucus meeting could see multiple calls for Trudeau to resign but it is unclear what, if anything, will come of it
If so, it’s a pretty limp wristed one. A very odd and telling talking point has taken hold among federal Liberals in recent times — including among those who seem to think Justin Trudeau ought to step aside as party leader: It’s the notion that Trudeau has somehow “earned the right” to decide whether he stays on or not???
This “earned” language couldn’t really be any more explicit a representation of how Liberals conflate the party’s interest with the country’s. “Earned the right” is the sort of concept you hear about when pro athletes sign one last contract with their hometown team, or when popular artists run out of creative steam. If the Rolling Stones want to release a half-assed new album, people would say they’ve “earned the right” to do so.
But this isn’t sports or music. It’s supposed to matter, a lot, who’s in charge of the country. And it’s also completely untrue. By definition, Trudeau cannot govern — could never have governed — without support from his caucus. There are 152 of them and one of him. (There used to be 183 of them and one of him.) He has accrued no additional “rights” to his position by dint of his longevity. The opposite makes more sense.
Chris Selley: How to fire a party leader who won't leave — National Post
Justin Trudeau has accrued no additional 'rights' to his position by dint of his longevity. The opposite makes more sense
Michael Chong’s Reform Act, passed from the Conservative MP’s private member’s bill in 2015, offers MPs an ounce of courage in situations like these. It codifies rules for removing a party leader from office, as well as for expelling members from caucus; both are decided by a secret-ballot vote of caucus. Conservative MPs used these procedures to eject Derek Sloan from caucus in 2021, and to terminate Erin O’Toole’s leadership in 2022.
The idea was to rebalance the relationship between party leaders and MPs. (Not so long ago, MPs chose their leaders themselves.) But caucuses have to vote to adopt those rules after each election, or else they don’t apply. And Liberal MPs didn’t just vote against adopting them after the 2021 election. They voted unanimously against adopting those rules.
Then-caucus chair Brenda Shanahan declined to offer a rationale for the vote or to weigh in on the matter herself. “It’s not really important what my opinion is,” Shanahan told the Hill Times — rather perfectly encapsulating the problem.
That unanimous vote of confidence in the prime minister and his office, let us recall, came after Trudeau called a pointless early election about nothing in the middle of a global pandemic and delivered them a weakened minority government.
But hey, at least they actually held the vote. Reports suggest they didn’t even bother in 2019, after Trudeau lost the Liberals their majority and had to admit he didn’t know how many photos there might be of him wearing blackface. (It’s a legal requirement in the Parliament of Canada Act that caucus votes on the leader’s powers after an election, but the Liberals apparently didn’t let that trouble them.)
It was also just a few months after Trudeau demonstrated how corrupting and damaging a party leader’s overinflated power can be, when he expelled Jody Wilson-Raybould from caucus for doing her job and Jane Philpott for supporting Wilson-Raybould.
If ever there were a perfect moment for Liberal MPs to claw back some of the power they used to have — and still have, if they choose en masse to vote to use it — the aftermath of that debacle was surely it. They didn’t. Apparently not one of them even had the inclination to try. As they agonize about the future — their leader’s, their party’s, their own — the idea of a simple secret vote to move on from the Justin Trudeau era must look pretty appealing.
apple.news
apple.news
Immigration Minister Marc Miller today called efforts by disaffected Liberal MPs to oust Prime Minister Justin Trudeau "garbage" and said it would be better for the team to pull together to take on their main opponent: Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre???
"Any minute spent on this garbage is a minute that's not spent on Pierre Poilievre and what he wants to do to this country, and I think that is very dangerous," Miller told reporters ahead of a cabinet meeting.
apple.news
Echoing Miller, Housing Minister Sean Fraser said it's Poilievre who's the real problem???
The idea was to rebalance the relationship between party leaders and MPs. (Not so long ago, MPs chose their leaders themselves.) But caucuses have to vote to adopt those rules after each election, or else they don’t apply. And Liberal MPs didn’t just vote against adopting them after the 2021 election. They voted unanimously against adopting those rules.
Then-caucus chair Brenda Shanahan declined to offer a rationale for the vote or to weigh in on the matter herself. “It’s not really important what my opinion is,” Shanahan told the Hill Times — rather perfectly encapsulating the problem.
That unanimous vote of confidence in the prime minister and his office, let us recall, came after Trudeau called a pointless early election about nothing in the middle of a global pandemic and delivered them a weakened minority government.
But hey, at least they actually held the vote. Reports suggest they didn’t even bother in 2019, after Trudeau lost the Liberals their majority and had to admit he didn’t know how many photos there might be of him wearing blackface. (It’s a legal requirement in the Parliament of Canada Act that caucus votes on the leader’s powers after an election, but the Liberals apparently didn’t let that trouble them.)
It was also just a few months after Trudeau demonstrated how corrupting and damaging a party leader’s overinflated power can be, when he expelled Jody Wilson-Raybould from caucus for doing her job and Jane Philpott for supporting Wilson-Raybould.
If ever there were a perfect moment for Liberal MPs to claw back some of the power they used to have — and still have, if they choose en masse to vote to use it — the aftermath of that debacle was surely it. They didn’t. Apparently not one of them even had the inclination to try. As they agonize about the future — their leader’s, their party’s, their own — the idea of a simple secret vote to move on from the Justin Trudeau era must look pretty appealing.
Chris Selley: How to fire a party leader who won't leave — National Post
Justin Trudeau has accrued no additional 'rights' to his position by dint of his longevity. The opposite makes more sense
EDITORIAL: Let’s help Trudeau find a new job! — Toronto Sun
OK, everyone, Canada needs a new Prime Minister and Justin Trudeau needs a new job. As usual, the federal Liberals, having created the problem — in this case, Trudeau — have no idea of how to fix it, so it’s up to the rest of us to come up with solutions. Only if Trudeau can be enticed into...
"Any minute spent on this garbage is a minute that's not spent on Pierre Poilievre and what he wants to do to this country, and I think that is very dangerous," Miller told reporters ahead of a cabinet meeting.
Immigration minister calls efforts to oust Trudeau 'garbage' — CBC News
Immigration Minister Marc Miller today called efforts by disaffected Liberal MPs to oust Prime Minister Justin Trudeau "garbage" and said it would be better for the team to pull together to take on their main opponent: Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
It won't matter. The Liberals are cooked either way. The ones currently revolting against Trudeau allowed him to do the damage he has caused. They're every bit as guilty as Trudeau. I hope Trudeau ends of Mulroneying the Liberals.
KINSELLA: Hell no, a letter won't make Justin Trudeau go — Toronto Sun
The Prime Minister won't be driven out of office by a gaggle of gutless nobodies with a 'letter'
Speculation of a prorogation ramped up in Ottawa again on Tuesday, just ahead of Trudeau facing a caucus meeting where some Liberal MPs will demand (????) he step down. Trudeau is reluctant to go and may suspend the sitting of the House just five weeks after returning from the summer recess.
Minister’s offices have been told that Thursday is a blackout day for announcements except those coming from the centre, meaning Trudeau’s office. That sparked speculation that Trudeau could do something dramatic such as cutting immigration rates dramatically or even shut down the sitting of the Commons to avoid further drama.
In the House of Commons, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was having fun at Trudeau‘s expense over the leadership drama, saying Liberal MPs aren’t allowed to speak up in their caucus meetings.
“There is this strange rule in the Liberal caucus that they need to have permission from the prime minister to speak at the microphone,” Poilievre said in the House.
“Will the Prime Minister lift the gag so that his Liberal MPs can say to his face that he is not worth the crime, the cost and the corruption?”
apple.news
(While Trudeau denied the rule of MPs needing permission, Liberal MPs have said they must sign up in advance to speak. In response, Trudeau accused Poilievre of playing politics)
Disgruntled Liberal MPs are finally getting a chance to express their ire (?? As long as they signed up to speak first??) on Wednesday as the party’s caucus meets for the first time since a new effort to oust Prime Minister Justin Trudeau broke into public view.
Dozens of MPs have signed a letter (that may or may not exist) asking the prime minister to step down for the good of the country. While many ministers and MPs affirmed their support for Trudeau, it might be a different story when the whole caucus gathers behind closed doors on Wednesday.
apple.news
Minister’s offices have been told that Thursday is a blackout day for announcements except those coming from the centre, meaning Trudeau’s office. That sparked speculation that Trudeau could do something dramatic such as cutting immigration rates dramatically or even shut down the sitting of the Commons to avoid further drama.
In the House of Commons, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was having fun at Trudeau‘s expense over the leadership drama, saying Liberal MPs aren’t allowed to speak up in their caucus meetings.
“There is this strange rule in the Liberal caucus that they need to have permission from the prime minister to speak at the microphone,” Poilievre said in the House.
“Will the Prime Minister lift the gag so that his Liberal MPs can say to his face that he is not worth the crime, the cost and the corruption?”
LILLEY: Desperate Trudeau looking to prorogue as MPs demand he resign? — Toronto Sun
Is Trudeau getting set to prorogue Parliament this Thursday? Will he be making a major policy announcement? Perhaps it will be both. Speculation of a prorogation ramped up in Ottawa again on Tuesday, just ahead of Trudeau facing a caucus meeting where some Liberal MPs will demand he step down...
Disgruntled Liberal MPs are finally getting a chance to express their ire (?? As long as they signed up to speak first??) on Wednesday as the party’s caucus meets for the first time since a new effort to oust Prime Minister Justin Trudeau broke into public view.
Dozens of MPs have signed a letter (that may or may not exist) asking the prime minister to step down for the good of the country. While many ministers and MPs affirmed their support for Trudeau, it might be a different story when the whole caucus gathers behind closed doors on Wednesday.
Disgruntled Liberal MPs gather in Ottawa with a chance to unload on Trudeau — National Post
Until now, Liberal MPs Sean Casey, Ken McDonald and Wayne Long have confirmed that they signed a letter calling on Trudeau to step down.
Frustrated Liberal supporters call for secret-ballot vote on whether Trudeau should remain leader — The Globe and Mail
Demands came in a memo and petition just hours before a closed-door caucus meeting
This is neither from the Beaverton or Babylon Bee. New Brunswick Liberal MP Wayne Long said Monday’s result shows that the Liberal brand still holds appeal with voters (???), and can be revived at the federal level — once Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exits the picture.
Long added that he thought Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was “absolutely beatable” with the right party leader in place???
apple.news
Long is one of three Liberal MPs — joined by Sean Casey and Ken McDonald — that have come forward to say they’ve signed a much talked about letter urging Trudeau to step down in the face of widespread unpopularity across Canada…& the other 20-40 haven’t.
Long added that he thought Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was “absolutely beatable” with the right party leader in place???
Liberals excited over renewed 'momentum' after confronting Trudeau — National Post
Some MPs think recent Liberal success in New Brunswick shows the party's brand still holds appeal with voters
Earlier in his mandate, Canadians were prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt when he broke his promise on electoral reform, and when he was twice found guilty of breaking the Conflict of Interest Act, first on his vacation to the Aga Khan’s Caribbean island and then in the SNC Lavalin case, when he was found guilty of using influence “tantamount to political direction” when it came to a decision by the attorney general.
Voters were prepared to overlook the blackface scandal, dancing the bhangra in India and paying former Al-Qaida fighter Omar Khadr $10 million in compensation.
But trust is a non-renewable commodity and the accumulation of missteps means that the benefit of the doubt has been lost and mistakes are now magnified.
The most obvious way for Trudeau to win back some of his audience would be to repeal, or at least pause, the consumer carbon tax, an issue on which McDonald voted alongside the Conservatives last year. It may be the most effective, market-oriented way to reduce emissions but it is political kryptonite.
McDonald told reporters that there are around 20 of his colleagues who have signed the fabled letter that calls on Trudeau to step down.
A grassroots petition called “Code Red” has also started circulating that says the Liberal party needs to address “the current threats to its very survival … including growing hostility to our leader” because of the failure of the current policy platform to attract and inspire support from Canadians, particularly young Canadians.
The petition calls on the caucus and the party’s national executive to conduct secret ballots on Trudeau’s leadership.
But there were no signs of white smoke rising after the caucus meeting. As Garneau pointed out in his new book, A Most Extraordinary Ride, the prime minister likes a fight and doesn’t like giving up.
apple.news
Justin Trudeau stood up at the start of Question Period on Wednesday to thunderous applause from the Liberal benches and declared he was happy to have their confidence. Coming as it did just hours after an attempted coup inside the closed-door Liberal caucus meeting, Trudeau’s statement and the applause were nothing but theatre.
“I have to say, the Liberal Party and the Liberal government are totally united in holding the Conservative Party to account.” ??? The Conservatives aren’t the the current government who need to be held to account…but don’t let that stop you.
Maybe that’s part of the problem with Trudeau and his government at the moment, he’s got it all backwards. Given he’s the one running the government, the Opposition is supposed to hold the Liberals to account for their running of the country — not the other way around.
Trudeau survived the coup attempt by a group of Liberal MPs, but he and his party are wounded even if the rebels were defeated — both sides are bleeding. Estimates ranged from just three MPs signing onto demands for Trudeau to step down, to as high as 60, with several more guestimates in the middle.
apple.news
Voters were prepared to overlook the blackface scandal, dancing the bhangra in India and paying former Al-Qaida fighter Omar Khadr $10 million in compensation.
But trust is a non-renewable commodity and the accumulation of missteps means that the benefit of the doubt has been lost and mistakes are now magnified.
The most obvious way for Trudeau to win back some of his audience would be to repeal, or at least pause, the consumer carbon tax, an issue on which McDonald voted alongside the Conservatives last year. It may be the most effective, market-oriented way to reduce emissions but it is political kryptonite.
McDonald told reporters that there are around 20 of his colleagues who have signed the fabled letter that calls on Trudeau to step down.
A grassroots petition called “Code Red” has also started circulating that says the Liberal party needs to address “the current threats to its very survival … including growing hostility to our leader” because of the failure of the current policy platform to attract and inspire support from Canadians, particularly young Canadians.
The petition calls on the caucus and the party’s national executive to conduct secret ballots on Trudeau’s leadership.
But there were no signs of white smoke rising after the caucus meeting. As Garneau pointed out in his new book, A Most Extraordinary Ride, the prime minister likes a fight and doesn’t like giving up.
John Ivison: Unhappy Liberals are realizing that Trudeau was never really a team player — National Post
Many of his MPs have tired of the prime minister’s self-congratulatory brand of political image-making
“I have to say, the Liberal Party and the Liberal government are totally united in holding the Conservative Party to account.” ??? The Conservatives aren’t the the current government who need to be held to account…but don’t let that stop you.
Maybe that’s part of the problem with Trudeau and his government at the moment, he’s got it all backwards. Given he’s the one running the government, the Opposition is supposed to hold the Liberals to account for their running of the country — not the other way around.
Trudeau survived the coup attempt by a group of Liberal MPs, but he and his party are wounded even if the rebels were defeated — both sides are bleeding. Estimates ranged from just three MPs signing onto demands for Trudeau to step down, to as high as 60, with several more guestimates in the middle.
LILLEY: Trudeau wounded by coup attempt, still can't run government — Toronto Sun
Liberal coup hurts all involved, Parliament still paralyzed over scandal.