I will congratulate her for coming out of the closet, as a fascist.
Luckily, I have enough faith in the Conservative Party that they won't give her the leadership. They want to win, first and foremost. And I think that anti-Trump (and anti-American) sentiment is about to become a big factor in Canadian political discourse again.
In other news, it looks like two women were essentially harassed out of the Alberta PC leadership race.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/sandra-jansen-donna-kennedy-glans-drop-out-1.3842548
A real bad hombre
I really hope that Trudeau and the Liberals are able to hold out in the face of the alt-right wave that seems to be sweeping the Western world right now.
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison
Visiting from the Hoag Galaxy
They kind of already did. The only region in Canada that really has an alt-right fringe is Alberta...and it turns out that they split the vote so much with the Alberta Conservatives that the Alberta NDP got in. The alt-right Albertans are also focused on some really stupid issues no one cares about. They're scared Quebec wants to take English away from them. That isn't going to happen, ever, as long as Quebec can speak French as an official language.
Harper was slowly moving right over the course of his run, and when he was getting into shouting distance of some of the more benign Republican-style elements, he lost the election.
That's the thing about Canada. The country as a whole never moves that far right, instead hovering around the centre, which is basically defined by the Liberals, since they tend to be in charge more often than not. One of the best examples of this is Marie lePen's visit last year. She's way on the right fringe in France, and won't shut up about how multiculturalism inevitably fails and can never succeed in any capacity whatsoever, but Canadian politicians (both from Quebec and elsewhere) refused to talk to her because, well, Canada kind of proves her wrong by existing.
edited 9th Nov '16 6:36:59 PM by Zendervai
Not Three Laws compliant.
And polls showed that Trump's support, even out West, was well below 20%.
I'm not saying that a Trump couldn't happen here, because last night that was proven wrong and we've got someone similar trying to take over the Tories,(but she doesn't have his charisma, money, or cult following). But its far less likely to the elitist nature of leadership selection in Canada, and the general political environment.
You run on an alt-right platform in contemporary Canada, and your support will be sharply limited outside of the Prairies (and even there it will be limited).
We'll hold out, I'm confident of that. But I'm not confident about our prospects if the rest of the developed world goes mad.
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
A real bad hombre
That's good to hear. Chances are good I'll be heading back north in a couple of years.
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison
Grr... <3
"They're scared Quebec wants to take English away from them."
My fellow albertans make me so proud. <.<
I was wondering how the NDP managed to win here.
it's a living
I don't live in Alberta anymore, but doesn't that mostly come down to growing dissatisfaction with the Conservatives ever since Ralph Klein died, combined with votes being split between the P Cs and Wildrose Party? That presumably created the gap the NDP needed. Add to that all the young professionals flooding into the cities from both east and west when Alberta's economy was still booming, and I think that might be your answer.
That's off the top of my head and I haven't lived there in a few years, though, so someone can tell me off if I'm wrong.
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Nice, thanks. Gives me something to talk about the next time I visit my parents.
edited 9th Nov '16 11:53:15 PM by Unsung
Part of the Problem
I can't tell you why any particular Albertan voted for the NDP over certain other choices such as Liberal or Green, but I can explain in a bit of detail why most Albertans decided to not vote for the Wildrose or PC parties.
The reason why people almost unanimously voted against the PC party is because they were tired of the corruption and BS coming from there. In early 2014, then then PC Premier Alison Redford was forced to resign following a constant stream of allegations of mismanagement of taxpayer dollars for her own personal gain (Plane tickets for her daughter's friend, luxury hotels, excessive salaries for her staffers, etc...). She was succeeded shortly after by Premier Jim Prentice (Rest in Peace) who dissolved the government and called an election in early 2015. Any supporters that the PC's had following the Alison Redford scandals were likely alienated by Jim Prentice during the 2015 election when he effectively blamed the average Albertan for the state of the economy with his infamous "look in the mirror" statement.
The Wildrose party was seen as the obvious choice for the next government by most Albertans following Alison Redford's Resignation. They had a charismatic leader in Danielle Smith, they were politically right-leaning and most importantly, they weren't the PC party. All of that went completely out the freaking window in December 2014 (~6 months prior to the election) when Danielle Smith and most of the top officials in the Wildrose Party decided to cross the floor and become members of the PC party alienating everyone who didn't want a PC government, angering Wildrose constituents who were no longer being represented, and leaving the Wildrose party without any public figure that people could recognize.
As for some reasons why Albertans voted for Rachel Notley in the 2015 general election? Well, she's smart, she was well liked, and she had a plan which is something I don't think most of the other parties had.
Source: Calgarian, voted in the 2015 Alberta general election.
Mudkip's final evolution is in fact NOT Mudkipperino.
Trump's already been invited to Canada, Trudeau is hoping to avoid mutually destructive trade disputes.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-trump-visit-canada-1.3845013
The protests are going to be pretty massive when he shows up in Ottawa.
Hopefully we don't get an all out trade war, otherwise that means economic crash (which probably gets populism on the rise in Canada, and that's the last thing we need) or realigning towards China and what's left of Europe after the fascists go on a roll.
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
Trudeau Tells Trump He’s Ready to Renegotiate NAFTA
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said today that he is willing to reopen NAFTA, noting that “it’s important that we be open to talking about trade deals.” And in a conference call with reporters on Wednesday, David Mac Naughton, Canada’s ambassador to Washington, said, “We’re ready to come to the table.”
As president, Trump will have executive authority to remove the United States from any trade deal. NAFTA has been in effect since January 1994 — and Trump has railed against it almost as long, saying he would renegotiate it or withdraw from it altogether. Trump, who, over the course of the campaign, called NAFTA “an absolute catastrophe” and “a total disaster,” stated his opposition to it in 1993 because “the Mexicans want it, and that doesn’t sound good.”
In 2015, U.S.-Canada trade came to about $660 billion, a two-way exchange that could be upended by a re-opened NAFTA, though neither the Canadian government nor Trump has specified what, exactly, is up for discussion. But then, Canada has never been the controversial member of NAFTA. According to the Congressional Research Service, from 1993 to 2014, exports from Canada doubled; imports from Mexico, by comparison, jumped 251 percent. And it’s against Mexico, not Canada, that Trump has specifically threatened double-digit tariffs (in his presidential announcement speech, he said he would put a 35 percent tariff on automotive parts that came from a hypothetical factory in Mexico).
Still, renegotiating trade deals is not the same as tearing them up. And there’s plenty of anti-trade feeling among Trump supporters (as there was among supporters of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders). Half of the electorate in Michigan think trade is bad for jobs, and 47 percent of Ohio voters this trade is bad for workers. Time will tell if Trudeau’s pre-emptive gesture will be enough to satisfy them that Trump has their back.
Well, its pretty much impossible to unilaterally rip up a trade deal (and Congress won't play ball on that). And 90%+ of Trump's wrath has been directed at China and Mexico when it comes to trade. I'm pretty sure we are safe, but softwood lumber is probably going nowhere.
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Sure about that? The article says that the President can pull the US from trade deals, I am not certain if approval of Congress is needed.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
I think he'd face opposition if he tried, he could do it but the power brokers wouldn't like it. He's no autocrat, not yet at least.
And I think he'll be willing to sit down with Canada at least, the trade links are too big to ignore.
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Maybe he'd just want a giant, gold TRUMP sign on the border crossing...
I'd rather to go to war.
Grr... <3
I think we should let the US withdraw from NAFTA rather than let trump renegotiate it. Send a message that if they want to be greedy and smash the house that we've built together, then they can do it from outside our social circle.
More to the point, calling people names and saying their work is terrible should NOT be rewarded with be rewarded with better terms at the negotiating table.
Grrrr. *shakes fist*
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Our trade with the US is huge. Hurting the US also means hurting us. People will blame Trudeau if there's an economic downturn. I know I'm selfish but I really don't want to lose the Trudeau government in this political climate.
edited 10th Nov '16 12:22:39 PM by nightwyrm_zero
And if we lose the Trudeau government in an economic crash that happens while the Tories are nominating a leader...Harper will be the least of our worries. While the Conservatives aren't that vulnerable to the populist fringe, it can happen here.
I'll stop worrying when the Tories and NDP nominate sane leaders next year. Our political parties haven't gone insane yet, let's not give them reason to.
And not trading with the US would send our economy into an outright depression. To even reduce the impact we'd need years to realign to China and Europe.
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Perpetually Confused
Generally Speaking that is true.
In the case of NAFTA however, he does need Congress, as NAFTA was voted on as a law by Congress under Bush Sr. Since Congress Passed NAFTA, it needs to repeal it.
edited 10th Nov '16 10:42:18 PM by Ghilz
Well, not always. Treaties and presidential appointments need the Senate's support but removing them doesn't.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
Shifting gears from how much it sucks living next to the Free American Empire, what does everyone think about Trudeau's Senate and Supreme Court appointments?
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
Perpetually Confused
These weren't voted into laws. Which the NAFTA agreement was.
His Supreme Court appointment is very good.
His senators, for the most part, are fine. I like that, on paper at least, they are independant. I mean, it's still the senate, an organization that struggles at justifying its own existence (though they've been working on it in recent months). So it's sort of hard to get excited about it.
edited 11th Nov '16 11:32:07 PM by Ghilz
"I'm not a racist, I'm only a fangirl of Trump's immigration policies who expects immigrants to conform to values I can't/won't define!"
http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/kellie-leitch-i-am-not-a-racist-1.3157166
Grr... <3
Yeah, I'd say that she's losing more support than she hopes to gain by raising those issues in the first place. But I'm the wrong person to ask, as conservative is the second last party I'd vote for.
edited 10th Nov '16 1:27:51 PM by Pseudopartition