GREETINGS FROM MUSKOKA — It's not lost on SCOTT AITCHISON that he's an underdog candidate for the Tory leadership. He joked Sunday about the "audacity of some dude from rural Ontario" running for the job. He knows he might be dismissed or attacked. But he's staking out turf as a unifier who can bring together everyone in his midst — first his fellow party members, and then the country. The next leader inevitably has to do both. Aitchison launched his bid at a craft brewery in Huntsville, Ontario, a town he says raised him when he left home as a 15-year-old. He was elected to town council six years later, and served as mayor from 2014 until his federal run in 2019. The crowd was modest, numbering in the dozens, but enthusiastic. His supporters sat and stood armed with signs. His longtime council colleague, FRAN COLEMAN, warmly introduced him. These were his people. The challenge: finding more Huntsvilles. — Confidence: PIERRE POILIEVRE 's juggernaut has organizers everywhere. Aitchison doesn't have the consultant class or traditional power brokers on his side, but his campaign insists there's momentum in the air. They're not worried about raising the C$300,000 he'll need to officially enter the race. They're confident that someone like Aitchison can sell memberships across Canada, one small room at a time. — Thesis statement: "I am dismayed by the energy wasted on political games instead of getting things done." — His first endorsement: That'd be ERIC MELILLO, the 23-year-old Baby of the House — i.e. youngest MP — who represents Kenora in northwestern Ontario. Melillo told Playbook he and Aitchison started talking about a potential candidacy a couple of months ago, and more seriously after ERIN O'TOOLE's ouster last month. Melillo beat Liberal MP BOB NAULT in 2019 and held the seat last September. He sits in CANDICE BERGEN's shadow Cabinet as critic for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario. — The team: Aitchison's campaign manager is JAMIE ELLERTON , a well-known Conservative campaigner and strategist in Toronto and Ottawa. Ellerton served a long stint as a senior JASON KENNEY aide. He also worked for TIM HUDAK when he was leader of the opposition at Queen's Park. BEN SMITH is running comms for Aitchison. Smith ran for the Tories in Markham-Stouffville last year, finishing second to HELENA JACZEK — the Liberal incumbent promptly promoted to Cabinet in October. ANOTHER CANDIDATE — B.C. MP MARC DALTON also threw his hat in the ring on Sunday. His first order of business as PM would be calling a public inquiry into the government's handling of the pandemic. WESTERN CRED — The consensus western candidate in the Tory leadership race is Poilievre, but GTA mayor PATRICK BROWN made a splash over the weekend when he named MICHELLE REMPEL GARNER a national campaign co-chair. "Nothing unites Conservatives like winning, so we need to pick someone who can win a general election," she tweeted. "Patrick wins as a Conservative in parts of the country where our movement needs to grow, and just released [a] strong plan for Western Canada. Giddyup." — West-of-center platform: It's not uncommon for a politician to release a platform exclusively for Quebecers, such is the value of that province on the electoral map. Brown's team has pumped one out for the other side of the country. Ottawa journalists got their hackles up at Brown's intent to expand Press Gallery membership to reporters outside the capital. (The prime minister, some noted, has zero percent control over who gets to report on the Hill.) OPPO AMMO — The return of the House after a two-week break opens with the opposition holding the reins — and wielding a pair of potential wedges that could give Liberals headaches. — Wedge #1: New Democrats will table their first opposition motion today. They're zeroing in on the rising cost of living and hoping to call the Liberals on a pair of campaign promises. The NDP will call for a new 3 percent surtax on big-box stores and oil and gas companies that rake in more than C$1 billion in annual profits. Liberals committed to a similar surtax on banks and insurers. The NDP also wants a publicly accessible beneficial ownership registry that would shed light on the people who ultimately control corporations — not the corporations or trusts that might be listed as legal owners. The Liberals first promised a public registry in last year's budget, and re-promised it in their election platform. — Wedge #2: After question period, the Commons will vote on a Tory oppo motion that was debated before the House rose for two weeks. The first two of the motion's three clauses are uncontroversial. They call on the House to condemn VLADIMIR PUTIN and support the people of Ukraine. The third clause is a different story. It wants the feds to "ensure new natural gas pipelines can be approved and built to Atlantic tidewater, recognizing energy as vital to Canadian and European defense and security, allowing Canadian natural gas to displace Russian natural gas in Europe…" But wait, there's more. The motion claims gas exports are "consistent with environmental goals in the transition to non-emitting sources of energy." No matter how the vote goes down, expect the Tories to weaponize it in question period.
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