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A daily look inside Canadian politics and power. | | | | |  | | By Zi-Ann Lum | Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Zi-Ann l Follow Politico Canada Ottawa Playbook will not publish Friday. We’ll be back in your inboxes April 18 at 6 a.m. WELCOME TO OTTAWA PLAYBOOK. I’m your host Zi-Ann Lum with Nick Taylor-Vaisey and Maura Forrest. Today’s the day Bank of Canada Governor TIFF MACKLEM and Co. are expected to hike the overnight interest rate by 50 basis points. If that happens, it’ll be the bank’s first 50-basis-point leap since May 2000. However it goes, POLITICO’s ANDY BLATCHFORD will be watching. Did someone forward Ottawa Playbook to you today? Save someone’s time by signing up directly. Click here to sign up to this free newsletter.
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | 
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) stands outside the U.S. Capitol Feb. 17, 2022. | Francis Chung/E&E News/POLITICO | KNOW THY NEIGHBOR — Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) wrapped his two-day visit to Alberta yesterday with a call for Canada and the U.S. to “man up” to what each country’s responsibilities are to overhaul energy supply chains. Manchin stood alongside Alberta Premier JASON KENNEY and told reporters in Calgary Keystone XL didn’t come up between the two politicians “because it’s a sore point for both sides.” A spokesperson for Manchin told our Morning Energy colleagues the point of his oil patch tour isn’t to rally for the Keystone XL pipeline, but to promote North American oil and gas. Manchin is derided as a Build Back Better “saboteur” by some Democrats. In Alberta, he extolled Canadian and U.S. oil as the “cleanest” in the world. “So if you want to help the climate use North American resources, use North American energy,” he said. — Diplomatic reciprocity : Manchin extended an invite to Kenney to appear before the Senate energy and natural resource committee which he chairs. He then shared an example of how deep the two countries’ histories go on critical minerals, to flatter his Canadian hosts. “My history tells me that the Manhattan project that we used to end World War II, and save the world from fascism and totalitarian-type of regimes, that came from right here.”
| | For your radar | | THE C$2-TRILLION QUESTION — Environment Minister STEVEN GUILBEAULT understands the flack he and Liberals are getting over Bay du Nord. “I knew coming into politics that I may have to either take decisions or support decisions that I wouldn't necessarily agree with,” the former Greenpeace and Équiterre campaigner told POLITICO in an interview. “For some people, [energy] transition is a very black-and-white thing and the reality is that it's gray — and sometimes very murky gray.” It was Guilbeault’s reputation as an environmental activist that landed in the murk and gray last week. — Inconvenient timing: The Cabinet decision put him in a position of defending the controversial oil and gas project one week after releasing the government’s most detailed climate plan to date. It also dropped days after a new UN climate report warned new fossil fuels risk becoming stranded assets in coming decades due to an evolving landscape of climate policies to speed up the transition into a low-carbon economy. — The question : Your Playbook host spoke to Guilbeault while he was being driven around Quebec to promote the budget. He shared the question that’s now keeping him up at night: “Can we deploy everything we have to deploy fast enough to meet the demands of science?” Interest in climate policy is altering the political landscape with the creation of a new provincial party in Quebec. Climat Québec, led by former Bloc Québécois leader MARTINE OUELLET , is expected to formally launch April 23, a day after Earth Day. The party has ambitions to run a candidate in each of the province’s 125 ridings in this year’s scheduled October election.
| | CONSERVATIVE CORNER | | BUILD, BABY, BUILD — The Conservative leadership race is all about distinctions. Take a look at how the candidates talk about housing unaffordability. PIERRE POILIEVRE wants to seek and destroy any gatekeeper who gets in the way of [insert freedom here ]. On housing, that means forcing city hall to speed up building permits. Poilievre took direct aim at Vancouver, where former NDP MP KENNEDY STEWART is mayor, in a combative video that blames government red tape for a lack of housing supply to help reduce the cost of a home. (Does Poilievre want less paperwork or more municipal staff to process everything? Those details TBD.) More on that house via The Star’s JEREMY NUTTALL and ALEX MCKEEN. — The other way: A lower-profile hopeful, MP SCOTT AITCHISON , pushed out his own housing policy on Tuesday. Aitchison's MO is to collaborate with [insert stakeholder here] to find solutions on every voter priority. Take housing. Aitchison, a former municipal councilor, wants to "end exclusionary zoning." But he doesn't want a war. He wants to "work with cities to set clear rules for building new housing and tie funding to results." The idea is to reward municipalities for increasing supply by unlocking infrastructure money that can pay for all the amenities communities need to attract new residents. Aitchison also wants to "work with the provinces to expand training capacity" for people who build homes. He wants more social housing "by partnering with" homebuilders. Sense an emerging theme? Aitchison's campaign insists he's talking to new members every day, raising all the money he needs to run a competitive campaign and finding a base of supporters for his collaborative approach. — The big question: Poilievre is drawing massive crowds to his freedom-preaching rallies. But how many of those attendees are willing to fork over the money for a membership? And how many will take the extra step of voting for him when the time comes? Aitchison's quieter approach won't make many headlines. His campaign is mostly mum on tactics, strategy, outcomes — basically anything that gives a sense of his progress. But if he's going to stand out, his common-ground mantra has to be a heck of a differentiator. — In related news: "Pierre Poilievre is preparing to upend Canadian politics," Gary Mason writes in The Globe. — And from Alberta last night: The Calgary Herald reports, "More than 5,000 supporters packed into Spruce Meadows’ Equiplex to hear [Poilievre] pitch his message of freedom, and putting an end to the “gatekeepers” in government." Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU was also in Alberta on Tuesday — in Edmonton in support of the 2022 Budget. University of Calgary political scientist LISA YOUNG told CTV: “Trudeau’s people probably should have thought twice about having him here at the same time as Polievre because I think it's safe to assume that the size of the crowd to see a Liberal prime minister in Edmonton will be smaller than the size of a crowd seeing the Conservative party front-runner in Calgary."
| | On the Hill | | DISSENTS AS SIGN POSTS — So we were just perusing the Supreme Court of Canada’s 2021 Year in Review, as one does, and couldn’t help but notice an interesting trend. Back in 2014, the nine judges agreed unanimously in nearly 80 percent of cases, but that’s dropped to less than 50 percent in every year since 2018. Why? The review offers no explanation, but Playbook talked to EUGENE MEEHAN, a lawyer at Supreme Advocacy and former executive legal officer of the Supreme Court, who said he thinks the court is dealing with issues that are “more nuanced, more fine-tuned, more forward-looking” in recent years. “If a married couple cannot always agree where to go for dinner … we needn’t expect the Supreme Court to all like the Keg,” he said. Is disagreement good or bad? It might not be either, but Meehan pointed out that dissents can form the basis for legal arguments years later, as society shifts: “Dissents are often the way of the future.” We know you’re wondering how Canada’s stats compare to the U.S. Supreme Court, so we looked it up. Turns out if you assumed there’s far more dissension in the U.S. top court, you’d be wrong. According to SCOTUSblog , there were unanimous decisions in 43 percent of cases in 2020 in the U.S. That compares to 49 percent in Canada.
| | HALLWAY CONVERSATION | | NET ZERO & HYBRID HYPOTHESIZING — The Senate’s new net-zero target tees up senators for a discussion about adopting hybrid Parliament as the default model. “Nobody would expect the Senate to show leadership necessarily on this — and that's what I'm most proud of,” Nova Scotia Sen. COLIN DEACON told Playbook. There are two big advantages, he said: One is the policy would give senators credibility to hold the government to account on anything net zero related. “It'll also give us insight and understanding as to what's needed, legislatively, to move ahead,” he said. The Senate passed Deacon’s motion to update its 30-year-old environmental policy. It’s now up to the red chamber’s internal economy, budgets, and administration committee to chart how to move forward and in what ways, including setting benchmarks. — Covid as a trend accelerator : Two years of hybrid Parliament has made parliamentarians comfortable with questioning witnesses virtually. Another advantage, Deacon said, is “we can have witnesses anywhere in the world, testifying before our committee.” Greater flexibility, greater reach, and a reduced carbon footprint and cost, he said. Deacon posited the Senate’s sitting calendar as another area ripe for change under stronger net-zero policies. The Senate’s fixed sitting days are Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays — with possible sittings on either ends of the work week. Back-to-back, three-day sitting weeks would require four flights for senators who live outside of driving range from the capital. Deacon, a former entrepreneur, floated the idea of compressing fixed sitting days. “We change our sitting schedules to sit on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday — and then there's only one flight, not two flights.”
| | ASK US ANYTHING | | What are you hearing that you need Playbook to know? Any questions about the budget? Send it all our way.
| | PAPER TRAIL | | From the tenders: The Canadian Human Rights Commission has posted an advance contract award notice for the Université TELUQ to take its existing provincial pay equity training course and adapt the materials “to reflect the federal context” for C$310,068. — Export Development Canada is in the market for 16 Microsoft Surface Hub 2S interactive whiteboards by the end of the year — and up to 50 by the end of next year (retail prices start at C$12,000 per device). — BILINGUE EN ESPACE: The Canadian Space Agency is looking for a French-language training course for three Canuck astronauts assigned to the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The tender states astronauts JENNI SIDEY-GIBBONS, JOSHUA KUTRYK and JEREMY HANSEN are waiting for their mission assignments, but their U.S. training doesn’t include French programming. The posting notes Canadian astronauts must communicate effectively in both English and French. “When astronauts communicate with the Canadian public at outreach events, especially when they are working to inspire youth, they must be able to speak about their work, training and missions in both official languages.”
| | TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS | | 8:50 a.m. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU continues his budget selling tour with a visit to Laval, Que. where he’ll be joined by Vimy MP ANNIE KOUTRAKIS before meeting with the city’s mayor, STÉPHANE BOYER . Boyer and the PM will speak to media at 11:20 a.m. before the PM flies back to B.C., to Whistler for “personal” time. 10 a.m. The Bank of Canada will release its latest interest rate decision and its quarterly monetary policy report. Watch for ANDY BLATCHFORD’s coverage. 11 a.m. Bank of Canada governor TIFF MACKLEM and senior deputy governor CAROLYN ROGERS hold a news conference to discuss the central bank's monetary policy report and interest rate decision. 11:35 a.m. Health Minister JEAN-YVES DUCLOS speaks at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s second Executive Summit of 2022. 1 p.m. The Democratic Engagement Exchange at Ryerson University is hosting a conversation — topic: "Are political parties good for democracy?" — feat. ERIN TOLLEY, the Canada Research Chair in gender, race, and inclusive politics; and QUINN ALBAUGH, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto. Register here. 4:45 p.m. CHRYSTIA FREELAND will sit for a virtual fireside chat with Canadian Chamber President and CEO PERRIN BEATTY.
| | MEDIA ROOM | | — POLITICO congressional reporter NICHOLAS WU breaks down the Jan. 6 inquiry for Canadian listeners on CBC’s Front Burner. — PAUL WELLS writes in The Star: What the battle of Le Pen and Macron in France’s election does — and doesn’t — tell us about populism and its perils. — The Conversation shares Senate committee testimony from MARTA DYCZOK: 5 areas where Canada needs to step up on the war in Ukraine. — On the 10/3 pod this week, National Post writers JESSE KLINE and SABRINA MADDEAUX discuss budget highlights with host DAVE BREAKENRIDGE. — The latest episode of The Curse of Politics is here. — The Canadian Press reports that Pangnirtung on Baffin Island has set up a satellite centre for TB treatment. The territory’s health department declared an outbreak there in November.
| | PROZONE | | If you’re a POLITICO Pro , don’t miss our latest policy newsletter: Should all inflation be treated equally? In other headlines for Pros:
— This cheeseburger explains your bigger grocery bill.
— The SEC is once again grappling with its least-favorite question: What to do about Elon Musk?
— No end in sight for spiking prices? Enter the ‘peak inflation’ crowd.
— Apple CEO rallies privacy professionals against antitrust overhaul.
— Climate’s ‘messy moment’ as countries hunt for oil and gas to replace Russian imports.
— IMF report says reshoring policies are ‘likely misguided.’
| | Playbookers | | Birthdays: HBD to Liberal MPs PETER SCHIEFKE and WAYNE LONG. Former MP KEITH MARTIN and retired Alberta MLA BRIDGET PASTOOR also celebrate this day. Send birthdays to ottawaplaybook@politico.com. Movers and shakers: CARTER MALKASIAN has won the 2022 Lionel Gelber Prize for ‘The American War in Afghanistan: A History.’ ... LANA PAYNE, Unifor secretary-treasurer, has joined the race to replace JERRY DIAS. Spotted: QP Briefing’s CHARLIE PINKERTON, self-isolating. … Conservative MP GARNETT GENUIS and Liberal MP NATE ERSKINE-SMITH, on a second date. … Governor General MARY SIMON, talking about kindness with the CBC’s ROBYN BRESNAHAN … JOHN O’LEARY of Crestview Strategy, “first day of parental leave” … PIERRE POILIEVRE hugging his mom in Calgary. U.S. Ambassador DAVID COHEN sitting for a taping of The Interview Dudes Podcast. ... British High Commissioner SUSANNAH GOSHKO relishing the sight of crocuses. Media mentions: The exodus at Maclean’s continues with JASON MARKUSOFF announcing he’s starting at CBC Calgary in a few weeks as “writer, analyst and producer.” The Hub is 1. To celebrate, it shared a note of congrats from former PM STEPHEN HARPER. Farewells: BRAEDEN CALEY marked his last day at Liberal HQ yesterday. Send Playbookers tips to ottawaplaybook@politico.com.
| | TRIVIA | | Tuesday’s answer: The Terry Fox National Historic Monument is on the outskirts of Thunder Bay, about 4 kilometers from where Fox ended his run. Public Safety Minister MARCO MENDICINO visited to pay his respects on Tuesday — the 42nd anniversary of the start of the Marathon of Hope. Props to JENI ARMSTRONG, ZACK BABINS, PATRICK DION, JEREMIAH MACKENZIE, GUY SKIPWORTH, MARGARET ANDERSON, DALE BARBOUR, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, DIANNE SHERRIN, BARRE CAMPBELL, JOSEPH CRESSATTI, CHRISTOPHER LAWTON, LEIGH LAMPERT, JOHN ECKER, MARY JANE ALLAN, JOHN DILLON, ALYSON FAIR, AMY BOUGHNER, JOHN GUOBA, BEN ROTH, DOROTHY MCCABE, ELIZABETH BURN, DAN MCCARTHY and JANE DOULL. Wednesday’s question: Name the sitting MP who was the member of a Quebec pop group with a number one single, “Sauve-Moi.” Send your answers to ottawaplaybook@politico.com Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness amongst this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Alejandra Waase to find out how: awaase@politico.com. Playbook wouldn’t happen without Luiza Ch. Savage and editor Sue Allan.
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