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A daily look inside Canadian politics and power. | | | | |  | | By Maura Forrest |
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WELCOME TO OTTAWA PLAYBOOK. I’m your host, Maura Forrest, with Andy Blatchford and Nick Taylor-Vaisey. Today, JUSTIN TRUDEAU and PIERRE POILIEVRE clash on the Bank of Canada. We talk to SCOTT AITCHISON, the underdog to the underdog. And we bring you a scene from the March for Life.
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | 
New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks with the media following caucus, in Ottawa, Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld | The Canadian Press | IN HIS OWN WORDS — Once again, NDP Leader JAGMEET SINGH is in the headlines for weathering harassment from belligerent protesters. Once again, he seems remarkably unfazed. The protesters in Peterborough who hurled expletives at Singh this week were especially vitriolic, but it’s hardly the first time this has happened. There was this time. And this time. And this time. And now this. Here’s a condensed version of what Singh had to say Thursday about the latest incident: “For me personally and for my staff, there was that feeling of intense threat. But I’m not personally surprised by that. I’ve experienced worse in my life and experienced it regularly. It doesn’t faze me, it doesn’t shake me in any way. “But I am worried about what that means for politics generally. What that means for people who want to participate and see something like that and then maybe think, ‘It’s not a place for me.’ And how we might miss some incredible people who won’t come forward and participate in politics. “I’ve experienced a lot of this kind of hatred and being physically attacked when I was younger and I learned to defend myself. I’ve taken martial arts. But that shouldn’t be the requirement to be a politician or a leader. That’s what I’m worried about.” PREMEDITATED PINK SLIP — Forgive us for suggesting it, but just for a moment there, did it sound like JUSTIN TRUDEAU was already campaigning against PIERRE POILIEVRE? Asked about Poilievre’s latest attack on the Bank of Canada during Wednesday’s Conservative leadership debate, when he promised to fire Governor TIFF MACKLEM , Trudeau didn’t mince his words. The central bank’s independence is a source of “pride and stability,” the PM said Thursday. “The fact that one of the leading candidates for the … leader of the Opposition seems to profoundly either misunderstand that or not care about the facts at all is somewhat disappointing.” In the competition for dominating the day-after news cycle, count that as another win for Poilievre. The leadership frontrunner has had the Bank of Canada in his crosshairs for some time now, but his promise to replace Macklem “to get inflation under control” stole the show at Wednesday’s event in Edmonton. Poilievre blames Macklem’s emergency pandemic policies for fueling today’s scorching price growth and accuses him of bankrolling Trudeau’s record-breaking deficits. Poilievre’s rhetoric has ignited debate over central bank independence and attracted closer scrutiny of the bank’s Covid-19 response. After the leadership debate, POLITICO’s ANDY BLATCHFORD talked to some folks in the know. — Hitting the ‘hot button’: DON DRUMMOND , a former senior Finance Department official, said before blaming everything on the Bank of Canada it’s important to remember that, in March 2020, “it looked like we were going head first over a cliff.” “Maybe a mistake was made, but it's not like they behaved recklessly,” Drummond said in an interview. “It's not like they took a path that was different than any other central bank.” He said the biggest error, perhaps, was the bank’s failure to pull back its stimulus a little earlier. When it comes to politics, Drummond says he gets why making the bank a culprit might be seen as a winner. Many Canadians, he added, are too young to remember policy-makers’ battles against surging inflation several decades ago. “It is a real shock for everybody. So, clearly you can make it a hot-button issue.” — It’s all fair game: University of British Columbia economist KEVIN MILLIGAN says it's not unprecedented for opposition parties to criticize the Bank of Canada. He argues it’s actually a good thing. “Politicians should be the ones who are setting the goals for the bank and, if you don't like the goals of the bank, then opposition politicians should be free to say so,” Milligan said in an interview. — History lesson: Milligan said the last time anyone called for a governor to get the boot was way back during the “Coyne Affair” of the 1960s. At the time, a dispute over policy between then-governor JAMES COYNE and the Diefenbaker government led the House of Commons to pass legislation to remove him from the post. The bill never made it through the Senate, but the uproar was enough for Coyne to resign. — Fast forward to today: Milligan argues Macklem has “a very good defense” of the actions he took in 2020 and 2021. But he added that Macklem should be pressed on how he’s gone about it. When it comes to Poilievre, Milligan said he should tell the public what his intentions are for the bank, beyond just getting rid of the guy in charge.
| | AROUND THE HILL | | | 
The Supreme Court building on May 4. | Alex Brandon/AP Photo | SNAPSHOT — If news that the U.S. Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade is about to unleash a wave of anti-abortion sentiment across Canada, you wouldn’t have known it from Thursday’s March for Life. The annual rally attracted a modest crowd of a few thousand to Parliament Hill, flanked by a few hundred pro-choice counter-protesters who did their best to be disruptive. There were prayers and speeches and testimonials. A few speakers mentioned the leaked draft of the Supreme Court opinion on Roe v. Wade. One said it would send reverberations around the world and eventually lead to something similar in Canada — in 10 or 15 years. A handful of Conservative MPs showed up and clustered on stage to voice their support: ARNOLD VIERSEN, CATHAY WAGANTALL, GARNETT GENUIS, JOHN WILLIAMSON, GLEN MOTZ, DAMIEN KUREK and KELLY BLOCK. — PMB incoming: Wagantall promised the crowd she’d soon be tabling another private member’s bill related to abortion, after a previous attempt to ban sex-selective abortions was defeated last year. Her office says it should be tabled before the summer. — Political strategy: Genuis encouraged the crowd to vote for the sole pro-life candidate in the Conservative leadership race, LESLYN LEWIS , but to rank the rest of the candidates on their ballots as well. He was contradicted moments later by Campaign Life Coalition’s JACK FONSECA, who told the crowd they should vote for Lewis and Lewis alone. An hour in, and with no end to the speeches in sight, it was clear the baking heat was winning the day. A few folks were lying on the ground trying to cool off. The counter-protest was slowly dissipating. A little way back from the stage, no one was paying much attention to the speakers. If there’s a wave coming, it’s coming slowly. Also spotted: DEREK SLOAN, HAROLD ALBRECHT, PIERRE LEMIEUX, JIM and BELINDA KARAHALIOS. And at the counter-protest: JAGMEET SINGH and JOEL HARDEN. BORDER WOES — Roxham Road is making a comeback. The unofficial border crossing presented a major headache for the Liberals five years ago, when thousands of asylum seekers began illegally entering Quebec along the rural road near Lacolle. Then the pandemic offered a convenient reason to shut the door for a while, and the controversy receded. But Roxham Road is open for business again, and the flow of would-be refugees is picking right back up. Federal numbers show more than 7,000 irregular asylum claimants entered Quebec between January and March. This week, Quebec Premier FRANÇOIS LEGAULT said he’s asking Ottawa to permanently shut down Roxham Road. On Thursday, Trudeau said if he did that, people would just find another way in. — A brief refresher: People are traveling to Roxham Road because of the Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement, which requires asylum seekers to claim refugee status in the first of the two countries they reach. If they tried to enter Canada at an official border crossing, they would be turned away and told to claim asylum in the U.S. But the agreement only applies at official checkpoints, so if they can find another way in, they have a right to claim asylum here. Roxham Road is just the easiest path. — In December: La Presse reported that Canada and the U.S. had reached an agreement that would allow Canada to turn back asylum seekers anywhere along the border. But it would require regulatory changes to implement, and the file is hardly a priority in Washington, JOËL-DENIS BELLAVANCEreports. On Thursday, Immigration Minister SEAN FRASER said there’s not a “declared timeline” on when the situation might change.
| | CONSERVATIVE CORNER | | THE OTHER UNDERDOG — If JEAN CHAREST is the underdog in the Conservative leadership race, then SCOTT AITCHISON is the underdog to the underdog. He’s the darling of the party's sanity brigade, a candidate who never raises his voice on debate stages dominated by contenders who use their outdoor voices. It's a tough gig in which to flourish. — The aftermath of Edmonton: Aitchison was disgusted by the first unofficial showdown in Ottawa. Sitting in a Courtyard Marriott lobby a day after this week’s debate in Edmonton, Playbook asked him for his review. "It was better last night. We did talk an awful lot more about policy, as opposed to, you know, what label we were going to assign to each other." Aitchison loves talking policy and is pretty much allergic to slogans. A classic example: He's convinced Canada should abandon supply management and made his case in a three-minute explainer video. It's not clear this is a race in which a peacemaking policy wonk can get ahead. On debate night, supply management did come up — but candidates could only declare a position for or against with little opportunity to explain why. — Speaking in paragraphs: The former small town mayor does not produce soundbytes. His mission to end supply management is all about affordability (for consumers) and opportunity (for dairy farmers). Watch that video! It's detailed! — What he's up against: PIERRE POILIEVRE is a talented communicator who makes headlines basically on command. (Have we mentioned he promised to fire TIFF MACKLEM?) The Aitchison school of thought says all that hollering about gatekeepers leads in one direction: more Liberal government. "Just fanning flames and not presenting real solutions might be great to win conventions, but I don't see how it wins general elections or actually solves any problems." It's a noble message, and a brand of principled politics that might well land an underdog like him in Cabinet some day. If his party can ever win again.
| | TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS | | 9 a.m. Innovation Minister FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE will hold a virtual press conference to discuss his trip to Germany and Belgium and the G-7 Digital Ministers meeting earlier this week. 9:45 a.m. The Supreme Court of Canada will deliver judgments in two cases involving violent crimes committed in a state of severe intoxication. 10 a.m. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU will meet with Yukon Premier SANDY SILVER. 10 a.m. Governor General MARY SIMON will be in Kuujjuaq to visit the Kajusivik Adult Education Centre, the final stop of her five-day tour of Nunavik. 10:45 a.m. (Pacific) Natural Resources Minister JONATHAN WILKINSON, Emergency Preparedness Minister BILL BLAIR and Indigenous Services Minister PATTY HAJDU will provide an update on this year’s wildfire season in Vancouver. 11 a.m. Deputy Prime Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND will virtually attend QP from Toronto. “Private meetings” are otherwise on her itinerary. 2:45 p.m. PRINCESS MARGRIET of the Netherlands and her husband, Prof. PIETER VAN VOLLENHOVEN, will meet with Prime Minister TRUDEAU as part of their official visit to Ottawa. 6 p.m. (Atlantic) Conservative MP PIERRE POILIEVRE holds a meet-and-greet at the Ben Eoin Golf Club & Resort.
| | WE GET MAIL | | This week, the House of Commons defeated a Bloc Québécois motion to scrap the prayer that marks the beginning of official business each day and replace it with a moment of quiet reflection. Most of the NDP caucus and the two Green MPs voted with the Bloc, as did perennial Liberal maverick NATHANIEL ERSKINE-SMITH. But the rest of the Liberals and the Conservatives voted down the motion, so the prayer will continue for the foreseeable future. You had a lot to say about whether the prayer should stay or go. Here are some of your thoughts: “Clearly, as we are a multicultural nation… opening prayers should not be tied to any religion. That does not mean that a short contemplative moment should be scrapped, nor a short message from an independent person pointing out that the members are there to serve all Canadians, not just their tribes.” — BARRY WANSBROUGH, Bracebridge, Ont. “Should stay. Country organized, formed and built on a Christian foundation. Akin to singing ‘O Canada.’” — MARGARET ANDERSON, Thunder Bay, Ont. “It should be replaced with a solemn and respectful reminder, read by a different MP every sitting day, of the need for each member to uphold the promises they have made to act in the best interests of the country and in an upright, ethical fashion.” — DOUG SWEET , Montreal, Que. “I am a regular churchgoer but strongly feel that religion and politics should never mix; with so many non-religious peoples in Canada public prayer should be stopped. If you want to pray go to church or just say the rosary [at] home after supper with your family!!” — LEN MUISE, Gambo, Nfld.
| | MEDIA ROOM | | — On the road in San Marcos, Texas, JOANNE KENEN and ALICE MIRANDA OLLSTEIN have a new feature in POLITICO Magazine about the future of contraception in the U.S. — which looks unsettled even if abortion is banned. — ADRIAN LEE launches a new season of the City Space pod with a unique take on the trucker protest: “What if I told you the Ottawa occupation was also a story about the ways in which cities are designed?" — The business of politics has become uglier, STEPHEN MAHER writes in a piece co-published by The Walrus and the Centre for International Governance Innovation. — In The Line, Conservative MP LARRY MAGUIRE explains why Canadians should be more concerned about unidentified aerial phenomena (UFOs, anyone?). — Alex Boyd, a Star reporter in Calgary, joins the This Matters pod to talk about vaccine passports.
| | PROZONE | | For POLITICO Pro s, our policy newsletter by ZI-ANN LUM and ANDY BLATCHFORD: Wilkinson clarifies thinking on Line 5. In other headlines for Pros:
— Experts divided on possible cause of mystery hepatitis in children.
— EU considers shelving ban on Russian oil as Hungary blocks sanctions.
— U.S., foreign officials pledge $3.1B in new Covid funding.
— Biden administration cancels new offshore oil lease sales.
— ‘Nothing positive’: Salvadorans struggle to adapt to Bitcoin.
| | For your radar | | Keep up to House committee schedules here. Find Senate meeting schedules here. 9:30 a.m. The Public Prosecution Service of Canada and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police visit the Senate legal and constitutional affairs committee as senators continue their study of Bill S-4, proposing changes to jury selection and telewarrant rules. 11 a.m. The Senate energy, the environment and natural resources committee meets to study Bill S-6, proposing 46 regulatory changes to 29 acts, and will hear from Treasury Board, natural resources and environment and climate change department officials. 1 p.m. Parliamentary Budget Officer YVES GIROUX is a witness at the House government operations and estimates committee in its study of main estimates. The second half of the meeting is all about the National Shipbuilding Strategy. 1 p.m. The House industry and technology committee continues its study of small and medium-sized enterprises with representatives from the Automotive Industries Association of Canada, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters and Mississauga Board of Trade among witnesses. 1 p.m. The House status of women committee meets to hear from three senior justice department officials as part of its study of Bill C-233, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and Judges Act (violence against an intimate partner). 1 p.m. The House veterans affairs committee continues its study on survivor pension benefits (marriage after 60) and will hear from four witnesses including two Statistics Canada officials. 1 p.m. The House justice and human rights committee meets for its seventh meeting on its study of Bill C-5, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. 1 p.m. Representatives from the Canadian Dental Association are on the witness list at the House Indigenous and northern affairs committee, including representatives from Gwich'in Tribal Council, Madawaska Maliseet First Nation and Northwest Territory Métis Nation. Behind closed doors 10 a.m. The House subcommittee on committee budgets of the liaison committee meets in camera to discuss, you guessed it, “subcommittee business.” Check out POLITICO Pro’s calendar for additional committee activity, events and more.
| | Playbookers | | Weekend birthdays: On Saturday, Sen. DON PLETT, Ontario MP GILLES BISSON and Conservative MP ROB MOORE. Sunday celebrations: Senator and art historian PATRICIA BOVEY, former Senator VIVIENNE POY, House Speaker ANTHONY ROTA, Liberal MP FAYÇAL EL-KHOURY, B.C. MLA SPENCER CHANDRA HEBERT and former MP BRAD TROST. Spotted: AARON WHERRY with thoughts on debate planning. Olympian and MP ADAM VAN KOEVERDEN named to Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame: Class of 2022. “Never been prouder to be Canadian,” he said of the news. Nova Scotia Premier TIM HOUSTON at Canada House in London … Sen. DENISE BATTERS in the tulips … Conservative strategist JAMIE ELLERTON calling out STEVEN DEL DUCA for dropping a Liberal candidate who used a homophobic slur as a teenager. Bloc Québécois MP SIMON-PIERRE SAVARD-TREMBLAY, testing positive for Covid … Liberal MP YA’ARA SAKS dropping GEDDY LEE’s name as she recognized Jewish Heritage Month in the House. PABLO RODRIGUEZ, sitting down with Quebec City Mayor BRUNO MARCHAND … FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE, crossing paths in Berlin with Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister DMYTRO KULEBA. Media mentions: There was a celebration of JOHN HONDERICH Wednesday night in Toronto. Mayor JOHN TORY presented his family with a Key to the City posthumously. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU, SALLY ARMSTRONG and JANICE STEIN were among those in attendance. The Star’s FRANCINE KOPAN has the story.
| | Talk of the town | | Join us for real-life Playbook Trivia: Thursday, June 9 at the METROPOLITAIN in Ottawa! Festivities will get underway at 7 p.m. There will be special guests. There will be fierce competition. There will be drama. There will be bragging rights. Space will be limited, so gather your team and then send us an RSVP.
| | TRIVIA | | Thursday’s answer: The ugliest blight on Ottawa’s landscape, according to Ottawa Mayor JIM WATSON? Somerset House. Props to JOANNE MONTY, DOUG RICE, ALAN KAN, NOAH RICHARDSON, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, MICHAEL SUNG, GEORGE YOUNG, GREG MACEACHERN, PATRICK DION, BEN ROTH, JENN KEAY, LORENZO O. GRANDINI and NICK MASCIANTONIO. Friday’s question: Who came up with the idea for the Canadian Tulip Festival? 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. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |  |
