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A new Forum Research poll shows the Ontario Liberals have crept up in popularity. They are now just ahead of the NDP. Both are still far behind the Tories. Queen's Park analyst Robert Fisher talks about what might be behind the latest jump in pubic support for Kathleen Wynne's Ontario Liberal party.

Fisher spoke with theCBC'sConradCollacoabout the new poll and the decision by Ontario NDP Deputy Leader Jagmeet Singh to run for the leadership of the federal party to replace Tom Mulcair.Listen to the full interview by clicking the image at the top of the page, or read an edited and abridged transcript below.

Veteran political analyst Robert Fisher delivers his insights into Ontario politics every two weeks. (CBC)

AForum Research poll done May 9thfound the Conservatives in the lead with 41 percent support, followed by the Liberals at 28 and the NDP at 23.It was a change from a March poll that showed the Liberalsin third place.Why do you think the Liberals have rebounded?

It's a snapshot in time. If they were to take a poll today who knows what the numbers might be. Considering the timing of the poll, taken right after the budget, you must say the numbers must in some way reflect the budget. The poll found that there was "major support" for the Liberal pharmacare plan and for the expansion of rent control. These numbers are a long way away from the numbers in the Forum March poll. The question now is can the government continue what appears to be upward movement. Even senior Liberals will acknowledge privately that there is a long, hard road back to the top for Kathleen Wynne.

This week at Queen's Park news came of a leaked report saying rates will skyrocket in 2022.The Liberals say it's an old document.NDP Leader AndreaHorwathcalled for the legislature to sit for an extra week to address the issue. Why are we still waiting for the Liberals to pass the cut in hydro rates they've been promising for months?

If you have a majority government you can do what you want. Earlier in the week the budget was passed. The government used its majority. They could do the same with hydro. There will be more public hearings next week on hydro and maybe the whole plan is not yet put together. The opposition asked and asked and asked all weekfor cost numbers on the hydro plan but they were never delivered while the governmentdenied the numbers in the leaked report.

At some point the hydro plan is going to be in place because the government is absolutely committed to having a 24 percent rate cut in place by thesummer. If you're Kathleen Wynne and have a 15 percent approval rating it's a promise you'd better keep.

If this legislation doesn't get passed before the summer breakwill the Liberals pay for that delay?

Yes and no. At some point the government will pass it. Andrea Horwath tried and failed to get the legislature to sit an extra week. It's not that the opposition is against cutting rates. The opposition has long called for rate cuts. They are concernedthat if we have a cut now what will happen after the next election, say four years from now after the next election.The public hearings will answer some questions and the government will provide more details at some point but ultimately the plan will go ahead.

How are the party leaders doing in the polls?

For the Liberalsthe long road back to the top includes dealing with Kathleen Wynne'spopularity. At 15 percent approval that's a problem when we are about a year from an election. The disapproval of Kathleen Wynneis at 70 percent, sort of historic highs. Patrick Brown and Andrea Horwath have more positives than negatives. They are pretty close together in the category of who would make the best premier.The poll also indicates that both are still, for many people in Ontario, largely unknown. They have some work to do.

In partial defence of the two opposition leaders historically Ontarians don't pay a lot of attention to provincial politics between elections. While Ms. Horwath has been around for a long time it would be a concern to both parties thatthere is a lack of identifiability particularly for Patrick Brown. Lots of work for them to do between now and June 2018.

One other change at Queen's Park this week was the announcement by now former NDP deputy leader Jagmeet Singh that he's running for the federal NDP leadership.How do you see that affecting the provincial NDP?

I don't see this as Mr. Singh abandoning Andrea Horwath in her hour of need. He had flirted with the federal party before. In 2015 there was a lot of talk he would be a candidate. Instead he stayed at Queen's Park and was offered and accepted a role as deputy leader.He's going to keep his seat as an MPP for Bramalea-Gore-Maltonand should he fail I've been told he'll run provincially. If Ms. Horwath fails to bring her party at least to official opposition in the next election she is probably going to be history. Guess who will be there to seek the provincial party leadership. None other than JagmeetSingh. He's collected many IOU's, politically speaking, in Ontario and other provinces as well. He thinks long range and maybe he's got his eyes on the first prize in Ottawa and prize 1A at Queen's Park.

He has already affected the federal race in that he is a candidate who is very different from the others who are there including wearing the turban, the custom-made suits, the appearance in Gentleman's Quarterly Magazine not too many New Democrat candidates appear in Gentleman's Quarterly Magazine.

Mr Singh is very interesting guy. He is fluently bilingual. My Francophone friends tell me his French is more than passable. He campaigned for the NDP in Alberta and in the last B.C. election. He's well known in Ontario in his role as deputy leader. He's going to make a difference in the campaign. He might not win but he'll raise his profile.

Another interesting note on his resume He's a trained mixed-marital arts fighter in Brazilian jiu-jitsuas well...

Yes. He'dbe up against the boxer in Justin Trudeau. Boxing over jiu-jitsu or jiu-jitsu over boxing? Nevertheless, he's all of that and more. That makes him an interesting and unique candidate in any race he's in.

Jagmeet Singh is a lawyer and deputy leader of the Ontario NDP. He speaks French and Punjabi and has represented a Brampton riding in the provincial legislature since 2011. (Mike Crawley/CBC)

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Guess who's back Liberals rise in latest Ontario politics poll: Fisher - CBC.ca

Dont get your hopes up about impeaching President Donald Trump.

Sorry to be a Debbie Downer during a week in which we all watched with semi-horrified delight at the increasingly speedy political suicide of Trump and his people. But no matter how much treachery he manufactures, the congressional Republicans will never, ever impeach him. Even given his latest series of unforgivable crimes, including obstruction of justice, abuse of power and flagrantly betraying our intelligence partners, the GOP doesnt care. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell especially doesnt care no matter how much the Democrats scream on the floor of the Senate, he doesnt care.

The only possible route for Trump to be ousted from the presidency is for him to voluntarily resign. Certainly, Republican leadership could ultimately coax him in that direction, as they did with Richard Nixon. But we have no indication whatsoever that Trump, unlike Nixon, really cares about what his party whether that means McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan or the rest of the Trumpian enablers on Capitol Hill has to say.

While there will certainly be sane Republicans who will flirt with the impeachment option, getting our hopes up only to be dashed, there wont be nearly enough to generate a successful vote in the House. Worse, the Senate Republicans under McConnell will never vote to convict him. Ever. The requirement for two-thirds of the Senate to vote guilty would currently require 19 Republicans to vote with every single Democrat (plus the two independents). For the sake of reference:During the denouement of President Bill Clintons impeachment, the Republicans managed to whip only45 votes to convict on one count, and 50 votes on another. Not even close.

Reality aside, Trump damn well should be impeached immediately.

At the very least, there should be more outrage right now significantly more. There should be viral impeachment scuttlebutt inside nearly every D.C. corridor of power over the fact that Trump allowed two high-level members of a foreign government, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and ambassador (and reputed spy recruiter) Sergey Kislyak, into the Oval Office. The meeting was subsequently photographed, showing the president palling around and laughing with the Russians. Compare this to Trumps chilly summit with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who, by the way, is being heralded as the de facto leader of the free world during the Trump crisis. All this despite the nearly incontrovertible fact that Russia deliberately tried to undermine our most sacred democratic institution: our presidential election.

For the sake of argument, forget collusion. Forget whom the Russians were fighting for. We know almost for certain that the Kremlin is waging an undeclared cyberwar against the United States. This is abundantly obvious. Its a war that continues now, as you read these words. Its not difficult to grasp that the mission of the war is to illustrate to the world the vulnerability of American constitutional democracy. And its working.

This cant be repeated enough: Were engaged in a new kind of war against Russia, with the commander in chief as well as millions of unwitting Americans serving as enemy combatants. We were attacked bottom line.

Yet in the tsunami of coverage this week and last about the Russians and especially now that weve learned Trump blabbed highly classified intelligence to Lavrov and Kislyak within apparent earshot of a TASS photographer during the meeting its been more or less overlooked that Trump welcomed enemy agents into the Oval Office. While there, they appeared to interact with the president of the United States like old college buddies the troika of co-conspirators with their unnaturally purple faces contorted in laughter, as if they had just finished telling their favorite fart jokes.

Youre probably old enough to remember how former President Barack Obama was excoriated by Fox News and the networks sugar daddies in the GOP when he was spotted saluting a Marine while holding a cup of coffee in the same hand. Remember the notorious tan suit? Remember when far-right bloggers learned Obama liked arugula salads and gherkins in his egg salad? Remember when Obama was caught chewing gum? Jesus H. Christ Trump met with an undeclared enemy of the U.S. and exactly nothing has been reported indicating that Trump even mentioned the cyberattacks, much less scolded the Russians to their bloated faces. We know why, of course. We dont, however, know why there isnt more public outcry about the very existence of the meeting, given the war.

In the age of Trump, its easy to miss the forest for the trees. There are so many layers of corruption being piled onto the slag heap that its nearly impossible to keep track of everything with only the most egregious offenses gurgling to the surface. In this case, however, the gigantic Cyrillic gorilla in the room is that Russia is at war against America, and Trump doesnt care. He doesnt care about stopping it. He doesnt care if hes seen palling around with the enemy. He doesnt care about saying anything to Lavrov, Kislyak or Putin because he thinks they like him and our desperately lonely president loves anyone who pretends to like him. On top of everything else, Trump is actively trying to obstruct the investigation into the extent of the attacks by firing acting Attorney General Sally Yates, New York U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and FBI Director James Comey. (Check your Twitter feed: There mighthave been another firing while youre reading this.)

Again, the best we can hope for is that Trump will fire himself. Look to the end of the Nixon presidency, by way of the end of Sarah Palins governorship. Hell, Im sure Fox News would be thrilled to have him take over the Steve Doocy spot on Fox & Friends, and Im almost certain Trump would enjoy that gig more than the one hehas. But we need to ask ourselves why anyone, regardless of party, would support a president who so flagrantly gave aid and comfort to the enemy. Maybe Robert Mueller, the special counsel appointed on Wednesday to oversee the Trump-Russia investigation, will tell us more. As forimpeachment I wouldnt hold my breath.

Read the rest here:
Cool your jets, liberals: The impeachment of Donald Trump is a ... - Salon

Coulter Counters CNN: 'Liberals Are Violent Animals' CNSNews.com (blog) Conservative pundit Ann Coulter blasted CNN Correspondent Jake Tapper for his attack on President Donald Trump on Wednesday. In a commencement speech at the Coast Guard Academy in Groton, Conn., Trump cited himself as an example of someone ... and more »

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Coulter Counters CNN: 'Liberals Are Violent Animals' - CNSNews.com (blog)

The federal Liberals are looking to push more of the billions they plan to spend on infrastructure in the next decade directly into flood mitigation, hoping to avoid repeats of disasters in Quebec and Ontario this month.

Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi said the idea the Liberals will promote to provinces, territories and cities is to agree to spend the money over and above the $2 billion already set aside to help local governments defend against natural disasters like fire and flooding.

The move could potentially save the government hundreds of millions annually in disaster relief payments, which are expected to rise over the coming years.

In a report last year, the parliamentary budget officer estimated that payments through the disaster financial assistance arrangements could increase to more than $900 million a year over the next five years, including $673 million a year for flooding. Both costs are well above past averages paid out from the fund.

Through funding agreements with provinces and territories, Sohi said the government wants to negotiate language around dedicating resources towards flood mitigation and other disasters.

Its a concern and we definitely want to have those conversations with provinces and territories.

The push for more disaster funding will be part of what Sohi calls a green lens that local, provincial and territorial governments will use on proposed infrastructure projects before they can be approved for federal funding.

Sohi said the lens puts the focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions during and after construction, as well as mitigating the impact of severe weather to reduce the cost of disasters on communities.

Not only the human cost and the pain, the anxiety that it causes and the disruption of life for people, but also the economic cost to clean up afterward and the impact on the overall economy. This is part of our broader infrastructure plan.

Sohi made the comments during a roundtable interview this week with The Canadian Press.

The green lens will be part of the second phase of the Liberals infrastructure plan, which is to dole out $81.2 billion on new, large-scale projects in cities and provinces over the next 10 years.

The money will flow only after provinces and territories sign funding agreements with the federal government, which will take months to conclude because of the size and scope of the plan.

The Liberals are banking on the infrastructure spending to prod economic growth to help boost federal finances that have been plunged into years of deficits partly because of the infrastructure plan.

Federal officials have been wrestling with how to frame the requirements in the upcoming funding agreements to make sure the money spurs more projects, known as incrementality in federal parlance, and not have provinces and cities replace planned spending with federal dollars.

Internal government documents show that municipalities in Ontario in particular have pushed the government to recognize their long-term capital plans as meeting the federal requirement for incrementality.

A January briefing note to Sohi ahead of a meeting with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario recommended the minister reiterate the governments position that federal funding should not have the unintended negative consequences of displacing investment by the provinces or municipalities over time.

The Canadian Press obtained a copy of the document under the Access to Information Act.

Sohi said the Liberals may provide some flexibility in the funding to allow for refurbishment projects, rather than new builds.

Under Phase 2, the long-term plan, we will be supporting more new infrastructure. There will be some flexibility to rehabilitate the existing infrastructure, but these will be new plans or plans that they (cities) have in place, but there is no funding attached to it. These will be the new projects that we will fund.

Originally posted here:
Liberals want to put infrastructure cash into flood mitigation: Sohi - The Globe and Mail

OTTAWA Federal Conservatives will seek today to find out why a request for $3.8 million a year to help families with autism is being ignored by the Liberals.

The Tories are set to use time set aside for opposition motions to call on the government to come through with moneyfor the Canadian Autism Partnership.

The funding would be used for a more co-ordinated approach to research, early detection, diagnosis and treatment for the estimated 1 in 68 Canadian kids with the neurological disorder.

The Liberals had received a pitch for the cash $19 million over five years ahead of this year's budget, but turned it down much to the disappointment of autism advocates and affected families.

Among them is Conservative MP Mike Lake, whose son has autism, and who has raised the issue in the Commons repeatedly over the years.

In the House of Commons Wednesday, he pressed the Liberals anew but Health Minister Jane Philpott said the government already supports autism research.

"One of the best ways that the federal government can support advancements in autism spectrum disorders is to support research and we have done so in a significant way," she said.

The day the Tories are using to pressure the Liberals on the subject is called an "opposition motion" in official Parliamentary parlance. The motions are often used to push the government to come around to the Opposition's point of view.

But it's not the only pressure Lake and others are applying.

Their campaign is also been helped by an advocacy group called Global Citizen, which uses social media to try and convince governments to act on social issues.

The group put out a call to action on the autism partnership and thousands of tweets have followed, directed at both Philpott and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Among those lending their name to the cause are Hockey Night in Canada's Elliotte Freidmen andhockey star Hayley Wickenheiser.

While the Conservative motion will be debated today, it not expected to be voted on until the Commons returns from a one-week break on May 29.

The Canadian Press

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Conservatives merge old, new tactics to pressure Liberals over autism funding - rdnewsnow.com