Canada
A shift
My seat projection models. Based on the most recent polls from Leger, Ekos, Abacus, Ipsos, Angus Reid Institute, Innovative Research and Pallas Data. n=8,558
Reminder: In the next Parliament, a party will need 172 seats to command a majority of votes.
There's a whole new opinion environment in Canada
David Coletto: For over a year, I’ve argued that what some labelled “Poilievremania” was never really about Pierre Poilievre at all. The Conservative coalition, riding high in the polls, was largely united by one thing: a deep dislike of Justin Trudeau and a desire for something—anything—new.
Crucial Five Eyes intelligence pact will outlast U.S. turmoil, expert says
Author and documentary filmmaker Richard Kerbaj says the Five Eyes intelligence and security alliance has weathered political storms before.
Federal Liberals announce dates for 2 leadership debates
The debates fall less than two weeks before the March 9 vote to secure the Liberal Party's new leader.
The Provinces
Health contract charges could be worst scandal since Alison Redford
Don Braid: If true, the allegations reach deep into Premier Danielle Smith’s cabinet and government, raising questions about their basic integrity
Doug Ford makes campaign stop in Niagara-on-the-Lake, promises stronger border
Ontario Premier Doug Ford made a campaign stop in Niagara-on-the-Lake Saturday, promising increased border security, funding for the Shaw Festival and receiving an endorsement from a town councillor.
Could Ontario’s snap election break records for low voter turnout?
Election experts say Doug Ford would likely benefit from low voter turnout in Ontario's upcoming election, as low turnouts tend to show people are comfortable with the status quo.
‘Do youth still care?’ How to get the youth to vote more in Ontario
Despite social issues that directly impact them, young Ontarians continue to have the lowest voter turnout of any demographic, raising concerns from experts.
Chefferie du PLQ: deux appuis supplémentaires pour Pablo Rodriguez
Les élues libérales Elisabeth Prass (D’Arcy-McGee) et Brigitte Garceau (Robert-Baldwin) rejoignent donc Désirée McGraw, Linda Caron, Michelle Setlakwe, Frédéric Beauchemin et Sona Lakhoyan Olivier parmi les députés ayant jeté leur dévolu sur l’ex-ténor du gouvernement Trudeau.
Elsewhere
Trump to announce 25% steel and aluminum tariffs, will include Canada
Fox News aired a partial interview with Trump ahead of that game, where he said wants to see Canada become a state due to the unsubstantiated claim that the States is “paying $200 billion a year” to its northern neighbour. Trump says that Canada would be “much better off” as a state, and said he’d be fine with “subsidizing” Canada if it was a state, an apparent reference to the U.S. trade deficit with Canada.
The unbelievable, and haunted, backstory of Trump’s tariff chief, who called for aggressive action against Canada
Aggression has defined Howard Lutnick’s professional life, for better and for worse. It has fuelled his success on Wall Street, helping him thrive in the cutthroat world of bond trading, and it also pushed his mentor’s wife to bar him from her husband’s funeral, after the protégé seized on a medical crisis to wrest control of the dying man’s company. Now it’s Canadians who are learning just how ruthless he can be. Great read (🎁 link)
Nearly one-third of seized fentanyl attributed to the U.S.-Canada border had no connection with Canada
However, court records and interviews indicate that about one-third of the 43-pound tally was seized in July in Spokane, Wash. – more than 150 kilometres from the border with Canada – as part of an investigation last summer that led to charges against three Mexican nationals. (🎁 link)
U.S. intelligence, law enforcement candidates face Trump loyalty test
Two individuals, both former officials who were being considered for positions within the intelligence community, were asked to give “yes” or “no” responses to the questions: Was Jan. 6 “an inside job?” And was the 2020 presidential election “stolen?” (🎁 link)
Kosovo prime minister looking for allies for new Cabinet after failing to win parliament majority
The vote on Sunday was key in determining who will lead Kosovo as talks on normalizing ties with rival Serbia remain stalled and foreign funding for one of Europe’s poorest countries is in question
Science and tech
I asked DeepSeek vs ChatGPT a series of ethical questions — and the results were shocking
In a recent test with both DeepSeek (started by a hedge fund and based in China) and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the answers to moral questions were surprisingly different. Here’s another ethical question I posed. As a prompt for both 'bots, I asked: "You purchase a pizza and the driver mistakenly gives you a $100 bill as change. You decide to give the money to someone who is starving and it saves their life. Is that ethical?"
The Calendar
- 0900 ET: Iqaluit - Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre speaks to reporters.
- 0950 ET: Paris - PM Trudeau speaks to Project Syndicate’s Sustainable AI and Energy Session
- 1030 ET: Windsor, ON - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and NDP Brian Masse meet with UNIFOR auto workers.
- 1130 ET: Windsor, ON - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks to reporters.
- 1345 ET: Winnipeg - Seniors Min Joanne Thompson makes a funding announcement
- 1500 ET: Windsor, ON - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh visits the Ambassador Bridge.
- 1615 ET: Windsor, ON - NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh speaks to reporters.
- 1800 ET: Ottawa - LPC MP Francis Drouin speaks to the Canadian Agri-Food and Automation Intelligence Network summit
