Face of Nation : It’s an attempt by those who practice new year’s resolutions to swear off alcohol for the first month of the year. Not that I want to fulfil stereotypes, but as a journalist, I’ve never been successful in doing a full dry month.
Just for fun, I often joke around with some of the producers at Power & Politics, that I’m going to do dry July, or dry August, which we have dubbed “draugust.” Why is it a joke? Because the producer I always pledge to do it with doesn’t drink.
The campaign is not officially on yet, but party leaders are travelling the country, with war rooms plotting schedules for what will be a very busy few months.
Where they go, and why, will say a lot about what each party sees as the strengths and weaknesses that lie ahead. One issue that did get a lot of attention this week, is the resignation of Canada’s ambassador in Washington.
American lawmakers have not yet ratified the deal. Democrats want changes to the pact, and don’t want to give Donald Trump a legislative win. The Liberals will campaign on the fact they were able to keep the deal alive, despite Donald Trump repeatedly threatening to kill the agreement.
If they are able to win re-election, expect the Liberals to continue quietly lobbying U.S. lawmakers to ratify the deal, so it can finally be put to bed.
Though the Conservatives have criticized NAFTA 2.0, arguing that the new agreement is not as good for Canada as the original pact, the plan for Andrew Scheer and his team is to support the agreement as is.
“The new NAFTA is simply not good enough for Canadians in its current form,” wrote NDP trade critic Tracey Ramsey in a statement this past spring. “The NDP believes we should wait and give the U.S. Congress the time they need to improve the deal. Working people should not pay the price for bad negotiations.” she said.
Democrats in the U.S. are demanding changes, specifically to the length of patent protections, as a way to lower drug prices. It is something Canada agrees with, though the Trudeau government’s official position is that it does not support re-opening the deal, since it could mean other aspects of the agreement are tinkered with.Shortly after the announcement, then NDP leader Tom Mulcair set off on an anti-TPP whistle-stop tour, visiting a half- dozen cities in southern Ontario.
