He hailed it as dawn of the Liberal "meet the moment" era, an eye-rolling slogan of unclear meaning introduced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last week as his party’s challenge for the parliamentary year ahead.
While sitting in an overcrowded hospital waiting room Monday waiting for a preventative checkup, I watched the year’s first question period on overhead monitors. I wanted to see if this government was indeed refreshing itself to confront a daunting list of issues, clearly topped by our ailing health-care system.
But that moment passed as our health and Canada’s underperforming care failed to rate even a mention from the Official Opposition leader or his parliamentary parrots.
The patients in the module with me were left looking at their watches to see how late their oncologist appointments were running. Meanwhile the funding fix for another generation faced zero parliamentary pressure beyond an NDP attack on the private delivery of publicly funded care.
(Former and perhaps future Green Party leader Elizabeth May has an interesting stake in this debate. She has been unable to find a family doctor for basic preventive care in her B.C. riding. So while the public might think MPs have easy, if not preferential, access to care, here we have one of Canada’s best-known MPs languishing on a waitlist with her husband, unable to find a physician to obtain necessary testing for her age group. But I digress.)
Beyond not meeting the health-care moment, Trudeau went on to use his first 2023 parliamentary appearance to serve up hefty helpings of cold rehash, a veritable Groundhog Day buffet of bland and babbled repetition.
The moment to meet spending restraint is clearly upon us, what with recessionary warnings from the Bank of Canada governor and spending alarms from a former governor as the deficit-driven national debt balloons to $1.1 trillion amid uncertain revenue. But Trudeau’s response was to pledge his vague willingness to spend whatever it takes to continue coddling Canadians.
Meanwhile, Conservatives decided their moment for Trudeau was a dozen-question blitz demanding to be told the value of consulting contracts awarded to McKinsey and Co. where former boss Dominic Barton is a friend. Alas, there was no meeting of minds across the aisle as the prime minister delivered a vintage Trudeau response. He simply pretended he didn’t hear or comprehend the question.
And it went on and on, an hour of moments-unmet, questions unanswered and shotguns filled with cheap shots from a prime minister and cabinet reaching back in time for low-calibre ammunition.
He repeatedly, for example, listed his government priority as being one of helping the middle class and those who want to join it, as if that line was somehow new instead of recycled from 2015.
On at least two occasions he delivered an answer to the McKinsey question by stretching back to reference the Canada Child Benefit as his government’s signature helping hand accomplishment. That benefit, by the way, was implemented in 2016.
And he kept trumpeting dental care for kids as the latest grand Liberal scheme, a galling gloat given it was the NDP which forcing that support onto his government’s agenda.
Of course, there will be major moments to come which he can’t help but meet, like it or not.
The cost of subsidies to match massive U.S. inducements for climate change industries to move south, the looming health care accord, the deep hole for military procurement and the need to transition oil workers to new industries are challenging clouds on the fiscal horizon.
Yet while the Conservative “Canada feels broken” slogan is not exactly a ray of brilliant communications sunshine, it better reflects the perception of worried voters than an updated sunny-ways catchphrase dreamed up in a kumbaya focus-group undoubtedly paid for by taxpayers.
Based on Trudeau’s first-day fail in the House of Commons, “meeting the moment” is destined to become the most laughable slogan since the elder Pierre Trudeau’s disastrous campaign rallying cry in 1972, which insisted “the land is strong” just as the economy tanked.
So far, Trudeau has meekly met his big moments with a duck, a dodge and selective deafness.
That’s the bottom line.
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
U.S President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have announced updates on a number of cross-border issues, after a day of meetings on Parliament Hill.
More than 130,000 people have signed an e-petition calling on Canada to give transgender and non-binary people fleeing harmful laws in their home countries the right to claim asylum, but that's already possible in this country. Advocates say the popularity of the proposal shows politicians that Canadians want the government to affirm its welcoming position.
The Public Order Emergency Commission has concluded that the federal government met the threshold for invoking the Emergencies Act to bring an end to the 'Freedom Convoy' protests and blockades.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
The only thing most Canadians will remember about the budget this time next week is how the booze tax increase was reduced to two per cent from six, writes Don Martin in a column for CTVNews.ca.
Joe Biden comes for a sleepover next week to make Canada the 18th country he has visited since being sworn in as U.S. president, quite the protocol slippage from that fading, if not forgotten, tradition of Canada being the first foreign presidential pitstop, writes Don Martin in a column for CTVNews.ca.
After weeks of refusing to look further into foreign election interference, Justin Trudeau surrendered to intense pressure and appointed a 'special rapporteur' to review China's actions. In his exclusive column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin writes this 'startling change of heart' suggests the PMO is in panic mode and reflects badly on the prime minister's decision making.
The Trudeau tipping point is within sight. The moment when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau knows he has to quit for the good of the party or the Liberals realize they can't survive re-election with him at the helm is almost upon us, Don Martin writes in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
Bombshell revelations that suggest Chinese agents actively, fraudulently and successfully manipulated Canada's electoral integrity in the last two federal elections cannot be dismissed with the standard Justin Trudeau nothing-to-see-here shrug, Don Martin writes in his exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year.
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
A long list of failures by Nova Scotia RCMP leadership and policing systems dominate the final report into Nova Scotia's April 2020 mass shooting.
When it comes to election misinformation on social media, Facebook takes the cake, according to a new study which found heavy Facebook users were far more likely to consume fake news than Twitter or other social media sites.
Gwyneth Paltrow won her court battle over a 2016 ski collision at a posh Utah ski resort after a jury decided Thursday that the movie star wasn't at fault for the crash.
This Sunday, NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will announce the four astronauts that will be blasting off to fly around the moon for the Artemis II mission, one of whom will be a Canadian astronaut.
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
Four of the Vancouver police officers involved in the violent 2015 arrest of Myles Gray – which ended with the 33-year-old dying in handcuffs – claim they were directed by their union not to keep notes about what happened, in violation of department policy.
A proposed class-action lawsuit over infamous brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital was before Quebec's highest court Thursday, as victims attempted to remove immunity granted to the United States government.
The federal government now expects far more Canadians with long-overdue dental needs to sign up for its insurance plan, and the health minister says that's why the estimated cost has risen by $7 billion.
A long list of failures by Nova Scotia RCMP leadership and policing systems dominate the final report into Nova Scotia's April 2020 mass shooting.
Two-and-a-half years after it was established, Nova Scotia’s Mass Casualty Commission has recommended sweeping changes to everything from gun control to mental health services, although there’s no guarantee any will ever be implemented.
Turkiye's parliament on Thursday ratified Finland's application to join NATO, lifting the last hurdle in the way of the Nordic country's long-delayed accession into the Western military alliance.
Every day, hundreds of people are taken into law enforcement custody in New York City. Former President Donald Trump is expected to become one of them next week.
As Taiwan's diplomatic partners dwindle and turn instead to rival China, Taiwanese President President Tsai Ing-wen is aiming to shore up ties with the self-governing island's remaining allies during a trip this week to Central America.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year.
A new government study highlights just how violent America's recent past has been by showing a surge in gunfire injuries during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the number of people fatally shooting each other -- and themselves -- also increased.
Nashville authorities released 911 calls Thursday that capture the terror inside an elementary school during the attack this week that left three children and three adults dead.
Ottawa Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the residence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's national security adviser, the second such incident involving one of his top aides in recent months.
Gun policy comments made by then-RCMP commissioner Brenda Lucki in a contentious call to Nova Scotia RCMP officers after the mass shooting in 2020 did not amount to political interference, the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) final report concludes.
The federal government now expects far more Canadians with long-overdue dental needs to sign up for its insurance plan, and the health minister says that's why the estimated cost has risen by $7 billion.
The federal government now expects far more Canadians with long-overdue dental needs to sign up for its insurance plan, and the health minister says that's why the estimated cost has risen by $7 billion.
The B.C. government's bid to restrict the sale of diabetes drug Ozempic to prevent non-Canadian residents draining supplies was the right move and a long time coming, says Brett Skinner, founder and CEO of the Canadian Health Policy Institute.
When the doors close at night at the administration office at Yukon's Carcross Tagish First Nation, a van hits the road and drives through the communities to offer naloxone to reverse overdoses, drug testing kits, food and even a friendly face to help those struggling because of the opioid crisis.
New research suggests the classic image of a Tyrannosaurus rex with massive, sharp teeth might be wrong. A study in the journal Science suggests the teeth on a T. rex was likely covered by scaly lips and didn't stick out when its mouth was closed.
An ultramassive black hole, understood to be one of the largest ever detected, has been discovered by astronomers using a new technique.
When it comes to election misinformation on social media, Facebook takes the cake, according to a new study which found heavy Facebook users were far more likely to consume fake news than Twitter or other social media sites.
Gwyneth Paltrow won her court battle over a 2016 ski collision at a posh Utah ski resort after a jury decided Thursday that the movie star wasn't at fault for the crash.
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
Camila Cabello credits the strong women in her life for her success as an artist and a person. So it was only natural that she was there to celebrate her grandmother's milestone -- the publication of a novel.
Just a week after Airbnb tightened regulations for Quebec listings following a deadly fire, hosts may already be bending the rules. Airbnb now requires its hosts to provide a six-digit policy number with their listing, obtained when a tourist lodging is registered with the provincial government. But a scroll through the Airbnb website suggests users are falsifying their permit numbers to sneak past the authentication process.
The European Union must be prepared to develop measures to protect trade and investment that China might exploit for its own security and military purposes, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned on Thursday.
For nearly a year, the average used vehicle in the United States had been edging toward affordable again for millions of people. Now, with the supply of used vehicles failing to keep up with robust demand, prices are creeping up again, with signs pointing to further increases ahead.
A scientist at CAMH says video games have similar addictive features to gambling which cause social isolation of the individual and dependency on the activity.
Researchers believe the availability of non-alcoholic drinks can help to combat drinking problems.
On March 30, 1923, exactly 100 years ago, the world's first continuous passenger cruise ship arrived back in New York City after completing a 130-day voyage.
Marcus Stroman committed baseball's first regular-season pitch-clock violation in the third inning of the Chicago Cubs' 4-0 victory over Milwaukee on Thursday on opening day.
Tiger Woods returns to the Masters, no longer a surprise as it was a year ago but no less a rare appearance. This will be only his third tournament against elite competition since he remarkably hobbled his way through 72 holes at Augusta National.
Ryan Reynolds spent the day in Ottawa as he continues his efforts to buy the Senators, meeting with officials from the city of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission and attending the Senators game.
For nearly a year, the average used vehicle in the United States had been edging toward affordable again for millions of people. Now, with the supply of used vehicles failing to keep up with robust demand, prices are creeping up again, with signs pointing to further increases ahead.
Closing out a half century of purely gasoline-powered V12 cars going back to the brand's earliest models, Luxury Italian sports car designer Lamborghini has unveiled its first supercar with a charging port.
After claiming his 100th podium in Saudi Arabia in confusing and controversial circumstances, Fernando Alonso is looking for a better result at Sunday's Australian Grand Prix than his two third-place finishes so far this Formula One season.
