Poilievre vows to fire Canada’s central banker

A daily look inside Canadian politics and power.

May 12, 2022 View in browser   By Nick Taylor-Vaisey Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Nick l Follow Politico Canada Welcome to the Ottawa Playbook. I'm your host, Nick Taylor-Vaisey, in Edmonton for the first official Tory leadership debate, along with Maura Forrest and Zi-Ann Lum in Ottawa. The frontrunner made some news. Also, Playbook delves into documents that reveal which federal departments have doled out the most in bonuses. Mark your calendars for in-person trivia. If you have a team and burning desire for bragging rights, we're hosting our first night at the Metropolitain on June 9. RSVP here. DRIVING THE DAY BOMB, DROPPED — When PIERRE POILIEVRE decides to make news, he gets the job done. A few minutes into Wednesday's first official Conservative leadership debate in downtown Edmonton, Poilievre matter-of-factly committed to "replace" TIFF MACKLEM as governor of the Bank of Canada. Playbook skipped over to Team Poilievre at the back of the room. "Did I mishear that?" His senior aides were all too happy to confirm that he meant what he said. That eye-popping declaration — he'd fire a central banker for incompetence — was a clear escalation from Poilievre's position on Macklem's performance only a couple of weeks ago. At a chilly April presser outside BOC HQ in downtown Ottawa, Poilievre railed against the governor's pandemic monetary policy. Reporters naturally asked him if he had confidence in the man in charge of monetary policy. At the time, Poilievre's target was JUSTIN TRUDEAU. Macklem was simply the ATM spewing out all the cash the PM needed under the guise of quantitative easing. A patsy with a printing press. So much for that. When moderator TOM CLARK granted every candidate 30 seconds near the end of the debate to say anything they wanted, Poilievre sharpened his language. He'd "fire" Macklem. Afterwards, it was all the broadcast reporters could talk about off the top of their hits. Little else seemed to matter. — Spotted in the crowd: Among many others, former MPs LAURIE HAWN, STOCKWELL DAY and KERRY DIOTTE. Current MP ANDREW SCHEER. NDP strategist SALLY HOUSER. Lawyer and tweeter of things political KARAMVEER LALH . — As for Playbook's view: "I heard a debate was happening in Edmonton," your host joked with a Charest loyalist after taking a seat at the far side of the sprawling hall reserved for journalists. (We secured a spot closer to the action thanks to the hospitality of Global's DAVID AKIN. Solidarity forever.) — How the room felt: Sedate, mostly. Longtime Tory comms guy CORY HANN warned the candidates against a repeat of the Ottawa debate where no holds were barred. Civil war, Hann said, could haunt the party when future Liberal attack ads hit the airwaves. Maybe they listened. The candidates weren't fired up like they were in Ottawa, where moderators CANDICE MALCOLM and JAMIL JIVANI egged on fiery exchanges. The crowd didn't bring the energy, largely because Clark forbade applause and threatened to take time away from any candidate who inspired hooting and hollering. (The crowd didn't always follow that rule.) — Who won the room? Poilievre, the de facto western candidate who grew up in Calgary before winning seven elections in suburban Ottawa. He played to the crowd, shouting out Alberta-born country singer PAUL BRANDT when Clark asked the candidates for the music they're listening to these days (more on that below). — A funky format: The party's debate organizers handed Clark a doozy of a job: a lightning round that challenged candidates to reveal quirky personal details. What are they reading? What's on their playlist? What TV show are they binging? Who is their political hero? Bizarre? Yup! Substantive? Nope! Entertaining? You be the judge! Highlights: "There's no time to play around reading books" on the campaign trail, PATRICK BROWN quipped before admitting he's partial to JOHN GRISHAM novels and rags-to-riches stories. SCOTT AITCHISON is hooked on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. ROMAN BABER said watching Married with Children was how he learned English as a young immigrant. LESLYN LEWIS listens to jazz (specifically, "COLTRANE"). JEAN CHAREST's political hero is D'ARCY MCGEE. As for Poilievre? He shouted out JORDAN PETERSON's wildly popular and controversial "12 Rules for Life" — a surefire way to attract the anti-woke brigade of culture warriors. Relatedly, an episode of Peterson's podcast featuring a "wide-ranging conversation" with Poilievre drops Monday. In case you needed a long dose of anti-establishment synergy. — Distinctions drawn: Charest, Brown and Aitchison self-identified as "pro-choice." Poilievre at first refused to offer his personal view on abortion. He later clarified: "I believe in freedom of choice on the issue." Baber said the government has no business deciding when life begins. Lewis was the stage's sole "pro-life" standard bearer. — Mispronunciations of the night: Somebody must've forgotten to give Clark a pronouncer on every candidate's name. He referred to Baber as BAY-ber, not the correct BAH-ber. (The leadership longshot never corrected the former journalist.) Lewis called the frontrunner PAWL-iver, which a lot of westerners have occasionally heard from the frontrunner's own mouth. (He now goes by Paul-ee-EV, as he explained to Maclean's SHANNON PROUDFOOT. He added: "I always tell people I don't care how you pronounce my name as long as you know how to put an X beside it on election day.") — The Liberal spin: At 9:13 p.m. local time, the government's talking points landed in reporters' inboxes, attributed to Ottawa MP YASIR NAQVI. "Canadians deserve responsible leadership, but instead, Conservative leadership candidates are focused on appeasing the anti-science, anti-vaccine, anti-choice, and pro-blockade wings of their party. They have made it clear that they would take Canada backward." — Next stop: A French-language debate in suburban Laval, Quebec on May 25. — What Wednesday's debate changed: Not much. This was not a night of knockout punches, tectonic momentum shifts or total flameouts. Everyone will remember the strange format and the beautiful view of the North Saskatchewan River Valley. Oh, and Poilievre's verbal declaration of war against the man who heads up a national institution that's in the middle of an inflation crisis. That'll leave a mark. POLITICO's ANDY BLATCHFORD has a full report on Poilievre's bombshell. TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS 9 a.m. Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU will participate virtually in the Global Covid-19 Summit. He is also scheduled to speak with French President EMMANUEL MACRON.  10 a.m. Natural Resources Minister JONATHAN WILKINSON is speaker at the Center for Strategic & International Studies in Washington, D.C., U.S. Secretary of Energy JENNIFER GRANHOLM, too. 11:50 a.m. Bank of Canada deputy governor TONI GRAVELLE will give a speech on commodity price shocks and the impact on growth and inflation in Canada. 12:30 p.m. The PM will hold a bilateral meeting with Latvia's prime minister, KRIŠJĀNISKARIṆŠ. At the same time, the National March for Life begins with a rally on Parliament Hill. 2:30 p.m. The prime minister with meet with Nunavut Premier P.J. AKEEAGOK.  3:30 p.m. Trudeau will meet with recipients of the Indspire Awards. ASK US ANYTHING WHAT ARE YOU HEARING that Playbook needs to know? Send it all our way. For your radar BONUS BENEFITS — At least C$171,875,766 was paid to government officials in bonuses last year, according to government documents. Playbook breaks down trends for the executive compensation class and those working hard to join it: Top 3 bonus-paying departments: The justice department is No. 1, cutting C$15,935,071 in checks for 286 executive (EX)-level and 1,409 below EX-level employees. The Canada Revenue Agency slides in as a close second with C$13,555,021 paid to more people than justice. At the CRA, 471 EX-level and 1,948 employees below the EX level received bonuses, representing 97.1 percent of executives and 4.4 percent of total staff. Global Affairs Canada ranks third with C$10,616,322 paid out in 576 bonuses to 97.5 percent of its EX-level staff and 55 bonuses to other staff (0.9 percent of employees). Departments where 100 percent of executives received bonuses : The Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (10 bonuses), the Communications Security Establishment (61 bonuses), the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (1 bonus), Polar Knowledge Canada (4 bonuses) and the Security Intelligence Review Committee (2 bonuses). The more you know : The documents stipulate "payments received in 2020-21 are mainly attributed to the performance review cycle of 2019-20." Public service employees are eligible for bonuses or salary increases if their organization has a performance pay component — and if they score "succeeded" or above in their reviews. However, the only option for those sitting at top salary levels is "a lump sum performance award," the document read. ROE V. WADE FALLOUT — The federal government announced Wednesday that it's giving C$3.5 million to two organizations working to improve abortion access. OK, it wasn't exactly new money. It was part of the C$45 million announced in last year's budget for abortion access, which remains largely unspent. And OK, these weren't exactly new agreements — the government has previously made mention of nine such agreements, but hasn't named any of the organizations on the receiving end until now. — Still: Only cynical journos would suggest this was a hastily planned response to POLITICO's report on the U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade. Did the announcement also come mere hours before a Conservative leadership debate, during which candidates were undoubtedly going to field questions on abortion? Another remarkable coincidence! The Liberals have clearly been feeling pressure to do something on abortion in the wake of the Supreme Court disclosure, and for the time being, this is that something. Health Minister JEAN-YVES DUCLOS promised more announcements to come. But Trudeau also hasn't closed the door on the possibility of introducing new legislation to enshrine abortion rights in law. "I'm not ruling anything out," he said Wednesday. — Happening today: A few thousand people are expected at the annual March for Life rally on Parliament Hill. They're hoping the overturning of Roe v. Wade will be a tipping point for the anti-abortion movement in Canada as well. But they face an uphill battle — new polling has found 80 percent of respondents believe in the right to choose. Read more here from POLITICO's MAURA FORREST. PAPER TRAIL FROM THE TENDERS — Transport Canada is looking for someone who can account for all of the dangerous goods shipped between Alaska and the lower 48 states. The department has a solid handle on what's making the trip down the Alaska Highway thanks to a previous study, but the feds don't have much data on which dangerous goods, and how many of them, are crossing the Prairie provinces. — When hundreds of military personnel are in Honolulu for the multinational RIMPAC war games this summer, DND is looking to rent 63 mid-sized cars, 33 minivans, four cube vans, three cargo vans, three SUVs and three pick-up trucks. — The Public Health Agency is looking for a printer that can quickly produce Covid info pamphlets for returning travelers: "Due to the unpredictability and the impact of the COVID-19 situation, most requests will need to be processed on an urgent basis." MEDIA ROOM — Toronto Life's JASON MCBRIDE profiles Ontario Liberal Leader STEVEN DEL DUCA: "He's finally got his shot, but is anyone listening?" — The Narwhal's EMMA MCINTOSH draws on "565 pages, obtained through 20 separate freedom-of-information requests to the provincial and federal governments," to show that funding for roads to the Ring of Fire have stalled. — In the Financial Post, JAKE EDMISTON writes on "cowboy commissioner" MATTHEW BOSWELL, the federal competition watchdog who wants to block the Rogers-Shaw merger. — APTN's Nunavut correspondent KENT DRISCOLL writes on fears that a pending ruling from the Nunavut Impact Review Board could expedite the decline of a narwhal population. — Global's MARC-ANDRÉ COSSETTE and ALEX BOUTILIER obtained documents that show the Canadian government has directed its military to take a more "assertive" stance in cyberspace. PROZONE For subscribers, here's our Pro Canada PM memo from SUE ALLAN and ZI-ANN LUM: Stephen Poloz on certain uncertainties In other headlines for Pro readers:  — Trudeau government funds abortion services amid fallout from Roe v. Wade disclosure. — Guilbeault sued by the environmental group he started over Bay du Nord. — Climate goes missing in action in Russia's war. — In letters, U.S. tries to reshape Taiwan's weapons requests. — U.S. grapples with Russian blockade endangering global food supplies. HOUSE BUSINESS  Keep up to House committee schedules here. Find Senate meeting schedules here.  9 a.m. Health Canada and Treasury Board officials will join the Senate's agriculture and forestry committee to take senators' questions on Bill S-6, An Act respecting regulatory modernization. 9 a.m. The Senate energy, the environment and natural resources committee meets to study Bill S-5, Strengthening Environmental Protection for a Healthier Canada Act. 11 a.m. The House public safety and national security committee meets to hear from RICHARD FADDEN, CSIS, RCMP and public safety department officials related to MPs' study of ideologically motivated violent extremism in Canada. 11 a.m. Immigration Minister SEAN FRASER will appear at the House citizenship and immigration committee, along with five department officials, to take questions related to MPs' study of main estimates and application backlogs and processing times. 11 a.m. Intergovernmental Affairs Minister DOMINIC LEBLANC, Leaders' Debates Commission DAVID JOHNSTON, Privy Council Office's ALLEN SUTHERLAND and SARAH STINSON are on the witness list at the House procedure and House affairs committee. 11 a.m. The House fisheries and oceans committee meets to talk science at the DFO. Ecotrust Canada, First Nation Wild Salmon Alliance and Watershed Watch Salmon Society are on the witness list. 11:30 p.m. The Senate foreign affairs and international trade committee will meet to study Bill C-19. Department officials from Global Affairs Canada, justice, finance and the RCMP are on the witness list. 11:45 a.m. The Senate energy, the environment and natural resources committee meets again (second meeting in one morning) to continue its study of Bill S-5 with witnesses including the Assembly of First Nations' Chief KUKPI7 JUDY WILSON, VICTOR ODELE and GRAEME REED.  3:30 p.m. The House foreign affairs and international development committee will continue its study of the situation in the Taiwan Strait — MPs' first meeting on the topic since February. 3:30 p.m. The House human resources, skills and social development and status of persons with disabilities committee meets to continue its study of the housing accelerator fund. Representatives from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Canadian Home Builders' Association and BILD Calgary Region are on the witness list. 4:30 p.m. Ethics watchdog MARIO DION will appear before the House access to information, privacy and ethics committee to take MPs' burning questions related to main estimates. 6:30 p.m. The House science and research committee will continue its study on top talent, research and innovation with representatives from the University Health Network, Canadian Association of University Teachers, and Polytechnics Canada. — Behind closed doors: 11 a.m. The House public accounts committee (draft reports on the 2021 auditor general reports). 3:30 p.m. The House transport, infrastructure and communities committee (draft report on railway safety and a draft report on targeted infrastructure investment); The House environment and sustainable development committee (future "committee business" and drafts of two upcoming reports on fossil fuel subsidies and nuclear waste governance in Canada); The House agriculture and agri-food committee (draft supply chain report) and The House subcommittee on agenda and procedure of the committee on access to information, privacy and ethics ("committee business"). PLAYBOOKERS Birthdays: HBD to MARY WALSH, aka MARG DELAHUNTY, PRINCESS WARRIOR. In this video, JEAN CHRÉTIEN and STEPHEN HARPER reflect on some choice 22 Minute appearances. Also celebrating today: PAUL CALANDRA, GUY CARON, KAREN LUDWIG, RÉAL MÉNARD, RAJKO DODIC and LINDA GOUPIL. Spotted: NDP MP CHARLIE ANGUS clutching a framed copy of a full-page attack ad targeting him and PIERRE POILIEVRE … Grassroots Tory rabble rouser BERT CHEN's debate Bingo card … Tory leadership candidate SCOTT AITCHISONsaying nice things about his opponents. Liberal MP FRANCESCO SORBARA shouting out American Idol contestant NICOLINA BOZZO in the House: "She makes Canada proud." B.C. MLA RICK GLUMAC, proposing in the chamber. Movers and shakers: Communitech, a business incubator and innovation hub in Waterloo that scores regular shoutouts from political leaders (see: JUSTIN TRUDEAU, ERIN O'TOOLE) has been busy on the lobbying circuit. The self-proclaimed "tech supercharger" posted recent meetings with RANA SARKAR, Canada's consul general in Silicon Valley-adjacent San Francisco; Finance DM MICHAEL SABIA; ISED DM SIMON KENNEDY; and JASON EASTON, chief of staff to trade minister MARY NG. NextEra Energy Resources has a new lobbyist: CARL DAVIES from m5 Public Affairs. The renewable energy company partially owned by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan has projects in four provinces — and wants to bend federal ears about a new green energy proposal. Some hints: One of the targets is the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. Davies is based in New Brunswick. IRFAAN HASHAM is now repping the Global Automakers of Canada, the industry group for 15 companies that aren't the Detroit-based Big Three. One of the group's asks is that the feds exempt electric vehicles from a new tax on luxury automobiles. Media mentions: The Star's ROB BENZIE got the names of the moderators for Monday's leaders debate: TVO's STEVE PAIKIN , who has moderated approximately one gazillion debates in his career; and the Star's ALTHIA RAJ, who was one of five journos to moderate the federal English-language debate in 2019. TRIVIA Wednesday's answer: The giant spider in front of the National Gallery of Canada is called Maman. Artist LOUISE BOURGEOIS says the sculpture was inspired by her mother, "a nurturing and protective symbol of fertility, shelter and the home." Washington readers may recognize Bourgeois's work in the National Gallery of Art's Sculpture Garden. Props to PATRICK DION, first in our inbox. And to KEVIN BOSCH, KEVIN COLBOURNE, MICHAEL MACDONALD, DOUG RICE, MICHAEL SUNG, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, JENN KEAY, AMY BOUGHNER, ALEX PUDDIFANT, SUSAN KEYS and BEN ROTH.  Thursday's question: Okay. Ottawa residents may have the advantage on this one: What was Mayor JIM WATSON talking about this week when he said, "This has to be the ugliest blight on our landscape, the entire city." 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 Nick Taylor-Vaisey @TaylorVaisey Sue Allan @susan_allan Andy Blatchford @AndyBlatchford Maura Forrest @MauraForrest Zi-Ann Lum @ziannlum POLITICO Canada @politicoottawa   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

To change your alert settings, please log in at https://www.politico.com/_login?base=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politico.com/settings This email was sent to rouf@idiot.cloudns.cc by: POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA Please click here and follow the steps to unsubscribe.