r/OpenCanadaPolitics

This author on the National Post begins with the faulty premise that: hating Trump is natural.

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/joel-kotkin-hating-trump-is-natural-destroying-canadas-future-to-get-back-at-him-is-borderline-insane

Mark 5:44. "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you"

If we can't conjure love for Mr. Trump then at the minimum to avoid entertaining the mind virus of hate. One should always be objective to prevent heady emotion from precipitating bad choices and rash decisions.

Let me quote Aristotle courtesy of Legally Blonde: the law is reason free from passion.

It's not that globalist banker Mr. Carney is a jingoist. But rather he took the advice to poke the buttons of Canadians to stoke this frenzy. The Trump induced temporary insanity.

The very word trumps reason and stirs up the cauldron of passion.

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"Trump, and disdain for the U.S., has provided the impetus for Prime Minister Mark Carney, the quintessential globalist advised by individuals connected to the Democratic Party back in the states, to adopt a faux nationalism that has proved a big winner among Canadians."

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Some may not have made the logical connection that a globalist cannot also simultaneously be a jingoist. It's like oil and water. The faux nationalism is more of a dog and pony show.

On the other hand, Kotkin's point is correct that we should not align with Europe or China as an alternative. I don't disagree with trading more, but aligning with Europe is to imbibe of Europe's failures and make them our own.

18-25% VAT. 50-60% income tax rates. Regulation that ensures the death of opportunity.

The serfs of Europe are straining under the yoke of the Brussels agenda.

There was a very good reason the UK left the EU. And I know a lot about Brexit and why bankers like Carney wanted to stay in, but almost no one else did.

Ever since then "dear Mark" has charmed the hearts of the Brussels bureaucrats. He'll spend $100 billion on submarines and orphan lifecycles we don't need. It's music to the ears of Brussels. Dear Mark, you can visit anytime.

Meanwhile, I said before my discussion with Ms. Van Der Leyen would be more along the lines: the EU needs Canadian oil and gas. Europe's consumers should access our resources at lower prices by giving waivers to all new regulations on the use of such energy for the Canadian projects in question - for the next 40 years.

Furthermore, Europe should put up 85% of the cash for 49% equity stake in the project.

Ms. Van Der Leyen may not smile, but she should realize this is in the best interests of Europe. And rather than MoUs, I would expect to return with signed agreements and defined tranches of funding being released.

Were our EU partners to have a reasonable discussion, I am more than amenable to such constructive engagement with our friends.

What is separatism in Alberta about?

Long story short: they're paying in but not getting proportionate political clout. Furthermore, they are smarting after losing an election they were supposed to win.

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/stephen-harper-separatism-poses-significant-risk-for-alberta/wcm/2579ed99-4a9a-43a5-bc90-25f1c7582ab7

The view amongst many is that the election was stolen by the arrival of Carney and the Eastern Canada elites used their control of the media to parachute in Carney when it was Western Canada's turn to have a go.

Meanwhile Carney does not meaningfully address Alberta's concerns. His Pathways project heaps added costs for little meaningful gain to the climate. The glacial speed and high transportation tolls per barrel continue to depress WCS prices at Hardisty, Alberta.

Albertans want a new deal.

The separatist referendum was a way for them to get back some political clout and feel heard. If recent polls are to be believed there is about 30% support for separatism.

I do empathize with Albertans - but I also realize they are hanging their forlorn hopes on Mr. Poilievre.

Let's use a hockey analogy. Back in the day, I was a huge Leafs fan. This was the early 2000s. There were guys like Mats Sundin, Darcy Tucker, Gary Roberts. They also got Ed Belfour and Joe Nieuwendyk.

And every year the Leafs would make the playoffs and then either beat Ottawa or lose to one of Philadelphia, New Jersey, or Carolina.

One of the issues with being a fan, is one is unable to make an objective evaluation. As a Leafs fan, I couldn't see at the time that the team just wasn't good enough. Had I been able to see through my irrational devotion to make a more objective calculation, I would never have gotten emotionally invested in a foregone conclusion.

Albertans are like me in the early 2000s. They got their heart settled on Poilievre but haven't thought through with their heads whether Poilievre is good enough to win.

As I look back on the last election, the main reason the Conservatives lost was due to Poilievre. The latter just couldn't close the deal. And it had nothing to do with Trump.

It had to do with another "T" word: trust.

There was insufficient trust in Mr. Poilievre's leadership.

In truth, I voted for Mr. Poilievre. And those who know, I unequivocally supported him during the last election. This predates my arrival here on Reddit.

If we look at the electoral map, Mr. Poilievre was shutout on the doorstep of the GTHA. He's offering nothing on health care. Nothing on transit. No policies on the tech or innovation.

It's just the same tired refrain of whining about the Liberals. But no actual solutions.

Many posters on here don't like me holding Carney and the Liberals accountable. However, I always present an alternate policy.

Here is what they are doing wrong, why, and here is what I would do differently.

We actually have a plan that can work and is in fact far superior to Carney and the Liberals. Poilievre's platform looked like a highschool book report. And he was circumspect on many issues.

As a retail politician, going out there and giving speeches before a sympathetic crowd, Poilievre might do ok. It's on overall strategic vision that he earns a failing grade. And that is the Achilles Heel of the Conservative Party today.

Until Alberta realizes this, they will continue to be like me in the early 2000s. A devoted fan, who cannot understand why their team continues to lose. And I am offering Alberta an option.

If Brantford sends me to Ottawa as an Independent MP, then Alberta should get behind my candidacy for Conservative leader. I'll get you way more than Poilievre, because I know how to get things done. I have always been for the oil and gas industry and I'll get the rock bottom price that cuts the transportation tolls. It's not just about pipelines, it's getting the project done at the bottom dollar to get the lowest price of conveyance to get the WCS discount down.

Albertans know what I'm talking about.

The trade war with Trump is not about a few wheels of cheese. It's not even about automotive or manufacturing.

What is it really about then ?

In a word: immigration. And more generally the current addiction of the Canadian economy to funnel FDI through the real estate system backed by unsustainable expectations of mindless sprawl and low vetting.

When Trump was screaming about fentanyl. It had to do with drug money laundering, as the tax haven status of real estate as well as weak oversight in the financial system invites funds with dubious provenance to be laundered through the Canadian property market.

https://globalnews.ca/news/5102137/us-canada-major-money-laundering-country/

If housing is unaffordable, it's the direct consequence of this addiction. It's not a supply problem. It's demand rigging and easy money that is competing with the hard money of sweat and tears. The hard earned money of the Canadian worker doesn't have a chance.

Carney is beholden to the very interests that want to keep the current system hurtling on its unsustainable track, which is the foremost threat to national security.

Caroline Rogers said it best: there is a productivity emergency. This is code in polite society for: immigration is way too high we need to pull the brakes now. Of course Rogers can't say the latter. That sort of directness is too much for the sensitive ears of the general public.

It is only after I realized that every politician be it Liberal, Conservative, NDP, or Green is bought and paid for regarding the "productivity emergency", that it became clear. There was no choice but for me to run for office.

That Canadians need someone who can't be bought, who has clearly declared goals, to fix the country. And I can do a way better job than Carney on every metric.

Poilievre can't be counted on. Talking he can do. Walking the talk is another matter. If he were to come to power, he'd just be Liberal lite on immigration.

That's why I gave people a hard number 15,000. So now you know. It won't be Carney's type of jerry rigging as what happened recently. The government lied that population had dropped when it had increased. Such lies engender distrust.

https://thehub.ca/2026/10/01/300000-missing-people-in-statistics-canadas-population-estimate-reveals-weaker-economy-than-previously-realized/

Excuse me, we can't use the word "lie" in polite society either. Let me rephrase. Such prevarications, inaccuracies and calumnious retroactive revisions of stated metrics undermine confidence in the official narrative.

No no wrong again. Maybe I'll hire Caroline Rogers as my communications advisor if made Prime Minister. She knows how to say this succinctly: Productivity emergency.

Which brings me to the next point. Could I get a deal with Trump where Carney can't.

Yes, there is a 50-50 chance I can get a deal with Trump where Carney can't. Because I have a feeling Trump's sticking point is actually on immigration. Since I don't have the same constraints as Carney, I am bargaining against different parameters.

EU "associate membership", I don't put much stock in. Carney's big spending also I doubt.

Instead, I am promising each Province and territory 1 project of national significance at cut rate prices. For example, Vancouver and Toronto will get new transit systems. Alberta will get an oil pipeline without any grift for $3 a barrel transportation charge.

For the rest of the Provinces and Territories they will bring forward proposals which will go through public consultation and separately business case review by the Minister of Finance.

This is the key. There has to be a business case. Unlike Carney's Alto Train. It must work towards sustainable development and be approved by the public.

Tim Huston's giant windmill project off the Nova Scotia coastline will just wreck the pristine Nova Scotia coast. We need to preserve the natural heritage of Canada.

This is where my judgement as Prime Minister is important. It's not just whatever idea the Premiers bring forward. But they can bring forward a dozen proposals, we'll go through them and approve one or ask for more proposals until a good idea emerges.

Furthermore, it has to be private build-own-operate basis. This is not just about giving the Premiers cash to go have a party. The project has to turn into an operating benefit that materially improves the regional economy.

These are the judgement calls I can make as Prime Minister. I'll get the right people to say it in the right way as polite society expects.