Month: May 2016

Wednesday June 1, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Wednesday June 1, 2016 Uncertain Senate awaits Medically assisted dying bill When C-14, the Liberal government's legislation to regulate medically assisted death, passed the House at second reading four weeks ago, the vote was 235 in favour, 75 against. That vote though was likely the easiest C-14 will face. At second reading, MPs are only asked to approve a bill in principle. A member with reservations can vote in favour and hope to see the legislation amended when it goes to a House committee for further study. On Monday night, with a slightly amended bill reported back to the House, the margin of approval was more than halved, with C-14 passing by a vote of 192 to 129. A series of amendments moved in the House were defeated immediately beforehand. Just one Liberal and one New Democrat voted nay at second reading, but upon further review, and having seen what amendments the majority was willing to accept, four Liberal MPs voted against, as did all NDP MPs. Still, 19 Conservatives were willing to support the bill, and with those votes on side, C-14 still passed comfortably. That result suggests the bill will pass again at third reading, a vote that is expected to occur as early as Tuesday evening. It is at that point that the C-14's margin for passage becomes somewhat mysterious. After passing the House of Commons, C-14 will be delivered to the Senate, an upper chamber in the midst of an experiment in legislative independence. "The outcome I think is beyond my ability to predict," says Liberal Senate leader James Cowan. It is seemingly unlikely the Senate will finish with the bill by June 6, the Supreme Court's deadline for new legislation, something Health Minister Jane Philpott seemed to concede on Monday. "We are at risk of not meeting the June 6th deadline," she said. "Having said that, it is my hope that we can see this piece of legislation put into effect at the very soon as possible date.Ó

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday June 1, 2016

Uncertain Senate awaits Medically assisted dying bill

When C-14, the Liberal government’s legislation to regulate medically assisted death, passed the House at second reading four weeks ago, the vote was 235 in favour, 75 against.

That vote though was likely the easiest C-14 will face. At second reading, MPs are only asked to approve a bill in principle. A member with reservations can vote in favour and hope to see the legislation amended when it goes to a House committee for further study.

On Monday night, with a slightly amended bill reported back to the House, the margin of approval was more than halved, with C-14 passing by a vote of 192 to 129. A series of amendments moved in the House were defeated immediately beforehand.

Just one Liberal and one New Democrat voted nay at second reading, but upon further review, and having seen what amendments the majority was willing to accept, four Liberal MPs voted against, as did all NDP MPs. Still, 19 Conservatives were willing to support the bill, and with those votes on side, C-14 still passed comfortably.

That result suggests the bill will pass again at third reading, a vote that is expected to occur as early as Tuesday evening.

It is at that point that the C-14’s margin for passage becomes somewhat mysterious. After passing the House of Commons, C-14 will be delivered to the Senate, an upper chamber in the midst of an experiment in legislative independence.

“The outcome I think is beyond my ability to predict,” says Liberal Senate leader James Cowan.

It is seemingly unlikely the Senate will finish with the bill by June 6, the Supreme Court’s deadline for new legislation, something Health Minister Jane Philpott seemed to concede on Monday.

“We are at risk of not meeting the June 6th deadline,” she said. “Having said that, it is my hope that we can see this piece of legislation put into effect at the very soon as possible date.”

The potential impact of any lack of legislation is a matter of some debate, but regardless of when C-14 receives royal assent, it still remains to be seen precisely how, and in what form, it will get there. (Source: CBC News)

 

Tuesday May 31, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator - Tuesday May 31, 2016 Tragically Unhip - Tragically Hip fans cry foul after presale tickets scooped up in minutes Many fans hoping to grab presale tickets to the Tragically Hip's farewell tour this morning found disappointment instead, with tickets selling out quickly then appearing minutes later at a massive markup on resale sites. Tickets to the summer tour, which begins July 22 in Victoria, went on sale at 10 a.m. local timeÊthis morning to registered users of the band's fan club who got a presale code by email. Demand was high for this last opportunity to see the iconic Canadian rock band, whose lead singer Gord Downie announced last week he has terminal brain cancer. But fans cried foul when they found no tickets available for some shows on Ticketmaster within minutes Ñ even though tickets were already being resold on StubHub. In Vancouver, for example, at 11 a.m. PT, all the Ticketmaster tickets for the July 24 show were gone, but nearly 100 floor seats were being offered on StubHub for between $237 and $2,799 US per ticket. The original prices were between $116 and $166 Cdn for the same seats, according to Ticketmaster's website>. (Source: CBC News) http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tragically-hip-presale-tickets-sold-out-1.3607493 Cartoon modified from original publication date on February 26, 2009.Êhttp://www.mackaycartoons.net/yahoo_files/2009/huh2009-02-26.html Canada, Ontario, ticketmaster, ticket, entertainment, sales, scalper, scalping, Tragically Hip, Hip, concert, Paul McCartney

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday May 31, 2016

Tragically Unhip – Tragically Hip fans cry foul after presale tickets scooped up in minutes

Many fans hoping to grab presale tickets to the Tragically Hip’s farewell tour this morning found disappointment instead, with tickets selling out quickly then appearing minutes later at a massive markup on resale sites.

Tickets to the summer tour, which begins July 22 in Victoria, went on sale at 10 a.m. local time this morning to registered users of the band’s fan club who got a presale code by email.

Demand was high for this last opportunity to see the iconic Canadian rock band, whose lead singer Gord Downie announced last week he has terminal brain cancer.

But fans cried foul when they found no tickets available for some shows on Ticketmaster within minutes — even though tickets were already being resold on StubHub.

In Vancouver, for example, at 11 a.m. PT, all the Ticketmaster tickets for the July 24 show were gone, but nearly 100 floor seats were being offered on StubHub for between $237 and $2,799 US per ticket.

The original prices were between $116 and $166 Cdn for the same seats, according to Ticketmaster’s website>. (Source: CBC News)

Cartoon modified from original publication date on February 26, 2009. 

 

Tuesday May 31, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Tuesday May 31, 2016 'Freedom and respect': Conservatives strike marriage definition from party policy Conservative delegates at the party's policy convention in Vancouver have voted to strike the definition of marriage in the party's official policy document. In a 1,036-462 vote, delegates from all provinces except Saskatchewan cast majority votes in favour of no longer defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. "I think our party got a little more Canadian today," Calgary MP Michelle Rempel said after the vote. "It's a milestone and it's not just a milestone for our party, it's a milestone for all Canadians.Ó "Yes, it took us 10 years to get to this point, but I think this is something that is a beacon for people around the world who are looking at equality rights. Canada is a place where we celebrate equality.Ó The result followed a heated debate and prompted some high-fives and cheers across the hall. It shifts the party's official position on same-sex marriage from being against the unions to neutral. Eric Lorenzen, from an Eastern Ontario riding, said during the debate that as a gay Conservative, he found it troubling that his party told him his relationship with his partner was not valued. "What other group does our party have a negative policy towards? A policy of restricting civil rights and restricting full participation in society?" he said, drawing applause. The result followed a heated debate and prompted some high-fives and cheers across the hall. It shifts the party's official position on same-sex marriage from being against the unions to neutral. Eric Lorenzen, from an Eastern Ontario riding, said during the debate that as a gay Conservative, he found it troubling that his party told him his relationship with his partner was not valued. "What other group does our party have a negative policy towards? A policy of restricting civil rights and restricting full parti

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday May 31, 2016

‘Freedom and respect’: Conservatives strike marriage definition from party policy

Conservative delegates at the party’s policy convention in Vancouver have voted to strike the definition of marriage in the party’s official policy document.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Thursday May 19, 2016 Some Conservatives now ready to support bill on transgender rights When C-279, the private member's bill that would have added gender identity to the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code, came before the House of Commons for a vote in 2013, Conservative MPs Rona Ambrose and Tony Clement voted against it. This time around, Ambrose and Clement say they will be voting in favour when the Liberal government's bill to add gender identity to the human rights act and the code, C-16, comes before the House for a vote. Neither vote is likely to be crucial to the bill's success: with Liberal and NDP support, the bill should pass the House of Commons comfortably. But they could mark a change of opinion that might still be significant. Clement pointed to the influence he takes from his three children. "I have three children, ages 24, 22 and 18. They span the political spectrum but in their generation this is a foregone issue," he said. "They don't even understand why this would be debated.Ó He also says it makes sense that transgender Canadians should be included among those who have their rights acknowledged. While Liberals, New Democrats and 18 Conservatives supported the bill tabled by NDP Randall Garrison, Conservatives accounted for all of the 137 votes opposed. Clement says that in 2013, the advice to Conservatives from the Justice Department was that the bill was unnecessary because gender identity was already covered by the law. Ambrose and Clement follow Conservative MP David Tilson who told CBC News on Monday that his view had changed since voting against C-279 in 2013. That change of opinion is not unanimous. Conservative Senator Don Plett, who opposed C-279 and moved amendments that excluded areas such as bathrooms from the bill's provisions, told reporters on Tuesday that his position has not changed. "You know my feeling on transgender rights," he said. "They hav

May 19, 2016

In a 1,036-462 vote, delegates from all provinces except Saskatchewan cast majority votes in favour of no longer defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

“I think our party got a little more Canadian today,” Calgary MP Michelle Rempel said after the vote. “It’s a milestone and it’s not just a milestone for our party, it’s a milestone for all Canadians.”

“Yes, it took us 10 years to get to this point, but I think this is something that is a beacon for people around the world who are looking at equality rights. Canada is a place where we celebrate equality.”

January 13, 2012

The result followed a heated debate and prompted some high-fives and cheers across the hall. It shifts the party’s official position on same-sex marriage from being against the unions to neutral.

Eric Lorenzen, from an Eastern Ontario riding, said during the debate that as a gay Conservative, he found it troubling that his party told him his relationship with his partner was not valued.

“What other group does our party have a negative policy towards? A policy of restricting civil rights and restricting full participation in society?” he said, drawing applause.

December 8, 2006

The result followed a heated debate and prompted some high-fives and cheers across the hall. It shifts the party’s official position on same-sex marriage from being against the unions to neutral.

Eric Lorenzen, from an Eastern Ontario riding, said during the debate that as a gay Conservative, he found it troubling that his party told him his relationship with his partner was not valued.

“What other group does our party have a negative policy towards? A policy of restricting civil rights and restricting full participation in society?” he said, drawing applause. (Source: CBC News)

 

Monday May 30, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator - Saturday May 28, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 28, 2016

Do Trump and Clinton Matter

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator - Wednesday February 10, 2016 Poll: Trump, Sanders lead ahead of New Hampshire's vote Donald Trump continues to lead the Republican race in New Hampshire on the eve of the vote, the final CNN/WMUR tracking poll finds. On the Democratic side of the race, it remains Bernie Sanders' primary to lose, with the Vermont senator holding a 26-point lead over Hillary Clinton. The field of candidates vying for a second place finish behind him is finally beginning to separate, according to the survey. Trump holds 31%, down two points from the February 3-6 release, but within the poll's margin of sampling error. READ: The full CNN/WMUR tracking poll results Behind him, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio earned 17% support -- within the margin of sampling error of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz at 14%, but significantly ahead of the fourth and fifth place candidates in the poll, Ohio Gov. John Kasich at 10% and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush at 7%. Behind Bush, Carly Fiorina stands at 5%, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at 4% and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson at 3%. Aside from Trump, none of the Republican candidates moved more than 1 point in either direction compared with the previous CNN/WMUR tracking poll. About three-quarters of the interviews conducted for this poll were completed before the Republican candidates debated Saturday night, their final such match-up before Tuesday's election. Although the post-debate sample size is too small to produce a separate estimate of the vote, interviews conducted Sunday and Monday found no drop in support for Rubio, and actually showed a slimmer margin between Trump and Rubio. There has been little movement in the last two days in the other metrics tested in the survey, with about two-thirds still saying they expect to see Trump win on Tuesday (64%), and about a third saying they would never vote for Trump (32%). (Source: CNN) http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/08/politics/donald-trump-bernie-sa

Wednesday February 10, 2016

Here is a rough recent accounting of the relationship between Donald Trump and the Republican Party. The last G.O.P. nominee for President, Mitt Romney, delivered a speech calling Trump “a phony, a fraud,” and warned that his economic policies would lead the country into a “prolonged recession.” The previous nominee, John McCain, called Trump “uninformed and indeed dangerous.” The Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, took the extraordinary step of announcing that he was “not ready” to support Trump, though no other candidate remained in the race. The President of the Southern Baptist Convention’s public-policy arm said that Trump has built his life on a “swindle that oppresses the poorest and the most desperate,” and socially conservative radio hosts have amplified that line and made it constant. One of the highest-profile anti-Trump ads, from Hillary Clinton’s campaign, is simply a montage of Republicans attacking him. “A con artist,” Marco Rubio says. “A race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot,” Lindsey Graham says. “A pathological liar,” Ted Cruz says.

February 8, 2008

These are not minor figures within the Party; for most of the current Presidential campaign, their cumulative support was larger than Trump’s. But now we have a crude, early tally of their relative strength. Last Thursday, a New York Times/CBS poll had Hillary Clinton running just six points ahead of her likely opponent. Trump had the support of eighty-five per cent of Republican voters; only six per cent said they would not support him. (On Sunday, an ABC News/Washington Post poll, which had Trump leading Clinton by two points, showed similar results among Republican voters: eighty-five per cent of Republicans were for Trump, eight per cent for Clinton.) As pointed and sustained as the condemnations of Trump by leading conservatives have been, they have not mattered to Republican voters. Lately, even some of Trump’s loudest Republican opponents—such as McCain, who faces a difficult Senate race—have come around.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Wednesday January 20, 2016 Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton remain overwhelming front-runners in races for 2016 nomination Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton remain the overwhelming national front-runners to win the 2016 nominations for each of their parties, a new poll released Tuesday showed. According to the latest NBC News / Survey Monkey survey, Trump got the support of 38% of Republican and Republican-leaning voters nationally. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was his next closest competitor, with 21%, while Florida Sen. Marco Rubio came in third with 11% support. No other candidate got more than 8%. On the Democratic side, Clinton remained the leader, with 52% support nationally among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters, compared with 36% for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Former Maryland Gov. Martin OÕMalley got 1% support. The results for both parties are unchanged from the poll NBC News and Survey Monkey released last week. (Source: NY Daily News) http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/trump-clinton-remain-front-runners-nominations-poll-article-1.2501567 USA, United States, election, 2016, presidential, politics, Hillary Clinton, Ted Cruz, Bernie Sanders, Donald Trump

January 20, 2016

These are just a couple of polls, taken at one moment in time, and so there are plenty of caveats. Perhaps Clinton’s numbers have been temporarily suppressed by the continued (and increasingly hostile) opposition of Bernie Sanders; according to the ABC/Post poll, Trump has eleven-per-cent support among registered Democrats, which seems unlikely to stick. Perhaps there are many Republican voters who remain blissfully unaware of Trump’s offenses and transgressions, who will be swayed by the wave of negative advertising to come. But Trump did not exactly sneak in under the radar. This is probably the end of the #NeverTrump movement, which looks likely to go down as a deeply felt reaction from conservative influentials that voters did not hear. But these latest numbers also seem to signal something else: that this historically weird race may be turning into an ordinary one, in which the parties matter more than the candidates. (Continued: The New Yorker)

Friday May 27, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Friday May 27, 2016 Premier Wynne wonders why debate, believes decision made Pressure is building on Hamilton council to formally accept or reject the province's $1-billion offer to build LRT in the city Ñ but don't expect it to happen anytime soon. Council has twice in May put off a contentious motion to endorse the province's offer to pay 100 per cent of capital costs for light rail transit, with some councillors even floating the idea of a referendum. The uncertainty prompted Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, local MPP Ted McMeekin and two major city developers this week to urge council to publicly back the project Ñ or at least make a decision. "I honestly thought that the conversation was done," said Wynne on Tuesday at an unrelated press conference. "I was very surprised that it was being revisited. My hope will be that they will be able to go through this process and we'll have a final answer soon rather than later.Ó Mayor Fred Eisenberger said after council Wednesday he understands the premier's "frustration," but added it's possible the council motion to support the project will be put off until fall. "I think a definitive statement, in my mind, has already been made," he said, pointing out the city "asked for the money, and the province delivered.Ó "Are there additional questions councillors feel they need answered? Apparently so. Whether we resolve that in June, or later, is another issue.Ó But the mayor also argued the proposed vote won't guarantee or kill the project, which requires several layers of council approval, including a design sign-off and other formal legal agreements. Coun. Sam Merulla, who put forward the oft-deferred motion, said he's fine with waiting until the fall, when answers to questions about LRT traffic impacts and expropriation requirements will be available. He added the delay also allows time to address councillor concerns "and bring support back up" for the p

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday May 27, 2016

Premier Wynne wonders why debate, believes decision made

Pressure is building on Hamilton council to formally accept or reject the province’s $1-billion offer to build LRT in the city — but don’t expect it to happen anytime soon.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Tuesday May 17, 2016 Wavering on building LRT Spectator Editorial - Now that the LRT pot is on the front burner at full boil, it would be wise for everyone to take a deep breath.Ê Yes, it's disappointing that city council didn't take the opportunity to render a public display of support at last week's meeting. They should have. But as ourÊelected representatives, they have a right to express reservations and ask for more information and time. Hopefully putting it off for a week Ñ the matter isÊback before council in its general issues committee form tomorrow Ñ will give staff the time to provide the requisite information and councillors time to reflect. But if the matter is deferred again tomorrow, it will be more problematic. Quite simply, the time has come for council to send another clear, unequivocalÊmessage to the province: Thanks for the billion dollars, and yes, we will use it to build LRT. Arguments against LRT these days tend to fall into two categories. It's not something Hamilton needs now or ever, or it might be something Hamilton needs,Êbut it's premature. The first argument is the territory occupied by people who simply don't believe in modern, environmentally sound, economically catalytic public transit. ThoseÊof us who support improving and modernizing transit probably aren't going to convince this crowd. Their minds are closed. They're the ones who think theÊHSR in its current form was good enough in the '70s and '80s, so it's good enough for the future, perhaps with a few tweaks around the edges.Ê The other anti-LRT position Ñ that it's premature Ñ is more interesting and promising. You can make a solid case LRT might be a better fit eight or 10 yearsÊon, when the rest of our transit system is still not optimized to get full value from having LRT as a transit fulcrum. But here's the thing: a billion provincialÊdollars.Ê It's unlikely that any time in the foreseeable future a provi

Tuesday May 17, 2016

Council has twice in May put off a contentious motion to endorse the province’s offer to pay 100 per cent of capital costs for light rail transit, with some councillors even floating the idea of a referendum.

The uncertainty prompted Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, local MPP Ted McMeekin and two major city developers this week to urge council to publicly back the project — or at least make a decision.

“I honestly thought that the conversation was done,” said Wynne on Tuesday at an unrelated press conference. “I was very surprised that it was being revisited. My hope will be that they will be able to go through this process and we’ll have a final answer soon rather than later.”

Mayor Fred Eisenberger said after council Wednesday he understands the premier’s “frustration,” but added it’s possible the council motion to support the project will be put off until fall.

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

June 10, 2014

“I think a definitive statement, in my mind, has already been made,” he said, pointing out the city “asked for the money, and the province delivered.”

“Are there additional questions councillors feel they need answered? Apparently so. Whether we resolve that in June, or later, is another issue.”

But the mayor also argued the proposed vote won’t guarantee or kill the project, which requires several layers of council approval, including a design sign-off and other formal legal agreements.

Coun. Sam Merulla, who put forward the oft-deferred motion, said he’s fine with waiting until the fall, when answers to questions about LRT traffic impacts and expropriation requirements will be available.

Saturday, April 28 2013

April 28 2013

He added the delay also allows time to address councillor concerns “and bring support back up” for the project — which some council members campaigned against in the last election.

“What I’m trying to prevent is an 11th-hour travesty,” he said. “What we’ve learned is that support is not as strong as it needs to be.”

Several councillors Wednesday questioned the need to have a vote at all, however.(Continued: Hamilton Spectator)