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Tuesday January 7, 2019

January 15, 2019 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday January 7, 2019

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says Trudeau delaying Burnaby South by-election for political gain

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has delayed calling a by-election for the federal British Columbia riding of Burnaby South because Mr. Trudeau is “afraid” of how the governing Liberals might fare in the race.

Mr. Singh, who has been leading the NDP without a seat since October, 2017, has been anxious to run in the B.C. riding in hopes of winning a seat in the House of Commons before the next federal election, and he says Mr. Trudeau has been dragging his heels on the issue for political gain.

“I think that they’re afraid of facing the electorate, they’re afraid of facing the people of Burnaby South, facing their record. Their record is going to be on trial,” he said in a telephone interview from the riding on Monday.

Mr. Singh said delaying the by-election call is not in the interest of people in Burnaby South – so it’s likely in Mr. Trudeau’s own political interest.

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said that Mr. Trudeau had months to take action on this “and failed to do so,” in a statement e-mailed to The Globe and Mail.

“Canadians deserve representation in the House of Commons now, not when it is convenient for the Prime Minister’s political agenda,” said Mr. Scheer, adding that Mr. Trudeau has chosen to “play politics” with Canadians, calling it unacceptable.

Meanwhile the Prime Minister’s Office is rebuffing criticism from both Mr. Singh and Mr. Scheer.

“As the PM has said previously, the by-elections in Burnaby South, Outremont and York-Simcoe will be called in January with a February voting day. The Nanaimo-Ladysmith by-election will be called in due course,” said Prime Minister’s Office spokesman Matt Pascuzzo.

When asked if Mr. Trudeau would call a by-election for Nanaimo-Ladysmith at the same time as the other by-elections, Mr. Pascuzzo said there are provisions in the Elections Act regarding the calling of by-elections and the Prime Minister will abide by those provisions.

According to Elections Canada, the Chief Electoral Officer received a notice of vacancy Monday for the riding of Nanaimo-Ladysmith (with the resignation of NDP MP Sheila Malcolmson, who is running in a provincial by-election). The earliest the writ can be issued for the by-election is Jan. 18, 2019, which means a by-election could be held, at the earliest, on Monday, Feb. 25. The writ must be issued, at the latest, by July 6, 2019. (Source: Globe & Mail)

Tuesday June 5, 2018

June 4, 2018 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday June 5, 2018

Wynne acknowledges election is lost, urges voters to ensure NDP or PC minority

An emotional Kathleen Wynne on Saturday acknowledged that she will no longer be premier after the June 7 election and encouraged voters to elect Liberal candidates to prevent the NDP or PCs from securing a majority.

The 11th-hour move comes as Wynne and her Liberals try to save the party from electoral decimation next Thursday.

“Even though I won’t be leading this province as premier, I care deeply about how it will be led,” the Liberal leader said during a campaign stop in Toronto.

“People want change, but by and large they’re confident about where Ontario stands and where Ontario is headed. For this reason — I heard this over and over again — many voters are worried about handing a blank cheque to either Doug Ford or the NDP,” she continued.

She added that voters don’t trust Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford and are concerned that an NDP government “will approach the responsibility of running Ontario’s economy with a plan that is risky and unrealistic.”

The only way to keep the province’s next government on a “short leash,” Wynne said, is to send as many Liberals to the Ontario Legislature as possible.

“The more Liberal MPPs we send to Queens Park on June 7, the less likely it becomes that either Doug Ford or the NDP will be able to form a majority government,” Wynne said.

The Liberal leader has, until today, been defiant in the face of daunting poll numbers that suggest the Grits could lose official party status after the vote. In Ontario, parties need at least eight seats in the legislature to be formally recognized. (Source: CBC)

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Thursday February 1, 2018

January 31, 2018 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday February 1, 2018

With Doug Ford joining PC leadership race, all bets are off

Your mom’s basement is a rather inauspicious venue to announce your ambition to become premier of Ontario, but anybody who underestimates Doug Ford’s chances to win the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party leadership does so at their peril.

October 30, 2014

Ford declared his candidacy on Monday to lead a party in deep turmoil following the resignation of leader Patrick Brown over allegations of sexual misconduct.

Ford is quickly trying to position himself as the populist choice in the race, the outsider, railing against the elites.

“Folks, make no mistake about it,” he said in his short statement from the basement of his mother’s Etobicoke house. “The elites of this party, the ones who have shut out the grassroots, do not want me in this race. But I’m here to give a voice to the hard-working taxpayers of this province, people who have been ignored for far too long.”

Ford’s message might just resonate with a good chunk of the PC membership. And don’t forget Ford’s message already has proven popular with no small number of people in Toronto.

When he stepped into the shoes of his better-known brother Rob Ford to run for mayor in 2014, he came second but won 20 of the city’s 44 wards. He trounced John Tory in Etobicoke, Scarborough and North York, the key parts of Toronto that the PCs must swing their way to form a majority provincial government. It`s not a stretch to think he could replicate that success in the 905, the crucial battleground of Ontario politics, and of course in traditional Tory strongholds too. (Continued: CBC)

Here’s Doug Ford viewing the cartoon during an interview with Cynthia Mulligan, political reporter with CityNews Toronto on March 12, 2018, the Monday after the weekend vote which declared him leader of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party:

Wednesday September 13, 2017

September 12, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday September 13, 2017

Jagmeet Singh praised for ‘calm and positive’ reaction to anti-Muslim heckler

Federal NDP leadership hopeful Jagmeet Singh is garnering praise for the way he reacted to a woman who accused him last week of supporting Islamic extremism, because he chose to come out against “all forms of hate” instead of emphasizing that he is Sikh rather than Muslim.

August 3, 2017

The Ontario MPP was interrupted by an angry heckler at a meet and greet last Wednesday in Brampton, Ont. The woman stood in front of the candidate and shouted as aides tried to usher her aside in an incident that was caught on video and shared widely on social media well beyond Canada’s borders.

The woman accused Singh of wanting to impose Shariah law, an Islamic legal code based on the Qur’an, and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood, an 89-year-old religious and political group. The exchange was caught on video and lasted more than four minutes.

“Many people have commented that I could have just said I’m not Muslim. In fact, many have clarified that I’m actually Sikh,” Singh explained in a statement.

“While I’m proud of who I am, I purposely didn’t go down that road because it suggests their hate would be OK if I was Muslim.”

A political science professor told CBC News on Monday that Singh took the right approach.

“It suggests the fact that he is not Muslim is irrelevant,” said Erin Tolley, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto.

“You can just imagine for example a white politician standing in front of a room and heard something racist being said. The exact wrong reaction is to say, ‘Well, I’m white, I’m not a person of colour, so this isn’t important to me.’”

Singh wanted to defuse the situation, she said, highlighting that hate of all forms is wrong, whether it’s directed at your community or not.

His response also signals that Singh, who wears a turban, has experience dealing with direct threats because of his outwardly religious appearance. (Source: CBC News)

This cartoon received an unusual amount of criticism through the mackaycartoons Facebook Page:

Republished in a number of publications. Below the Edmonton Journal and the Western Star, Corner Brook, Newfoundland:

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Thursday August 20, 2015

August 19, 2015 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday August 20, 2015

Duffy trial sapping Conservatives’ morale

Even a contrarian would not argue that Stephen Harper’s campaign is off to an inspiring start.

A mega-trade deal that would have given the Conservatives a win on the economic front just in time for the election call failed to materialize.

Looking at the polls, there is little evidence of the lift in party fortunes that last month’s round of child benefit cheques was meant to result in.

Harper’s main rivals each used the first leaders debate of the campaign productively enough to keep the contest too competitive for the incumbent’s comfort.

In Quebec, the positive impact of the return of Gilles Duceppe on Bloc Québécois fortunes has turned out to be short-lived, throwing a wrench in the Conservative game plan. The party needs the Bloc to soften up New Democrats in the ridings that Harper has targeted for gains in October.
Now the Senate scandal is again front-and-centre in the media, predictably sucking out the oxygen from the Conservative election tour.

Nigel Wright’s long-awaited appearance at Sen. Mike Duffy’s trial may not have implicated Harper further in the spending scandal but it certainly did not give the 2011 Conservative supporters who have since strayed to other parties a reason to run back to the fold. (Chantal Hebert, Continued: Toronto Star)