campaign

Tuesday March 24, 2015

Tuesday March 24, 2015Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday March 24, 2015

What the Supreme Court Could Say About Ted Cruz’s Canadian Past

When Sen. Ted Cruz launched his presidential campaign Monday at Liberty University, he began by telling his parents’ stories of immigration from Cuba, on his father’s part, and overcoming the odds at home, on his mother’s part. One much-discussed element of Cruz’s personal story, however, got only a brief nod: “When I was three, my father decided to leave my mother and me,” Cruz told the audience. “We were living in Calgary at the time.”

Calgary, though part of Cruz’s American story, is not in the United States; it’s in Alberta, Canada. Though Cruz was born in Alberta, he only learned as an adult that his birthplace gave him Canadian citizenship, which he officially renounced last summer.

Though it’s a common misconception, being born in Canada does not necessarily exclude Cruz, the child of an American citizen, from the White House. In fact, he’s one of many potential presidents over the years who have been born abroad.

When Sen. Ted Cruz launched his presidential campaign Monday at Liberty University, he began by telling his parents’ stories of immigration from Cuba, on his father’s part, and overcoming the odds at home, on his mother’s part. One much-discussed element of Cruz’s personal story, however, got only a brief nod: “When I was three, my father decided to leave my mother and me,” Cruz told the audience. “We were living in Calgary at the time.”

Calgary, though part of Cruz’s American story, is not in the United States; it’s in Alberta, Canada. Though Cruz was born in Alberta, he only learned as an adult that his birthplace gave him Canadian citizenship, which he officially renounced last summer.

Though it’s a common misconception, being born in Canada does not necessarily exclude Cruz, the child of an American citizen, from the White House. In fact, he’s one of many potential presidents over the years who have been born abroad. (Continued: TIME magazine)

Wednesday January 7, 2015

Wednesday January 7, 2015Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Wednesday January 7, 2015

Harper rids himself of 2014 problems

We all have our little rituals on our first day back in the office in a new year.

Some of us delete old emails. Others might start filling in a new calendar.

Still others dump their inept veterans affairs ministers and meet with the irritating premier of the country’s largest province.

Clearing off your election year to-do list if you’re Prime Minister Stephen Harper means, suddenly, dealing with the daily toothache that was Julian Fantino in veterans affairs and bickering with the aggressive Kathleen Wynne were so last year.

These were two things Harper had to do, but the governing Harper didn’t always do what others felt he must.

The campaigning Harper is a different man.

Fantino had lost the confidence of veterans and created nothing but havoc in a portfolio which Conservatives should hold near and dear. There are few optics more damaging for a government than sending our young men and women off to war then ignoring them, shortchanging them and, in Fantino’s case, also lecturing them upon their return.

But where once he might have hunkered down, election year Harper demoted his man Fantino in broad daylight on a working day, ignoring the urge to act during the Christmas break when holiday festivities and official inertia provide cover of darkness.

He didn’t exactly invite inquiring media eyes into Rideau Hall, but he did (almost) exactly what the opposition parties had urged him to do, he didn’t wait until nobody was watching Fantino and, even more remarkably, he replaced him with the man touted by so many of the pundits Harper’s office likes to ignore.

Erin O’Toole, an air force veteran and MP for Durham, is the communicator Fantino is not and appears to have the empathy for our veterans that Fantino lacked.

Fantino remains in cabinet, moved back into the associate defence minister’s post he previously held, but he is getting harder to hide no matter his value as an electoral asset and fundraiser in the 905 belt so crucial in this year’s vote. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Friday, January 24, 2014

Friday, January 24, 2014Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday, January 24, 2014

Wynne calls byelections in Thornhill, Niagara Falls

Voters in Thornhill and Niagara Falls are heading to the polls for Feb. 13 byelections.

Premier Kathleen Wynne made it official Wednesday by calling the votes to fill vacancies in the two seats left by the retirement of Progressive Conservative Peter Shurman and Liberal Kim Craitor.

Wynne met Wednesday with reporters at the Queens Quay LCBO store where she touted Ontario’s wine industry, which is largely based in Niagara.

On Monday, the Liberals pledged $26.2 million for the Niagara Health System to help build a new hospital and two urgent-care centres.

That followed on last month’s $75-million, five-year wine strategy, which should help Niagara’s many wineries and grape growers.

At the LCBO event the Premier was asked by a reporter if these efforts were enough to secure that Liberal seat in the byelection.

She said both efforts have been in the works for “many many months.’’
Wynne said: “we are the government that has said we would build a hospital, work with that community to build a hospital.”

The Premier criticized the NDP and Conservatives for not being consistent on the hospital issue in Niagara.

Vying to succeed Craitor in Niagara Falls are Liberal Joyce Morocco, a city councillor and Tory Bart Maves, a regional councillor who was MPP from 1995 until 2003.

The NDP candidate is expected to be city councillor Wayne Gates.

In Thornhill, represented by Shurman from 2007 to 2013, the Liberal candidate is Vaughan councillor Sandra Yeung Racco, whose husband, Mario Racco, was the former Grit MPP. (Source: Toronto Star)

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LETTER OF THE MOMENT

Letter to the Editor - Friday, January 17, 2014

Hamilton Spectator Letter to the Editor

How about lampooning Liberals, for a change?

 How typical of the Hamilton Spectator editorial cartoon to lampoon Tim Hudak’s proposed plan to create a million jobs in Ontario. Whether it will work or not remains to be seen, but at least it’s a plan to create private sector jobs.

How typical of the Spectator not to attack Kathleen Wynne and the provincial Liberals, who over the past 10 years have overseen the departure of hundreds of thousands of private sector jobs from this once great province. Not only do the Liberals not have a plan to create jobs, they don’t even have a plan to stop the ongoing bleeding. Let’s not bother to attack the Liberals for their big government, big hydro, tax-and-spend, mismanagement approach to everything. Way to go Spectator, you only seem capable of denouncing anything Conservative.

How about an editorial cartoon about Health Minister Deb Matthews reannouncement of a previously announced hospital spend in Niagara, just before they’re set to announce byelections in that area? No vote-buying or funny business going on there — yeah right!

Cameron Stringer, Hamilton

 

 

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Wednesday, December 4, 2013Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Tim Hudak admits Tories couldn’t lower electricity rates

Railing against rising electricity prices under the Liberal government, Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak admitted a Tory government could not promise lower rates.

“The answer is no on that,” he told reporters Tuesday, a day after Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli unveiled a new energy plan for the province that will see residential hydro bills rise 42 per cent in five years.

“It’s a matter of limiting the damage that these failed policies are costing our province,” Hudak added, taking a shot at the blueprint that suspends plans for two new nuclear reactors, boosts conservation and adds wind and solar power.

Chiarelli predicted Monday that electricity prices will actually be lower than the Liberal government promised in its last energy plan in 2010, with average rate hikes of 2.8 per cent over the next 20 years, down from the previous 3.4 per cent forecast.
Rob Ford at Bills game
That was accomplished by shelving plans to spend $15 billion on two new reactors at Ontario Power Generation’s Darlington station and by cutting green energy payouts by roughly $5 billion.

Under the Liberal changes, the average residential electricity bill will go up $12 monthly next year to $137, and hit $178 a month by 2016.
Hudak said Ontario would be better off avoiding more wind and solar power, for which the Liberals pay higher prices to producers, and building two new reactors at Darlington.

“If you actually make sensible investments on energy that you’re going to have lower rates than you would if you doubled down on failed green energy experiments,” Hudak added, charging that more wind turbines would make rural areas resemble “a giant pin cushion.” (Source: Toronto Star)

Wednesday May 2, 2012

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Wednesday May 2, 2012

‘Even Jimmy Carter would have killed Osama bin Laden’, says Mitt Romney

With the Americans remembering the anniversary of the Obama-authorised US military raid in Pakistan that ended with bin Laden’s death, campaign adviser Robert Gibbs said on Sunday that it was unclear whether Mr Romney would have made the same decision as Obama.

“Look, just a few years ago, President Obama – then a candidate – said in a speech that if we had actionable intelligence of a high-value target in Pakistan, we’d go in and get that high value target,” Mr Gibbs said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Mitt Romney said that was foolish. He wouldn’t do such a thing. That he wouldn’t move heaven and earth to get Osama bin Laden.”

Speaking in New Hampshire on Monday, Mr Romney said he would have made the same decision.

“Of course. Even Jimmy Carter would have given that order,” Romney said.

Many Americans remember Mr Carter’s foreign policy record as weak, primarily because of his inability to win the release of the Americans who were taken hostage in Iran and held for 444 days during his 1977-81 presidency.

Mr Romney has scheduled an appearance Tuesday in New York City with firefighters and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani to mark the anniversary of the killing of bin Laden, who was responsible for the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Last week, Mr Obama’s campaign released a video featuring former President Bill Clinton that sought to reinforce Mr Gibbs’ doubts about Romney. “Which path would Mitt Romney have taken?” the video asks. (Source: The Telegraph)