transition

Thursday February 20, 2025

Mark Carney's pragmatic approach gains momentum against Pierre Poilievre's faltering rhetoric, reshaping Canada's political landscape.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday February 20, 2025

Carney’s Calm vs. Poilievre’s Pandemonium

As Canada awaits new leadership, a political vacuum has stalled vital policies like carbon pricing, highlighting the challenges of balancing political strategy with long-term governance.

January 25, 2025

As Canada navigates a politically charged landscape, the winds of change seem to be blowing in favour of Mark Carney, whose candidacy is rapidly gaining traction against Pierre Poilievre. Recent polling data reflects a growing momentum for Carney, a seasoned economist with extensive experience in both Canadian and international finance. This shift signals a potential realignment of Canadian political dynamics, with voters increasingly drawn to Carney’s steady and pragmatic approach.

Poilievre, long seen as the frontrunner with his Trump-inspired rhetoric and combative style, now finds himself in a precarious position. His past pandering to Trump’s supporters, characterized by divisive slogans and rhetoric, is increasingly at odds with the prevailing mood among Canadians. As Trump issues threats about tariffs and annexation, Canadians are unifying against such rhetoric, seeking leadership that stands for national sovereignty and constructive international relations.

NYT: Trump’s Threats Against Canada Upend Conservative’s Playbook

Former Canadian prime ministers urge citizens to fly the flag with pride, fostering unity amid external challenges and internal reflections.

February 15, 2025

Moreover, Poilievre’s relentless use of rhetoric that once resonated with voters is now faltering. His attacks on Justin Trudeau lose their bite as Trudeau steps off the political stage. The slogan “Axe the Tax,” aimed at the Liberal federal consumer carbon tax/rebate scheme, is becoming outdated as all leadership hopefuls and leaders, including Carney, plan to end it. Additionally, the narrative that “Canada Seems Broken” inadvertently aligns with Trump’s suggestion that Canada might as well become the 51st state, a notion that undermines national confidence and unity.

Poilievre’s recent attempts to soften his tone and adopt a more inclusive message appear to be a strategic response to Carney’s rising popularity. However, this shift in rhetoric may come across as disingenuous to voters who have witnessed his previous alignment with Trumpian ideals. The challenge for Poilievre lies in convincing Canadians that his change in approach is more than superficial sloganeering.

In contrast, Carney’s candidacy offers a compelling alternative. With his background as a former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, Carney brings a wealth of experience and a reputation for sound economic management. His pragmatic, solutions-oriented demeanour resonates with Canadians seeking stability and hope amid economic uncertainties and geopolitical tensions.

Opinion: Poilievre excelled at taking people down. Can he lift people up?

December 5, 2024

Carney’s ability to engage with complex issues, such as navigating relations with the United States, positions him as a credible leader in the eyes of voters. His approach, characterized by thoughtful discourse and a commitment to national interests, stands in stark contrast to the polarizing tactics often associated with Poilievre.

As the political narrative unfolds, it becomes evident that Canadians are looking for leadership that rises above partisanship and populism. The momentum building for Carney suggests a collective desire for a leader who embodies integrity, competence, and a vision for a prosperous future.

In this critical moment, the choice before Canadians is clear: a decision between the divisive rhetoric of the past and a new path forward, led by a leader who can unite and inspire. As the polls indicate, Mark Carney is emerging as the candidate who can offer that hope and direction, setting the stage for a transformative chapter in Canadian politics.

Mark Carney’s Rise Should Be Bringing Pierre Poilievre To Tears

Those who know my work understand that I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with politicians gaining too much popularity. For over a year now, Pierre Poilievre has been the big man on campus in Ottawa, seemingly miles ahead of other leaders. But let’s face it—his rise to fame might have more to do with Justin Trudeau’s declining popularity. Ever since Trudeau got that strong majority in 2015, his approval ratings have been on a slow, steady decline.

Poilievre seized on Trudeau’s weaknesses, turning his failing leadership into a bit of a personal punching bag with his sharp, often biting style since taking over the Conservative helm in 2022. But now, the tables are turning. Enter Mark Carney—a real contender with a unique set of credentials. Poilievre made a name for himself critiquing Trudeau’s shaky economic policies, playing up his role as a “fake economist.” Now he faces a real economist with the kind of pedigree that reads like a dream—Harvard, Oxford, former Governor of the Bank of Canada, and the Bank of England. Meanwhile, Poilievre holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Calgary.

Sure, education is just one piece of the puzzle, but life experience matters too. Poilievre has been a career politician, while Carney has been setting key interest rates and serving on bank and law firm boards. The old Conservative line of “He’s just not ready” won’t work this time around.

We’re on the brink of a major showdown between these two, and I have to say, it’s going to be quite the spectacle. As for me, I’m rooting for one of them for now, knowing that whoever wins will soon find themselves at the sharp end of my satire. But when it comes to Trump, he is, and will always be, my ultimate target—regardless of who holds the title of Prime Minister.

As Canada’s political dynamics evolve, Mark Carney’s candidacy is swiftly gaining traction against Pierre Poilievre, whose reliance on Trump-like rhetoric is losing resonance. Carney’s experience and pragmatic solutions appeal to Canadians seeking stability amid economic uncertainties and geopolitical tensions. Poilievre’s slogans, once powerful, now seem outdated, especially as rhetoric against Trudeau becomes irrelevant and narratives like “Canada Seems Broken” inadvertently align with Trump’s annexation suggestions. Carney’s rise reflects a shift towards leadership that embodies integrity, competence, and a hopeful vision, positioning him as a compelling alternative for a transformative future in Canadian politics.

Please check out my making-of animated editorial cartoon for February 20, 2025, below! If you haven’t yet, please subscribe to my Substack newsletter, where I release my post every Saturday morning summarizing the week through my editorial cartoons. What you’re reading here is a “note,” designed to help craft my weekly posts and display the animated versions of my daily cartoons. Enjoy!

– The Graeme Gallery

Read on Substack

Wednesday November 24, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday November 24, 2020

Trump Administration Approves Start of Formal Transition to Biden

November 17, 2020

President Trump’s government on Monday authorized President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. to begin a formal transition process after Michigan certified Mr. Biden as its winner, a strong sign that the president’s last-ditch bid to overturn the results of the election was coming to an end.

Mr. Trump did not concede, and vowed to persist with efforts to change the vote, which have so far proved fruitless. But the president said on Twitter on Monday night that he accepted the decision by Emily W. Murphy, the administrator of the General Services Administration, to allow a transition to proceed.

In his tweet, Mr. Trump said that he had told his officials to begin “initial protocols” involving the handoff to Mr. Biden “in the best interest of our country,” even though he had spent weeks trying to subvert a free and fair election with false claims of fraud. Hours later, he tried to play down the significance of Ms. Murphy’s action, tweeting that it was simply “preliminarily work with the Dems” that would not stop efforts to change the election results.

Still, Ms. Murphy’s designation of Mr. Biden as the apparent victor provides the incoming administration with federal funds and resources and clears the way for the president-elect’s advisers to coordinate with Trump administration officials.

November 14, 2020

The decision from Ms. Murphy came after several additional senior Republican lawmakers, as well as leading figures from business and world affairs, denounced the delay in allowing the peaceful transfer of power to begin, a holdup that Mr. Biden and his top aides said was threatening national security and the ability of the incoming administration to effectively plan for combating the coronavirus pandemic.

And it followed a key court decision in Pennsylvania, where the state’s Supreme Court on Monday ruled against the Trump campaign and the president’s Republican allies, stating that roughly 8,000 ballots with signature or date irregularities must be counted.

November 6, 2020

In Michigan, the statewide canvassing board, with two Republicans and two Democrats, voted 3 to 0 to approve the results, with one Republican abstaining. It officially delivered to Mr. Biden a key battleground that Mr. Trump had wrested away from Democrats four years ago, and rebuffed the president’s legal and political efforts to overturn the results.

By Monday evening, as Mr. Biden moved ahead with plans to fill out his cabinet, broad sectors of the nation had delivered a blunt message to a defeated president: His campaign to stay in the White House and subvert the election, unrealistic from the start, was nearing the end. (New York Times) 

 

Thursday November 11, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Thursday November 11, 2016 ObamaÕs legacy is on the line with TrumpÕs win President Obama urged the country to unify Wednesday and pledged to work with President-elect Donald Trump, a candidate who for months he blasted as unfit to lead the country and who will now be succeeding him in office. ÒIt is no secret that the president-elect and I have had some pretty significant differences,Ó Obama said of Trump in a Rose Garden address. ÒOne thing you realize in this job is that the presidency and the vice presidency is bigger than any of us.Ó Obama likened the presidency to a relay race, telling the hundreds of exhausted and emotionally shaken White House staffers who packed the Rose Garden that they were leaving the country in a better position than it was eight years ago. But for Obama, the election of Trump and the RepublicansÕ control of Congress puts at risk many of his signature policies over the past eight years. At the core of TrumpÕs campaign was a promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act and to scrap ObamaÕs executive actions on immigration and climate change. Trump also has promised to undo the presidentÕs deal to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, the biggest foreign policy achievement of ObamaÕs second term. Many of the changes to ObamaÕs signature programs could happen quickly. Trump has vowed to pull out of the Paris Agreement to curb greenhouse gases and has promised to cancel an Environmental Protection Agency power-plant rule that is intended to cut emissions by about 30 percent over the next nine years, compared with 2005 levels. On immigration, Trump vowed to overturn ObamaÕs executive actions to grant work permits to millions of undocumented immigrants, including more than 700,000 younger immigrants already benefiting from the program. A Trump administration could also drop the governmentÕs defense of legal challenges to his executive actions on immigration. ObamaÕs pus

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday November 11, 2016

Obama’s legacy is on the line with Trump’s win

President Obama urged the country to unify Wednesday and pledged to work with President-elect Donald Trump, a candidate who for months he blasted as unfit to lead the country and who will now be succeeding him in office.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Thursday July 28, 2016 Barack Obama to make case for Hillary Clinton, his legacy President Barack Obama's three Democratic convention speeches have, in succession, launched his national career, thrust him into the Oval Office and secured him a second term. On Wednesday, he'll work during his fourth marquee convention address to ensure those earlier efforts weren't for naught. In his prime-time pitch for Hillary Clinton, and during a heavy campaign schedule this fall, Obama plans to argue not only for the Democratic nominee, but for the progressive policies that he's spent the last eight years enacting -- an agenda that will depend largely on his successor to maintain. His message, according to those helping him prepare for the speech: Don't flush everything away with Donald Trump. Obama plans to draw on his long and complicated relationship with Clinton, which began as a rivalry but has evolved into what the pair hopes can become the first elected Democrat-to-Democrat presidential transition in modern history. In pre-convention interviews, Obama has been frank about his relationship with Clinton, admitting they aren't "bosom buddies.Ó "We don't go vacationing together," Obama said during a CBS interview Sunday. "I think that I've got a pretty clear-eyed sense of both her strengths and her weaknesses. And what I would say would be that this is somebody who knows as much about domestic and foreign policy as anybody.Ó "She's not always flashy. And there are better speech-makers," he said. "But she knows her stuff.Ó Many top Republicans skipped their party's convention last week, fearing links to Trump. But Democratic convention organizers had a wealth of willing speakers, programming prime-time speeches from high-profile and well-liked Democrats like Obama, Vice President Joe Biden (who also speaks Wednesday), first lady Michelle Obama, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth War

July 28, 2016

“It is no secret that the president-elect and I have had some pretty significant differences,” Obama said of Trump in a Rose Garden address. “One thing you realize in this job is that the presidency and the vice presidency is bigger than any of us.”

Obama likened the presidency to a relay race, telling the hundreds of exhausted and emotionally shaken White House staffers who packed the Rose Garden that they were leaving the country in a better position than it was eight years ago.

But for Obama, the election of Trump and the Republicans’ control of Congress puts at risk many of his signature policies over the past eight years. At the core of Trump’s campaign was a promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act and to scrap Obama’s executive actions on immigration and climate change. Trump also has promised to undo the president’s deal to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, the biggest foreign policy achievement of Obama’s second term.

February 10, 2016

February 10, 2016

Many of the changes to Obama’s signature programs could happen quickly. Trump has vowed to pull out of the Paris Agreement to curb greenhouse gases and has promised to cancel an Environmental Protection Agency power-plant rule that is intended to cut emissions by about 30 percent over the next nine years, compared with 2005 levels.

Presidents of the United States of America | By Graeme MacKay 1789 - 2015 For sale at the mackaycartoons boutique President, USA, United States, America, Americana, politics, history, Executive, caricature, wall, chart, list, education, classroom, satire, cartoon

Presidents of the United States of America

On immigration, Trump vowed to overturn Obama’s executive actions to grant work permits to millions of undocumented immigrants, including more than 700,000 younger immigrants already benefiting from the program. A Trump administration could also drop the government’s defense of legal challenges to his executive actions on immigration.

Obama’s push to persuade Congress to ratify the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, a massive trade deal that Trump savaged on the campaign trail, now looks dead. Trump has vowed to renegotiate other existing deals that are already in place. (Continued: Washington Post)

 

Saturday September 21, 2002

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday September 21, 2002

Ernie Eves the Davisian

May 5, 1999

Premier Ernie Eves says Ontario voters want the steady management style of former Conservative premier Bill Davis, not the hot-button politics of Mike Harris.

“I think premier Davis was one of the better premiers the province of Ontario has had,” Eves told reporters yesterday at the Tories’ two-day caucus retreat that was to end today. 

“He certainly reformed the post secondary education system … he did all kinds of things.” 

When Davis left politics in 1985, it marked the beginning of the end for more than 42 years of Tory rule. 

Since taking over, Eves has dismantled some of the basic tenets of the Common Sense Revolution, such as the idea that tax cuts pay for themselves and that major crown corporation such as Hydro One should be sold. 

Eves said he is not about to pushed into putting all his government’s plans in a 35-page document, as was the Common Sense Revolution that helped catapult Harris into power in 1995. It promised tax cuts, and getting tough on crime and welfare, among other things. (CP)