As political events gear up for a federal election marketing campaign that would start as quickly as March 10, the Conservatives seem targeted on the person they imagine they’re going to be working towards: Mark Carney.
On their method right into a caucus assembly in Ottawa Friday morning, Conservative MPs disregarded issues in regards to the celebration’s standing within the polls and stayed on message in regards to the man they’ve branded as “carbon tax Carney.”
“Over the past two days, Mark Carney once more admitted his personal lie about not eager to impose a carbon tax. The truth is, he says he is altering the carbon tax,” mentioned deputy chief Melissa Lantsman.
Carney, the obvious front-runner within the race to switch Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as Liberal chief on March 9, has pledged to finish the patron carbon worth and substitute it with a local weather plan that provides incentives to customers whereas forcing large polluters to pay “their fair proportion.”
Lantsman mentioned there is a “explicit madness” in forcing metal firms to pay extra at a time after they’re being threatened with U.S. tariffs.
For greater than 18 months, the Conservatives have held double-digit leads in nationwide polls over a Liberal Get together weighed down by Trudeau’s private unpopularity.
However issues have been shifting recently. A Leger ballot this week suggests {that a} Liberal Get together led by Carney could be in a useless warmth with the Tories, with 37 per cent help.
(The web ballot reached 1,590 adults between Feb. 7 and Feb. 10. The polling business’s skilled physique, the Canadian Analysis Insights Council, says on-line surveys can’t be assigned a margin of error as a result of they don’t randomly pattern the inhabitants.)
For over a 12 months, Conservative assaults have targeted on the Liberals’ shopper carbon worth, with a tag line of “Axe the Tax” adorning the podiums at almost all of chief Pierre Poilievre’s speeches, information conferences and rallies.
With Trudeau out of the image and the main Liberal management candidates pledging to get rid of the carbon worth, the Conservatives have largely shelved that slogan in favour of a brand new one: “Canada First.”
The caucus met for the primary time since December, returning to a a lot completely different political panorama than the one they left on the vacation break.
Parliament has been on pause since Jan. 6, the day Trudeau introduced his plans to step down and triggered a management race.
Two weeks later, Donald Trump took over the White Home whereas pledging to impose sweeping tariffs on imports of Canadian items.
Trump has dominated headlines ever since, as his tariff threats and their deadlines proceed to shift.
After saying the tariffs had been a response to Canada’s failure to cease migrants and unlawful medication from crossing the border, Trump’s govt order delaying the levies mentioned he is searching for an financial cope with Canada.
He is accused Canada of being unfair on commerce and made the false declare that the U.S. is spending a whole lot of billions of {dollars} to subsidize Canada.
He additionally has mentioned repeatedly that Canada can keep away from the tariffs altogether if it turns into the “51st state.”
Tories say carbon tax nonetheless fundamental challenge
However the Conservatives nonetheless say the carbon tax trumps the specter of U.S. tariffs as the principle poll field query within the election.
Conservative ethics critic Michael Barrett mentioned Friday that the election shall be about “placing Canadians first — and nothing places Canadians first like axing the carbon tax.”
Poilievre, who didn’t communicate to reporters Friday, has mentioned he would hit the U.S. with retaliatory tariffs if he had been in energy. He referred to as on the Liberals to ship the army to safe the border with the U.S. in response to Trump’s issues.
He is additionally made current bulletins about redirecting overseas support funding to construct an Arctic army base and imposing obligatory life sentences on folks convicted of trafficking greater than 40 mg of fentanyl.
Conservative Home chief Andrew Scheer — the one different Tory MP who stopped to talk with reporters on Friday — mentioned the Conservatives will persuade voters that they’re greatest positioned to cope with Trump by “placing Canada first.”
“The Carney Liberal strategy has made Canada extra weak and extra dependent,” he mentioned.
Poilievre is ready to host a “Canada First” rally in Ottawa on Saturday.
The Conservatives have despatched invites broadly by way of automated telephone calls and textual content messages to Ottawa-area telephone numbers, urging folks to return carrying purple and white in honour of Flag Day.
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