'Like the air is coming out of the bicycle tire': Strategists weigh in on tumultuous week for the Liberals
Following another byelection loss in a riding long considered a Liberal stronghold, coupled with the news another minister is quitting cabinet — and opting to sit as an independent MP — the weekly panel of political strategists on CTV's Question Period weighs in on the Liberals' political fortunes.
Last week started with the Liberals' byelection loss to the Bloc Quebecois in LaSalle—Émard—Verdun, the Montreal-area riding previously held for nearly a decade by former Liberal justice minister David Lametti, as well as by former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin from 1988 to 2008.
Then, later last week, former transport minister Pablo Rodriguez announced he was stepping down from cabinet to run for the leadership of the Quebec Liberal Party.
That announcement wasn't unexpected, but Rodriguez' decision to sit as an Independent MP came as a surprise to many political watchers.
Scott Reid — a Â鶹ӰÊÓ political analyst and former communications director to former prime minister Paul Martin — called the byelection loss "a big deal."
"It feels like the air is coming out of the bicycle tire of the government, and you can just see it in people's faces, and you can read it in their body language," he said. "The fact that bad news is expected still doesn't necessarily help you when the bad news arrives."
Reid said when it comes to the government's deflating tire, "it doesn't feel like they have a pump handy," which puts the Liberals at a disadvantage, without a clear path forward.
Kathleen Monk, a former NDP strategist and director of communications to the late Jack Layton, agreed, saying the Liberals have yet to present any narrative or policy to "turn the ship around."
"I think, in some ways, they're shocked that this bad news keeps on coming, but I don't know why," Monk said, when asked about the revelation that the byelection loss was not discussed during Liberal caucus last week.
Kory Teneycke, who was Ontario Premier Doug Ford's campaign manager and former director of communications for former prime minister Stephen Harper, said factoring in the Liberals' lacklustre polling numbers for the last year, it's "very difficult when you're at like 21 or 22 points to look yourself in the mirror and say there's a path to victory."
"I think the degree to which it's obvious that things are not going to work out well for these guys unless something very radical changes is obvious to everyone, except maybe one or two people, and clearly one of them is the prime minister himself," Teneycke said. "It's just absolutely mind-boggling that you can have a caucus meeting and not talk about losing one of the safest seats in the country."
You can watch CTV's Question Period's full Sunday Strategy Session in the video player at the top of this article.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police say a toddler in Cambridge, Ont., who was reported missing early Monday morning, has since died.
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has provided new data on the number of employees who were found to have received the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
House Speaker asks MPs to behave better in question period after incident
House of Commons Speaker Greg Fergus says he expects members of Parliament to behave better than they did last week, when an exchange between two party leaders got so heated one MP thought it may actually come to physical blows.
Lebanon sees deadliest day of conflict since 2006 as Israeli strikes kill 492
Israeli strikes on Lebanon Monday killed more than 490 people, including more than 90 women and children, Lebanese authorities said, in the deadliest barrage since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war.
It was a tragic ending to the search for a six-year-old boy in northeastern Manitoba who had been missing since Wednesday.
Thousands of bones and hundreds of weapons reveal grisly insights into a 3,250-year-old battle
A new analysis of dozens of arrowheads is helping researchers piece together a clearer portrait of the warriors who clashed on Europe’s oldest known battlefield 3,250 years ago.
Beverly Glenn-Copeland reveals dementia diagnosis, will soon play final Canadian show
Beverly Glenn-Copeland says he's been diagnosed with dementia and will play his final concert tour dates over the next two weeks.
Public health-care facilities projected to spend $1.5B on private nursing agencies in previous year: report
Private nursing agencies could cost Canadian health-care facilities approximately $1.5 billion in 2023-24, according to a new report commissioned by the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions.
Is the COVID XEC variant a concern in Canada? Here's what you need to know, according to health experts
While many Canadians no longer stress as much about COVID-19 as they did during its peak, health experts say a new variant has been spreading in some parts of the world and is now present in Canada.
Local Spotlight
Fire has destroyed a barn and 17,000 plants at a family-owned business in Lower Coverdale, N.B.
Before influencers on social media, Canada’s Jeanne Beker was bringing the world of high fashion down to earth and as Calgary’s Glenbow Museum gets a major make-over, it will include a new exhibition showcasing the pop culture icon.
A sea lion swam free after a rescue team disentangled it near Vancouver Island earlier this week.
A Nova Scotian YouTuber has launched a mini-truck bookmobile.
Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.
Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.
An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.
They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.
A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.