Politics

Anti-lockdown Conservative leadership candidate Roman Baber has always been an island

Published

2 years ago

September 1, 2022

OTTAWA — About 30 people are gathered in a small, windowless conference room on the second floor of a hotel in an Ottawa suburb, awaiting the guest of honour, who is a few minutes late. There’s no podium. No microphone. No flashy branding, except for a smallish laminated poster board that features the tag line: “People Before Politics.”

When Roman Baber walks in wearing dark jeans and a black suit jacket, he greets each person, none of whom are wearing masks, with a handshake. One woman thanks him effusively as she clasps his hands. “I’ve followed you since the beginning of the pandemic,” she says.

Baber is one of five candidates for leadership of the federal Conservative party, a contest that will crown a winner on Sept. 10.

The placid 42-year-old is a folk hero to people who oppose COVID-19 lockdowns. His open letter to Ontario Premier Doug Ford urging an end to lockdowns in January 2021 got him booted from the Progressive Conservative caucus fewer than three years after he was elected to represent York Centre in Toronto.

A year and a half after the Ontario government accused him of being “reckless and irresponsible” for his views, the former civil and commercial litigant dismisses the idea that he ever engaged in misinformation. “Never in the 12 years of my professional career has anyone ever accused me of not telling the truth,” he says in an interview.

Some have accused Baber of shamelessly appealing to the “Freedom Convoy” and anti-vaccine crowd to score political points. But while he came out early with his anti-lockdown arguments and amassed tens of thousands of followers, his opponents are now using the same playbook with more success.

“There’s no question that we had an impact on the other candidates, and on their campaigns, and therefore on our party, and therefore on our country,” he says. “It’s a gratifying thing for a public servant to accomplish something like that.”

Baber says he believes that if history judges this period fairly, he will be further vindicated. “I hope that it will give relief to my reputation. And to the very many adversities that I suffered, and my loved ones have suffered, in the last two years as a result of the positions that I took.”

His actions show an obvious quixotic streak. In Baber’s short five years in politics, he has often positioned himself against the prevailing narrative when his own beliefs or his constituents demanded it.

He made waves in 2019 when The Globe and Mail wrote about a policy report Baber authored, complete with a critical preamble, that outlined the changes he believed should be made to the Ontario Autism Program.

Earlier that year, Ford’s government had announced changes that prompted strong criticism from autism organizations in the province. When Baber raised concerns, Ford asked him to review the plan. Baber concluded that it “would essentially be giving crumbs to everyone instead of good treatment for the few,” he says.

He came up with a “very detailed and technical proposed reform,” but when his criticisms leaked out, the Ford government distanced itself from him even as it publicly apologized for the original plan. Baber’s alternative proposal was dead in the water.

During his two and a half years in caucus, Baber says he also raised concerns internally about other government policies, including an increase to classroom sizes and increases to clawback rates for Ontario disability payments. The Ford government ultimately backed down on both amid widespread criticism.

To not much effect, he spent time lobbying colleagues on his “dream” to connect Toronto’s Sheppard West subway station, which he sees outside his window at home, to more of the TTC. “I got the title of ‘subway guy,’” he says, sounding nostalgic. “I used to carry a subway map with me to show it to people.”

He was one of only a handful of Progressive Conservatives elected in 2018 who were never offered additional roles in the government. He is the first to admit that his criticisms often made little impact, though he says he bears no ill will towards his other former colleagues.

If he was an island then, he seems to be an island now.

Baber’s campaign is a bare-bones operation. Though he brought in half a million dollars in donations in this year’s first quarter alone, there’s little evidence of that on display at the Kanata hotel.

Baber drove himself here and has brought copies of a platform document that contains a few noticeable typos. He explains to attendees that the woman they saw propping up the poster at the front and setting up a printer in the hallway (for photocopying IDs, if they wanted to prepare their ballots on the spot) is his significant other, Nancy. He jokes that his campaign costs are low.

He lists off some of his policy ideas and tries to play to the crowd, criticizing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, warning about the erosion of democracy and getting chuckles for folksy lines making fun of environmentalists — “I’m not going to eat crickets!”

Even here, with 30 people he’s hoping will like him and vote for him, he’s still willing to push back on whatever narrative he’s being presented with.

To a young woman who inquires about the World Economic Forum, he says the organization itself is not really an issue, though “left-wing ideology” is. To a middle-aged woman who claims her son-in-law died after getting vaccinated and subsequently blames the ills of society on a collapse of Christianity, he states: “Just like we’re not telling people what to do with their bodies, I don’t think we should be telling people how to exercise their spiritual beliefs.” To a man who wonders about replacing the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, he says it’s actually a “fine document.”

A young man with glasses and his hair tied in a bun tells Baber he marked him first on his leadership election ballot because “you speak from the heart.” It rings true.

The effusive woman who thanked Baber as he entered is named Ruxandra. She prefers not to provide her last name. She immigrated from Romania and has vivid memories of the revolution that ended communist rule in the country in 1989. She says pandemic restrictions reminded her of everything they fought against then, and Baber has given voice to those feelings.

For some, like Ruxandra, the idea that Baber is sincere about his “People Before Politics” slogan may be more meaningful than whether he makes any concrete change.

“I watched Roman since the ‘Plandemic’ started and it resonated very much with how I feel,” she says, using a term popularized by a 2020 viral conspiracy video. “Every time I would look at his videos and his challenges and battles against what happened made me realize that I’m not alone.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 1, 2022.

Marie-Danielle Smith, The Canadian Press

Politics

‘Disgraceful:’ N.S. Tory leader slams school’s request that military remove uniform

Published

1 day ago

November 8, 2024

Anne Joseph

HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.

Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.

A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”

Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.

“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.

In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”

“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”

Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.

Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.

Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.

“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.

“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.

“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”

Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.

“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”

“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

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Politics

Saskatchewan NDP’s Beck holds first caucus meeting after election, outlines plans

Published

2 days ago

November 8, 2024

Anne Joseph

REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.

Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.

She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.

Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.

Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.

The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

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Politics

Nova Scotia election: Liberals say province’s immigration levels are too high

Published

2 days ago

November 7, 2024

Anne Joseph

HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.

Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.

“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.

“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”

The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.

In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.

“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”

In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.

“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”

Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.

Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.

“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”

In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.

In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.

“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”

Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.

“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”

The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.

“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.

“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

— With files from Keith Doucette in Halifax

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