Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark is speaking out against what he calls “the politics of fear” and is accusing one his opponents in the 2020 mayoral election, Rob Norris, of running a slate of candidates Clark says would only cause “political gridlock” on city council.
Norris, who has previously denied that he is running a slate, said the persistent claim is “nonsense” and “disappointing.”
“I’ve seen Mr. Norris door-knocking with other candidates, I’ve seen him supporting their statements on social media and other different ways,” Clark said Friday from his downtown campaign office. “It has the clear indication that there are some allegiances.”
Clark’s remarks, made while officially launching his re-election campaign, also touched on rival candidates’ desires to hit “pause” on plans for a new $134-million downtown library.
Both Norris and fellow mayoral contender Don Atchison have called for a halt, although in different ways.
Norris said that if he’s elected on Nov. 9 — and should he corral the necessary amount of votes from other like-minded councillors — he will seek to rescind council’s November 2019 decision to approve $67.5 million in borrowing by the Saskatoon Public Library board, which has direct authority over the project.
Atchison said he wants to hear first from city officials whether what Norris wants to do is even possible.
Clark’s campaign office in downtown Saskatoon. (Guy Quenneville/CBC)
“I’m hearing a lot from other candidates about wanting to go backwards to revisit and reverse decisions to undo progress that is made, to cling on to outdated ideas from the past,” Clark said.
Doing so in the case of the library project could actually put the city in legal hot water, Clark said.
“On the basis of that decision, there has been land purchased,” he said, referring to the library board’s buying up a lot on Second Avenue N.
“There have been contracts let out. There has been a whole process underway so that if, now, some council wanted to go and revisit that decision, it would entwine the city council into potential lawsuits and [a] frayed relationship with the library that on good faith has gone forward and made decisions.”
The library board recently told CBC News that a request for proposals (RFP) for the design of the new library is expected to go out this month, with the winner selected in November.
As Atchison put it Friday: “The train has left the station.”
Mayoral candidate Don Atchison says ‘the train has left the station’ when it comes to building a new downtown library. (Guy Quenneville/CBC)
Asked how his plan for a re-do would work given those circumstances, Norris said, “Well, the design is a long way from the construction. The library board would be very prudent to push pause and wait for the outcome of the election and wait to hear the will of city council.”
Now is actually a good time to move forward on the project, Clark said.
“I hear this from the building industry,” he said. “This is the best time to be out there putting out contracts and for construction because interest rates are low, prices are low for construction and and we need to have infrastructure projects to create jobs.”
While denying he’s running a slate, Norris said candidates running in other wards have applauded his stance on the library, though he declined to specify whom.
Norris also denied he has talked to other would-be councillors about voting together to rescind the borrowing decision.
Rob Norris has denied he’s running a slate or trying to gather votes to prevent the library project from going forward. (Rob Norris)
Clark cited Norris as the candidate most obviously participating in others’ campaigns. A slate would be antithetical to municipal politics, he said.
“After an election, if there’s definitely an active sense that you have a mayor — who’s meant to be the captain of the team — who has actively worked against some of the colleagues who were there on council, in the midst of a pandemic, and trust is low, that’s going to affect the ability to to move forward and and keep the city moving. And we can’t afford to be distracted. That’s what we’re seeing in the United States.”
Clark acknowledged city council has already been split on some issues, resulting in close 6-5 votes, but said cordiality has always reigned.
“What we have not seen is where councillors or the mayor are taking those as personal divisions within council,” Clark said. “At the end of our debates, we always make sure that we’re talking to each other. We get together. We respect and understand that there are different opinions.”
Asked about Norris’ previous denial, Clark said, “If it looks like a slate and acts like a slate, it starts to look like a slate.”
While not naming Norris directly, Clark said he’s been concerned with the tone of some campaigning so far.
“I’ve seen name calling,” Clark said. “I’ve seen attempts to use crises in our community to attract attention on Facebook. People watching the campaign, they’re surprised at the tone and the negativity that’s already coming out.
“I’ve already seen the politics of fear creep into this civic election campaign in a way that I have not seen in the five campaigns I’ve been involved with so far.”
Norris has sought to characterize Clark as a weak leader, calling him “passive” during his own campaign launch speech in late June.
On Friday, Norris stepped up the language, calling Clark “Dr. Doolittle” and accusing him of a “get nothing done” approach.
Clark touted his work in establishing the city’s first economic growth strategy as well as his more recent contribution to a Saskatoon Tribal Council-led project that will seek to find permanent housing for the vulnerable.
Clark has also spoken proudly of helping co-ordinate efforts he credits with having prevented COVID-19 from having spread widely among Saskatoon’s homeless people.
Norris is not the only candidate who has made cutting remarks about an opponent.
Ward 7 candidate Carol Reynolds — who, like Norris, has come out against the $134-million library — is seeking to unseat incumbent councillor Mairin Loewen.
“Most people I spoke to don’t even know who their councillor is,” Reynolds said on an episode of her campaign podcast. “And I just say, ‘You know what? That’s okay. I’m Carol Reynolds and I want to be your current councillor.'”
On another episode, Reynolds said of Loewen, “There’s definitely a lack of empathy and a lack of accountability that’s being demonstrated by the incumbent.”
Norris has criticized “Charlie and company” for voting against amending a sector plan to include a green neighbourhood proposal from Arbutus Properties (which has denied funding Norris’ campaign).
Clark suggested that’s an ill-advised approach for a politician looking to curry potential future support on council.
“If you spend your campaign trying to undermine your future colleagues, you can make whatever promises you want,” Clark said. “But good luck getting them to vote for any of your proposals if you make it to the other side.”
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
