Your letters for May 27: Senate numbers a tricky thing
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The reality of U.S. representation is that less than 20 per cent of the population elects over half of the Senate. Wyoming, with half of Saskatchewan's population, has as much power in the Senate as California, with roughly the population of Canada.
One of the principles of democracy is representation by population; each vote should have equal weight. Redistribution added three Alberta MPs for the 2025 election. Ontario has 3.3 times Alberta's population and 3.3 times the number of MPs. Albertans might appreciate having the same power as Ontario, but what about P.E.I. having the same power as Alberta, with less than four per cent of Alberta's population?
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The public record initially had Magliocca adamantly proclaiming his innocence. Now he apologizes for his actions. If he had integrity, he could have taken responsibility for his actions several months ago and saved the cost of an expensive trial.
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As a public servant with 37 years of service, I and countless others like me, had to work diligently to provide our services to the public in a trustworthy and ethical manner. The actions of Magliocca taint us all, and for that, I am deeply saddened.
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Jerry Christensen, Calgary
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Lone Calgary MP should be in cabinet
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Mark Carney is not my prime minister. He told me so. How, you might ask? When he did not appoint the only Calgary Liberal MP to his cabinet. But he did appoint Steven Guilbeault to cabinet. Then he did not immediately fire Guilbeault when he mouthed off, erroneously, about pipelines.
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Mr. Carney, your message has been received loud and clear. Nothing changes in political Laurentian Canada. Perhaps something will change in Alberta? I think the PM wants us to go away.
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Terry Lauder, Calgary
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I have eagerly checked the Letters page daily, hoping someone had taken up Catherine Ford's idea of other, more relevant, referendum topics. No luck so far, but here are a few ideas:
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The provincial government should stay out of municipal areas and repeal changes to the Local Authorities Election Act (paper ballots only, municipal parties, etc.).
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The provincial government should support diversification of Alberta's economy, including renewable energy and battery storage options.
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UCP MLAs who support Alberta separation should be required to resign from the caucus that promoted a 'united Canada' by introducing and passing Bill 1.
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On the 'united Canada' front, how about suggesting our provincial government speak out against separation and work collaboratively with the federal government to resolve current issues, even look for areas of compromise?
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Vancouver Sun
12 minutes ago
- Vancouver Sun
CUPE sues government to block 'unconstitutional' power used to end flight attendant strike
OTTAWA — Canada's largest union is suing the federal government to stop it from ever again invoking the controversial legal tool the Liberals used to order striking Air Canada flight attendants back to work. In a lawsuit filed on Monday, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) — which represents over 750,000 members including Air Canada flight attendants — laid bare its outrage towards the airline and the Liberal government. The union accused Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu of disregarding, undermining and nullifying the flight attendants' constitutional right to strike by invoking section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to order an end to the strike. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. The lawsuit asks a Federal Court judge to quash the minister's decision and declare that the power she invoked is both unconstitutional and exceeds her jurisdiction. In the meantime, CUPE is also seeking an emergency injunction against Hajdu's order. 'In issuing her direction, the Minister overrode, abrogated and effectively precluded the Union's ability to exercise its legal right to strike and its only legal means of asserting and leveraging economic power within the scheme of the Canada Labour Code,' CUPE argued in the lawsuit obtained by National Post. 'The Minister erred in law, inappropriately exercised her jurisdiction, authority and/or discretion, based her decision on erroneous findings of fact that she made in an arbitrary and abusive manner and/or issued an unreasonable decision' when she issued her order on Saturday, CUPE added. The federal government has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit. A spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The controversial section says the minister can direct the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to do what she deems necessary to 'maintain or secure industrial peace' or create favourable conditions for a deal during labour disputes. In recent years, the Liberals have taken that to mean that they can order the tribunal to declare a strike illegal, compel federally regulated employees back to work or mandate binding arbitration between parties. Since 2024, they've invoked the power to end numerous port and railway strikes as well as a work stoppage at Canada Post in December. On Saturday, barely hours after flight attendants went on strike and hundreds of Air Canada flights were cancelled, the Liberals again invoked section 107 to demand the CIRB order strikers back to work and parties enter binding arbitration. During a press conference, Minister Hajdu rejected accusations that her government is anti-union. 'We believe that unions are an essential part of a healthy and growing economy. However, in a case like this, where multiple efforts have been made to conclude an agreement that satisfies both parties and it is clear that they are at an impasse, it is very clear they need some help in arbitrating the final items,' she said. But after the CIRB ordered flight attendants back to work Sunday, CUPE leadership publicly ripped up the decision and called on members to continue striking. On Monday morning, the board declared the strike to be illegal, but it continued regardless as the Canadian Labour Congress voiced its support for CUPE. Then early Tuesday morning, CUPE announced that it had reached a tentative agreement with Air Canada and that the strike was over. CUPE's lawsuit also alleges that shortly after flight attendants overwhelmingly voted for a strike mandate in early August, Air Canada 'ceased bargaining' and focused on lobbying the Liberals to block the strike. 'On August 12, 2025, Air Canada presented a detailed brief to the Minister requesting that the Minister intervene and pre-emptively order that the Union and its members not be permitted to exercise their legal and constitutional right to strike,' CUPE wrote. 'Relying on anticipated intervention from the Minister, Air Canada withdrew from any genuine effort to reach an agreement through good faith collective bargaining.' An Air Canada spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. National Post cnardi@ Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here .
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
This conversation is being recorded: Trump's hot mic moment is the latest in a long global list
LONDON (AP) — Behold the power of the humble hot mic. The magnifier of sound, a descendant of 150-year-old technology, on Monday added to its long history of cutting through the most scripted political spectacles when it captured more than two minutes of U.S. President Donald Trump and eight European leaders chit-chatting around a White House news conference on their talks to end the war in Ukraine. The standout quote came from Trump himself to French President Emmanuel Macron even before anyone sat down. The American president, reflecting a his comments after meeting in Alaska with Russian President Vladimir Putin: 'I think he wants to make a deal for me, you understand, as crazy as it sounds.' How politics and diplomacy sound when the principals think no one is listening can reveal much about the character, humor and humanity of our leaders — for better and sometimes for worse. As public figures, they've long known what the rest of us are increasingly learning in the age of CCTV, Coldplay kiss cams and social media: In public, no one can realistically expect privacy. 'Whenever I hear about a hot mic moment, my first reaction is that this is what they really think, that it's not gone through the external communications filter,' said Bill McGowan, founder and CEO of Clarity Media Group in New York. 'That's why people love it so much: There is nothing more authentic than what people say on a hot mic.' Always assume the microphone — or camera — is turned on Hot mics, often leavened with video, have bedeviled aspiring and actual leaders long before social media. During a sound check for his weekly radio address in 1984, U.S. President Ronald Reagan famously joked about attacking the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War. 'My fellow Americans,' Reagan quipped, not realizing the practice run was being recorded. 'I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.' The Soviet Union didn't find it funny and condemned it given the consequential subject at hand. Putin, too, has fallen prey to the perils of a live mic. In 2006, he was quoted in Russian media joking about Israel's president, who had been charged with and later was convicted of rape. The Kremlin said Putin was not joking about rape and his meaning had been lost in translation. Sometimes a hot mic moment involves no words at all. Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore was widely parodied for issuing exasperated and very audible sighs during his debate with Republican George W. Bush in 2000. In others, the words uttered for all to hear are profane. Bush was caught telling running mate Dick Cheney that a reporter for the New York Times was a 'major-league a–hole.' 'This is a big f———- deal,' then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden famously said, loudly enough to be picked up on a microphone, as President Barack Obama prepared to sign his signature Affordable Care Act in 2010. Obama was caught on camera in South Korea telling Dmitri Medvedev, then the Russian president, that he'll have 'more flexibility' to resolve sensitive issues — 'particularly with missile defense' — after the 2012 presidential election, his last. Republican Mitt Romney, Obama's rival that year, called the exchange 'bowing to the Kremlin.' 'Sometimes it's the unguarded moments that are the most revealing of all,' Romney said in a statement, dubbing the incident 'hot mic diplomacy.' Live mics have picked up name-calling and gossip aplenty even in the most mannerly circles. In 2022, Jacinda Ardern, then New Zealand prime minister known for her skill at debating and calm, measured responses, was caught on a hot mic tossing an aside in which she referred to a rival politician as 'such an arrogant prick' during Parliament Question Time. In 2005, Jacques Chirac, then president of France, was recorded airing his distaste for British food during a visit to Russia. Speaking to Putin and Gerhard Schroder, he was heard saying that worse food could only be found in Finland, according to widely reported accounts. Britain's King Charles III chose to deal with his hot mic moment with humor. In 2022, shortly after his coronation, Charles lost his patience with a leaky pen while signing a document on a live feed. He can be heard grousing: 'Oh God I hate this!' and muttering, 'I can't bear this bloody thing … every stinking time.' It wasn't the first pen that had troubled him. The British ability to poke fun at oneself, he said in a speech the next year, is well-known. 'Just as well, you may say, given some of the vicissitudes I have faced with frustratingly failing fountain pens this past year.' Trump owns perhaps the ultimate hot mic moment The American president is famously uncontrolled in public with a penchant for 'saying it like it is,' sometimes with profanity. That makes him popular among some supporters. But even he had trouble putting a lid on comments he made before he was a candidate to 'Access Hollywood' in tapes that jeopardized his campaign in the final stretch of the 2016 presidential race. Trump did not appear to know the microphone was recording. Trump bragged about kissing, groping and trying to have sex with women who were not his wife on recordings obtained by The Washington Post and NBC News and aired just two days before his debate with Democrat Hillary Clinton. The celebrity businessman boasted 'when you're a star, they let you do it,' in a conversation with Billy Bush, then a host of the television show 'Access Hollywood.' With major supporters balking, Trump issued an apology 'if anyone was offended' and his campaign dismissed the comments as 'locker room banter.' On Monday, though, the chatter on both ends of the East Room press conference gave observers a glimpse of the diplomatic game. Dismissed unceremoniously from the White House in March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy now sat at the table with Trump and seven of his European peers: Macron, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finland's President Alexander Stubb, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. Trump complimented Macron's tan. He said Stubb is a good golfer. He asked if anyone wanted to ask the press questions when the White House pool was admitted to the room — before it galloped inside. The European leaders smiled at the shouting and shuffling. Stubb asked Trump if he's 'been through this every day?' Trump replied, 'All the time.' Meloni said she doesn't want to talk to the Italian press. But Trump, she noted, is game. 'He loves it. He loves it, eh?' she said.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
US destroyers head toward waters off Venezuela as Trump aims to pressure drug cartels
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States is deploying three Aegis guided-missile destroyers to the waters off Venezuela as part of President Donald Trump's effort to combat threats from Latin American drug cartels, according to a U.S. official briefed on the planning. The USS Gravely, the USS Jason Dunham and the USS Sampson are expected to arrive soon, said the official, who was not authorized to comment and spoke Tuesday on the condition of anonymity. A Defense Department official confirmed that the military assets have been assigned to the region in support of counter narcotics efforts. The official, who was not authorized to comment about military planning, said the vessels would be deployed 'over the course of several months.' The deployment of U.S. destroyers and personnel comes as Trump has pushed for using the U.S. military to thwart cartels he blames for the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs into American communities and for perpetuating violence in some U.S. cities. Trump has also pressed Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to cooperate more on security than her predecessor, specifically being more aggressive in pursuit of Mexico's cartels. But she has drawn a clear line when it comes to Mexico's sovereignty, rejecting suggestions by Trump and others of intervention by the U.S. military. Trump in February designated Venezuela's Tren de Aragua, MS-13 in El Salvador and six groups based in Mexico as foreign terrorist organizations. His Republican administration has also stepped up immigration enforcement against alleged gang members. The designation is normally reserved for groups like al-Qaida or the Islamic State group that use violence for political ends — not for money-focused crime rings such as the Latin American cartels. But the Trump administration argues the international connections and operations of the groups — including drug trafficking, migrant smuggling and violent pushes to extend their territory — warrant the designation. Venezuela's Communication Ministry didn't immediately reply to a request for comment. On Monday, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said the U.S. had increased its threats against Venezuela and announced he was going to order the deployment of more than 4.5 million militia members around the country. The militias were created by then-President Hugo Chávez to incorporate volunteers who could assist the armed forces in the defense of external and domestic attacks. 'The empire has gone mad and has renewed its threats to Venezuela's peace and tranquility,' Maduro said at an event in Caracas, without mentioning any specific action. Earlier this month, the Trump government announced it was doubling to $50 million a reward for the arrest of Maduro, accusing him of being one of the world's largest narco-traffickers and working with cartels to flood the U.S. with fentanyl-laced cocaine. Maduro was indicted in a New York federal court in 2020, during the first Trump presidency, along with several close allies on federal charges of narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine. Back then, the U.S. offered a $15 million reward for his arrest. ___ Rueda reported from Caracas, Venezuela.
