Jesse Kline: Liberals prove they're the 'natural governing party' after all
Carney never planned on balancing the capital budget, because, as he said, 'We're not spending that amount of money. We're investing that amount of money.' Except when businesses and individuals invest money, they expect a return on their investment; when government 'invests' in a bridge, it doesn't get any money from it, just the added cost of maintaining it.
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And given that these 'investments' with no rate of return are all being financed through debt that's already costing us $54 billion a year to service and that will have to be paid by our children and grandchildren, one doesn't need to be Warren Buffett to see that the analogy doesn't hold up — or that we'll pay for these reckless decisions in the long run.
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But Canada's Liberals are not the type of people who consider long-term consequences or plan for the future. For them, it's all about the here and now — what policies will give them an edge among niche segments of the electorate or make them look good in the eyes of their progressive base.
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To be fair, the same could be said of most politicians in democracies like Canada — our system encourages the pursuit of short-term political gain over long-term strategic planning.
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But the Liberals have taken this to the extreme over the past decade, enacting a host of measures that clearly worked against our national interests, in the hopes of remaking Canada into some sort of progressive utopia. Only instead of following them into Zion, we wound up falling into the pits of hell.
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We're now living in Trudeau's 'post-national state,' and rather than peace and harmony, it's characterized by antisemitic protests and the Kristallnacht-style destruction of Jewish businesses and synagogues.
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We've seen his fabled green jobs, but it's costing us $44 billion in taxpayer money in order to bribe electric vehicle battery plants to set up shop in Canada.
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Indeed, despite the best efforts of Carney and Trudeau, global CO2 emissions have increased around eight per cent since the Liberals took office. And all we got for all the carbon taxes and paper straws was an increased dependency on the United States for our energy exports and a sputtering economy that's ill-suited to withstand the economic punishment Trump is bringing upon us.
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Somehow, despite all this baggage — not to mention SNC-Lavalin, Blackface, We Charity, foreign interference and the myriad other scandals and failed policies the Liberals are responsible for — the party managed to convince enough voters that it was the best choice to revitalize the economy and deal with Trump to secure another mandate.
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Vancouver Sun
5 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
'They're increasingly skeptical': Canadians say EV sales mandate 'unrealistic,' survey suggests
OTTAWA — An increasing majority of Canadians view the federal government's goal of seeing all new vehicle sales be zero-emission by 2035 as 'unrealistic' and believe the rule ought to the scrapped, a new survey suggests. The polling firm Leger surveyed 1,617 respondents on their thoughts about the federal sales mandate for electric vehicles at the same time as Prime Minister Mark Carney's government faces pressure from industry to abandon the policy. The survey introduced the question by describing the mandate as key to the federal government's plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. 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. 'Currently, the federal government plans to prohibit the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035, meaning the only new vehicles for sale (10) years from now will be zero-emission vehicles, like electric. Which of the following viewpoints comes closest to yours?' it says. Leger says 71 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement that 'the target is unrealistic and will cost too much. It should be rolled back.' Another 29 per cent said they agreed with the position, 'this target is necessary and should be kept in place despite the challenges it poses.' The online survey was conducted between Aug. 1-4. Online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not employ random sampling of the population. Asked whether they believe that 'it is realistic to prohibit the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035,' 39 per cent of respondents answered that they felt it was 'not at all realistic,' with 30 per cent saying they felt it was 'not very realistic.' Twenty per cent of respondents answered that they believed it was 'somewhat realistic,' and another six per cent said it was 'very realistic.' Andrew Enns, an executive vice-president at Leger, said that from the last time they asked this question in September 2023, the number of those who said the goal was realistic dropped by six percentage points. Even in Quebec, he said, which is a province where research shows voters tend to be more sensitive towards environmental issues, the number of those who felt the policy was realistic dropped by around 18 points. 'They're increasingly becoming skeptical,' said Enns. Looking at the data, he said it is clear the government faces 'a really significant uphill battle to convince Canadians that this policy is a good policy to pursue.' Under the Liberals' mandate, all new vehicle sales in Canada would have to be zero-emission by 2035, beginning with a sales target of 20 per cent by 2026, before increasing to 30 per cent by 2030. Besides the ongoing trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has targeted the automotive sector with tariffs, declining sales have been the other big concern automakers cite when they say the government's 2026 target is unachievable and that the policy should be shelved. Leger's survey asked respondents why they believe electric vehicle sales have fallen as drastically as they have in the past year. Statistics Canada reported that in the first quarter of this year, sales of zero-emission vehicles represented 8.7 per cent of new vehicle registrations, down from 23 per cent in the previous year. According to the survey, 48 per cent of respondents said that even with government subsidies, they believe the price of these vehicles to be too expensive. Another 39 per cent cited the lack of charging infrastructure, while 37 per cent of respondents said EVs 'were not suitable to people's needs,' and 32 per cent pointed to the lack of confidence in the vehicles themselves. 'The Canadians who have really lost confidence in this mandate — females, individuals 35 and older,' Enns said. He said, given such data and intensifying calls from automakers asking the Liberal government to scrap the mandate, Carney may pivot. 'This is a government that hasn't been shy to reverse course on what has been sort of, I would argue, some pretty bedrock policies of the previous government.' Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin, whose portfolio includes setting the targets for the mandate, has said the government will keep talking to industry to explore 'flexibility.' 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 .
Calgary Herald
5 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
'They're increasingly skeptical': Canadians say EV sales mandate 'unrealistic,' survey suggests
Article content Looking at the data, he said it is clear the government faces 'a really significant uphill battle to convince Canadians that this policy is a good policy to pursue.' Article content Under the Liberals' mandate, all new vehicle sales in Canada would have to be zero-emission by 2035, beginning with a sales target of 20 per cent by 2026, before increasing to 30 per cent by 2030. Article content Besides the ongoing trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has targeted the automotive sector with tariffs, declining sales have been the other big concern automakers cite when they say the government's 2026 target is unachievable and that the policy should be shelved. Article content Leger's survey asked respondents why they believe electric vehicle sales have fallen as drastically as they have in the past year. Article content Statistics Canada reported that in the first quarter of this year, sales of zero-emission vehicles represented 8.7 per cent of new vehicle registrations, down from 23 per cent in the previous year. Article content Article content According to the survey, 48 per cent of respondents said that even with government subsidies, they believe the price of these vehicles to be too expensive. Article content Another 39 per cent cited the lack of charging infrastructure, while 37 per cent of respondents said EVs 'were not suitable to people's needs,' and 32 per cent pointed to the lack of confidence in the vehicles themselves. Article content 'The Canadians who have really lost confidence in this mandate — females, individuals 35 and older,' Enns said. Article content He said, given such data and intensifying calls from automakers asking the Liberal government to scrap the mandate, Carney may pivot. Article content 'This is a government that hasn't been shy to reverse course on what has been sort of, I would argue, some pretty bedrock policies of the previous government.' Article content Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin, whose portfolio includes setting the targets for the mandate, has said the government will keep talking to industry to explore 'flexibility.'
Edmonton Journal
5 hours ago
- Edmonton Journal
'They're increasingly skeptical': Canadians say EV sales mandate 'unrealistic,' survey suggests
Article content Looking at the data, he said it is clear the government faces 'a really significant uphill battle to convince Canadians that this policy is a good policy to pursue.' Article content Under the Liberals' mandate, all new vehicle sales in Canada would have to be zero-emission by 2035, beginning with a sales target of 20 per cent by 2026, before increasing to 30 per cent by 2030. Article content Besides the ongoing trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has targeted the automotive sector with tariffs, declining sales have been the other big concern automakers cite when they say the government's 2026 target is unachievable and that the policy should be shelved. Article content Leger's survey asked respondents why they believe electric vehicle sales have fallen as drastically as they have in the past year. Article content Statistics Canada reported that in the first quarter of this year, sales of zero-emission vehicles represented 8.7 per cent of new vehicle registrations, down from 23 per cent in the previous year. Article content Article content According to the survey, 48 per cent of respondents said that even with government subsidies, they believe the price of these vehicles to be too expensive. Article content Another 39 per cent cited the lack of charging infrastructure, while 37 per cent of respondents said EVs 'were not suitable to people's needs,' and 32 per cent pointed to the lack of confidence in the vehicles themselves. Article content 'The Canadians who have really lost confidence in this mandate — females, individuals 35 and older,' Enns said. Article content He said, given such data and intensifying calls from automakers asking the Liberal government to scrap the mandate, Carney may pivot. Article content 'This is a government that hasn't been shy to reverse course on what has been sort of, I would argue, some pretty bedrock policies of the previous government.' Article content Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin, whose portfolio includes setting the targets for the mandate, has said the government will keep talking to industry to explore 'flexibility.'
