Latest news with #Teneycke
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Meet 'Project Ontario,' pushing Doug Ford's PCs to be more fiscally conservative
There's a mysterious move afoot to push Premier Doug Ford's Ontario PC government to adopt more fiscally conservative policies. Calling itself "Project Ontario," the initiative launched quietly on the weekend with a one-page website and an unsigned manifesto posted by The Hub, an online news and commentary outlet. "When conservatives lose their principles, Ontario loses its way. Let's change course," says the website. "We're organizing an assembly of Ontario conservatives this fall that we'd love to tell you more about," it adds, encouraging people to submit their name, email address and postal code to get more details. The call for change comes only a few months after Ford led his Progressive Conservatives to a third consecutive majority, something that no party leader has accomplished in the province since the 1950s. It's unclear who's behind Project Ontario. The editor-at-large of The Hub, Sean Speer, told CBC News he is not involved, but offered to pass on an interview request to the authors of the manifesto. CBC News also sent a message to the Project Ontario website, but received no response to any inquiry. Ginny Roth, a longtime organizer within both the Ontario PC Party and the federal Conservative Party, posted a link to Project Ontario on social media and wrote, "I'll be signing up to be part of the conversation." CBC News asked Roth for an interview, but she declined. 'Grassroots movement of conservatives' The manifesto published on The Hub goes into more detail than the group's web page about the philosophy behind Project Ontario. It speaks of the province in bleak terms, describing economic decline, punitive tax rates and businesses weighed down by mounting red tape. "Project Ontario is not just another political group. It is a grassroots movement of conservatives who are ready to think big, act boldly, and put forward practical, principled solutions," says the article. "We are bringing together conservatives from across Ontario — party members, business owners, policy experts, and engaged citizens — to build a shared vision for the province's future," it continues. "Together, we will craft a policy framework that applies conservative values to today's most pressing issues." There are no signs Ford and his PC Party are particularly worried that the so-far anonymous push from Project Ontario poses any sort of political threat. "The premier is focused on delivering his mandate to protect Ontario, which he secured with his third consecutive majority election victory," said an official from Ford's office in an email to CBC News. Kory Teneycke, who managed all three of Ford's successful campaigns, dismisses Project Ontario as a small thing. 'Far outside the mainstream' "They're far outside the mainstream of the party and they're far outside the mainstream of the conservative voter coalition," Teneycke said in an interview. Ford is "the most popular conservative in Canada by a country mile," said Teneycke. Patrice Dutil, a professor of politics and public administration at Toronto Metropolitan University, says Ford's record of running large budget deficits runs contrary to the wishes of many conservatives who want smaller government in the province. "There has long been in Doug Ford's Ontario a rump of conservatives who are deeply unhappy with the way he governs," said Dutil in an interview. WATCH | Conservative Jamil Jivani rips into Doug Ford during CBC's election night coverage: The way Ford governs "speaks to conservative values on occasion, but it's also almost indistinguishable from the liberal approach to spending," he said. But Dutil says it's hard to tell at this stage what exactly Project Ontario intends to accomplish. "At this point, it's really nothing more than what seems to be a seed," said Dutil. "Maybe they'll put some some policy meat on their bones. But right now we don't even have bones." Competing visions for conservatism in Canada have been on full display in the aftermath of Ford's election win in February and Pierre Poilievre's failure to lead his Conservative Party of Canada to victory in April's federal election campaign. Tensions between Ford's and Poilievre's teams burst into the open when Teneycke publicly and sharply criticized the Conservatives for blowing a 20-point lead in the polls and failing to pivot the focus of their campaign to the threats from U.S. President Donald Trump. Then on election night, Conservative incumbent Jamil Jivani unloaded on Ford during a live interview with CBC's David Common, slamming the premier he once worked for as an "opportunist" and calling his advisers "goons." WATCH | Ford backs his campaign manager over criticism of Poilievre: Teneycke says the timing of Project Ontario's launch is unusual given Ford's election win and the federal party's loss. "I think they would lose a lot less if they emulated Doug Ford more," Teneycke said. Melanie Paradis, president of Texture Communications and a veteran conservative strategist, dismisses Project Ontario as a "faceless, nameless group" offering no substance. "Anyone who thinks Doug Ford is insufficiently conservative has fever-dreamed an impossible standard of conservatism that no politician in Canada could meet," said Paradis in a text message. The advent of Project Ontario is not the first time there have been rumblings against Ford from the right, but those previous critiques have come more from social conservative elements in the party than from fiscal hawks. Members who either were kicked out of the PCs or became disaffected with Ford joined two breakaway right-wing parties, the New Blue Party and the Ontario Party. Both fielded significant numbers of candidates across the province in the 2022 and 2025 elections, but did not come anywhere close to winning a seat.
CTV News
29-04-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Teneycke: 'Conservatives made strategic error pushing too hard to oust Trudeau before campaign'
Teneycke: 'Conservatives made strategic error pushing too hard to oust Trudeau before campaign' The strategists' panel breaks down the Liberal win, Conservative missteps, Carney's turnaround, and the NDP's underwhelming performance in the election.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Top Conservative strategist says Poilievre needs to urgently pivot or he will lose
One of the country's top Conservative strategists who just helped Ontario Premier Doug Ford win a sizable majority government says Pierre Poilievre urgently needs to make a pivot and start talking more about the issue voters care about most — the U.S. threat — or he risks losing the federal election. In an interview with CBC News, Kory Teneycke said only weeks ago Poilievre was on track to win a massive majority government, and now every major pollster in the country says it's the Liberals who are set to win big. If an election were held today, the Conservatives would lose, Teneycke said. He said it's because of U.S. President Donald Trump — and the Conservative Party's inadequate messaging around what it would do to try and stop his tariffs and annexationist threats. But it's not just that, Teneycke said, there's also a stylistic issue — the party's leader is just too "Trump-y" and he's got to make a change fast. Teneycke said Poilievre acts and sounds too much like the president, with his pet names for his political opponents ("Carbon tax Carney") and catchy sloganeering ("big beautiful bring it home tax cut"), and it's off-putting to voters the party needs to win. "It all sounds too Trump-y for a lot of voters," Teneycke said. Teneycke, who held senior roles under former prime minister Stephen Harper including director of communications before becoming a strategist at firm Rubicon, said Poilievre is "negative all the time" and it's "hard to be liked by the public" when you're like that. "There needs to be more of an emphasis on a positive message," he said. "And I think you have to be a little more direct and more consistent in terms of the message around the U.S." Asked about his sinking poll numbers Thursday, Poilievre said: "We'll wait for Canadians to make the choice on election day.""After the lost Liberal decade of rising costs and crime and the economy being down under America's thumb, do the Liberals deserve a fourth term in power? Or is it time to put Canada first for a change with a new Conservative government that will axe taxes, build homes, unleash resources and bring home the jobs?" Poilievre said. Teneycke said Poilievre and his team are also running this campaign as if the main opponent was still former prime minister Justin Trudeau and that the issues that were in focus last year — the cost of living, inflation and the housing crisis — are the ones that matter most when voters are clearly indicating it's Trump who is top of mind. "I'm not raising this critique out of animus for the Conservative Party," Teneycke said. "I'm bringing it up as somebody who spent his entire career trying to elect Conservatives and many of them at the federal level. But I think we're just on the wrong track. And I think we need to adjust, refocus the campaign on the one big issue and soften the tone." Internal Ontario Progressive Conservative polling obtained by CBC News paints a bleak picture for Team Poilievre in Canada's most populous province. Carney's Liberals are at 48 per cent provincewide and the Conservatives at 33 per cent. The poll, which surveyed 1,902 respondents, was conducted March 24-26. For comparison purposes, a probability sample of a similar size would have a margin of error of +/- 2.2 per cent, 19 times out of 20. The Toronto Star was first to report the results of the internal polling. In remarks to the Empire Club in Toronto Wednesday evening, Teneycke said the campaign's current trajectory is concerning. "I'll make the case tonight and hopefully this will permeate the Conservative Party war room somewhere — you've got to get on the f--king ballot question that is driving votes or you are going to lose," Teneycke said. Asked about those remarks Thursday, Poilievre said he's the one who can best defend Canada. "I'm the only one who will stand up to the U.S. president. The president wants the Liberals back in," he said. Poilievre was critical of Trump in the wake of his latest tariff broadside. The Conservative leader said Trump is unfairly "attacking his closest neighbour and America's best friend." "My message to President Trump is knock it off. Stop attacking America's friends," he said.
CBC
27-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Top Conservative strategist says Poilievre needs to urgently pivot or he will lose
Social Sharing One of the country's top Conservative strategists who just helped Ontario Premier Doug Ford win a sizable majority government says Pierre Poilievre urgently needs to make a pivot and start talking more about the issue voters care about most — the U.S. threat — or he risks losing the federal election. In an interview with CBC News, Kory Teneycke said only weeks ago Poilievre was on track to win a massive majority government, and now every major pollster in the country says it's the Liberals who are set to win big. If an election were held today, the Conservatives would lose, Teneycke said. He said it's because of U.S. President Donald Trump — and the Conservative Party's inadequate messaging around what it would do to try and stop his tariffs and annexationist threats. But it's not just that, Teneycke said, there's also a stylistic issue — the party's leader is just too "Trump-y" and he's got to make a change fast. Teneycke said Poilievre acts and sounds too much like the president, with his pet names for his political opponents ("Carbon tax Carney") and catchy sloganeering ("big beautiful bring it home tax cut"), and it's off-putting to voters the party needs to win. "It all sounds too Trump-y for a lot of voters," Teneycke said. Teneycke, who held senior roles under former prime minister Stephen Harper including director of communications before becoming a strategist at firm Rubicon, said Poilievre is "negative all the time" and it's "hard to be liked by the public" when you're like that. "There needs to be more of an emphasis on a positive message," he said. "And I think you have to be a little more direct and more consistent in terms of the message around the U.S." Asked about his sinking poll numbers Thursday, Poilievre said: "We'll wait for Canadians to make the choice on election day." WATCH | Poilievre asked about declining poll numbers: Poilievre says it's election day result that matters, not polling 3 hours ago Duration 1:51 Responding to a question about how some public opinion polls show the Conservatives losing their lead over the Liberals, leader Pierre Poilievre said Canadians will make their decision on voting day. "After the lost Liberal decade of rising costs and crime and the economy being down under America's thumb, do the Liberals deserve a fourth term in power? Or is it time to put Canada first for a change with a new Conservative government that will axe taxes, build homes, unleash resources and bring home the jobs?" Poilievre said. Teneycke said Poilievre and his team are also running this campaign as if the main opponent was still former prime minister Justin Trudeau and that the issues that were in focus last year — the cost of living, inflation and the housing crisis — are the ones that matter most when voters are clearly indicating it's Trump who is top of mind. "I'm not raising this critique out of animus for the Conservative Party," Teneycke said. "I'm bringing it up as somebody who spent his entire career trying to elect Conservatives and many of them at the federal level. But I think we're just on the wrong track. And I think we need to adjust, refocus the campaign on the one big issue and soften the tone." Internal Ontario Progressive Conservative polling obtained by CBC News paints a bleak picture for Team Poilievre in Canada's most populous province. Carney's Liberals are at 48 per cent provincewide and the Conservatives at 33 per cent. The poll, which surveyed 1,902 respondents, was conducted March 24-26 and has a margin of error of +/- 2.2 per cent. In remarks to the Empire Club in Toronto Wednesday evening, Teneycke said the campaign's current trajectory is concerning. "I'll make the case tonight and hopefully this will permeate the Conservative Party war room somewhere — you've got to get on the f--king ballot question that is driving votes or you are going to lose," Teneycke said. Asked about those remarks Thursday, Poilievre said he's the one who can best defend Canada. "I'm the only one who will stand up to the U.S. president. The president wants the Liberals back in," he said.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Top Conservative strategist says Poilievre needs to urgently pivot or he will lose
One of the country's top Conservative strategists who just helped Ontario Premier Doug Ford win a sizable majority government says Pierre Poilievre urgently needs to make a pivot and start talking more about the issue voters care about most — the U.S. threat — or he risks losing the federal election. In an interview with CBC News, Kory Teneycke said only weeks ago Poilievre was on track to win a massive majority government, and now every major pollster in the country says it's the Liberals who are set to win big. If an election were held today, the Conservatives would lose, Teneycke said. He said it's because of U.S. President Donald Trump — and the Conservative Party's inadequate messaging around what it would do to try and stop his tariffs and annexationist threats. But it's not just that, Teneycke said, there's also a stylistic issue — the party's leader is just too "Trump-y" and he's got to make a change fast. Teneycke said Poilievre acts and sounds too much like the president, with his pet names for his political opponents ("Carbon tax Carney") and catchy sloganeering ("big beautiful bring it home tax cut"), and it's off-putting to voters the party needs to win. "It all sounds too Trump-y for a lot of voters," Teneycke said. Teneycke, who held senior roles under former prime minister Stephen Harper including director of communications before becoming a strategist at firm Rubicon, said Poilievre is "negative all the time" and it's "hard to be liked by the public" when you're like that. "There needs to be more of an emphasis on a positive message," he said. "And I think you have to be a little more direct and more consistent in terms of the message around the U.S." Asked about his sinking poll numbers Thursday, Poilievre said: "We'll wait for Canadians to make the choice on election day.""After the lost Liberal decade of rising costs and crime and the economy being down under America's thumb, do the Liberals deserve a fourth term in power? Or is it time to put Canada first for a change with a new Conservative government that will axe taxes, build homes, unleash resources and bring home the jobs?" Poilievre said. Teneycke said Poilievre and his team are also running this campaign as if the main opponent was still former prime minister Justin Trudeau and that the issues that were in focus last year — the cost of living, inflation and the housing crisis — are the ones that matter most when voters are clearly indicating it's Trump who is top of mind. "I'm not raising this critique out of animus for the Conservative Party," Teneycke said. "I'm bringing it up as somebody who spent his entire career trying to elect Conservatives and many of them at the federal level. But I think we're just on the wrong track. And I think we need to adjust, refocus the campaign on the one big issue and soften the tone." Internal Ontario Progressive Conservative polling obtained by CBC News paints a bleak picture for Team Poilievre in Canada's most populous province. Carney's Liberals are at 48 per cent provincewide and the Conservatives at 33 per cent. The poll, which surveyed 1,902 respondents, was conducted March 24-26 and has a margin of error of +/- 2.2 per cent. In remarks to the Empire Club in Toronto Wednesday evening, Teneycke said the campaign's current trajectory is concerning. "I'll make the case tonight and hopefully this will permeate the Conservative Party war room somewhere — you've got to get on the f--king ballot question that is driving votes or you are going to lose," Teneycke said. Asked about those remarks Thursday, Poilievre said he's the one who can best defend Canada. "I'm the only one who will stand up to the U.S. president. The president wants the Liberals back in," he said.
