Latest news with #TheCornerBooth
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Montreal Gazette
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
Karl Blackburn on how Quebec Liberals can beat the CAQ
The Corner Booth Before the Quebec Liberals can have any hope of unseating the CAQ government in the 2026 provincial election, first they need to elect a new leader. Party members will choose one on June 14 in Quebec City. A late entry into the contest is Karl Blackburn, former MNA for Roberval from 2003 to 2007, and a chief organizer for the party. Blackburn also served as the president and CEO of the Conseil du patronat du Québec (CPQ), the province's largest employers' group. The Quebec Liberal leadership candidate joined hosts Bill Brownstein and Aaron Rand on this week's episode of The Corner Booth at Snowdon Deli to lay out his vision for uniting the Liberal base in Montreal with the vote-rich regions of the province. Blackburn feels his Lac-St-Jean bonafides will serve the party well outside of the 514-416. 'Mr. Legault in 2022 showed to everybody that he can form a government without Montreal, but we can't form a government without the regions,' Blackburn said. He added appealing to the regions doesn't have to come at the expense of alienating the province's English-speakers. 'It's interesting to see the guy from Saguenay–Lac-St-Jean defend the anglophone community,' Blackburn said. 'This is exactly what I'm doing. I don't want the closed leadership of Mr. Legault, dividing francophones against anglophones.' Blackburn talked about his opposition to the CAQ government's language, education and health-care bills. He also commented on the 'anyone but Rodriguez' sentiment brewing in the race against the early front-runner, former Montreal-area federal minister Pablo Rodriguez. 'The PLQ are not going to be a government anymore if we're not able to reconnect with the regions, and this is my strength,' Blackburn said in response to what would make him a more attractive candidate than Rodriguez. The trio also paid tribute to astronaut and politician Marc Garneau, who passed away this week at the age of 76. Garneau most recently appeared on The Corner Booth in January.
Montreal Gazette
3 days ago
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
From the archives: Marc Garneau on The Corner Booth
The Corner Booth Back in early 2025, former astronaut-turned-politician Marc Garneau said what many in the Liberal camp appeared to be thinking at the time: '(Justin Trudeau) waited too long. I think that he had trouble recognizing that his moment had passed and held on, and unfortunately put himself ahead of both the party and the country.' Garneau, who died on Wednesday at age 76, was featured in a January episode of The Corner Booth alongside former Liberal MP David Lametti. The two former ministers discussed Trudeau's momentous — and perhaps overdue — decision to resign as Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. In light of Garneau's passing, here's a look back at that conversation.
Montreal Gazette
24-05-2025
- Health
- Montreal Gazette
Quebec doctors react to Bill 106: ‘We can't meet those demands'
The Corner Booth Doctors in Quebec say they're already stretched beyond their limits. Now, as Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé is tabling Bill 106, our province's physicians are once again sounding the alarm over the disconnect between the CAQ government and those on the front lines on how to improve access to health care. The bill would give the government authority to decide how health professionals are compensated. In theory, this could incentivize doctors to take on more patients, but according to family physicians Laura Sang and Christina Bianchini, this week's guests on The Corner Booth with hosts Bill Brownstein and Aaron Rand, this plan isn't pinpointing the root causes plaguing our system. 'I worry about the way that we're targeting physicians specifically, with a lot of undertones that we're not working hard enough, that this is only going to exacerbate the problem by having more physicians burn out, potentially leave the province, or even leave medicine altogether,' said Sang, who practises in St-Jerome. 'I'm already doing as much as I can,' said Bianchini, who practises in N.D.G. 'If I were to have another 1,000 patients rostered under me, the wait time to see me is 3-4 weeks, that'll grow to 3-4 months. Nothing is lining up for us with this solution.' The pair concluded by sharing their concerns for the future, while also saying there are ways to improve access to health care from their perspective, but doctors don't feel included in the process. Sang's message to the health minister: 'Please consult us.'
Montreal Gazette
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Montreal Gazette
Michelin Guide comes to Montreal: ‘We feel snubbed'
The Corner Booth The Michelin Guide has finally arrived in Quebec and Montrealers reacted with shock to see only three restaurants get stars. Even Quebec City received more stars, with six in total, including the only two-star restaurant in the province. Who better to react to the controversial Michelin list than Dustin Gilman, the man known on the internet as Food Guy Montreal? 'We feel snubbed,' Gilman said on this week's spicy episode of The Corner Booth with hosts Bill Brownstein and Aaron Rand at the Snowdon Deli. 'When I first read the list, I thought, 'this is a real head scratcher.' ' Brownstein is also no stranger to the culinary scene. He, too, defended Montreal's dining reputation internationally, despite the few accolades the city received from Michelin compared with Toronto and Vancouver. 'We're the Paris of North America,' Brownstein said. The trio listed a few notable omissions, including the very deli where the episode was filmed, and even discussed their favourite local rotisserie chicken option. Spoiler: one host is Team Chalet Bar-B-Q and the other is Team Côte St-Luc BBQ. You'll have to watch the episode to find out who.
Montreal Gazette
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Montreal Gazette
Chris Nilan fights his demons in new one-man show
The Corner Booth Chris Nilan has never turned down a battle — on the ice and in life. Now, that fearlessness is extending to the stage for the first time. The former Montreal Canadiens player and 1985-86 Stanley Cup winner, known affectionately to Habs fans as Knuckles, will be telling the story of his remarkable life from West Roxbury in Boston to the NHL — as well as to hell and back — in the new one-man show Knuckles: The Chris Nilan Story. Knucks joined this week's episode of The Corner Booth with hosts Aaron Rand and Bill Brownstein at Snowdon Deli to talk about his theatre debut and what compelled him to lay bare his mental and physical struggles in such an intimate setting. 'There's one thing I've never been and never will be is an actor,' Nilan said. 'I'm telling my story, I'm telling it from the heart, and I'm going to be upfront, raw and personal. People are probably going to be mad at me, people are probably going to cry.' Nilan has long been open about his demons, from fighting drug and alcohol addiction to the toll his body took from years of being one of hockey's most respected enforcers. He might be an open book, but his new show, directed by Vittorio Rossi and coming to Maison Principale on May 28, 30 and June 3, 5, still has some secrets that might surprise even the most passionate Habs diehards. 'We come into the hockey world, become a Montreal Canadien, and you get introduced on the ice and everybody stands up clapping,' Nilan said. 'But who are they clapping for? They really don't know.'
