Author: Cam Holmstrom

Opposition Members of Parliament have some tools at their disposal to help drive the agenda or raise issues they feel are important. Granted that over the past few decades, that tool box has been reduced significantly by both Liberal and Conservative governments who have tried to limit the ability of

Episode Three of the Magpie Brûlé podcast is now up and ready to listen to. In this episode, I talk about the SNC Lavalin/PMO scandal, it’s effects and the week to come. I also discuss the big by-elections coming on Monday and the effect they will have on the future

Over the past two weeks, all of the attention in the #cdnpoli scene has been on the SNC/PMO scandal. This story has grabbed the attention of the public and held if firmly, as it seems with every day a new detail or twist in the story has come. In doing

After two weeks of the SNC/PMO scandal, today brought us the first chance to hear directly from a voice in this debate that we hadn’t heard yet. The House of Commons Justice Committee had it’s first meeting to hear testimony into this whole matter. While the first hour was rather

Wednesdays in Ottawa are very interesting when the House of Commons is sitting. It’s caucus day for all parties, which can bring some interesting stories, and in this Parliament, it’s the day that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau takes every question in Question Period. Given the news of the past two

Today we saw the MPs return after their Family Day break and get back to work in Ottawa. As I wrote about last night, today promised to be one of the most consequential days in the life of this government and after over a week away from Ottawa, today offered

Well this is quite the turn of events, one that I don’t think that many people saw coming, or at least so soon. I surely didn’t. BREAKING: @gmbutts has quit the PMO. — David Akin (@davidakin) February 18, 2019 Please see this statement from @gmbutts. As someone who has worked

Back when the House of Commons rose for it’s usual holiday break in December, the first few months of 2019 looked to be promising ones for the governing Liberals. They had gotten to the break in a good position, with a big election year budget coming in the Spring and

Political staffers and the work they do is one of the great tropes out there in society, regardless of the country you live in. Some people say they are nothing but toadies running to the dry cleaning. Others go in the polar opposite direction, saying that they rule the whole

A week in political life can be a funny thing. Some weeks seem to fly by and feel just free and easy, but others seem to be painfully long, never ending and just unrelenting. For the Liberal government, this week has surely been the latter. And when it comes to

This has been quite the week in Ottawa, between big snow storms and the political drama coming out of the PMO, and that just by the end of the day on Wednesday. So, you would think that with a long weekend coming before us, the government may have chosen to

Today Canada was watching closely at a bit of drama that unfolded in certain committee room in downtown Ottawa. Calling an emergency meeting of a House of Commons Committee is not an everyday event, but when the situation warrants it, they come. I’ve had the chance to take part in

24 hours can feel like a lifetime in politics, and right now I bet that the Prime Ministers office would agree. Today’s big news of Jody Wilson-Raybould’s resignation from the Liberal cabinet was quite the shock to the system, almost more because of how it happened rather than it actually

When it comes to the world that we live in, it’s amazing how some principles from one field remain very true in others. In regards to politics the world over, it’s equally amazing how some of the principles of physics apply just as well in the political sphere. And think

Many days on Parliament Hill, issues or stories will pop up that look bad on a government. When it happens, some of the most hardcore partisans jump up and down, snapping “Ah ha!!!! We got them!!!”, thinking that this will be the time that the government has finally slipped and

Being involved in politics for over a decade, one gets to have many great experiences and gets to know many amazing people. I know that’s the case for me, and when I think back to some of the events I got to see first hand or the stories I have

Last night stories were making the rounds about NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, his by-election run and the pressures on him to with, along with the potential consequences of a loss. The story wasn’t new, as these rumblings have been bouncing around the Ottawa bubble for a while, but it again

As I wrote about last week, one of the first big events of this Federal election season is just around the corner: The Federal Budget. And with all big events like these that happen on Parliament Hill, there are certain traditions that come along with it. The Finance Minister buys

Having had the chance to work in politics, you get to know some politicians very well. You also get to see that anyone can serve as a politician, as there are so many different ways to be one. You have some that love to focus on debate, others that are