I’ve already linked to Postmedia’s story setting out Brian Topp’s first set of democratic reform priorities. But let’s take a look at a couple of the proposals in a bit more detail. To start off, I’m not sure anybody else has pointed out the significance of Topp’s plan to “introduce
Continue readingTag: brian topp
Accidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Candidate Rankings – December 26, 2011
Anybody expecting the holidays to make for a quiet spell in the NDP’s leadership race was in for a surprise, as the last week has seen the first candidate departure along with a boost in the number of pundits’ rankings and candidate profiles. But will the result be much change
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Some good reasons for supporting Brian Topp
If he really introduced proportional representation, then he would be a revolutionary prime minister, and go down in history as one of the great ones: Make no mistake: with Brian Topp at the helm, a vote for the New Democratic Party in 2015 will be a vote for change. The
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On selective concerns
The past decade-plus in Canadian politics has seen a non-stop series of changes to tax rates and structures – with a particular focus on handing yet more money to those who already have the most. And I’ll challenge readers to find a single commentator suggesting that we hold off on
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Candidate Rankings – December 18, 2011
We now have at least a bit of pollster data to compare to Skinny Dipper’s online poll on the relative positions of the NDP’s leadership candidates. But Forum Research’s results look to largely match the previous candidate positioning – which combines with relatively little news from the candidates’ travels to
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Room for progressivity
Yes, I know some commentators are treating the latest from Kevin Milligan et al. as somehow proving a point that raising high-income tax levels won’t accomplish anything. But I’d think one has to strain rather hard to draw such an interpretation from a column that includes the following: What might
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: First impressions: NDP leadership candidate Peggy Nash in Edmonton
NDP leadership candidate Peggy Nash at last night’s “kitchen-table talk” in Edmonton. Below: Marlin Schmidt. There are only three or so of the nine candidates for the leadership of the federal New Democratic Party, and therefore for Leader of the Opposition, who are truly qualified to do the job and
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: First impressions: Brian Topp comes to Alberta
Federal NDP leadership candidate Brian Topp focuses on a questioner during his stopover in Edmonton last night. Oddly enough, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Brian Topp on TV. Not so as I’d have noticed, anyway – him or any of the other candidates for the impossible job of filling
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics blog: brian topp comes to edmonton.
NDP leadership candidate Brian Topp Brian Topp was in Edmonton last night campaigning for the leadership of the New Democratic Party of Canada. At an event hosted by the Edmonton-Strathcona NDP association, more than 130 people packed into the City Arts Centre to listen to Mr. Topp deliver a pitch
Continue readingImpolitical: New kid on the Bloc
Chantal Hébert had an interesting column yesterday. She raised the possibility of a future Quebec by-election scenario featuring new Bloc leader Daniel Paillé versus Brian “I’m a Quebec kid” Topp. Whoa. Which is why I won’t be holding my breath. Not enough fun things happen in Canadian politics and that
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Candidate Rankings – December 10, 2011
While there was plenty to talk about following the NDP’s first leadership debate, the effect of such an early event on the candidates’ long-term prospects was bound to be limited. And so the most-discussed event of the campaign so far hasn’t led to much change from last week’s rankings. 1.
Continue readingImpolitical: Toronto-Danforth goings on
The NDP candidates are lining up. There are two now, a former assistant to Jack Layton, Claire Prashaw, and as of today, an Osgoode Hall law professor, Craig Scott. Not running, and really the big news of the day, is one Brian Topp: NDP leadership hopeful Brian Topp has ruled
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Stephen Maher points out the type of government that we’ve come to count on under the ultra-controlling Harper political model: This presidentialization of the Canadian system is worrying, not because of some fetishistic attachment to the trappings of Parliament, but because it
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 Candidate Profile – Brian Topp
Let’s start my series of NDP leadership candidate profiles with the first to enter the race, and one who’s probably inspired more discussion than any other so far: longtime organizer and strategist Brian Topp. Strengths Topp’s combination of organizational acumen and institutional support has been one of the defining features
Continue readingBlunt Objects: And the winner of the first NDP debate is….
The Conservatives, because of the massive wealth of soundbites gained from the debate which will paint the new NDP leader as wanting to raise taxes, put through a carbon tax, destroy Canada’s resource extraction sector, and cripple free trade. What’s worse is that pretty much every candidate said those exact
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012 – Debate 1 Wrapup
Plenty of others have already commented on the NDP’s first leadership debate. But I haven’t yet seen any that line up with my take on yesterday’s chance for candidates to introduce themselves to the country. To start with, the perceived top-tier candidates generally lived up to their billing. Thomas Mulcair
Continue readingthe reeves report: NDP leadership debate showcases the (many) party hopefuls
NDP leadership candidates in the first leaders debate The first NDP leadership debate was this afternoon, and it would appear from the coverage that the only victor was expediency and those who speak in sound bites. Nine candidate took the stage (Brian Topp, Thomas Mulcair, Paul Dewar, Nathan Cullen, Toronto
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: Ottawa NDP Leadership Debate Thoughts
The debate was good. Exciting even. After several months of being forced to sate my political appetite on the Republican leadership contest, the NDP leadership debate in Ottawa provided a refreshing Canadian contrast. Overall there was far more homogeneity between positions than there was difference. The tone of the debate
Continue readingpolitics on CAPS LOCK: Liveblogging the first NDP leadership debate
The first NDP leadership debate is about to start. I’m not even going to liveblog in caps, THAT IS HOW SERIOUSLY I AM TREATING IT 12:03 Robert Chisholm, he is already somebody that I like. Here comes Niki Ashton, I like her too. So yeah, it’s going to be 120
Continue readingBlunt Objects: #NDPldr Debate #1: The Economy
Today’s Dipper leadership debate takes place in Ottawa at 2pm EST til 4pm, and apparently will focus on the economy. Now what, you make ask, does a Dipper have to say about the economy that isn’t anything but tax rises? Well, there’s nine of them there to tell you what’s
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