PC leader’s Costa Rican controversy may be too late to stop ‘super majority’

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POLITICS BRIEFING

By Chris Hannay (@channay)

Will Costa Rica become Brian Pallister's October surprise?

An October surprise is a term from U.S. politics that describes an event or piece of information that is created or becomes public shortly before the November election. It is usually embarrassing in nature for whoever is leading the race.

In this case, the vote is the Manitoba provincial election that comes to an end tomorrow and the frontrunner is Brian Pallister, leader of the currently-opposition Progressive Conservatives.

At issue is Mr. Pallister's dealings in Costa Rica. The Canadian politician says he spends about one-fifth of his time in the Central American country, and the Costa Rica Star revealed Mr. Pallister has holding companies and owns property there. (The PC party says some information in that report is not accurate, and that Mr. Pallister owns even more land in the country.)

Still, it's a tall order for any party to overcome the PC lead. As Gary Mason writes in The Globe, there's a huge appetite for change in the province after 17 years of NDP rule, and polls have the party headed for "super majority" territory.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS MORNING

> This may be a classic case of "be careful what you wish for": senators appear to be flexing their independent muscles by signalling they are in no rush to get the Liberal government's assisted-dying legislation passed by June 6. That deadline was set by the Supreme Court, but the Liberals in the Senate say they feel no obligation to meet it. "I would rather take whatever time it is to get the right legislation in place than rush something through which we know is flawed," said Senate Liberal leader James Cowan.

> A misstep by a federal lawyer has released the Catholic Church from its obligation to raise $25-million to help survivors of residential schools.

> The Liberal government was warned of worrisome developments in Saudi Arabia's human-rights situation before signing off this month on export permits for weaponized vehicles. Meanwhile, the Arab News says Saudi-Canada relations are "set to scale to new heights."

> The cost to transport, house and process each Syrian refugee amounted to about $1,360 per person, according to a CBC analysis.

> In public service news, the government is continuing its rollout of the Phoenix payroll system, despite complaints that its New Brunswick headquarters is overburdened and many public servants are going weeks without getting a paycheque.

> In public transit news, Toronto's Union Pearson Express – the new line that started attracting more riders recently by dramatically lowering its prices – will not break even with the cheaper tickets, an internal report says.

> And how Canada's rare activist glamour couple, Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis, have yanked control of the NDP agenda. (for subscribers)

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WHAT EVERYONE'S TALKING ABOUT

"Every new government promises to be more principled and high-minded than the previous one. They were sleazy and corrupt. We are ethical and pure. They did the expedient thing. We will do the right thing. That's why the Saudi arms deal is so inconvenient. It shows that the [Trudeau] government is swimming naked. It makes the new guys look just like the old guys – all too eager to do business with a regime that is not exactly a paragon of human rights. For a government that has made a fetish of reversing everything the previous government did (even if those things happened to be good), this looks awkward." – Margaret Wente.

Jeffrey Simpson (Globe and Mail): "Representative democracy is clearly better than deciding every question by referendum. There are key matters, however, that are central to how we organize the country – one is the Constitution, the other is the electoral system. On these matters, the people should have their say directly."

Michael Den Tandt (Postmedia): "The two main opposition parties are in a tricky spot – and not just because each faces a protracted leadership void. The Trudeau government appears to be finding its footing, much as Stephen Harper's first government did a decade ago, by paying attention to sentiment beyond the Ottawa bubble."

Trevor Tombe (Maclean's): "Despite much posturing by [Alberta] politicians over the years, no one – neither past PC governments nor the current NDP – seems willing to move past our historic reliance on volatile resource revenues. That's unfortunate, and it's a missed opportunity. After all, the smart time to get off a rollercoaster is when it's at the bottom. And that's today."

Barrie McKenna (Globe and Mail): "Bottom line: The economy's potential to grow has taken a huge hit, meaning Canada could be in for a period of weaker growth." (for subscribers)

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