All Entries Tagged With: "National Post"

Posted Toronto Forum: Should John Tory Run For Mayor?

Pundits Matt Gurney and Tasha Kheiriddin offer two different views on whether rumoured candidate John Tory should place his name on the mayoral ballot:
“Gurney: Your energy won’t go into serving the public, but into battling two other levels of government, entrenched unions, hostile bureaucrats and an amateur-hour council, not to mention apathetic voters. [...]

NP Election Panel: Knee-Jerk Reactions To G20 Violence

The National Post Municipal Election Panel reviews the responses to the G20 summit and the actions of police from the various mayoral candidates and local politicians:
“Goldsbie I actually found Smitherman’s remarks to be as tepid and intensely hedged as anything he ever says — when pressed, he refuses to use the word “inquiry,” [...]

NP Election Panel: Is Mammoliti’s Campaign All An Act?

In the latest installment of the National Post’s political panel, the three discuss the candidacy of Giorgio Mammoliti and whether he should be taken seriously:
“Selley Hey, I like his Gardiner plan too — a lot, in fact. I hope a viable candidate steals it and makes it a reality. But if it happens, [...]

NP Political Panel: Promising A Bright Future Of Status Quo

The National Post political panel examines the Joe Pantalone campaign and how the long-time councillor stacks up in the mayoral contest:
“Furey: That Pantalone recently polled behind Sarah Thomson shows that he’s done a lousy job of conveying whatever sparse policy ideas he actually has. His main defect — which many political operatives [...]

NP Political Panel: Transit Plan Jumps The Rails

The National Post’s Municipal Election Panel takes a look at mayoral candidate George Smitherman’s ‘Transit Delivered’ plan:
“Selley: I’m on board with anyone exploring alternative funding models, since we obviously can’t count on senior governments. But I’m struggling to verbalize the extent of my disdain for this plan. It might as well [...]

Smitherman Vows To ‘Elevate The Intensity’ Of Campaign

With his new campaign leadership in place, mayoral candidate George Smitherman vow to have a much larger presence, both online and on the hustings:
“You have to view a campaign like this as one that has phases or seasons and we’ll certainly be in a position to elevate the level of intensity on a [...]

NP: The Coming ‘Unprecedented Turnover’ On City Council

The National Post examines the potential for significant turnover at the local level in October, with a number of key wards with no incumbent running for re-election:
“Voters in as many as nine wards out of 44 — or perhaps even more — will have to choose a new councillor this October. Several incumbents [...]

Goldsbie: Why The Left Has Already Given Up

Activist and National Post contributor Jonathan Goldsbie offers a detailed breakdown of the candidates – both past, present and purely speculative – of the left and where their support may (or may not) come from:
“I find it as difficult to trust a candidate who represents only the status quo as I do those candidates [...]

NP Election Panel: Who Picks The Front-Runners Anyway?

The Post’s Municipal Political Panel – minus Chris Selley this week – examines how the media determines the frontrunners in the mayoral contest and whether that’s fair:
“FUREY: If you’re not willing to make yourself known in your community and gather a network of people who are passionate about the same issues as [...]

NP Election Panel: Transit System Runs On Political Fumes

The National Post’s Municipal Election Panel discusses the aftermath of last week’s provincial budget, which included a significant drop in transit funding:
“Selley: The city certainly shouldn’t stop demanding better treatment from the province. But this serves as a timely, if unwelcome, reminder: We’re on our own. No infrastructure commitment from the province [...]

NP Election Panel: Diverse City, Not So Diverse Council

For their regular Monday installment of analysis on the 2010 election, the National Post Municipal Election Panel looks at diversity and how it factors into local politics:
“Selley: Neither the gender or ethnicity of a candidate nor his or her potential impact on the diversity of City Hall should be a conscious factor when [...]

NP Election Panel: If We Had $100m …

The National Post’s Municipal Election Panel gives their suggestions on what David Miller should have done with the $100M additional funds he announced over a week ago:
“Selley As the purported conservative here, I suppose I should really be saying, “Pay down $100-million worth of debt,” but to hell with it — I want [...]

Gurney: Miller Deserves Praise. Seriously.

Writing in the National Post, columnist Matt Gurney thinks that compared to other levels of government, Mayor David Miller and his surplus should be applauded:
“The crazy thing about all this is that, compared with the clowns currently running the show in Ottawa and Queen’s Park, Miller actually looks pretty good on this one. [...]

NP Municipal Panel: Can City Hall Be More Civilized

The pundits who populate the National Post’s municipal election panel use their regular Monday morning space to discuss civility at City Hall:
“GOLDSBIE: A surprising proportion of Council flare-ups actually concern conflicting understandings of procedural rules, rather than ideological discord. You throw together that many strong, passionate personalities and larger-than-life characters on such [...]

NP Election Panel: Does The Mayoral Race Need A ‘Culture War’?

The latest installment of the Post’s municipal election panel has Selley, Furey and Goldsbie talking about Rocco Rossi’s “wedge” campaign tactics:

“Selley: First, I’m not sure cyclists are being “singled out” by Mr. Rossi any more than, say, unionized garbage collectors. And I’m not sure he’s trying to start a culture war either [...]

NP Political Panel: The Post-Giambrone Mayoral Race

Posted Toronto’s municipal pundit panel debates the political landscape after the Adam Giambrone resignation:
“SELLEY: Smitherman must be sleeping easy right now. He’s the only candidate left with any pre-existing name recognition at all, and like any good Liberal he can roll with the ideological punches. He’ll have to stake out some territory at SOME point, [...]

Moore: Giambrone Only Has Himself To Blame

Writing in the National Post, CFRB morning man John Moore responds to those who feel the public has no right to judge former mayoral candidate Adam Giambrone:
“The wider question is that in a world full of flawed individuals –or sinners as the church would say- who amongst us can throw the first stone? Well to [...]