<script data-pm-proxy="intercept"></script><?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:googleplay="http://www.google.com/schemas/play-podcasts/1.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></title><description><![CDATA[A Conservative Member of Parliament writing about politics and policy—translating politician into plain English. ]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com</link><image><url>https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png</url><title>Melissa Lantsman</title><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com</link></image><generator>Substack</generator><lastBuildDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 17:34:26 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><copyright><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></copyright><language><![CDATA[en]]></language><webMaster><![CDATA[melissalantsman@substack.com]]></webMaster><itunes:owner><itunes:email><![CDATA[melissalantsman@substack.com]]></itunes:email><itunes:name><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></itunes:name></itunes:owner><itunes:author><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></itunes:author><googleplay:owner><![CDATA[melissalantsman@substack.com]]></googleplay:owner><googleplay:email><![CDATA[melissalantsman@substack.com]]></googleplay:email><googleplay:author><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></googleplay:author><itunes:block><![CDATA[Yes]]></itunes:block><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – August 31, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[The Cost of a Collapsed Trade Deal and Our Plan to Fix It]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-31-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-31-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 31 Aug 2026 19:32:12 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>As the fallout from last week's collapsed trade deal continues to hit our economy, one thing is clear: Mark Carney and this Liberal government failed to get the job done. Instead of securing a deal that protected Canadian workers, they walked away at the eleventh hour, leaving hundreds of thousands of jobs hanging in the balance. And still no one really knows what actually happened. </p><p>Canada must defend our workers, but accountability demands transparency: Carney must release the deal he rejected and explain its costs, especially since he once called tariffs &#8220;taxes ultimately paid by consumers&#8221; before the Liberals imposed dollar-for-dollar tariffs anyway. Conservatives stand united against Trump&#8217;s unjustified and juvenile attacks, but a tariff war will hurt, and it&#8217;s lower-income families who feel it most as grocery, hygiene, and electronics prices climb. </p><p>Mark Carney must release the deal so Canadians can judge for themselves, and Parliament must reconvene to pass an Economic Action Plan that cuts taxes and restores affordability.</p><p>Beyond trade, this week&#8217;s news is a glaring reminder of the broken systems we are fighting to fix, all the way from an immigration system where officials admit they are "flying in the dark" to a bail system that lets an accused consulate shooter out on house arrest.</p><p>As always, we are ready to roll up our sleeves and get to work. Have a look at what the experts, and commentators are saying this week.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canada-U.S. trade deal collapse explained: Why it failed, who&#8217;s to blame, and the economic cost of an extended trade war&#8221; &#8211; Graeme Gordon (<a href="https://thehub.ca/2026/08/26/canada-u-s-trade-deal-collapse-explained-why-it-failed-whos-to-blame-and-the-economic-cost-of-an-extended-trade-war/">LINK</a>)</strong> When talks collapse at the eleventh hour, it isn't Ottawa politicians who suffer. It&#8217;s the 87,000 Canadian workers whose livelihoods are suddenly on the line. How did a deal slip away, and what is it going to cost you? Have a look at what the analysts are saying.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Accused U.S. Consulate shooter remains on bail after Crown loses review&#8221; &#8211; Walid Tamtam (<a href="https://www.westernstandard.news/canadian/accused-us-consulate-shooter-remains-on-bail-after-crown-loses-review/76461">LINK</a>)</strong> Accused of shooting up a foreign consulate downtown with a stolen car and ties to a murder-for-hire network, and yet he&#8217;s walking right out on bail under a publication ban. You couldn't make this up if you tried. How many more dangerous wake-up calls does our catch-and-release justice system need?</p><p><strong>OP-ED: &#8220;In this Trade War, We Need to Go Over Trump's Head to the American People&#8221; &#8211; Kevin Lynch and Paul Deegan (<a href="https://www.policymagazine.ca/in-this-trade-war-we-need-to-go-over-trumps-head-to-the-american-people/">LINK</a>)</strong> Instead of scrambling for reactionary soundbites in Ottawa, what if Canada took the case straight to American consumers and businesses feeling the exact same tariff pinch? A smart, strategic take on how we fight back effectively without getting pushed around.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Immigration board asks feds to better track temporary residents&#8221; &#8211; David Baxter (<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/immigration-board-asks-feds-to-better-track-temporary-residents/">LINK</a>)</strong> They announce grand targets, flood the system, and then quietly admit they have zero clue who actually leaves when their visa expires. Flying in the dark" isn't a plan. It's just more proof that this government is broken and out of touch.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Head of federal agency organizing Carney&#8217;s investment summit resigns&#8221; &#8211; Jameson Berkow (<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-head-of-federal-agency-organizing-carneys-investment-summit-resigns/">LINK</a>)</strong> Barely two weeks before a massive global summit meant to convince international investors that Canada is open for business, the person running the entire agency abruptly resigns. If that doesn't tell you everything you need to know about the chaos behind the scenes, nothing will.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Economy rebounds in the second quarter, but trade tensions could shift outlook&#8221; &#8211; Sophia Bertuzzi (<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-economy-rebounds-second-quarter-trade-tensions-shift-outlook/">LINK</a>)</strong>Ottawa wants to take a victory lap over last quarter's numbers, but July growth was dead flat, and 50% tariffs are already biting our manufacturers. Don't let their spin fool you because Canadians are still feeling the squeeze at the checkout.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Trans Mountain says Alberta-B.C. pipeline running almost full&#8221; &#8211; iPolitics (<a href="https://www.ipolitics.ca/2026/08/28/trans-mountain-says-alberta-b-c-pipeline-running-almost-full/">LINK</a>)</strong> Proof that when you actually build Canadian energy infrastructure and the government gets out of the way, the world buys our resources and Canadians reap the rewards. Imagine how much stronger our economy would be if Ottawa stopped blocking projects and built more of them.</p><p><br></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – August 24, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Tariff Fallout: Conservatives Demand Parliament Return to Help Canadians Hit Hardest]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-24-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-24-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 24 Aug 2026 18:10:31 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Today's big news, of course, is on trade. We&#8217;re all praying for the hundreds of thousands of workers and businesses who are going to be impacted by Trump's new, unjustified tariffs on Canada -- and Conservatives stand ready to help them in whatever way we can. We're calling for Mark Carney to call Parliament back into session so MPs can get to work addressing the fallout, and we&#8217;ve reiterated our willingness to work with the government to pass whatever relief and cross-partisan legislation we can.</p><p>There will be lots to say and analyze in the near futureonce the dust settles. But for now, buy Canadian, wave our flag proudly, and never forget how lucky we are to call this place home &#127464;&#127462;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canada-U.S. trade talks collapsed over disputed deal terms, Carney&#8217;s envoy says&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211; Josh Wingrove </strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-u-s-trade-talks-collapsed-over-disputed-deal-terms-carneys-envoy-says">LINK</a>)A behind-the-scenes look at what happened in the final hours before everything hit the fan.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Will businesses pass along the extra tariff costs to consumers? Here&#8217;s what experts say&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Kamil Karamali&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/trumps-tariffs/article/will-businesses-pass-along-the-extra-tariff-costs-to-consumers-heres-what-experts-say/">LINK</a>) Affordability and inflation were already getting worse, well before these new tariffs took effect. How will the trade war affect your wallet? Have a look at the expert opinions.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Ottawa&#8217;s tariff trap &#8211; don&#8217;t weaponize the grocery bill&#8221; &#8211;&nbsp;Sylvain Charlebois </strong>(<a href="https://www.msn.com/en-ca/politics/government/charlebois-ottawa-s-tariff-trap-don-t-weaponize-the-grocery-bill/ar-AA2aLNHx?ocid=BingNewsSerp">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Another perspective from another expert: this time it&#8217;s the Food Doctor. Too many families are already going without food &#8211; some estimates say 25%. How will the government make sure that this latest uncertainty doesn&#8217;t drive their grocery bills even higher?</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Ontario experts, business owners disappointed after U.S. imposes crushing tariffs&#8221; &#8211; Arrthy Thayaparan </strong>(<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-reaction-to-us-tariffs-50-9.7317037">LINK</a>) I&#8217;ve heard from lots of them in my community, too. They&#8217;re hurting &#8211; bad. I hope the government will be there to respond to their needs: not with bloated, ineffectivefederal programs, but with the stuff they&#8217;re actually askingfor, like tax relief, removal of trade barriers, and common-sense policies from Ottawa.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Ontario judge discounts violent sex assault sentence for permanent resident facing deportation&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;<strong>Chris Lambie </strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ontario-judge-discounts-violent-sex-assault-sentence-for-permanent-resident-facing-deportation">LINK</a>) The prosecution and the defence both agreed that sex offender Sergio Reyes Loor should have gotten five years in jail for a violent assault. The only person who disagreed? The judge. She gave him a weaker sentence, citing immigration consequences. I'll ask the question again: why does someone's citizenship status make it easier for them to escape accountability for their actions in Canada? It&#8217;s outrageous.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Provincial taxes could skyrocket to pay for federal deficits, report says&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211; Lorrie Goldstein </strong>(<a href="https://torontosun.com/news/national/goldstein-provincial-taxes-could-skyrocket-to-pay-for-federal-deficits-report-says">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Deficitshave costs &#8211; spending now means paying in the future. More debt today? That&#8217;s less left over tomorrow for social services, provincial transfers, and everything else we value. We already spend more on interest than we do on federal grants for healthcare to the province. How much more will we have to sacrifice &#8211; or tax &#8211; until Liberals realize this path is unsustainable?</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canada's social media ban for under-16s likely to face Charter challenge, experts say&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211; Anja Karadeglija </strong>(<a href="https://nationalnewswatch.com/2026/08/17/canadas-social-media-ban-for-under-16s-likely-to-face-charter-challenge-experts-say">LINK</a>) Keeping the conversation going from last week. Lots of you are really into this, and so am I. An interesting tightrope for policymakers, interest groups, and parents alike to walk. &nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – August 17, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Countdown to Wednesday: Canada's Tariff Deadline Looms]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-17-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-17-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2026 18:56:30 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span>All eyes this week are on trade negotiations with the U.S., as we stare down the barrel of Wednesday&#8217;s deadline before additional tariffs come into effect. </span>From premiers to union leaders to the Official Opposition, the country is united behind Prime Minister Carney's negotiators as they push back against a difficult and unpredictable White House, fighting for every inch of our sovereignty and for the steel, aluminum, lumber, and auto sectors bearing the brunt of these duties. </p><p>The stakes are real: 2.6 million Canadian jobs depend on trade with the U.S., forestry towns have shed 15,000 workers since 2022, and auto plants have cut shifts. A lasting agreement wouldn't just be a diplomatic win, it would mean real relief for families who've lived with this uncertainty far too long. With supply chains, energy, and technology now being renegotiated globally, this moment calls for treating the Canada-U.S. relationship, one that's outlasted administrations on both sides, with the seriousness it deserves.</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe now&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe"><span>Subscribe now</span></a></p><p></p><p><strong><span>Check out some of what I think is worth reading this week. </span></strong></p><div><hr></div><p><strong><span>&#8220;Where do Canada-U.S. trade negotiations stand? Here&#8217;s a sector-by-sector breakdown&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Benjamin Lopez Steven, Philip Ling, Kate McKenna </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-united-states-trade-negotiations-tariffs-9.7309218"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) Interesting primer as negotiations go down to the wire...</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Canada could lose 100k jobs with U.S. losing 200k if CUSMA dies: report&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211;&#8239;Uday Rana&#8239;</span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/12016650/canada-jobs-cusma/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) ...and a reminder of what&#8217;s at stake in the long-term. </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Consumer insolvencies climbed in second quarter, putting Canada on track for worst year since 2009&#8221; &#8211;&#8239;Olivia Grandy </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-consumer-insolvencies-climbed-in-second-quarter-putting-canada-on/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)&#8239; Remember what was happening back in 2009? A recession. The economy&#8217;s in pretty much the same shape right now. More than a decade of Liberal tax increases, inflation, and mismanagement have pushed families to the brink. </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Canadians pay more in taxes than for food, shelter, and clothing combined, report finds&#8221; &#8211; Chris Knight </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.stratfordbeaconherald.com/news/canada/canadians-pay-more-in-taxes-than-for-food-shelter-and-clothing-combined-report-finds"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)&#8239;Read the previous article, and still not convinced? Then check out this new, blockbuster report. Despite skyrocketing prices, government&#8217;s still taking a bigger share than the essentials of life. Is it any wonder that people can&#8217;t get by? </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Inflation rate rose to 3% as July gas prices climbed again&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;&#8211;&#8239;</span><strong><span>Canadian Press </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/cpi-july-2026-9.7309430"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) Newest numbers from this morning. The problem&#8217;s getting worse, not better, as prices keep climbing. How much longer will this madness keep happening? </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Small business owners warn they cannot afford end of gas tax exemption&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Paul Hollingsworth </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/small-business-owners-warn-they-cannot-afford-end-of-gas-tax-exemption/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)&#8239;A small portion of the gas tax is exempted until Labour Day. But Canadians from coast to coast say this needs to be extended until at least the end of the year. Conservatives support this call &#8211; government shouldn&#8217;t be profiting from high gas prices at the expense of workers and families. We think Ottawa gets enough of your money as it is. Check out some stories from the small businesses who need relief the most.  </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Canada could supply the oil and gas the world needs now&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;&#8211;&#8239;</span><strong><span>Dan McTeague </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/mcteague-canada-could-supply-oil-and-gas-the-world-needs-now"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) Common-sense analysis from a common-sense guy. Dan&#8217;s an expert in the field and does a good job at looking into the nitty-gritty, breaking down what it means for Canada now and into the long term. </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Carney&#8217;s sovereign wealth fund idea already failed in Britain&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211;&#8239;Quinn Patrick </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.junonews.com/p/carneys-sovereign-wealth-fund-idea"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)</span><em><span> </span></em><span>Canada doesn&#8217;t have a sovereign wealth fund. To have a wealth fund, you need savings and a surplus, instead of debt and deficits. We just have a government slush fund to pay for Liberal pet projects, and that&#8217;s what happened in the UK, too. </span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Ottawa wants to block kids from social media. How would age verification work?&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Anja Karadeglija </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/ottawa-wants-to-block-kids-from-social-media-how-would-age-verification-work/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) An interesting piece about a conversation we&#8217;ve been having on this page for a while. Lots of things still up in the air, but I&#8217;m following this one closely as the details develop. </span></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!, 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp" width="474" height="316" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:316,&quot;width&quot;:474,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:&quot;New Era of Trade: What Carney&#8217;s Overhaul Means for Canada and the U.S 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!I7QP!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9fcf8254-34cf-417e-8a3b-cf3dd348e1c7_474x316.webp 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – August 10, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[The nine-days-to-the-deadline edition]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-10-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-10-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:11:01 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Nine days out and Ottawa is reportedly getting ready to give away leverage before we've even landed a deal. That is all that stands between Canadian workers, businesses, and supply chains and the August 19th U.S. tariff deadline. While hardworking Canadians are in need real leadership, economic urgency, and concrete plans, here&#8217;s the kind of summer the news outlets are reporting in Ottawa and across Canada.</p><p>I&#8217;ve compiled some of the highlights on what you should be reading, watching, and listening to this week. Without further ado, here&#8217;s this week&#8217;s list.</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>&#8220;New US Tariffs on Canadian Goods: Key Takeaways for Canadian Businesses&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Christopher Little, Clifford Sosnow, and Mia Trinh (<a href="https://www.fasken.com/en/knowledge/2026/08/new-us-tariffs-on-canadian-goods">LINK</a>) Canadian manufacturers can't afford red tape and slow consultations; we need proactive trade defense and tax relief to keep our industries competitive. This provides a good breakdown of what these new tariffs are.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>U.S.-Canada relations go up in smoke&#8221; </strong>&#8211; Alec Dent (<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/08/06/early-brief-us-canada-relations-go-up-smoke/">LINK</a>)This piece looks at the latest strain in the Canada-U.S. relationship, as President Trump threatens to punish Canada over wildfire smoke while ignoring the complex realities of a crisis driven by extreme heat, drought, and climate conditions.At a time when Canadians and Americans alike are breathing the same air, cooperation (not tariffs and threats) is what&#8217;s needed.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>'No more caving': Poilievre tells Carney to show 'backbone' in U.S. trade talks&#8221; </strong>&#8211; CBC (<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7301384">LINK</a>)<strong> </strong>The message is simple: no more caving. Canada needs a government prepared to negotiate firmly, protect our economy, and put Canadians first. So far, Ottawa&#8217;s strategy at the bargaining table has been backpedaling instead of backing Canadian workers.</p><p><strong>"Canada prepared to halt booze bans, meet other U.S. demands in exchange for tariff relief: sources" </strong>&#8211; Darren Major, Katie Simpson &amp; Kate McKenna (<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-u-s-booze-bans-trade-negotiations-9.7299529">LINK</a>) Provinces spent the better part of a year building leverage by pulling American alcohol off the shelves. Now, with nine days left before the tariff deadline, Ottawa is ready to trade that leverage away before a deal is even on the table. Unfortunately for Carney, conceding early isn&#8217;t considered a master negotiating strategy.</p><p><strong>"Ford calls on Carney to extend gas tax cut or make it permanent" </strong>&#8211; Allison Jones (<a href="https://larongenow.com/2026/08/07/ford-calls-on-carney-to-extend-gas-tax-cut-or-make-it-permanent/">LINK</a>) Doug Ford is asking Ottawa to do what Conservatives have been saying since day one: stop treating relief at the pump like a temporary favour and make it permanent. The federal gas tax holiday expires on Labour Day. Every Canadian filling up this month deserves todo so without the uncertainty of prices jumping the day after the long weekend.</p><p><strong>"Prison watchdog role left vacant for months, even after outgoing investigator warned of 'serious legal void'"</strong> &#8211; Elizabeth Thompson (<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/correctional-investigator-prison-watchdog-ivan-zinger-9.7300344">LINK</a>) The government was warned, in writing, of exactly what would happen if his office sat empty. Well, it sat empty anyway&#8230;for months&#8230;while nobody was watching the system responsible for the safety of federal inmates and the officers who guard them. This isn't a partisan talking point. It's basic governance.</p><p><strong>"Border agency chartered luxury private jets to deport foreign nationals"</strong> &#8211; Marie Woolf (<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-border-agency-chartered-luxury-private-jets-to-deport-foreign/">LINK</a>) Nearly $1 millionspent over two years chartering private aircraft to remove people who broke our laws. CBSA calls it "rare." Canadians call it out of touch. If we can find that kind of money for luxury chartersfor foreign nationals, we can find the funds and capacity to properly run the country and protect Canadians.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>Informant for brutal Ethiopian regime wins another chance to stay in Canada&#8221; &#8211; </strong>Chris Lambie (<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/informant-for-brutal-ethiopian-regime-wins-another-chance-to-stay-in-canada">LINK</a>)<strong> </strong>Canada must take seriously who we allow to remain in our country. This troubling case raises important questions about how our immigration system handles individuals accused of assisting brutal foreign regimes &#8212; and whether Canadians can have confidence that those who pose a security or human-rights concern are being properly held accountable.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>Why the slow rollout of a federal tax credit is feeding anxiety in Canada's clean-tech sector&#8221; &#8211; </strong>Gabriel Friedman (<a href="https://financialpost.com/commodities/slow-rollout-federal-tax-credit-feeding-clean-tech-anxiety">LINK</a>)<strong> </strong>If we want Canada to compete for investment and build the industries of tomorrow, we need a government that delivers certainty, cuts red tape, and gets projects moving. This piece highlights the growing uncertainty in our clean-tech sector as businesses wait for Ottawa to deliver on promised tax credits. The government is leaving companies without the clarity they need to invest, hire, and grow.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Ottawa to rebate $100M in freight costs for shipping steel across Canada</strong>&#8221; &#8211; Craig Lord (<a href="https://nationalnewswatch.com/2026/08/10/ottawa-to-rebate-100m-in-freight-costs-to-ship-steel-across-canada">LINK</a>)<strong> </strong>Ottawa&#8217;s $100-million freight rebate is a step toward strengthening our domestic steel industry and supporting Canadian workers, but it also highlights a bigger problem: why are businesses being asked to rely on government rebates to overcome the high cost of doing business in Canada?</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[The DEI Era isn’t over. It just changed Prime Ministers.]]></title><description><![CDATA[Under PM Mark Carney, it&#8217;s the same quotas, the same money, and the same discrimination.]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-dei-era-isnt-over-it-just-changed</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-dei-era-isnt-over-it-just-changed</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 2026 14:51:43 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bSJa!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1400800c-4d44-4451-96d3-736211dd8999_1588x1365.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="callout-block" data-callout="true"><p>This is not a piece about culture war theatre. It&#8217;s only about who gets hired to do publicly funded research in this country, and if your instinct is to write that off as coded hostility to diversity, you&#8217;re not engaging with the argument, you&#8217;re dodging it and you might as well move on because this is going to be a series.</p></div><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png" width="959" height="428" 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fLEY!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe0e3b567-5b89-4ec1-91b9-b4cf43267c60_959x428.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><blockquote><p><span>This spring, Memorial University posted five academic jobs &#8212; in fields like Arctic navigation and biochemistry. Real research, real science, real value to students and the public. And by the letter of the eligibility criteria, straight white men were barred from applying to a single one of them.</span></p><p><span>Not discouraged.</span></p><p><span>Not deprioritized.</span></p><p><span>Completely barred. Barred in writing, in a hiring process funded by the Canadian taxpayer. Funded by you.</span></p></blockquote><p><span>If you assumed this kind of thing wound down when Justin Trudeau left office, I understand why. The cartoon socks went away with him. So did the &#8220;peoplekind&#8221; vocabulary and the vacuous diversity talking points that once dominated every press conference. He was replaced by a straight-laced, normal socks, black dress shoes-only banker who seemed to have little patience for that sort of theatre. </span></p><p><span>But theatre was never the machine. It was the curtain in front of it. And the machine is still running and sadly, in some corners, the machine is working harder than ever.</span></p><blockquote><p><strong><span>Follow the money, because it always tells the truth.</span></strong></p></blockquote><p><span>Universities, like most public institutions, draw funding from a mix of different sources. Both federal and provincial governments are chief among them. The Memorial postings were funded through the Canada Research Chairs Program, a roughly $300-million-a-year initiative underwriting close to 2,000 senior academic positions across the country. </span>This isn&#8217;t just some obscure line item buried in the estimates. This is one of the largest levers Ottawa holds over Canadian universities, and it has been for the better part of twenty years. The money flows through a couple of tiers: the first tier where chairs are worth roughly $200,000 a year for up to seven years. This track is reserved for established researchers recognized as leaders in their field. While the second tier is about half that at roughly $100,000 a year for up to five years, aimed at emerging scholars still building a track record. So the edicts from above cover both streams, the established academics and the budding ones.</p><p><span>Okay so it you&#8217;re still following, let&#8217;s go back to about a decade ago.</span></p><p><span>In 2017, the former Trudeau government tied all that funding to equity targets. By 2021, those targets had hardened into explicit, population-based hiring quotas. They were benchmarked against national census data that every participating university is expected to hit by 2029. Miss the benchmark, lose the money. That&#8217;s pretty explicit.</span></p><p><span>Memorial University&#8217;s own postings spell out that trade-off in plain language: fall short of Ottawa&#8217;s targets, and the university risks millions in federal support.</span></p><p><span>So Memorial did exactly what any institution chasing federal dollars would do. It built its hiring criteria around Ottawa&#8217;s targets, not around who is best qualified to study Arctic navigation. At least three of its funded positions are reserved for &#8220;racialized&#8221; candidates, one for a &#8220;person with a disability,&#8221; seven for women or members of a &#8220;gender equity-seeking group.&#8221; You see, this criteria functions not as the sole deciding factor of qualification, but does act like a heavy thumb on a scale. By weighting group identity alongside qualifications obscures the very meritocratic signal this whole thing claims to enhance. Rewarding representation over demonstrated capability doesn&#8217;t exactly engender confidence, but it most certainly shouldn&#8217;t be funded by tax dollars. Especially when the very people who would qualify under these kinds of metrics already meet or exceed the workforce availability in most of these categories and still benefit from mandates targets that have outlives their original justification.</span></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://substack.com/@melissalantsman/note/p-210079839&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/substack.com/@melissalantsman/note/p-210079839"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><p><span>That&#8217;s not an accident of individual hiring decisions. That&#8217;s the spreadsheet working exactly as it&#8217;s designed. One that is still very much in place. One that we should be able to question without the collective barking of some protected group. </span></p><blockquote><p><strong><span>And Memorial is not the exception. It&#8217;s the norm.</span></strong></p></blockquote><p><span>The Aristotle Foundation reviewed </span><a href="https://aristotlefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/DEI-and-academic-hiring-in-public-universities.pdf"><span>489 academic job postings</span></a><span> at Canada&#8217;s ten largest universities. 477 of them -- 98% -- built some form of DEI requirement into who could even apply. Consider the company Memorial keeps:</span></p><ul><li><p><span>Laval University posted a Canada Research Chairs job closed to able-bodied white men.</span></p></li><li><p><span>The University of Waterloo </span><a href="https://tnc.news/2024/02/04/waterloo-gender-fluid-dei-positions/"><span>was looking for professors</span></a><span> exclusively for those identifying as gender-fluid, women, sexual minorities, or visible minorities.</span></p></li><li><p><span>UBC opened a position to people with disabilities only.</span></p></li></ul><p><span>When a national ranking scored the country&#8217;s largest universities on how discriminatory their hiring practices had become, the University of Toronto came out on top, not despite hundreds of millions in federal research dollars, but in no small part </span><em><span>because</span></em><span> of the strings Ottawa attached to them. Score: 73.1 out of 100.</span></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bSJa!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1400800c-4d44-4451-96d3-736211dd8999_1588x1365.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bSJa!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1400800c-4d44-4451-96d3-736211dd8999_1588x1365.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bSJa!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1400800c-4d44-4451-96d3-736211dd8999_1588x1365.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bSJa!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1400800c-4d44-4451-96d3-736211dd8999_1588x1365.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><blockquote><p><strong><span>The Prime Minister has had his chance to answer for this. He hasn&#8217;t taken it.</span></strong></p></blockquote><p><span>Prime Minister Mark Carney has now held office for well over a year. He has passed a federal budget. He has had every opportunity to ask a simple question: is it defensible to tie federal science funding to identity-based hiring quotas? He has not asked it. The targets are unchanged. The money flows on the same terms it always has. The Memorial postings went up this year, under this Prime Minister, under his government&#8217;s untouched rules.</span></p><p><span>Some provinces aren&#8217;t waiting for an answer from Ottawa. Alberta&#8217;s Provincial Priorities Act gives the province a say over whether its universities can accept these federal funding strings at all, a model worth watching closely and, in my view, not the right response either.</span></p><p><span>Watch, too, for the rebrand. There is a cottage industry for Ottawa&#8217;s rebranding. Ottawa&#8217;s framework is nothing if not adaptable. When the political heat rises, institutions don&#8217;t abandon the policy, they rename it. Equity, diversity and inclusion offices become &#8220;belonging&#8221; offices. The signage softens; the hiring criteria, the quotas, the administrative machinery all stay exactly where they were. If public pressure keeps building, don&#8217;t be surprised when this government starts talking about &#8220;modernizing&#8221; the Canada Research Chairs Program instead of actually dismantling the quota system beneath it.</span></p><blockquote><p><strong><span>The answer was never that complicated.</span></strong></p></blockquote><p><span>Merit should obviously decide who researches Arctic navigation, who advances biochemistry, who trains the next generation of doctors, engineers and even philosophers at a Canadian university, not a candidate&#8217;s place on a mandated demographic spreadsheet Ottawa built to hit a 2029 deadline. </span></p><p><strong><span>Federal research dollars should follow excellence, not equity. And the statement thankfully is no longer controversial. </span></strong></p><p><span>That means ending the practice of tying Canada Research Chairs funding, or any federal research funding to population-based hiring quotas. It means universities competing for talent on the strength of the work, not the identity boxes a candidate can check. And it means a government honest enough to say plainly that the current system discriminates against Canadians by design, instead of hoping no one notices that it didn&#8217;t actually change hands when the Prime Minister did.</span></p><p><span>Canadians were told this era was ending. It isn&#8217;t. It&#8217;s being managed, quietly, by a now, not so new, Prime Minister who has chosen not to touch it. That&#8217;s worth knowing. And it&#8217;s worth demanding change over.</span></p><p><em><span>This is the first article in a longer series on DEI initiatives gone off the rails in Canada. We&#8217;ll explore Subscribe so you don&#8217;t miss the next one.</span></em></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe now&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe"><span>Subscribe now</span></a></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – August 4, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Post-Long Weekend Roundup: Who's Paying for All This?]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-4-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-august-4-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 04 Aug 2026 16:03:36 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span>Back with more news after an August long weekend. Hopefully, you got to spend some extra time with those who mean the most to you. Lots of stories to share after a busy news week, so I&#8217;ll dive right in.</span></p><p><span>But before I do &#8211; make sure to leave a comment and let me know what you think. What other stories should be on my radar? What do you want to see more of in this column? Drop me a line in the section below.</span></p><p><span>Here&#8217;s what&#8217;s on my feed today:</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Economist raises concerns about lack of government spending transparency&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211;&#8239;Spencer Van Dyk&#8239;</span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/economist-raises-concerns-about-lack-of-government-spending-transparency/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) Incomplete accounting. Opaque details, at best. No answers about who&#8217;s paying for what. Welcome to new Ottawa, which is the same as old Ottawa.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Ottawa non-committal on extending gas tax break as gas prices rise&#8221; &#8211;&#8239;Jonathan Juha </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://lfpress.com/news/national/ottawa-non-committal-on-extending-gas-tax-break-as-gas-prices-rise"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)&#8239; Gas prices are just as high now as they were when the government introduced its tiny, temporary tax break. We&#8217;re calling for the Liberals to offer relief for the rest of the year and cut </span><em><span>all </span></em><span>taxes on gas, not just a couple. If you&#8217;ve filled up at the pump lately, I&#8217;m sure you&#8217;re behind this proposal, too.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;1 in 4 households in southwestern Ontario facing food insecurity: health units&#8221; &#8211; Sean Previl&#8239;</span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11996782/food-insecurity-southwestern-ontario/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)&#8239;Sadly, headlines like this hardly even get noticed these days, because they&#8217;re just seen as normal. This is not normal and should never be normal in Canada. Period.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Average Canadian family paying $21k for &#8216;free&#8217; system, new report says&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Bryan Passifiume </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://torontosun.com/news/national/average-canadian-family-paying-21k-for-free-system-new-report-says"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)&#8239;Interesting study from the Fraser Institute &#8211; they found that healthcare bills are climbing faster than people&#8217;s wages, often meaning tens of thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses. Hopefully a conversation-starter about where our money&#8217;s going and how it could be used better.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Government execs received $200 million in bonuses last year despite missing half of targets: CTF&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;&#8211;&#8239;</span><strong><span>Ellie Hutchings </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/government-executives-received-200-million-in-bonuses-2025"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) Read the previous few articles about people struggling to get by. Then read this article. Why is Ottawa living large when so many are going without, especially when these agencies can&#8217;t even do the basic job they&#8217;re supposed to do?</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;This region, home to 1.7M people, has seen shootings nearly double. Here&#8217;s what police say is the cause.&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211;&#8239;Adrian Ghobrial </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.cp24.com/news/canada/2026/07/28/shootings-have-nearly-doubled-in-ontarios-peel-region-so-far-this-year/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)</span><em><span> </span></em><span>If you&#8217;ve been reading this column, you know the reasons. Gangs, extortions, drugs &#8211; and a government that&#8217;s letting it all happen. When&#8217;s enough going to be enough?</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Liberal MPs block hearings on Gordie Howe bridge deal&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;&#8211;&#8239;</span><strong><span>Dylan Robertson </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-gordie-howe-bridge-deal-hearings-liberal/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) We took the government to committee to scrutinize the PM&#8217;s new bridge deal. They blocked us. We&#8217;ll keep pushing for answers anyways. Read more in last week&#8217;s longform: </span><a href="/__u/substack.com/home/post/p-209199710"><span>A Bridge Too Far</span></a></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Feds to spend nearly $2 billion to replace Via&#8217;s long-haul fleet&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Marco Vigliotti </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ipolitics.ca/2026/07/29/feds-to-spend-nearly-2-billion-to-replace-vias-long-haul-fleet/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) This number caught my eye: $1.6 billion for 45 new trains. Do the math, and that&#8217;s more than $35 million a train. Anybody else think this is a little expensive? We&#8217;ll be looking into this some more to make sure taxpayers got the best possible value for their money.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Montreal restaurant N&#246;am gutted in possible arson attack&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Harry North </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-crime/montreal-police-investigate-possible-arson-at-kosher-restaurant-noam/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) Two attacks a week apart: gunfire at Kiva&#8217;s, a Toronto Jewish institution, then a Montreal kosher restaurant torched. Not isolated, but a pattern. Add it to the 6,800 antisemitic incidents in 2025, a record. This keeps happening because they let it. Find these thugs, prosecute them so that someone sees it&#8217;s not allowed.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Foreign-influence registry set to launch, with uncertainty lingering over who must enroll&#8221;</span></strong><span>&#8239;</span><strong><span>&#8211; Stephanie Levitz </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-foreign-influence-registry-set-to-launch-with-uncertainty-lingering/"><span>LINK</span></a><span>) The government&#8217;s new influence registry is better than nothing. But is that really the standard we should be applying to our public policy? Lots of questions remaining about who will register, how this will be enforced, and what the penalties might be. The government&#8217;s been content to let those questions linger &#8211; just like they&#8217;ve been content to leave this issue on the backburner for nearly 5 years.</span></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[A Bridge Too Far]]></title><description><![CDATA[Adjournments instead of Answers for Canadians]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/a-bridge-too-far</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/a-bridge-too-far</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 31 Jul 2026 02:06:57 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/209199710.mp3" length="0" type="audio/mpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p></p><p>What is the point of Parliamentary committees? Why do they exist at all?</p><p></p><p>This might sound like a rhetorical question. It&#8217;s not.</p><p></p><p>For those who want a refresher on Civics 101, here&#8217;s a summary from Google: <br><br><em>&#8220;Parliamentary committees serve smaller, specialized groups of lawmakers who scrutinize legislation, oversee government activities, and conduct detailed investigations. They perform this work to save time for the main legislative chamber and ensure deeper expert analysis.</em></p><p></p><p>You may be wondering why I&#8217;m bringing up some inane definition on a warm  Friday summer day. I&#8217;m supposed to be giving you an interesting read, after all &#8212; not a lecture on the obscure inner workings of Parliament.</p><p></p><p>I&#8217;m bringing it up because it matters. And because Liberal MPs who sit on committees seem to have forgotten why they&#8217;re there in the first place.</p><p></p><p>Let me explain.</p><p></p><p>Earlier this week, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations met to analyze Mark Carney&#8217;s Gordie Howe bridge deal. Conservatives called the meeting because there are many questions swirling about this deal, and what it means for Canada &#8212; questions the Prime Minister has been content to leave unanswered.</p><p></p><p>If you want a background on the deal, check out my deep dive from a couple of weeks ago week: <a href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-bridge-what-pm-carney-said-vs">The Bridge: What PM Carney Said vs. What He Signed</a></p><p></p><p>Well, here&#8217;s what happened at that committee meeting:</p><p></p><ul><li><p>Liberal MPs repeatedly called to order for irrelevance.</p></li><li><p>A lengthy diatribe about the definition of the word "pontificate."</p></li><li><p>Admitting confusion about the deal</p></li><li><p>More obfuscation</p></li><li><p>A vote to adjourn before witnesses could even be heard.</p></li></ul><p></p><p>No answers allowed. Only delays, cover-ups, smoke and mirrors.</p><p></p><p>Conservatives even tried to work <em>with </em>Liberals to get some accountability. One of the Liberal MPs&#8217; first strategies was to talk about the U.S.-Canada economic relationship and trade between our countries, implying that they wanted the discussion broadened. So I moved to amend our original motion to include witnesses from the business community to discuss the impact of the bridge deal.</p><p></p><p>But Liberal MPs talked out that motion, too.</p><p></p><p>They also claimed all questions about the bridge deal were answered. That everything in the entente is crystal-clear, and that Conservatives (and by extension, Canadians, were somehow stupid for asking). I guess they spent more time thinking about PMO talking points than they did reading the actual deal. Here&#8217;s a few items that we still have major concerns about:</p><p></p><p><strong>1. Undefined Operating Costs</strong><br>The agreement requires Canada to share "operating costs," but never actually defines what those costs include. Officials have pointed to examples like maintenance and snow removal, yet there is no clear language on major expenses, Canada's debt on the bridge, or how those obligations will be calculated.</p><p></p><p><strong>2. A Fund Without a Purpose</strong><br>The agreement creates a new Canada&#8211;U.S. Economic Development Fund, but leaves its objectives to be decided later. Instead of providing certainty, it asks both governments to work out the details after the deal has already been signed.</p><p></p><p><strong>3. No Definition of "Comparable" Crossings</strong><br>Future toll rates are tied to the average of "comparable regional crossings," but the agreement never says which crossings qualify. Without a clear benchmark, disagreements over tolls become almost inevitable.</p><p></p><p><strong>4. What Happens If the U.S. Says No?</strong><br>The agreement gives the United States a say over certain toll changes but never explains what happens if Washington objects. There is no arbitration process, appeal mechanism, or clear path to resolve a dispute.</p><p></p><p><strong>5. Critical Details Deferred</strong><br>The implementation clause leaves key questions unanswered, including how payments will be calculated, how the agreement will be audited, and how either side will enforce its terms. The broad framework is in place, but many of the practical details remain unwritten.</p><p></p><p>You can clearly see that this deal is not settled and that questions continue to swirl, despite the Prime Minister&#8217;s insistence to the contrary. I asked questions about these parts of the deal, and about other things, too &#8212; but it seemed like nobody had the answers, nor did they care to seek them out.</p><p></p><p>One Liberal MP, Pauline Rochefort, even admitted she found parts of the agreement confusing. If that's true, shouldn't that be an argument for hearing expert witnesses instead of shutting down debate? If MPs are confused, Canadians probably are too. Actually, they most certainly are. I</p><p></p><p>And the same principle extends to Liberal MPs as a whole. The bridge and the deal will be major components of a future Canada-U.S. trade agreement. Don&#8217;t they want to understand how to strengthen that agreement, iron out any questions, create certainty for businesses, and ensure we have something that&#8217;s sustainable and workable for both sides?</p><p></p><p>What about the budget &#8212; by splitting the toll revenues with the Americans, Carney&#8217;s potentially taken millions of dollars out of Canadian tax coffers. Wouldn&#8217;t Liberal MPs want to understand how this would impact the federal budget &#8212; the one they voted for just months ago? The one full of initiatives they supported and wanted to fund? <br></p><p>A Parliamentary inquiry could have clarified these questions and, in doing so, actually strengthened the deal the Prime Minister got.</p><p><br>But I suppose Liberal MPs weren&#8217;t interested in this. I guess they were just interested in covering for their boss, shielding him from scrutiny, and trying to paper over the fact that, even according to the Globe and Mail, <a href="https://identity.theglobeandmail.com/service/oidc/limio/authorize?client_id=41831be9-dd82-4d2a-b410-7ab784591f8f&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fsubscriptions.theglobeandmail.com%2Fapi%2Fsf&amp;scope=openid%20email%20profile&amp;response_type=code&amp;state=d4paYnBPB3pFOqiyEg7484w2IuHm0b4V1785463350683">he lied to Canadians about the deal </a>he got &#8212; and now is trying to hide the evidence that that ever happened. Cowboy hat or not, the Prime Minister has a responsibility to come clean to people.</p><p></p><p>And if he won&#8217;t, then that&#8217;s where Parliament comes in. Or &#8212; where it&#8217;s supposed to come in.</p><p></p><p>And so this is where we come full circle: what is the point of Parliamentary committees?</p><p></p><p>If they&#8217;re not allowed to investigate incomplete agreements, ask difficult questions of the government, hear expert testimony, and propose solutions to some of the problems and uncertainties we face as a nation, then what, exactly, are they for?</p><p></p><p>Accountability, scrutiny, and good-faith question-asking are cornerstones of our democracy. Without them, oversight becomes an afterthought &#8212; and Canadians end up worse for it.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LNHR!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5af9da16-83d5-48e8-96d9-77af891b1afb_1290x1897.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LNHR!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5af9da16-83d5-48e8-96d9-77af891b1afb_1290x1897.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LNHR!, 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5af9da16-83d5-48e8-96d9-77af891b1afb_1290x1897.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LNHR!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5af9da16-83d5-48e8-96d9-77af891b1afb_1290x1897.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LNHR!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5af9da16-83d5-48e8-96d9-77af891b1afb_1290x1897.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LNHR!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5af9da16-83d5-48e8-96d9-77af891b1afb_1290x1897.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p></p><p></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – July 27, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Real Patriotism Doesn't Need a Permission Slip: Answering the Globe's 'Patriotism Problem' Smear, Plus Today's Must-Reads]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-27-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-27-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 27 Jul 2026 15:52:07 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Wl7Q!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb9ab99b4-c279-4da3-90cf-0401ecff4b2c_480x307.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span>This is a column where I talk about the news, so I&#8217;m going to start by talking about one particular story. Did anyone else see that </span><a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-conservatives-patriotism-separatism-maga-trump/"><span>ridiculous piece</span></a><span> in the Globe and Mail somehow claiming that Conservatives have a &#8220;patriotism problem&#8221;?</span></p><p><span>Here&#8217;s the real problem: Liberals have spent more than a decade trying to rewrite our history and apologizing for Canada more than they&#8217;ve celebrated it. And now they&#8217;re trying to lecture people on national pride?</span></p><p><span>The Globe columnist wants a patriotism test where Conservatives get interrogated for what strangers say, while Liberals get a pass for what their own government does.</span></p><p><span>Don&#8217;t let the media convince you, no matter how big their subsidies are: strong, vigorous, principled opposition is loyal and patriotic. We hold the government to account because we love Canada and want it to be better. Don&#8217;t let anyone tell you you&#8217;re not Canadian enough for their version of Canada.</span></p><p><span>Read more of the response to that </span><a href="https://www.winnipegsun.com/opinion/liberals-don-t-hold-the-only-claim-to-patriotism-in-canada/article_568cc4a6-87e6-4f04-ae04-221e4609b1f5.html"><span>here</span></a><span>, and make sure to check out some more things you should be reading about today:</span></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe now&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe"><span>Subscribe now</span></a></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Multiple Jewish-owned Toronto bakeries targeted in suspected hate-motivated attacks&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Jermaine Wilson </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/toronto/article/multiple-jewish-owned-toronto-bakeries-targeted-in-suspected-hate-motivated-attacks/">LINK</a><span>) Somehow, Carney has enough time to tweet about Irish soccer, but not enough time to make a statement about businesses in Canada being shot up just because they&#8217;re owned by Jews. Want to know why antisemitic violence is spiraling in this country? Look at the silent leadership tacitly encouraging it all. I stopped by Kiv&#8217;s this morning to a full restaurant at 750am and an unshakable community that has become sadly accustomed to the lack of leadership in this country.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Toronto police investigating after shots fired outside U.S. Consulate&#8221; &#8211; Codi Wilson </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/toronto/article/toronto-police-investigating-after-shots-fired-outside-us-consulate/">LINK</a><span>) The second time this year that a foreign consulate on Canadian soil has been shot at. We&#8217;re waiting for more info, but this shooting looks a lot like the first shooting. You&#8217;ll remember it was perpetrated by criminal gangs connected to the IRGC &#8211; the same IRGC that Ottawa&#8217;s welcomed here with open arms; the same criminal gangs that get to roam in our streets thanks to lax bail and parole rules. After the first shooting, Liberals promised to tell us how they&#8217;d keep people safe and how something like that could happen. Nobody&#8217;s heard from them since.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Details of Gordie Howe Bridge deal released amid political pressure&#8221; &#8211; Stephanie Ha </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/details-of-gordie-howe-bridge-deal-released-amid-political-pressure/">LINK</a><span>) Conservatives forced the Liberal government to make these documents public. And they make one thing clear: Carney lied about the bridge deal he negotiated with the Americans. He said we&#8217;d keep our money. Now the details show we&#8217;re giving away half of it, even though we paid for 100% of the bridge.</span></p><p><span>Read the fine print yourself. Then ask Carney why his story was so drastically different.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Canadians&#8217; biggest source of wealth is losing ground and that&#8217;s dragging down the economy&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Pamela Heaven </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://financialpost.com/news/canada-biggest-wealth-source-losing-ground">LINK</a><span>)</span><em><span> </span></em><span>Incomes are squeezed. The job market&#8217;s tighter. Prices are higher, too &#8211; so people are leaning on their stocks and other investments. What happens when those start to slide, too? That&#8217;s the big question explored here.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;More than 12,000 people sleeping on the street, federal report says&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Postmedia News </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://torontosun.com/news/national/federal-report-homeless-count-2025-survey">LINK</a><span>) 12,000&#8217;s a big number. And it&#8217;s even bigger when you consider that it&#8217;s doubled in just four years. But that&#8217;s not the full story: dive into the details and the stats are even more shocking: 12,857 people in unsheltered locations like parks and alleys. But over 65,000 people in shelters. Nearly 5,000 in tent cities. A decade of inflation and addiction playing out in the data, and even worse when you consider it&#8217;s playing out on our streets and in real people&#8217;s lives.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Here&#8217;s a look at which grocery store products saw the steepest inflation, according to new data&#8221;</span></strong><span> &#8211; </span><strong><span>Genevieve Beauchemin </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/inflation/article/heres-a-look-at-which-grocery-store-products-saw-the-steepest-inflation-according-to-new-data/">LINK</a><span>) June was the 17</span><sup><span>th</span></sup><span> consecutive month that grocery inflation outpaced overall inflation. But the Prime Minister claims that affordability&#8217;s never been better. Read the article, or just go to a grocery store, and you&#8217;ll know he&#8217;s got no idea what he&#8217;s talking about.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Mark Carney&#8217;s Liberals back away from Billy Bishop Airport expansion, putting politics ahead of growth&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Brian Lilley </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/mark-carney-liberals-back-away-billy-bishop-airport-expansion">LINK</a><span>) Here&#8217;s a question for the PM. Do you want to &#8220;build big things&#8221;, or only &#8220;build big things&#8221; until it makes someone upset?If you&#8217;re gonna cave to every NIMBY with a Facebook account and a personal agenda, then I&#8217;ve got news for you: nothing&#8217;s going to get built. This might be the worst roll out of an eventual plan for another airport. </span></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://substack.com/@melissalantsman/note/p-208704723&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/substack.com/@melissalantsman/note/p-208704723"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Wl7Q!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb9ab99b4-c279-4da3-90cf-0401ecff4b2c_480x307.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Wl7Q!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb9ab99b4-c279-4da3-90cf-0401ecff4b2c_480x307.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Wl7Q!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb9ab99b4-c279-4da3-90cf-0401ecff4b2c_480x307.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Wl7Q!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb9ab99b4-c279-4da3-90cf-0401ecff4b2c_480x307.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Wl7Q!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb9ab99b4-c279-4da3-90cf-0401ecff4b2c_480x307.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Bridge: What PM Carney Said vs. What He Signed]]></title><description><![CDATA[Canada paid for the bridge. We took on the debt. We assumed the risk. So why is Washington getting half the revenue?]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-bridge-what-pm-carney-said-vs</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-bridge-what-pm-carney-said-vs</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 22 Jul 2026 17:59:15 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vDlG!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fpbs.substack.com%2Fmedia%2FHN1PFalWgAASL5d.jpg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Almost fifteen years ago, Canada started working on a new bridge that would link Windsor and Detroit. It was a bridge meant to forge new ties between Canada and the U.S., diplomatically, culturally, and physically. I remember this, because I was a senior political staffer in Ottawa at the time, working on some of these files. I was there in the rooms where it was being discussed.</p><p>Canada took the initiative to build this bridge. We put down all the money, absorbed all the risk, and ended up sinking $6.4 billion of taxpayer money into its construction. It was the right thing to do, because the benefits for Canadian workers and businesses over the long term would be far greater than that initial cost. And under the terms of the original deal negotiated with the Americans, we&#8217;d get to collect all the tolls. It made implicit sense: when you sow the seeds, you should get to reap the rewards, too.</p><p>Now, that original deal is dead. The bridge is opening next week, and that&#8217;s a good thing, but there&#8217;s more to the story. Not only is Canada no longer reaping the rewards, but taxpayers are also going to be left with the entire cost of sowing those seeds: all the money we paid to build this bridge in the first place.</p><p>Those are the terms of a new deal signed by Mark Carney&#8217;s government. This is a deal they tried to cover up and hide from Canadians. The cover-up is <em>the</em> story here, because if you can&#8217;t depend on being told the terms of this deal, how can you really know if you&#8217;re going to be told the truth on anything regarding the current state of the Canada-U.S. relationship?</p><p><a href="https://gordiehoweinternationalbridge.com/proposed-agreement-in-principle/"><span data-color="#0000ff" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">The text is now public:</span></a><span data-color="#0000ff" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> </span>we&#8217;ll share 50% of bridge and crossing-related revenue with the Americans for fifteen years, and we&#8217;ll only repay the construction debt we took on after the U.S. takes its share. It&#8217;s a huge blow.</p><p></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe now&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe"><span>Subscribe now</span></a></p><p></p><p>The blatant giveaway is bad enough. But what&#8217;s worse is that these details fly in the face of the government&#8217;s own messaging, the things they&#8217;ve been saying for weeks.</p><ul><li><p>In Calgary on July 12, Mark Carney said, and I quote: &#8220;we get the revenues.&#8221; Plain and simple. A few days later, he doubled down: &#8220;It&#8217;s not splitting the tolls of the bridge... splitting of tolls, any sharing of the toll revenue won&#8217;t happen until all of the debt is repaid.&#8221;</p><p></p></li></ul><blockquote><p>We now know those comments were false.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>What&#8217;s worse is that despite news to the contrary &#8212; <a href="https://ca.news.yahoo.com/referencing-art-deal-lutnick-says-182613791.html"><span data-color="#0000ff" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">like public comments from U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick</span></a><span data-color="#0000ff" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> </span>&#8212; Liberal MPs continued to double down on this narrative. Take, for instance, this comment on Facebook from Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen:</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg" width="595" height="956" 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mLWw!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9d29e7a7-2130-4832-9bef-79ed207ffc80_595x956.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><blockquote><p>The Prime Minister&#8217;s comms strategy was basically: &#8220;trust me, don&#8217;t ask any further questions, and you&#8217;re dumb for wanting to know anyway.&#8221; It&#8217;s his standard playbook for most things, but now they&#8217;ve left themselves no room to claim they were misquoted.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>And now, the PM&#8217;s office still hasn&#8217;t said anything about the deal: what it means for Canada, or why we&#8217;re now handing over the returns while Washington put up nothing.</p><p>They let the one clause protecting Canadian money from disappearing into a fifteen-year giveaway slip quietly away in the dark and not a word to the taxpayers footing the bill. No press release. No briefing. No warning. Just gone. That's not "trust me, I got this." That's a government hoping nobody's watching closely enough to notice what just vanished.</p><p>Just look at what happened at a news conference he held just a few days ago:</p><p></p><div class="twitter-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://x.com/mindingottawa/status/2079905560552448263?s=46&quot;,&quot;full_text&quot;:&quot;.<span class=\&quot;tweet-fake-link\&quot;>@MarkJCarney</span> walks from reporters when asked to explain confidential&nbsp;<span class=\&quot;tweet-fake-link\&quot;>@GordieHoweBrg</span> toll sharing deal: \&quot;Did you mislead Canadians, sir?\&quot;&nbsp;\n<a class=\&quot;tweet-url\&quot; href=/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/%22https://www.blacklocks.ca/ask-pm-did-you-mislead//%22>blacklocks.ca/ask-pm-did-you&#8230;</a> <span class=\&quot;tweet-fake-link\&quot;>#cdnpoli</span> &quot;,&quot;username&quot;:&quot;mindingottawa&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Blacklock's Reporter&quot;,&quot;profile_image_url&quot;:&quot;https://pbs.substack.com/profile_images/2676782324/7d9c7078eac5a4037fafa6ad6ef64f8e_normal.jpeg&quot;,&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-07-22T12:25:03.000Z&quot;,&quot;photos&quot;:[{&quot;img_url&quot;:&quot;https://pbs.substack.com/media/HN1PFalWgAASL5d.jpg&quot;,&quot;link_url&quot;:&quot;https://t.co/2vpd2X0i5K&quot;}],&quot;quoted_tweet&quot;:{},&quot;reply_count&quot;:11,&quot;retweet_count&quot;:53,&quot;like_count&quot;:156,&quot;impression_count&quot;:3839,&quot;expanded_url&quot;:null,&quot;video_url&quot;:null,&quot;video_preview_media_key&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true}" data-component-name="Twitter2ToDOM"></div><p>The caption says it all.</p><p>Lies and silence were the strategy. So the PM should own it. He should tell people exactly what we&#8217;re getting out of this deal, and why our share of the revenue got cut to half when we laid down 100% of the cost to build the bridge. And he should tell people why he so clearly misled the public when he ostensibly knew exactly what was happening in these negotiations.</p><p>The one thing the government did announce was the cancellation of the planned ceremony to celebrate the bridge&#8217;s opening next week. Are you surprised? I&#8217;m not. I don&#8217;t blame the government for not wanting to celebrate when they just capitulated, again. They just want to avoid drawing attention to anything in the deal at all, because that just means more people who know we got rinsed.</p><p>The Liberals are betting that people aren&#8217;t going to scrutinize them for this. That&#8217;s what the the silence are all about. They&#8217;re hoping people will get caught up in the constantly changing details and just tune out or that this will become one of Ottawa&#8217;s &#8220;process stories.&#8221; Don&#8217;t let the Liberals win that bet.</p><p>There&#8217;s more to come. Here&#8217;s the message that lies ahead:</p><p>If Canada can spend billions of dollars building critical infrastructure, take on the debt and the risk, and then surrender half the resulting revenue under pressure from Washington, what does that say about Canada&#8217;s negotiating position? What incentive does the United States have to make concessions in the future if the Canadian government is willing to give away the returns on investments we&#8217;ve already made?</p><p>And if the guy we elected to be our elbows-up man on Canada-U.S. relations, in part due to his self-described skills as a so-called &#8220;dealmaker&#8221; can&#8217;t come clean or provide transparent updates about the negotiations for a single bridge, how the heck can we trust what he says as the discussions for an entire free trade agreement unfold?</p><p>Read the bridge deal yourself. Ask yourself, and the PM, why his version didn&#8217;t match it. And then ask yourself: is this really the best we can do?</p><p>It should be very clear to everyone now, that President Trump&#8217;s tariffs are a gut punch to Canadian workers. Plain and simple. Fourteen months ago, The Prime Minister  called this the worst economic crisis since World War 2. He was right, and yet the Liberals still have no plan, no transparency, just excuses and attacks on anyone who asks questions.</p><p>President Trump needs to reverse these new threats and tariffs now. And Prime Minister Carney needs to answer for a year and a half of surrendering our leverage instead of fighting for a deal. </p><p>Conservatives will always stand up for our workers, our businesses, and a strong, sovereign Canada, something we&#8217;d have done and have wanted to see done from day one. </p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – July 20, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Not a Sleepy News Summer: Bridges, Trade, and Smoke on the Border]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-20-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-20-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 20 Jul 2026 16:27:54 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>We&#8217;re deep into the dog days of summer now. Normally the news cycle slows deep into July, but this year it&#8217;s been anything but sleepy. My feed&#8217;s been filled with bridge drama with the U.S., trade drama with the U.S., and the devastating wildfires, which has brought on yet another drama with the U.S. Check out some of this below. </p><p>Hopefully you didn&#8217;t fall asleep  during yesterday&#8217;s, um, less-than-exciting World Cup final. Party hard today if you&#8217;re a Spain fan: I was rooting for Argentina because as a long suffering Blue Jays fan I wanted to see what it would feel like to cheer for a winner. I got that wrong too. </p><p>&nbsp;On to the next. </p><p>Here are this week&#8217;s top stories:</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Lutnick boasts U.S. will get 50% of net revenue on Gordie How Bridge, calls it &#8216;Art of the Deal&#8217;&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Chris Knight&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/referencing-art-of-the-deal-lutnick-says-u-s-will-get-50-of-net-revenue-on-gordie-howe-bridge">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Canada paid for the bridge. We were about to get all the profits from it. But Carney&#8217;s negotiating &#8220;expertise&#8221; now means the Americans are going to take half our cut &#8211; despite not laying down a single penny to get the bridge built. We&#8217;re hearing more about this from the Americans than we are our own government. Probably because they know we got rinsed.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canada-US Bridge Pact Omits Canada&#8217;s Debt Costs, Document Shows&#8221; &#8211;&nbsp;Josh Wingrove&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-07-17/carney-s-gordie-howe-bridge-deal-splits-50-of-net-revenue-for-15-years?srnd=undefined">LINK</a>)&nbsp;There are still lots of questions lingering, but we don&#8217;t have any answers because the Liberals are keeping the documents secret. Why won&#8217;t they release, in public, the terms of the deal they signed? What are they so desperate to keep hidden?</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Man accused in Toronto nightclub shooting is wanted in the U.S. for trafficking 100 guns into Canada &#8211; &#8216;Just chaos,&#8217; witness says&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Jason Miller </strong>(<a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/man-accused-in-toronto-nightclub-shooting-is-wanted-in-the-us-for-trafficking-100-guns-into-canada--just-chaos-witness-says/article_424fff57-d69c-43de-8c69-f6b5fa47e926.html">LINK</a>)Liberals are laying down billions to go after Grandpa Joe&#8217;s hunting rifle, all while criminal gangs import hundreds of guns into our communities with virtual impunity. The crime and chaos and scenes like this aren&#8217;t being caused by the guy who likes deer hunting on the weekends: they&#8217;re being caused by weak Liberal policies that let the thugs roam free.</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>&#8220;70% of Canadians say high taxes are reducing living standards, most think subsidies not worth the cost: poll&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Ellie Hutchings&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/70-of-canadians-say-high-taxes-reduce-living-standards-poll">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Canadians aren&#8217;t falling for Liberal gimmicks, like the government&#8217;s constant claim that life&#8217;s never been so good. They agree with Conservatives: time to cut taxes and end costly schemes that just make Ottawa richer, and families poorer.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Jewish organization calls for Palestine Action Canada to be listed as terrorist organization after alleged attack on Ontario company&#8221; &#8211;&nbsp;Stewart Lewis&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/jewish-organization-calls-for-palestine-action-canada-to-be-listed-as-terrorist-organization-after-alleged-attack-on-ontario-company">LINK</a>)&nbsp;You don&#8217;t get to attack a Canadian business, brag about doing so, and then just get to go on your merry way. That&#8217;s not how things work in this country. Put these guys on a list and show everyone that lawlessness has consequences. This is why we have public safety laws on our books. Use them.</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>&#8220;CREA further downgrades forecast for Canadian home sales this year&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;<strong>Rachelle Younglai </strong>(<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-crea-further-downgrades-forecast-for-canadian-home-sales-this-year/">LINK</a>) The ever-crumbling Canadian housing market keeps finding new lows. This forecast is lower than the last forecast, which was lower than 2025, which was lower than 2024, and, well, you get the picture. The Liberal plan to fix all this is just to prop up unsustainable prices and reward their condo developer buddies. Expect the meltdown &#8211; and the government incompetence &#8211; to get worse before they can get better.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Pain at the pump, sticker shock forcing buyers into used car lots&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Bryan Passifiume </strong>(<a href="https://torontosun.com/news/national/sticker-shock-forcing-buyers-used-car-lots">LINK</a>) People looking to buy a vehicle are in search of a bargain. I can&#8217;t blame them. Our new Conservative bill, C-285, will give them a break by permanently taking the GST off used cars. Families could save over $5,000 &#8211; that&#8217;s a big chunk of change at a time when it&#8217;s needed most.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Helping People Escape Persecution Is a Conservative Value]]></title><description><![CDATA[A few reflections on politics, policy, and values]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/helping-people-escape-persecution</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/helping-people-escape-persecution</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 16 Jul 2026 15:54:41 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Yesterday, I was proud to co-host a fundraiser called <em>Meet me at the Lake</em> with my friends and colleagues MPs Scott Aitchison and Adam Chambers for a charity called <a href="https://meetusatthedock.funraise.org/">Rainbow Railroad.</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg" width="1600" height="1067" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:&quot;normal&quot;,&quot;height&quot;:1067,&quot;width&quot;:1600,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:0,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KAPW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6ca390ba-ec94-4bdc-894b-4be691814b84_1600x1067.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>(<em>R-L front row) Adam, Scott, Melissa </em></p><p>You may have heard about it, several major news outlets <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/conservative-mps-launch-fundraiser-for-lgbtq2s-refugees/">covered</a> the event before it happened. When word got out, I received two kinds of feedback: messages of support and encouragement, and messages that were considerably less kind.</p><p></p><p>I&#8217;ve never much cared about the kinds of messages that come my way from the very people who would never say utter those same words to anyone&#8217;s face. So we did the fundraiser anyway. I&#8217;m glad I did, and I&#8217;d do it again. In fact, we are. </p><p></p><p>Here&#8217;s why:</p><p></p><p>We live in an annoyingly virtuous world drowning in symbolic politics. Flags in social media bios, pins, ribbons, acknowledgements and other carefully worded statements that cost nothing and most of all, change nothing. And if you know me, I have very little patience for any of it. What I do have patience for is action: raising real dollars that buy real plane tickets that move real people out of real danger. That&#8217;s what this fundraiser was. Not a gesture, not a photo op, not a bullshit meeting, but a concrete effort to get human beings out of countries where they face prison or a noose or sometimes far worse. If you&#8217;re tired of virtue signalling, you should love this cause, because it&#8217;s the opposite of one.</p><p></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?utm_source=email&r=&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?utm_source=email&amp;r="><span>Subscribe</span></a></p><p></p><p>Start with what Rainbow Railroad actually does. There are many places in the world where it is not safe to be LGBTQ. According to the Human Dignity Trust, 66 countries criminalize consensual same-sex activity, and in 12 of them, you can receive the death penalty simply for being gay. Insane, right?</p><p></p><p>Rainbow Railroad helps people escape that.</p><p></p><p>They provide resources, sponsor refugees, and resettle those who flee persecution, violence, and human rights abuses. To date, they&#8217;ve helped 50,000 people. That&#8217;s 50,000 people who escaped imprisonment, torture, or execution, and who now have the freedom to live openly, build families, contribute to their communities, and pursue the same hopes any of us would want for ourselves.</p><p></p><p>Canada is often where these refugees make their home. After the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban in 2021, Rainbow Railroad resettled 247 people, most of them here. As conflicts spread and laws targeting LGBTQ people grow harsher around the world, this work is becoming more important, not less.</p><p></p><p>Some of the people in my DMs and inbox last week suggested that supporting this work is un-Conservative, or even un-Canadian.</p><p></p><blockquote><p>They&#8217;re wrong. In fact, they have it backwards.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>I understand that many Canadians have lost faith in our immigration system after more than a decade of Liberal mismanagement. I certainly have and have become a vocal critic of each Liberal immigration minister who has been worse than their predecessor. We now have a system that drifted from the national interest toward political interest. To many, too fast and resulting in real pressure on housing, on health care, on job and of course wrapped up with really big blind spots on national security.</p><p></p><p>I also understand the frustration with modern identity politics, where slogans and symbolic gestures too often crowd out meaningful action. We&#8217;ve all seen it: governments that recite land acknowledgements at every event while First Nations communities go years without clean drinking water. We&#8217;ve over a decade of of a self-declared &#8220;feminist government&#8221; that branded every budget with gender equity while women fleeing violence were turned away overflowing shelters as their attackers run free because of broken Liberal bail policies all while sexual misconduct festered in our own military.</p><p></p><p>But this fundraiser had nothing to do with either debate. It was about helping people escape persecution. Conflating the two is a mistake, and&nbsp; one I didn&#8217;t and won&#8217;t make.</p><p></p><blockquote><p>Our Conservative movement, at its best, has never meant indifference to suffering. It&#8217;s quite the opposite. We believe every person possesses inherent dignity. We hold the belief that human rights aren&#8217;t created by governments; they exist because every life has value. We believe families matter, communities matter, faith matters, and that people should be free to live without fear of violence or oppression.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>These aren&#8217;t just Conservative values. They are Canadian ones.</p><p></p><p>Throughout our history, this country has opened its doors to people fleeing persecution:</p><p>Black Americans following the Underground Railroad north, Hungarians escaping Soviet tanks, Vietnamese boat people, Syrians escaping civil war, Ukrainians displaced by Russia&#8217;s invasion.</p><p></p><p>We never did any of this because our immigration system was perfect. We did it because, in exceptional circumstances, protecting innocent human life is simply, right.</p><p></p><blockquote><p>Yes, every refugee claim should be properly vetted. Security matters. The integrity of our immigration system matters. Canadians are right to expect both. But none of that conflicts with offering refuge to someone whose only &#8220;crime&#8221; is existing.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>If someone faces imprisonment or execution simply because they&#8217;re gay, shrugging our shoulders and calling it someone else&#8217;s problem is not the option I choose. We are one of the richest, most fortunate, most endowed countries on Earth (we could of course be better). We can do better than that, and we always have.</p><p></p><p>One thing I&#8217;ve learned in politics is that people assume your support for one thing means you automatically support ten other things. It doesn&#8217;t. Supporting Rainbow Railroad doesn&#8217;t mean I endorse every activist, every slogan, or every organization in the broader ecosystem.</p><p></p><p>It means I believe nobody should be tortured, imprisoned, or killed because of who they are. That principle shouldn&#8217;t be controversial, and I refuse to treat it as if it were.</p><p></p><blockquote><p>Politics today pressures us to view everything through a really ridiculous binary. If someone we disagree with supports a cause, we&#8217;re expected to oppose it. If one &#8220;side&#8221; claims an issue, the other side is expected to reject it. That instinct is pretty corrosive. Good opportunities to help other human beings don&#8217;t come in perfect packages, and if we lose sight of that, politics starts consuming our humanity instead of serving it.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>Despite all the noise online, people from across the political spectrum came together to support this cause. Conservatives, Liberals, New Democrats, people with no political affiliation, people who disagree with me on countless other issues. For one afternoon, none of that mattered.</p><p></p><p>Reasonable people can disagree about immigration policy, foreign affairs, or the role of charities. But here is the bottom line:</p><p>A world where people are executed for who they are is a worse world than one where they aren&#8217;t. Canada has the ability to help some of those people find safety. And for me, that is always worth supporting.</p><p></p><blockquote><p>So no, I won&#8217;t be shy about this one. Helping people escape a death isn&#8217;t a betrayal of conservative principles. It&#8217;s what they&#8217;re for.</p></blockquote><p></p><p>To everyone who filled my inbox last week: I read your messages. I hosted the fundraiser anyway. It raised money that will pull people out of countries that would execute them. That trade: a few angry emails for a few saved lives is the easiest one I&#8217;ll ever make.</p><p></p><p>If you&#8217;d take it too, you know what to do: rainbowrailroad.org.</p><p></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/helping-people-escape-persecution?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email&utm_content=share&action=share&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Share&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/p/helping-people-escape-persecution?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=share&amp;action=share"><span>Share</span></a></p><p></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!89Tx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!89Tx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 1456w" 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!89Tx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!89Tx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!89Tx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F583dd167-02b7-4c52-8418-c17cd3c27156_1600x1067.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – July 13, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[The Carney Growth Slump Is Real]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-13-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-13-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 13 Jul 2026 15:59:54 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>This week, the very carefully manufactured and marketed appearance of the Carney government isn&#8217;t just cracking, its effects are completely shattering Canada&#8217;s former realities.</p><p>While the Prime Minister&#8217;s Office spends its time playing musical chairs with staffers and handing out Senate seats to its inner circle, Canadians are forced to watch the value of the loonie tumble further and further down. </p><p>And that&#8217;s not the only negative symptom Mark Carney has brought us, our manufacturers are looking with increased desperation for the exit door, and our communities are forced to deal with a rise in targeted hate. </p><p>The contrast between the Liberal spin in Ottawa and the reality in our streets has never been sharper, nor more plainly obvious. Let&#8217;s dive into what&#8217;s actually happening across Canada this week, and how we turn this around.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Carney has had the worst first year of growth for a PM since 1963: poll&#8221;</strong> &#8211; National Post (<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/carney-has-had-the-worst-first-year-of-growth-for-a-pm-since-1963-poll">LINK</a>) Time has officially run out on his elite &#8220;economic savior&#8221; narrative. A new poll confirms that despite all the pedigree and promises of steady hands, this administration has delivered the worst first-year economic growth for a Prime Minister in over sixty years. Turns out, high-flying rhetoric doesn't pay the bills.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canada's tumbling dollar is a symptom of Liberal mismanagement&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Margareta Dovgal (<a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/margareta-dovgal-canadas-tumbling-dollar-is-a-symptom-of-liberal-mismanagement">LINK</a>) The downward dive of Canada&#8217;s dollar isn&#8217;t some fluke, it&#8217;s a tangible report card on Ottawa's fiscal trainwreck. This piece lays out exactly how the erosion of our purchasing power is a direct symptom of structural mismanagement that leaves every single Canadian poorer.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>More than 40% of Canadian manufacturers weighing move to U.S., KPMG survey finds</strong>&#8221; &#8211; Daniel Johnson (<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-canadian-manufacturers-move-to-us-kpmg-survey/">LINK</a>) This is a massive red flag for our economy. Nearly half of Canada&#8217;s manufacturing sector is actively eyeing the exit door. Driven out by uncompetitive regulations, high taxes, and economic instability, our job creators are getting ready to vote with their feet and move south.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>Companies &#8216;no longer in the wait and see mode&#8217; as experts predict manufacturing exodus from Canada&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Abigail Bimman (<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/as-toyota-moves-production-from-mexico-to-us-expect-others-to-leave-canada-trade-lawyer/">LINK</a>) This is a big one, and it should act as a flashing red warning sign for Canadian workers. Following Toyota's shift to the U.S., trade experts are warning that Canada is next on the chopping block unless we radically change how we treat industry, innovation, and investment.</p><p>&#8220;<strong>Mark Carney&#8217;s housing minister is playing whack-a-mole with young Canadians&#8217; futures. It&#8217;s time he took a lesson from Poilievre</strong>&#8221; &#8211; Justin Ling (<a href="https://www.thestar.com/opinion/star-columnists/how-is-carney-doing-on-the-housing-file-that-info-is-not-available-liberals-say/article_66e60b2d-d7cd-46bd-9e51-532a1317ffaf.html">LINK</a>) Even mainstream columnists are starting to state the obvious: the government&#8217;s housing strategy is a chaotic joke. While young Canadians are entirely locked out of the market, Pierre Poilievre&#8217;s common-sense plan to fire the gatekeepers, cut the red tape, and tie federal funding to actual home builds is the only real solution on the table.</p><p><strong>&#8220;EDITORIAL: Poilievre was right about everything</strong>&#8221; &#8211; Toronto Sun (<a href="https://torontosun.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-poilievre-was-right-about-everything">LINK</a>) For those who wanted to take a look at his opinions and policy, this is a little look at Poilievre&#8217;s common-sense Conservative warnings on inflation, out-of-control spending, housing, and structural decline. So far, they have proven entirely accurate as the Liberal house of cards collapses.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Montreal police investigate alleged hate crimes against Hasidic Jews in Outremont&#8221; </strong>&#8211; Swida Rassy (<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/montreal-police-investigate-alleged-hate-crimes-against-hasidic-jews-in-outremont/">LINK</a>) A deeply disturbing reminder of the unchecked rise of antisemitism targeting our Jewish communities. The SPVM hate crime unit is investigating a series of targeted incidents in Outremont. We need total moral clarity and zero tolerance for this hate on Canadian streets&#8212;full stop.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Two dead, several wounded in shooting at Toronto&#8217;s Salsa on St. Clair festival&#8221; &#8211; The Globe and Mail </strong>(<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto/article-two-dead-in-active-shooting-at-torontos-salsa-on-st-clair-festival/?utm_source=headtopics&amp;utm_medium=news&amp;utm_campaign=2026-07-12">LINK</a>) An absolutely heartbreaking tragedy in our city. Families, seniors, and kids were out to celebrate at the Salsa on St. Clair festival when a horrific shootout broke out where two lives were stolen and several more were wounded. Crime has torn apart enough communities and enough families. We need to restore safety and finally put an end to this senseless violence.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Carney to shuffle top staff after deputy chief leaves to seek Liberal nomination&#8221;</strong> &#8211; The Globe and Mail (<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-carney-to-shuffle-top-staff-after-deputy-chief-leaves-to-seek-liberal/">LINK</a>) As the economic indicators go from bad to worse, the Prime Minister&#8217;s Office is turning inward to protect its own. A major staff shuffle is underway following Senate appointments and departures, proving that Ottawa remains hyper-focused on political survival rather than fixing the country.</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Ten Budgets Later, Ottawa Wants to Know What You Think]]></title><description><![CDATA[BREAKING: The Consultation Is the Product]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/ten-budgets-later-ottawa-wants-to</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/ten-budgets-later-ottawa-wants-to</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 09 Jul 2026 19:05:03 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span>Gasoline up 61%. Mortgage interest up 56%. Groceries up 36%. Rent up 34%. That&#8217;s the scoreboard after nine Liberal budgets. On July 6, the government announced consultations for the tenth, and</span><strong><span> it wants to know what you think.</span></strong></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg" width="1456" height="971" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:971,&quot;width&quot;:1456,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:136594,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/i/206337240?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!97UT!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7c139ea4-49e6-4db2-86cf-5276cd65e796_1536x1024.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><span>The Finance Minister will spend the summer holding roundtables and collecting input through an online portal that closes September 8. The press release promises this budget will be about &#8220;building a strong economy, diversifying trade, ensuring responsible fiscal management, and positioning the country for long-term prosperity.&#8221; Read that sentence again. Now ask yourself: has there been a single Liberal budget in the last decade that wasn&#8217;t described that way in its own marketing materials?</span></p><p><span>Mark Carney has presided over the worst first year of growth of any prime minister since at least 1963, with the economy shrinking in three of the past four quarters. That&#8217;s an astonishing record for a man hired precisely because of his economic credentials, a two-time central banker brought in to lift Canada out from under a cloud of economic catastrophe. Instead, the cloud has settled in.</span></p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/ten-budgets-later-ottawa-wants-to?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email&utm_content=share&action=share&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Share&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/p/ten-budgets-later-ottawa-wants-to?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=share&amp;action=share"><span>Share</span></a></p><p><span>But back to the matter at hand, to really understand exactly how we got here, you only have to look at the titles they&#8217;ve given their own fiscal plans since 2016. The branding changes, the finance ministers rotate, but the underlying trajectory remains completely untouched.</span></p><p><span>Let&#8217;s take a walk through a little bit of history we should all want to forget.</span></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp" width="474" height="316" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:316,&quot;width&quot;:474,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:18274,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/webp&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/i/206337240?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!VsQx!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8132bc34-21f8-4f24-b4ce-536e3def16e8_474x316.webp 1456w" sizes="100vw"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe now&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/subscribe"><span>Subscribe now</span></a></p><p><span>We start with the Morneau budgets, from 2016-2019. These initial budgets established the tax-and-spend baseline, masking structural deficits behind a carefully focus-grouped vocabulary of fairness and growth. The titles read &#8220;Growing the Middle Class&#8221; in 2016, followed by &#8220;Building a Strong Middle Class&#8221; and &#8220;Equality and Growth: A Strong Middle Class&#8221; and lastly &#8220;Investing in the Middle Class&#8221; in 2019. And what did he accomplish? His tenure concluded with an estimated $343.2 billion deficit. Sure, there was a more immediate cash flow but ultimately these budgets failed to build a structurally resilient middle class. In fact, the GDP per capita grew only 2.9% over the entire decade which was among the worst performances in the G7.</span></p><p><span>Our second Liberal Finance Minister is Chrystia Freeland from 2021-2024. Under her, the rhetoric shifted toward permanent state-intervention and massive pandemic-era recovery programs, always maintaining that the unprecedented accumulation of debt was the only path to affordability. She called her budgets &#8220;A Recovery Plan for Jobs, Growth, and Resilience&#8221;, &#8220;A Plan to Grow Our Economy and Make Life More Affordable&#8221;, &#8220;A Made-in-Canada Plan: Strong Middle Class, Affordable Economy, Healthy Future&#8221; and &#8220;Fairness for Every Generation&#8221;. However, despite these flashy marketing- style titles, life in fact became significantly less affordable for most Canadians between 2021 and 2024. Inflation peaked at a 40-year high of 8.1% in June 2022, and mortgage interest costs soared, and pushed rent prices up by over 8% annually by 2024. And despite her effort to achieve generational fairness, the immediate reality in 2021 and still today for youth is that the housing market is historically inaccessible. Her tax-and-spend approach stifled corporate investment and worsened Canada&#8217;s long-term productivity problem. A low-productivity economy ultimately hurts younger workers the most by limiting high-wage job creation. None of this sounds like economic success to me. And we really didn&#8217;t even touch on immigration policy that masked the whole thing by juicing GDP numbers and displacing so many from accessing jobs, homes and healthcare.</span></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp" width="474" height="266" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:false,&quot;imageSize&quot;:&quot;normal&quot;,&quot;height&quot;:266,&quot;width&quot;:474,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:474,&quot;bytes&quot;:16802,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/webp&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;topImage&quot;:false,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://melissalantsman.substack.com/i/206337240?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:&quot;center&quot;,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!b2Zj!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0c4b23ed-afe4-4acd-a6fb-67f027f749b0_474x266.webp 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><span>Lastly, this brings us to our current Finance Minister, Fran&#231;ois-Philippe Champagne. His first budget, tabled on November 4th, 2025, was titled &#8220;Building Canada Strong.&#8221; Strong is an odd word for a document projecting a $78 billion deficit. Remember: the last Liberal government promised $42 billion. Champagne nearly doubled it and the red ink runs to $57 billion as far out as 2029-30. Outside of COVID, no finance minister in Canadian history has spilled more of that red ink.</span></p><p><span>And for that wild number, we didn&#8217;t get the aggressive reforms our productivity crisis demands, but instead a government-led &#8220;nation-building&#8221; pamphlet with a $51 billion infrastructure fund and glossy megaprojects awaiting blessing from Ottawa through a process so opaque only black ink will do.</span></p><p><span>A decade of Liberal governance built an economy where Canadian workers receive just 55 cents of new business capital for every dollar invested in their American counterparts, where business investment per worker has fallen 16 percent since 2014 while the Americans grew theirs by 26 percent, and where our GDP per capita has dropped below the OECD average for the first time EVER. Capital has noticed: by 2025, Canadian investment abroad exceeded foreign investment here by $828 billion. Money votes with its feet. It&#8217;s leaving. Fast.</span></p><p><span>Champagne&#8217;s answer is to borrow $78 billion and route it through a Major Projects Office treating the symptom while feeding the disease. You cannot subsidize your way out of a problem created by taxes and red tape. The fixes are not a mystery, they are Canada&#8217;s natural advantage in proximity, resources, ingenuity, land mass and most importantly a factor the government controls: regulatory certainty. None of it requires a deficit. All of it requires the very courage his budget lacked.</span></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Py1I!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5cb71b74-c179-4ed7-9801-ff2312f3b430_1920x1080.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Py1I!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5cb71b74-c179-4ed7-9801-ff2312f3b430_1920x1080.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Py1I!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5cb71b74-c179-4ed7-9801-ff2312f3b430_1920x1080.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Py1I!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5cb71b74-c179-4ed7-9801-ff2312f3b430_1920x1080.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" loading="lazy"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" 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y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><span>Champagne says he wants to raise the sails and &#8220;catch the winds of economic change.&#8221; Fine. But no wind moves a ship still anchored to the seabed by debt, by regulation and by dead weight of the same old titles, sayings and yes, slogans.</span></p><p><span>Compare and contrast the titles of 2016 with the goals of 2026. A decade ago, they promised to &#8220;grow the middle class.&#8221; Today, after nearly eleven budgets, they are launching a new round of consultations to figure out how to &#8220;build a strong economy&#8221;. If their economic plan actually worked, they wouldn&#8217;t need to spend every summer driving across the country asking Canadians how to fix the damage.</span></p><p><span>But this is what they&#8217;re good at.</span></p><p><span>Nobody should mistake this for cynicism about consultation itself. Talking to Canadians before you spend their money is not a controversial idea, it&#8217;s the bare minimum. </span><strong><span>The problem isn&#8217;t that the government is asking. It&#8217;s that asking has become the product. A listening tour photographed well. A quote about how &#8220;your voice matters.&#8221;</span></strong></p><p><span>Look at how carefully the language is chosen. Not &#8220;here is what we got wrong.&#8221; Not &#8220;here is what we&#8217;re cutting.&#8221; Just process words&#8212;&#8221;consultation,&#8221; &#8220;engagement,&#8221; &#8220;hearing directly from Canadians&#8221;</span></p><p><span>That&#8217;s not an accident. It&#8217;s an attempt to create distance between the new face from the same party that is continuing on the same trajectory, largely with the same people in the front row.</span></p><p><span>Spend, rebrand, launch a review, spend again, and describe every single step of it as &#8220;responsible.&#8221; Words don&#8217;t cost anything. Results do and Canadians are the ones paying for the massive gap between them.</span></p><p><span>Those numbers at the top of this piece come from a chart Build Canada put out recently that&#8217;s worth sitting with. Using Statistics Canada&#8217;s own numbers, they tracked consumer prices across 12 categories since 2019. The overall CPI is up roughly 25%, nine points higher than the 2% midpoint target. But the average hides the story: healthcare is up 33%, restaurant food and shelter costs are both up 32%, vehicle insurance up 30%. There isn&#8217;t a corner of the household budget the last decade left untouched.</span></p><div class="twitter-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://x.com/build_canada/status/2075244083254304988?s=20&quot;,&quot;full_text&quot;:&quot;So what is a \&quot;normal\&quot; amount of inflation? &#128200;\n\nThe Bank of Canada targets 2% inflation per year to balance price stability and economic growth. This is the midpoint of the accepted 1% to 3% range.\n\nOver the examined term, the CPI rose 25% - right on the upper edge of the 1% to 3%&quot;,&quot;username&quot;:&quot;build_canada&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Build Canada&quot;,&quot;profile_image_url&quot;:&quot;https://pbs.substack.com/profile_images/1903113955226075136/FPelH55h_normal.jpg&quot;,&quot;date&quot;:&quot;2026-07-09T15:42:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;photos&quot;:[{&quot;img_url&quot;:&quot;https://pbs.substack.com/media/HMxPOnCW4AAeT2r.jpg&quot;,&quot;link_url&quot;:&quot;https://t.co/T1LHTjqeQo&quot;}],&quot;quoted_tweet&quot;:{&quot;full_text&quot;:&quot;Since 2019, consumer inflation has risen ~25%, but the goods and services that go into that calculation vary substantially.\n\nAcross 12 categories, here's what Canadian consumers are paying more and less for. &#128071;&quot;,&quot;username&quot;:&quot;build_canada&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Build Canada&quot;,&quot;profile_image_url&quot;:&quot;https://pbs.substack.com/profile_images/1903113955226075136/FPelH55h_normal.jpg&quot;},&quot;reply_count&quot;:0,&quot;retweet_count&quot;:3,&quot;like_count&quot;:8,&quot;impression_count&quot;:904,&quot;expanded_url&quot;:null,&quot;video_url&quot;:null,&quot;video_preview_media_key&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true}" data-component-name="Twitter2ToDOM"></div><p><span>That&#8217;s not a partisan talking point. That&#8217;s people who build things in this country putting a number on what everyone already feels at the pump, at the grocery store, and on their mortgage renewals.</span></p><p><span>Canadians don&#8217;t need another portal to tell this government what they already know.</span></p><p><span>&#8220;Responsible fiscal management&#8221; is just another line in another press release and after ten budgets, Canadians have gotten very good at reading past those.</span></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – July 6, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Polls, Pipelines, and the Price Tag on Trust]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-6-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-july-6-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 2026 20:23:34 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>This week follows the exact same pattern we&#8217;ve seen throughout the Liberals' over-extended stay in government. The headlines change, but the story remains the same: Ottawa keeps deciding what Canadians are allowed to know.</p><p>The PMO ran internal polls on the pipeline for months before saying a word publicly. The Finance Minister's office won't show its math on defense spending. And now, there's a memo floating around about suing people for saying the "wrong" thing online. </p><p>Here's what's worth your time this week: the accountability gaps, the actual nation-building, the security file, and more.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Internal PMO polls told Carney Canadians backed pipeline plan&#8221;</strong> &#8211; David Akin (<a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11952304/internal-pmo-polls-carney-canadians-pipeline-plan/">LINK</a>) Good news for the project: the pipeline polled well. Less good: the sheer amount of overreach that went into a decision this government insists was about "listening to Canadians."</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Liberals refuse to provide proof of Carney&#8217;s NATO defence spending claims&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Mackenzie Gray (<a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11952327/canada-nato-carney-defence-spending-claims-liberals/">LINK</a>) Mark Carney says Canada is on track to hit 4% of GDP on defense by 2030. But when Global News asked Finance for the actual numbers behind that claim, Finance said no. If you won't show the math, don't expect Canadians (or our allies) to believe the promise.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Submarine showdown: Carney poised to choose Canada's next submarine fleet&#8221; &#8211; Murray Brewster</strong> (<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/submarines-germany-canada-korea-defence-9.7259327">LINK</a>) On top of hiding the math on defence spending, we now hear the PM is poised to buy a whole new submarine fleet. Buying military hardware on a credit card with no plan to pay for it isn't a greatnational security strategy.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Speak Out, Get Sued? Ottawa Considers &#8216;Misinformation&#8217; Lawsuits&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Alex Dhaliwal (<a href="https://www.junonews.com/p/speak-out-get-sued-ottawa-considers">LINK</a>) If you can&#8217;t control what Canadians think, just sue them into silence. That&#8217;s the latest Liberal play. What an absolute disgrace. When they make speaking the truth a legal liability, it's a direct assault on our democracy.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Chong to finance, Duncan to foreign affairs in Conservative front bench shuffle&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Kate McKenna (<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/conservative-critic-shuffle-chong-finance-9.7253906">LINK</a>) Affordability isn't a talking point for us, we see what it means to Canadians. That&#8217;s why Pierre Poilievre just shuffled our bench to put our strongest exactly where they need to be. Our shadow cabinet is locked, loaded, and ready to hold this government accountable for every single dollar they&#8217;ve taken from your pocket.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Danielle Smith, Doug Ford announce proposed cross-Canada oil pipeline corridor&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Kevin Green (<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/calgary/article/danielle-smith-doug-ford-announce-proposed-cross-canada-oil-pipeline-corridor/">LINK</a>) Danielle Smith and Doug Ford announcing a proposed 3,300 km west-east route from Hardisty, Alta. to Sarnia, Ont. Between Trans Mountain, Pembina, and this project, we are finally seeing actual movement on national infrastructure&#8212;and it's not coming from Ottawa.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;&#8216;Cost of drama is too high&#8217;: NATO leaders meet in Turkiyefor annual summit&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Canadian Press (<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/article/cost-of-drama-is-too-high-nato-leaders-meet-in-turkiye-for-annual-summit/">LINK</a>) When a global security summit has to be 'slimmed down' just to manage the drama, it tells you everything you need to know about the current state of global leadership. We don&#8217;t need another photo-op; we need a government that stands up and shows real strength on the world stage.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;Iran may have &#8216;directed&#8217; recent attacks in Canada, intelligence report says&#8221;</strong> - Stewart Bell (<a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11952212/iran-may-have-directed-recent-attacks-canada-intelligence-report/">LINK</a>) A terrifying threat assessment obtained by Global News says it's a "realistic possibility" Iranian intelligence used criminal proxies to target Canada's Jewish community. This is a direct consequence of a government that has consistently failed to take foreign threats seriously and protect its own citizens on home soil.</p><p></p><p><strong>&#8220;These brothers who are temporary foreign workers say they&#8217;ll never return to Canada after $178,000 wage theft&#8221;</strong> &#8211; Ghada Alsharif (<a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/these-brothers-who-are-temporary-foreign-workers-say-theyll-never-return-to-canada-after-178000-wage-theft/article_6e375e60-8727-4295-ab37-f8fb2dbc31cd.html">LINK</a>) Whatever your view of the TFW program's scale, exploitation on this level is a massive program-integrity failure. It&#8217;s an immigration system broken at both ends, simultaneously protect workers and failing to serve the rule of law.</p><p><br></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Could a massive tax cut fix Canada’s economy?]]></title><description><![CDATA[What would happen if almost every Canadian stopped paying federal income tax? A new report makes the case.]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/could-a-massive-tax-cut-fix-canadas</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/could-a-massive-tax-cut-fix-canadas</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 03 Jul 2026 01:37:37 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>What if 88% of Canadian tax filers never had to pay federal income tax again?  </p><p><br> <span><br>That&#8217;s the radical question explored in a new study sponsored by Build Canada. They explored what would happen if we got rid of all federal income taxes on the first $100,000 of earnings. </span></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!, 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!qo-O!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F96ac8839-5cc6-424d-8f38-0d46bf876a79_588x414.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><span>Their answer? A massive expansion of the Canadian economy and a fundamental re-ordering of the way work and incentives function in this country.</span></p><p><span>A quick disclaimer: this study's premise and conclusions aren't official party policy. But that's the beauty of a Substack, I get to share interesting ideas and let you draw your own conclusions. And often, as many of you have shown, you share yours right back.</span></p><p><span>We all know that Canada&#8217;s facing some big problems right now &#8211; and I talk a lot about them on this platform. The essentials of life, like groceries and housing, are out of reach for so many as the affordability crisis spirals. Canada&#8217;s productivity is stagnating relative to competitor countries. Young people, losing hope for the future, are heading abroad in search of new opportunities and sunnier shores. And our standard of living &#8211; measured in GDP per capita &#8211; has actually shrunk below 2019 levels while that of places like the U.S. has grown by more than 10%.</span></p><p><span>People are working harder and harder, but their efforts just aren't being rewarded. The numbers say it, but you don't need a spreadsheet to see it. Ask anyone actually living in this economy: the renter trying to become an owner, the young person trying to move up and move out, the parent trying to give their kids the same opportunities they had.</span></p><p><span>And on top of that, the government takes a bigger and bigger chunk out of people&#8217;s earnings every year. In 2026, the Fraser Institute found that the average family paid over $2,000 more than they did last year in taxes.</span></p><p><span>These are the problems that this study seeks to tackle.</span></p><p><span>In raising the basic personal amount from $16,129 to $100,000, Build Canada lays out three tangible benefits:</span></p><ol><li><p><em>Incentivizing more people to join the workforce.</em></p></li></ol><ol><li><p><em>Keeping high-talent people here in Canada who&#8217;d otherwise explore opportunities abroad.</em></p></li></ol><ol><li><p><em>Leaving people with extra money to spend, invest, and start businesses &#8211; the foundation of a long-term economic engine to power growth for decades to come.</em></p></li></ol><p><span>This study responds to a lot of the things we hear from people across the country every day. Nearly 25% of Canadians are using food banks. Insolvency filings just reached a 17-year high. In just one year, mortgage defaults are up by more than 30%.</span></p><p><span>Imagine how much lighter those pressures would be if people could have literally thousands of dollars back in their pockets? For instance, a teacher earning $65,000 annually would save about $7,000. A tradesperson with the same income would keep $8,500. Those are meaningful returns to help people pay rent, save to buy a home, start a family, or start a business.</span></p><p><span>Now, I know what you&#8217;re probably thinking. This sounds like...a lot of money. And you&#8217;re right. The authors of the study estimate this would cost somewhere in the neighbourhood of 130 billion dollars a year. They&#8217;ve laid out how the plan could be paid for. And the biggest part of that? Not cuts or tax increases elsewhere &#8211; it&#8217;s just plain government efficiency.</span></p><p><span>You see, one of their previous studies, </span><a href="https://www.buildcanada.com/memos/productive-government-analysis"><span>A More Productive Government</span></a><span>, found over $35 billion in potential savings. That was just by doing a line-by-line review of government activities &#8211; and other, deeper structural reforms could deliver even better value.</span></p><p><span>It goes back to the same message Conservatives have been broadcasting for a long time: a more efficient government equals better outcomes for hard-working families. Living within our means translates to meaningful savings that can be sent back to people through tax cuts like this one &#8211; and those savings are closer in reach than many people think.</span></p><p><span>I think the report would be strengthened if it included some kind of quantification of the long-term benefits of this policy. Yes &#8211; they&#8217;re easy to imagine conceptually: more businesses, higher worker productivity, long-term compounding investment returns, etc., etc. But I would love to know exactly by how much this would turbocharge our economy, and have some tangible financial figures to point to.</span></p><p><span>One of the biggest takeaways from this study is pretty understated: and that&#8217;s the long list of people supporting it. Build Canada has big names like Daniel Debow, Mike Wessinger, and Jeff Adamson, among others, as supporters of this policy. That&#8217;s a big deal, because these guys know what it takes to build successful businesses and enterprises, and deal with the forces holding back our economy on a daily basis. It&#8217;s a statement of confidence from investors and job-creators: the very kind of people we need to be working with to make our country&#8217;s economy the most competitive in the world.</span></p><p><span>But the people I&#8217;m really interested in hearing from are you, the readers: </span><a href="https://www.buildcanada.com/memos/income-tax-reform"><span>I&#8217;d encourage you to read through the study yourself</span></a><span> and let me know what you think. Is this something we should be pushing for in Parliament? Should it go in a future Conservative platform? How is the high cost of living impacting you right now &#8211; and do you think this would make a difference?</span></p><p><span>Drop me a line down below and I&#8217;m sure the fine folks at Build Canada would love to hear from you too. These are the kinds of ideas we need to be sharing and encouraging &#8211; starting the conversation about how we can unleash Canada&#8217;s potential, together.</span></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – June 29, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Happy Early Canada Day! &#127809;&#127464;&#127462;]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-june-29-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-june-29-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:16:23 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It&#8217;s almost Canada Day and I&#8217;m sure everyone&#8217;s looking forward to the holiday. Whether you&#8217;re getting the burgers and hot dogs ready for the grill, stocking up on fireworks, getting ready for a  little bit of a long weekend, I hope you have a wonderful day spent with those you love, celebrating the country we all love. </p><p>There&#8217;s no shortage of reasons to think that Canada&#8217;s the best nation in the world. Yes &#8211; we have our ups and downs, and the things we can and should be fixing. But I don&#8217;t regret for one second that my parents chose to make Canada their home  &#8211; and I&#8217;m thankful every day for the freedom, democracy, and human rights that really are the envy of the world. My colleagues and I are going to keep fighting to make this an even better place to live, for us and for those who come next. Here are this week&#8217;s stories:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canadians paid 45% more for tomatoes and 25% more for beef chuck in May: StatCan inflation report&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Laura Brehaut&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/consumer-price-index-may-2026">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Last week, we found out that Canada once again has the highest inflation rate in the G7, with inflation now at its highest level since Covid. If you shop for groceries every week, I don&#8217;t have to tell you that everyday essentials are climbing further and furtherout of reach with each passing month.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Mississauga food bank counted nearly 13,000 children among its clients last year: report&#8221; &#8211;&nbsp;CBC News&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/seva-food-bank-report-food-insecurity-9.7246609">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Case in point. One food bank in Malton and Cooksville is feeding nearly 50,000 people a year. More than one quarter are kids. This &#8211; in one of the most prosperous cities in Canada. Nobody should think this is acceptable or that the status quo is working.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Economists slash Canada 2026 growth outlook after recession talk&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Erik Hertzberg and Dana Morgan&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-26/economists-slash-canada-2026-growth-outlook-after-recession-talk">LINK</a>)<em> </em>Anybody who&#8217;s ever had to deal with the CRA for anything &#8211; even for a simple inquiry like I did this year &#8211; knows the place is absolutely broken. The Taxpayers&#8217; Ombudsman hit the nail on the head.</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>&#8220;Accused killer twice torpedoed by Canada. Why is she still here?&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Brad Hunter&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://torontosun.com/news/local-news/accused-toronto-killer-twice-torpedoed-by-canada-still-here">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Have a look at this story. This person&#8217;s been ruled inadmissible at least twice &#8211; and that was before she allegedly played a part in a North York killing earlier this month. The system gives fraudsters and criminals a free pass while law-abiding Canadians pay the price &#8211; and this is just one more tragic example of that.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Gail Asper, who helped create the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, raises concerns about its upcoming Nakba exhibit&#8221; &#8211;&nbsp;Kate Taylor&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/article-gail-asper-who-helped-create-the-canadian-museum-of-human-rights/">LINK</a>)&nbsp;Lots of people have asked for my opinion on this, and I&#8217;ll just say one thing: this isn&#8217;t accidental. When our government funds one controversial cause, it might be an unfortunate mistake. But when they do it over and over again, they&#8217;re not making a mistake. They&#8217;re doing it on purpose.</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>&#8220;Converting B.C. condo units to affordable housing will cost about $1.45-billion, Carney says&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;<strong>Marieke Walsh and Bill Curry</strong>&nbsp;(<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-bc-condo-vacant-units-affordable-housing-carney/">LINK</a>) Even Carney admitted the Liberals screwed up the rollout on this. But you can&#8217;t put a nice sheen on the advertising if the product itself is terrible. Billions of dollars to developers in a harebrained scheme to keep condo prices artificially high, instead of letting the market get back to equilibrium. It's almost like inflating asset values is&#8230;part of their plan?</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>&#8220;CRA chatbot gave wrong answers 10% of the time despite $18 million price tag&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;The Western Standard&nbsp;</strong>(<a href="https://www.westernstandard.news/news/cra-chatbot-gave-wrong-answers-10-of-the-time-despite-18-million-price-tag/74419">LINK</a>) From the makers of ArriveCan and Prescribe IT comes the newest royal waste of your tax dollars. Normally, I&#8217;d say that only an agency like CRA could deliver results this bad, but we&#8217;re talking about the Liberal government here &#8211; it&#8217;s part of their DNA to waste a ton of money on worthless outcomes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>&#8220;Israel withdrawing defence attach&#233; from embassy in Canada&#8221;</strong>&nbsp;<strong>&#8211;&nbsp;Steven Chase &amp; Stephanie Levitz </strong>(<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-israel-withdrawing-defence-attache-from-embassy-in-canada/">LINK</a>)And just like that, Canada-Israel relations reach a new low.</p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[The $3 Billion Lie: How Liberal Ottawa Is Keeping Housing Unaffordable on Purpose]]></title><description><![CDATA[Unpacking the new government real estate bailout]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-3-billion-lie-how-liberal-ottawa</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/the-3-billion-lie-how-liberal-ottawa</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2026 02:42:50 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Everybody knows that the Canadian condo market is a hot, flaming, sticky mess right now. Last week, the Financial Post said it&#8217;s in &#8216;meltdown&#8217;. Prices are falling, new housing starts are collapsing, and sales are plummeting. In January, just 85 condos were sold across the entire GTA &#8211; a region home to nearly 7 million people.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>This is happening for a simple reason: after years of exponential price growth due to higher taxes &amp; development fees, NIMBY zoning policies, and years of Liberals juicing immigration numbers, prices are finally stabilizing. But there&#8217;s a problem. They&#8217;ve stabilized at the wrong level.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Consider this: in a recent survey, over 50% of people who would like to buy a home this year said they can&#8217;t, with affordability being cited as the biggest barrier to this goal. The same survey revealed that those most likely to purchase new property are people who already own property &#8211; investors, wealthier Canadians, and those who already own assets. That leaves everyone else out in the cold.&nbsp;</p><p>So, while the astronomical price inflation that took place between 2015 and 2024 has thankfully slowed, condo (and overall housing) costs still remain far above where they should be.</p><p></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png" width="846" height="474" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:&quot;normal&quot;,&quot;height&quot;:474,&quot;width&quot;:846,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:0,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5iGW!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94af0635-8f73-4fe0-ab3f-0a64f2f65962_846x474.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>Condo prices have come down from their all-time peak &#8211; but the point at which they&#8217;ve stabilized is still far above what it was just a few years ago. (Credit: Better Dwelling)</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>How could they keep coming down? Well, we could build more supply. That&#8217;s possible (<em>with the right conditions in place</em>) and obviously when supply goes up, price comes down.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But housing starts aren&#8217;t increasing &#8211; they&#8217;re crashing too. Last year, Toronto&#8217;s homebuilding activity fell to the lowest level since the 1990s. Yes, the &#8216;90s. That was driven by a 60% drop in condo starts.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Why? One big reason is that prices are falling but the costs for builders remain the same. Development charges and taxes still take up a huge chunk of change out of every new unit built. </p><p><strong>Check this out:</strong></p><p><em>In Vancouver, government fees and taxes on a modest 850 sq ft 2-bedroom condo have skyrocketed to $176,883 per unit.</em></p><p><em>&#8226; City &amp; Regional Fees (2024): $67,357</em></p><p><em>&#8226; City &amp; Regional Fees (2026): $80,708 (A 19.8% hike in just two years)</em></p><p><em>&#8226; Plus: $26,050 in Provincial PTT and $70,125 in Federal GST.</em></p><p>Translation on all of that? <em><strong>Everyone&#8217;s stuck in a loop. Buyers can&#8217;t buy. Sellers can&#8217;t sell and it&#8217;s too difficult and costly for builders to build. </strong></em></p><p></p><p>Enter, the federal government.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Earlier this week, the Liberals announced a plan to spend <strong>3 billion dollars</strong> buying up vacant, overpriced condos from developers in Vancouver. You read that right. <em><strong>3 billion dollars</strong>.</em></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>They&#8217;re framing this as an &#8216;affordability&#8217; move. But absolutely nobody knows how the feds are going to take 3 billion dollars&#8217; worth of downtown Vancouver condos and turn them into affordable housing &#8211; and at what cost. For instance, economists like Ben Rabidoux have suggested that funding the construction of new, purpose-built affordable units would be way cheaper in place of this harebrained scheme.  Also it&#8217;s insane. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>So it&#8217;s not going to make things cheaper. It&#8217;s not going to deliver new housing supply anytime quickly. And there&#8217;s no promise of anything actually being accomplished. </p><p></p><p>Instead, here&#8217;s what it really amounts to: a massive taxpayer-funded bailout of  well-connected developers and another attempt by the Liberal government to engineer private markets &#8211; when all their previous attempts have already failed.</p><p></p><p>A primer on markets for our economist Prime Minister. People make money in free markets by taking risks. When the risk equals the reward, markets are efficient and economic gains take place.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>For the past number of years, developers made money hand over fist. Just look at that condo price chart I put up above. Everyone assumed tomorrow's prices would be higher than today's.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>But markets don't move in one direction forever. Sometimes they get out of balance. Too many people enter. Too much capital chases the same opportunity. Prices become detached from reality. Eventually demand weakens, supply catches up, and prices fall back toward where they should be.</p><p>&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Here is the simple explanation: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZ7nGFiDCa3/?igsh=MW41cTlxbnRlbTc0dw==">The best video I saw this week</a> put it this way: if you&#8217;re selling t-shirts, and nobody&#8217;s buying them, you lower the price. With a lower price, there&#8217;s more demand, and *voila* -- you&#8217;re all sold out of t-shirts again. The same principle can be applied to condos.</p><p></p><p>It&#8217;s the natural cycle of markets&#8230;unless government intervenes to artificially keep prices high. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>And that's exactly what's happening right now.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Think about what would happen if government stayed out of the way. Developers with unsold inventory would be forced to lower prices. Investors would have to accept losses &#8211; which is a natural thing that happens in markets sometimes. It&#8217;s a risk &#8211; the reason why you get your reward. Land values would adjust. Construction costs would come under pressure. Eventually, homes would become affordable for people who have spent years sitting on the sidelines.</p><p></p><p>Here&#8217;s what Steve Saretsky, host of <em>The Loonie Hour</em>, said: &#8220;We&#8217;ve had basically a 30-year bull market where if you&#8217;ve been around for the last 20 years, you&#8217;ve made a tonne of money. [Right now], the market is going against you&#8212;it&#8217;s unfortunate, but that&#8217;s the way financial markets and capitalism work.&#8221;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>That's painful for some market participants. But it's good for aspiring homeowners who still can&#8217;t afford housing in some of our country&#8217;s biggest cities.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Liberal plan short-circuits that adjustment. Instead of allowing prices to find their natural level, taxpayers are being asked to purchase inventory that private buyers no longer want at current prices.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In other words, the government is attempting to create artificial demand where real demand no longer exists.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p><strong>If you&#8217;re part of the 50% who want to own a home but just can&#8217;t afford it, then you should know this: your money just went to ensuring that home prices stay permanently out of your reach.</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>For years, governments have told Canadians that housing is too expensive. But whenever prices show signs of falling, governments rush in to stop it. They celebrate affordability in speeches while protecting asset values in practice. People should be asking themselves a simple question: if housing prices are never allowed to fall, thenhow exactly is housing supposed to become affordable?</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Canadians have been told for years that housing affordability is the goal. Yet every time prices begin to fall, governments find new ways to prop them up.</p><p></p><blockquote><p><strong>At some point, we need to decide which objective matters more: protecting yesterday&#8217;s asset values or building tomorrow&#8217;s middle class. Because we simply can&#8217;t do both, and right now, we&#8217;re not even pretending to choose.</strong></p></blockquote><p>&nbsp;</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – June 22, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[Inflation Day]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-june-22-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-june-22-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 22 Jun 2026 18:22:22 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><span>Breaking news from this morning. We&#8217;ve got new numbers on inflation, and they&#8217;re not good, folks. Price growth is up to 3.2%, a 29-month high. Canada&#8217;s back to having the inglorious status of the highest inflation in the G7. And through all this, Mark Carney thinks &#8220;affordability is the best it&#8217;s been in a decade&#8221;. That&#8217;s a direct quote. As some people spend </span><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11863462/food-insecurity-canada-ontario/"><span>120% of their income on food and rent</span></a><span> (that&#8217;s not a typo) &#8211; it&#8217;s clear these Liberals are just as out-of-touch and ineffective as ever.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Over 50% of Canadians who don&#8217;t already own homes don&#8217;t plan to buy in the coming year, survey says&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Jade Lankowski </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://financialpost.com/personal-finance/non-homeowners-dont-plan-buy-coming-year">LINK</a><span>) &#8220;Don&#8217;t plan to buy&#8221;? How about&#8230; &#8220;can&#8217;t afford to buy&#8221;? Probably sums up the state of affairs a little more accurately.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Immigration rates still at generational highs, even if population shrinking&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Tristin Hopper </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/immigration-rates-still-at-generational-highs-even-if-population-shrinking">LINK</a><span>) Don&#8217;t believe the spin from Ottawa. Asylum claimants? Up more than 3x compared to 2022. Permanent residents? Still a 25% increase versus a decade ago. There is still no moderation in our immigration system. Not even close.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Liberals dismiss &#8216;tinfoil hat&#8217; privacy fears as lawful access bill passes&#8221; &#8211; Sean Boynton </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11911957/lawful-access-bill-passes-privacy-liberals-tinfoil-hat/">LINK</a><span>) Apple, Google, Meta &#8211; are the leaders of those companies &#8216;tinfoil hat&#8217; wearers? What about privacy experts, university professors, and police officials? Nobody asked for unprecedented government spy powers in C-22, nobody needs them, and nobody should have them. But instead of listening, the government&#8217;s calling their critics conspiracy theorists. Classic.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Canada still doesn&#8217;t have a foreign influence registry, and advocates are worried&#8221; &#8211; Alex Boutilier </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11910383/canada-still-doesnt-have-a-foreign-influence-registry/">LINK</a><span>) Here&#8217;s how bad things have gotten. Here in Canada, foreign governments get pay thugs to shoot synagogues, consulates, businesses, and cops. They get to interfere in our elections and harass free Canadians in their schools, homes, and workplaces. And Ottawa looks the other way and lets it all happen. They&#8217;ve had years and years to fix the problem. Don&#8217;t believe their excuses now.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Parliamentary committee recommends against MAID expansion for mental illness&#8221;</span></strong><span> &#8211; </span><strong><span>Olivia Stefanovich &amp; Raffy Boudjikanian</span></strong><span> (</span><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/committee-maid-mental-illness-expansion-recommendation-9.7237992">LINK</a><span>) Finally, some good news to share. This is a big step forward towards protecting innocent lives, standing for dignity, and believing in people&#8217;s ability to heal and get better. Bravo to the committee.</span></p><p><strong><span>&#8220;Watchdog says tax code is &#8216;completely nuts&#8217; and calls for simplification, automation&#8221;</span></strong><span> </span><strong><span>&#8211; Craig Lord </span></strong><span>(</span><a href="https://nationalnewswatch.com/2026/06/16/watchdog-says-tax-code-is-completely-nuts-and-calls-for-simplification-automation"><span>LINK</span></a><span>)</span><em><span> </span></em><span>Anybody who&#8217;s ever had to deal with the CRA for anything &#8211; even for a simple inquiry like I did this year &#8211; knows the place is absolutely broken. The Taxpayers&#8217; Ombudsman hit the nail on the head.</span></p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[There’s a new sheriff in town]]></title><description><![CDATA[Introducing new legislation to clean up the Wild West of the Internet]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/theres-a-new-sheriff-in-town</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/theres-a-new-sheriff-in-town</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 19 Jun 2026 03:37:58 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If you&#8217;ve ever searched on Google, scrolled through Facebook, or watched videos on YouTube (and let&#8217;s be honest, since you&#8217;re reading a Substack, you probably have&#8230;), then you&#8217;ll know that the Internet can be, quite frankly, a cesspool.</p><p></p><p>In every corner, there&#8217;s an AI-generated video of Mark Carney promising you millions of dollars if you just invest in his crypto fund. Or claims of the newest &#8216;miracle cure&#8217; for cancer or diabetes from the proteins of a plant you can&#8217;t pronouce. Or news about some well-known actress (&#8220;her appearance now will shock you!&#8221;). You get the gist&#8230;</p><p></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_424, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_webp, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="/__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg" width="672" height="794" 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/__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 424w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_848, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 848w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1272, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 1272w, /__u/substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RxcX!, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/w_1456, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/c_limit, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/f_auto, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/q_auto:good, /__u/melissalantsman.substack.com/fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe5ff133a-0d6d-4926-96ca-de203866e6a7_672x794.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg aria-hidden="true" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>They might look a bit like this &#9757;&#65039;</em></p><p></p><p>Here&#8217;s the point: scams and fraud are rampant online. And the worst part is that social media companies and tech giants basically allow this behaviour to happen. They profit from scammers who run paid ads on their sites. They refuse to take down content, even if it&#8217;s unquestionably fake. They don&#8217;t have proper detection and mitigation capabilities to regulate their sites. And Canadians are paying the price: last year alone, people lost $643 million to online scams. Those are just the losses that got reported. We know the numbers are actually way higher.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I just tabled a new piece of Legislation in the House of Commons to address this. It&#8217;s called the <em><strong>Protecting Canadians Online Act</strong></em>, and that&#8217;s exactly what it&#8217;ll do.</p><p><em>There are a few major components to this bill:</em></p><p>&#8226; Accountability for big tech: they profit from your engagement &#8211; so they should also have a responsibility to keep users safe. The bill would require them to proactively prevent and remove scams, notify users who&#8217;ve interacted with fraudulent content (ex. by clicking a link or sharing a post), and keep a public record of what they take down. Don&#8217;t comply? You&#8217;ll be fined up to $1 million</p><p></p><p>&#8226; Protection for those most at risk: seniors are the main targets of scams on social media, accounting for roughly 40% of the money lost. The bill would require judges to treat a victim's age, health, and financial situation as aggravating circumstances when sentencing online fraudsters. Modernizing the Criminal Code: right now, it fails to reflect how predatory these online scams really are. This fixes that. </p><p></p><p>I think nearly everyone can agree that it&#8217;s time for more action to keep online spaces safe, especially with the rise of AI. Even Liberal MPs are on board with this (at least the idea&#8230; not yet sure about their support for the bill). Last week at the <strong>House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry and Technology</strong>, they grilled representatives from Meta about its lax policies towards scammers and fraudsters. Every one of them, plus members of the Bloc, expressed their support for more efforts to keep people safe and hold big tech accountable.</p><p>Expert testimony is on our side, too. At that same committee meeting, witnesses offered a few recommendations to put a stop to what they&#8217;re calling the &#8216;scamdemic&#8217;. This includes:</p><p>&#8226; Making online platforms liable for scam ads from which they profit.</p><p>&#8226; Making them responsible for reporting on their efforts to combat fraud.</p><p>&#8226; Not holding banks as the only ones accountable for stopping fraud. Social media companies, telecom providers, governments, and individuals all have a role to play.</p><p>So my bill lines up with almost all of these aspects.</p><p>Now that it&#8217;s been introduced, there&#8217;s a bit of a process ahead. It needs to be debated more in the House of Commons when Parliament returns in the fall. Then, it&#8217;ll go to a committee to be studied in-depth. Then, hopefullypassed again by the House, and on to the Senate. It&#8217;s a long road. </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But I&#8217;m hopeful this will be an opportunity for MPs from all parties to work together on an issue of importance to all our constituents &#8211; an issue that&#8217;s only growing in size and scope from coast to coast.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>And I&#8217;m looking forward to sharing some words of support from stakeholders across Canada who know this bill will make a meaningful impact where it matters most.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Let me know what you think in the comments below. And if you or loved ones have personal experience with scams and ads like this, I want to hear from you so we can amplify your story and protect others from falling prey to the scamming.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Together, we&#8217;ll hold scammers, fraudsters, and their enablers accountable and make the Internet a little safer for all Canadians.</p><p></p><p>Here&#8217;s a 2 minute video. LIKE and SHARE &#128071;</p><p>https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18oZjSxzVR/</p>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Lantsman’s List – June 15, 2026]]></title><description><![CDATA[School&#8217;s out for summer (almost)]]></description><link>https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-june-15-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://melissalantsman.substack.com/p/lantsmans-list-june-15-2026</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Melissa Lantsman]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 15 Jun 2026 16:14:11 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Onjm!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78b4a76a-8dd4-4461-a5e6-321825cc0d35_1200x819.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It&#8217;s the last sitting week of Parliament and Canadians are scratching their heads wondering where the results from this session may be hiding? </p><p>Even without the real relief for Canadian families, seniors and businesses, there&#8217;s lots of news to share. I&#8217;ll be hoping to make some headlines of my own with a new bill I&#8217;m introducing in the House of Commons later this week. Check back here for an update and explainer once it&#8217;s all official. But for now, here are the rest of the headlines you should check out:</p><p><strong>&#8220;Carney underplays U.S. cancellation of 86-year defence partnership with Canada&#8221;</strong> <strong>- Michael Taube </strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/michael-taube-carney-underplays-u-s-cancellation-of-86-year-defence-partnership-with-canada">LINK</a>) Hard to underplay such a humiliating national security threat. Does he take this seriously at all? Nobody can tell.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Toronto child poverty rates rise for third straight year: &#8216;How can it be acceptable?&#8217;&#8221;</strong> <strong>&#8211; Morgan Sevareid-Bocknek </strong>(<a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/toronto-child-poverty-rates-rise-for-third-straight-year-how-can-it-be-acceptable/article_f9bd529c-60f2-482e-a8f3-9de48b4c571b.html?source=newsletter&amp;utm_source=ts_nl&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_email=D53E252955CAB6F179AB5522CF73DF3B&amp;utm_campaign=bn_37267">LINK</a>) Food prices are skyrocketing. Rent is still too high. Families can&#8217;t keep up and they&#8217;re cutting back. Did you know that one in four households are now food insecure? Everywhere we look, the data shows that life&#8217;s just getting harder.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Ontario killer remains free, despite board&#8217;s fears of &#8216;significant threat&#8217;&#8221;</strong> <strong>&#8211; Chris Lambie </strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ontario-killer-remains-free-despite-boards-fears-of-significant-threat">LINK</a>) Another day, another outrageous headline about lax catch-and-release laws. What else is new?</p><p><strong>&#8220;Out on bail, Toronto man charged again with drug trafficking in Sudbury&#8221; &#8211; Star Staff </strong>(<a href="https://www.thesudburystar.com/news/out-on-bail-toronto-man-charged-again-with-drug-trafficking-in-sudbury">LINK</a>) Oh, and another one.</p><p><strong>&#8220;More people living out of carpool lots&#8221;</strong> - <strong>Jeff Pickel</strong> (<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/kitchener/article/more-people-living-out-of-carpool-lots/">LINK</a>) A parking lot outside of Cambridge is now home to dozens of RVs, trailers, and tents because people can&#8217;t afford to live anywhere else. I don&#8217;t think this is the summer camping trip anybody dreamed of after more than a decade of Liberal government.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Citizen groups, farmers and MPs to protest Alto high-speed rail project on Parliament Hill&#8221;</strong> <strong>&#8211; Catherine L&#233;vesque </strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/citizen-groups-farmers-and-mps-to-protest-alto-high-speed-rail-project-in-ottawa">LINK</a>)<em> </em>People came from across Ontario and Quebec to stand up for their communities and land rights. They didn&#8217;t ask for a billion-dollar boondoggle that&#8217;ll cut through their properties and fundamentally alter rural living. Thanks for making your voice heard.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Guelph Chabad hit with antisemitic graffiti for 2nd time, police hate crime unit investigating&#8221;</strong> <strong>&#8211; Lauren Kuivenhoven </strong>(<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/guelph-chabad-hit-with-antisemitic-graffiti-for-2nd-time-police-hate-crime-unit-investigating-9.7230507">LINK</a>) Anybody wanna take bets on if the perpetrators will face any consequences? No?</p><p><strong>&#8220;Toronto police officer killed in operation related to March shooting at U.S. Consulate, source says&#8221; &#8211; Colin Freeze </strong>(<a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-toronto-police-officer-shot-tretheway-black-creek-drive/">LINK</a>) Our deepest condolences go to Const. Pinizzotto&#8217;s family, colleagues, and loved ones. There are still lots of questions to be answered about how and why consulates are being attacked on our soil, and what criminal networks are behind these shootings. We&#8217;re going to be pushing to make sure there are answers and that Canadians are safe.</p><p><strong>&#8220;Canada effusively welcomes rejected Somalian referee, before realizing alleged terror ties&#8221; &#8211; Tristin Hopper </strong>(<a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/canada-effusively-welcomes-rejected-somalian-referee-before-realizing-alleged-terror-ties">LINK</a>) First the Iranian terrorists. Now this guy. Is anybody at the Immigration Ministry actually trying to do their job &#8211; for the World Cup or for anything else?</p><p><strong>&#8220;Cost of divorce keeping Canadians in unhappy marriages longer, survey finds&#8221; &#8211; Dorcas Marfo </strong>(<a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/cost-of-divorce-keeping-canadians-in-unhappy-marriages-longer-survey-finds/">LINK</a>) Is it &#8216;till death do us part&#8217; or &#8216;till debt do us part&#8217;? Nobody can tell anymore.</p>]]></content:encoded></item></channel></rss>