| | | | |  | | By Nick Taylor-Vaisey | Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Nick | Follow Politico Canada Thanks for reading Ottawa Playbook. Let's get into it. In today's edition: → From outside to insider in the Prime Minister’s Office. → Shawinigan’s “Little Guy” hits 90. → The Canadian Coast Guard needs a … cartoonist?
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | IT'S THE ECONOMY, STUPID — Liberals used to talk about appointing a council of economic advisers, a permanent source of independent thinking on the Canadian economy. The party's 2021 election platform claimed such an esteemed group would “help Canada achieve a higher standard of living, better quality of life, inclusive growth, and a more innovative and skillful economy.” — That’s not all: Liberals promised to tap a gender-balanced group that would “reflect Canada’s diversity” and draw on voices “inside and outside of government.” It looked like a layup for a government in search of economic bona fides. Not so much. — Progress, then not: Finance Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND's 2022 budget re-upped the campaign pledge along with a word salad to guide the council. The group would “reinforce the government’s access to expert advice and provide policy options for harnessing new opportunities and navigating increasingly complex economic challenges.” Freeland’s budget release included the promise of more details in "the coming months." Fast-forward to November, when the minister's office told the Globe that "work is very much ongoing." Nary a word has since been spoken publicly about the file. — Potential names: Inspired by the 2022 budget promise, Playbook asked economic thinkers who they'd put on the panel. Our respondents said the council should reach beyond the economic set, avoid partisanship, appoint energy transition experts and Indigenous voices, as well as members who represent the working class. Manulife superstar FRANCES DONALD was the most popular pick. Many name-checked ARMINE YALNIZYAN, the Atkinson Fellow on the Future of Workers. Others pointed to CAROL ANNE HILTON, DANIEL TREFLER, JENNIFER ROBSON, TAMMY SCHIRLE, LINDSAY TEDDS, TREVOR TOMBE, KEVIN MILLIGAN and JACK MINTZ. — Still a good idea? Playbook recently surveyed a similar list of thinkers on whether or not Ottawa should push forward with the long-delayed idea. Most still liked the notion, but red flags were flagged. "At this point in the electoral mandate I do not think it makes sense," said the University of Toronto's ROB GILLEZEAU, a former adviser to THOMAS MULCAIR. "Establishing a CEA is a great idea, but it would be best accomplished early in the life of a government." An advisory council "would be broadly perceived as partisan and political, which would undermine the potentially important work that a CEA could otherwise accomplish," said the University of Calgary's Tombe. Carleton University's Robson says she still thinks it's a good idea. "But I would be surprised if they do," she tells Playbook. "First thing is to sort out what its mandate should be." — The official word: Playbook asked Freeland's office for any progress in implementing the 841-day-old campaign promise. The office reported no progress. | | | For your radar | | | 
"The toxic hyperpartisanship that currently plagues Ottawa is normally the type of environment I would actively avoid," Supriya Dwivedi writes in a Star op-ed explaining why she's joining the Prime Minister's Office. | Global News | PMO NEWBIE — Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU's roster of senior advisers just got a new year's boost. SUPRIYA DWIVEDI, a familiar face on the politics shows and voice on talk radio, has joined the PM's Knights of the Round Table-esque circle of trusted voices. — From outside to insider: Dwivedi, formerly senior counsel at Enterprise Canada and a longtime talking head, commandeered an op-ed in the Toronto Star — “My fight against a cancer that threatens our country” — to explain why she's joining the PMO. It's not every Hill hire who wants — or receives — prime real estate in a major newspaper to signal their next career move. (Move aside, Twitter and LinkedIn.) She recounted the tragic death last year of her husband, Anoop, and the insidious impact of the ugly side of social media in trying times — conspiracy theorists, grifters, and haters who even targeted her young daughter. "Whether serving up conspiratorial content or medically unsound cancer cures, our digital information ecosystem is not attuned for truthful or factual information," she wrote. "This has all sorts of implications for our society, including how we relate to one another as algorithms try to wedge us apart." Dwivedi says the federal government has two choices: regulate big tech or "let the algorithms of giant, for-profit, foreign companies continue to shape our discourse and warp our reality." — Not new turf: Dwivedi worked on the fight against misinformation and disinformation during a recent posting at McGill's Max Bell School, and has written regularly on regulating tech, having a useful debate about Bill C-18, and fighting misinfo. — On deck: The Liberals have long promised a bill that would protect Canadians from online harm. The government's efforts on the file so far have been criticized for threatening free expression. Justice Minister ARIF VIRANI told the Canadian Press that he plans to introduce new legislation this year. Tech giants will be a big part of that conversation. — The big thinkers: Trudeau's office is split into several departments, including communications, policy and Cabinet affairs, operations and outreach, issues management and parliamentary affairs, and travel. Senior advisers operate outside of those clusters, but exert influence within them. They don't fuss with day-to-day operations. As one Hill pol put it to Playbook: they're strategy, not tactics. They tend to have long Ottawa resumés, often as chiefs of staff to ministers. They avoid public statements (though they talk to reporters in an unnamed kind of way). BEN CHIN and MATT STICKNEY are on the current roster. PATRICK TRAVERS is a senior global affairs adviser. JASON EASTON is a strategic adviser on special projects. KATE BEZANSON is a special adviser on gender. JEREMY BROADHURST was a senior adviser until last September, when he left the PMO to focus on the next election campaign. | | Where the leaders are | |
5 p.m. Tory Leader PIERRE POILIEVRE will attend a fundraiser at First Canadian Place in Toronto. An earlier listing for this event identified the location as an office of Bennett Jones, where longtime Poilievre political ally JOHN BAIRD is a senior adviser.
The House of Commons is back Jan. 29; the Senate returns Feb. 6. | | | DULY NOTED | | |
1:30 p.m. The Downtown Ottawa Revitalization Task Force championed by Liberal MP YASIR NAQVI releases a report at Kichesippi brewery's Sparks Street location.
| | ALSO FOR YOUR RADAR | | | | 
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien in 1993, thumbs up for victory at campaign HQ. | AP | HBD, MR. CHRÉTIEN — It's rare that a former prime minister can celebrate a 30th anniversary of winning a majority government, a 60th anniversary of winning his first election as an MP, and a 90th birthday. The math rarely works out so neatly. But JEAN CHRÉTIEN, a retired politician who never really retired, pulls off the trio today. Chrétien was born on Jan. 11, 1934. He was elected an MP on April 8, 1963 (and spent almost 36 years in the House). And he won a landslide majority on Oct. 25, 1993. — Never stop never stopping: It's by now clear that Chrétien will never leave the public eye if he can help it. Whenever a mic is within spitting distance, the former PM goes on the record. When U.S. President JOE BIDEN dropped into the House of Commons for a parliamentary address last March, Chrétien scrummed with reporters who were all too happy to hear him out. Chrétien first celebrated the "30-60-90" at last May's Liberal convention, where he roused the crowd with an energetic speech (and reminded an audience, for approximately the millionth time, that he refused to send troops to Iraq in 2003 — another notable anniversary). — Look, there he is now: CPAC producer EMILY HAWS spotted the birthday boy at a barber shop on Wednesday. Because everybody needs a fresh look to celebrate the big 9-0. — Endless anecdotes: Whenever there's a reason to talk about Chrétien, legions of former aides emerge with stories. So many stories. The other day, WARREN KINSELLA served one up about an afternoon in Vancouver a few years ago when a rough-looking guy thanked the former PM for — wait for it — "keeping us out of Iraq." Kinsella had other stories, too. So did former Chrétien d-comm PETER DONOLO and biographer BOB PLAMONDON, when they guested on CGAI senior adviser COLIN ROBERTSON's global affairs pod. JIM MUNSON, a retired senator and former d-comm to Chrétien, pulled yet more stories out of his former boss (including about a meeting with then-president GEORGE W. BUSH in Detroit about, yes, the war in Iraq). — Quote of the day: "There are 24 hours in a day, so I’m rarely sitting doing nothing," Chrétien told Munson. "I read, I listen to music, watch TV and play golf in the summer. I don’t ski anymore because my family says I shouldn’t, but I could." | | | MEDIA ROOM | | |
— In case you missed it: ZI-ANN LUM's deep dive into JUSTIN TRUDEAU's past, present and uncertain future as prime minister.
— The Globe’s IVAN SEMENIUK reports on a new study that linked an overall reduction in snowpack to human-caused global warming. — From ARNO KOPECKY in The Walrus: Why Conservatives turned against the environment. — CHRISTOPHER NARDI reports in the National Post that the Conservatives have asked the ethics commissioner to probe Trudeau’s latest Jamaica vacation. — POLITICO’s PHELIM KINE considers how Taiwan’s election could upend the geopolitical landscape. | | Talk of the town | |
SIGN UP TODAY — Don’t miss your opportunity to enter the First Annual POLITICO Canada Trivia Cup.
Today is the day: Playbook’s NICK TAYLOR-VAISEY will host a registration desk at the Métropolitain from 2-4 p.m. — The tournament: Between January and May Playbook will host five qualifying rounds — each targeted at a Hill demographic: → Lobbyists on Wednesday, Jan. 24. (Waitlisted) → Ministers and their staff on Monday, Feb. 5 → Journalists on Tuesday, March 5 → Public servants on Tuesday, April 23 → MPs, senators and staff on Monday, May 6 — Avoid the wait list: The first 15 teams to sign up in each category will secure a table. The top 4 teams at each qualifier will advance to the championship on Monday, June 3. Follow this link for all the details. | | PLAYBOOKERS | |
Birthdays: Celebrating along with Chrétien today: JOSH ZANIN of Proof Strategies and former MP SUSAN KADIS.
Send birthdays to ottawaplaybook@politico.com. Spotted: Ambassador KIRSTEN HILLMAN, in Arizona. The Elections Canada attendance record of the Liberal Party's Laurier Club holiday bash, where everybody who's anybody in the governing party rubbed shoulders alongside nearly 600 other donors. In the room among the staffers, lobbyists, MPs and 23 Cabinet ministers were bigwigs from another era: LLOYD AXWORTHY, SHEILA COPPS and PETER MILLIKEN. A new Spark Advocacy poll, which shows Canadian Conservative support for DONALD TRUMP at 50 percent (alternate headline: 50 percent of Tories support JOE BIDEN). Former sergeant-at-arms/ambassador/provincial Liberal leader KEVIN VICKERS, "liking" tweets that throw shade at Toronto Mayor OLIVIA CHOW, promote NIKKI HALEY's run for Republican presidential nominee, defend JOE BIDEN's economic record, and game out RFK JR's chances at a successful independent run for the White House. The Canadian Coast Guard has issued a tender for the “development of weekly comic strips” for employees to cover an array of topics including working in cramped spaces; avoiding slips and falls; and handling hazardous materials. Comics must be “simplistic, realistic and colorful cartoon style.” DAVE SOMMER, formerly of Instagram after a stint in Trudeau’s PMO, chiming in on X with this prediction: “Twitter brain rot is a cross partisan, highly contagious disorder that will be written about for years.” We're tracking every major political event of 2024 on a mega-calendar. Send us events and download the calendar yourself for Google and other clients . Movers and shakers: EMRYS GRAEFE and QUITO MAGGI have launched a new GR/public affairs/polling firm called Political Intelligence. SARAH MCMASTER is director of strategic communications. SAMIR KASSAM is now director of policy for sustainable resource development in Energy and Natural Resources Minister JONATHAN WILKINSON's office. Media mentions: The Globe’s DAVID PARKINSON is moving on from the economics beat to a role in newsroom development … EHSANULLAH AMIRI, 2024 recipient of the Michelle Lang Fellowship in Journalism, is joining Postmedia where he will work stints at the National Post and Calgary Herald. The Walrus announced its revamped team of contributing writers: MICHELLE CYCA, TAJJA ISEN, SHEIMA BENEMBAREK, RACHEL BROWNE, TOULA DRIMONIS, CONNOR GAREL, EVA HOLLAND and ARNO KOPECKY. | | PROZONE | | | | 
The West will deliver more air defenses to Ukraine, NATO promised Wednesday after a NATO-Ukraine Council meeting in Brussels. | AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky | Our latest policy newsletter for Pro subscribers from KYLE DUGGAN: Why Canada is making headlines in Kyiv. In other headlines: — Biden set to tap longtime Washington hand as deputy USTR. — NATO allies pledge more air defenses for Ukraine. — After ELON MUSK’s takeover, X slashed trust and safety team. — Extreme heat drives demand for payday loans. — Inside Amazon’s EV charging challenge. — Oil industry comes out swinging against gas export review. | | TRIVIA | |
Wednesday’s answer: NELSON RIIS is the author of “Foothills Justice,” a crime fiction novel published in 2023.
Props to JIM CAMPBELL, JONATHAN MOSER, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, JOHN ECKER, BOB GORDON and GEORGE SCHOENHOFER. Today’s question: Who said: “I say that there is a deliberate conspiracy, by force, by fraud, or by both, to force Canada into the American Union.” Send your answer to ottawaplaybook@politico.com Want to grab the attention of movers and shakers on Parliament Hill? Want your brand in front of a key audience of Ottawa influencers? Playbook can help. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com Playbook wouldn’t happen without: POLITICO Canada editor Sue Allan, editor Willa Plank and Luiza Ch. Savage. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
