Scheming in the shadows

Oct 16, 2024

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In today's edition:

→ More on the campaign to convince the PM to step down.

→ PMJT is today’s marquee witness at the Hogue commission.

→ The most important job vacancy on the Hill.

For your radar

NEW JOB ALERTS — News dropped Tuesday afternoon that DANIEL ROGERS will take over as CSIS director later this month. Rogers was most recently the prime minister's deputy national security adviser — and testified just last week at the Hogue commission.

Keep reading for more on a shuffle in the senior ranks of the public service.

— Meanwhile, at the Ceeb: Le Devoir scooped MARIE-PHILIPPE BOUCHARD's expected new gig as the head of CBC/Rad-Can. The TV5 Québec Canada CEO takes over for CATHERINE TAIT , whose tenure regularly produced astonishing headlines.

DRIVING THE DAY

PLOTTING BEHIND THE PM — A growing group of Liberal MPs has spent a month on a statement it will soon deliver to Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU asking him to step aside.

— Tuesday’s headline: Liberal MP SEAN CASEY told CBC News it’s time for his boss to go. The Prince Edward Islander who chairs the House health committee is the latest caucus member to publicly say so.

Casey, who plans to run in the next election, did not respond to our requests for comment.

— How we got here: One Liberal MP who is helping to marshal a caucus effort to persuade Trudeau to leave tells Playbook the move began a month ago, days after the party lost a Montreal stronghold. The MP was granted anonymity so they could speak freely.

— Triggered: At the caucus meeting after the Liberal loss, Trudeau insisted the Liberal machine was still going strong. "You could literally see everyone’s jaw drop," the MP said.

— It’s a letter … a document … no, a statement! Liberal MPs are circulating a statement that calls on Trudeau to quit. They say it’s what their constituents want. Some have called it a document, others a letter. Several Liberal MPs were left in the dark, initially thinking the "letter" had to do with a biodiversity issue until they checked the news.

— Scheming in the shadows: Two groups within the caucus have spent the past month organizing. One cohort wanted to take a soft approach. A second, larger group won out, insisting caucus should directly ask Trudeau to step down. The MP says the Prime Minister’s Office has been approaching MPs to find out more about the meetings.

— 70: The percentage of caucus that is "very very nervous" about the state of the Liberal party, according to the MP.

— The other 30: Backbenchers who may be holding out for a Cabinet appointment, as well as existing ministers, though the MP says even some Cabmins have texted their misgivings.

— At first, it was a secret: The group wanted to keep the operation hush-hush so as not to humiliate the prime minister. But then there was …

— The KODY BLOIS mic drop: The Nova Scotia MP reportedly delivered a speech last Wednesday telling national caucus the Atlantic caucus had a frank and open conversation about the party’s future. The MP who spoke to Playbook says this resulted in their own efforts getting leaked to the media, even though the plan had been in motion for a longer period of time.

Blois did not reply to Playbook’s texts.

— Signatures picking up steam: The leaks helped, as did Trade Minister MARY NG’s public statement denouncing the revolt. The MP won’t reveal how many signatures there are, but claims it’s doing "quite well."

— Not done yet: There is no mechanism to force Trudeau out, so he will have to choose to resign. If the letter does not do the trick, the MP says the door is open to other ideas: “There’s a lot of chatter. The situation is fluid.”

Caucus is scheduled to meet next Wednesday.

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Where the leaders are

— Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU will testify at the Hogue commission.

— Deputy Prime Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND visits a geothermal technology company in Calgary.

— Conservative Leader PIERRE POILIEVRE headlines a 5:30 p.m. party fundraiser at the Québec Garrison Club in Québec City.

— Bloc Québécois Leader YVES-FRANÇOIS BLANCHET and NDP Leader JAGMEET SINGH have not released their public itineraries.

— Green Party Leader ELIZABETH MAY speaks with students at St. Thomas University, then stumps with provincial candidate ANTHEA PLUMMER in Fredericton North.

DULY NOTED

10 a.m. In Ottawa, Families Minister JENNA SUDDS will announce "developments in the government’s efforts to address the national housing crisis and build more homes, faster."

1 p.m. In Oakville, Ont., Transport Minister ANITA ANAND gives an update on the government’s plan to combat auto theft.

6:30 p.m. Industry Minister FRANÇOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE headlines a fundraiser in Kitchener, Ont., hosted by Kitchener South-Hespeler MP VALERIE BRADFORD.

Talk of the town

JOB BOARD — The Liberals plugged a glaring gap over the weekend when they revamped their senior campaign team, but they created two more.

CHRYSTIA FREELAND could use a chief of staff to replace ANDREW BEVAN, who is set to run the Liberal campaign. MARJORIE MICHEL , who will serve as Bevan's deputy campaign director, leaves a job where she oversaw a big chunk of the PM's office as deputy chief of staff.

— Season of the fix: Freeland's office and the PM's team are in Fall Economic Statement prep mode. The annual exercise in agenda-setting and budget foreshadowing is a hingepoint for the Liberal policy and marketing machine.

The FES presents the government with a chance to control a news cycle or two — even if Liberals are planning a slim document devoid of legislation that would force confidence votes (see: Reuters).

Freeland's chief of staff is a key interlocutor between the minister and PM JUSTIN TRUDEAU's team — a two-way whisperer.

Talk about a small list of qualified people. We've heard four names who could take on the job, but no word from Freeland's office on who will.

→ LinkedIn watch: Freeland's two deputy chiefs, SHANNON ZIMMERMAN and ALEX LAWRENCE; policy director BUD SAMBASIVAM; and BEN CHIN, the PM's senior adviser who served as former Finance Minister BILL MORNEAU's top aide from 2017 until 2019.

— PMO rejig: Michel's departure from the PM's office leaves BRIAN CLOW as the remaining deputy chief. Clow's oversight included parliamentary affairs, issues management, communications and policy.

Michel oversaw the PMO's executive office, operations, outreach, public appointments, and human resources with an assist on Quebec issues. The takeaway from our calls Tuesday: Don’t be surprised if Michel's vacancy goes unfilled.

ALSO FOR YOUR RADAR

LOOK LIKE A PM — Fresh off a Thanksgiving Monday press conference that revealed new national security concerns over alleged Indian foreign interference, Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU gets another chance to appear prime ministerial.

Trudeau testifies at the Hogue commission today — his third round at a high-stakes public inquiry since 2022.

The timing of the PM's testimony, days removed from murmurs of a caucus rebellion and following serious allegations directed at India's government, is not lost on the fishbowl.

— What Playbook has heard: Some are musing about a politically motivated timetable. Others flatly reject the notion, eye-rolling hard at the prospect of collusion between Mounties and the PMO.

— The final act: It's unclear what headlines will flow from Trudeau's testimony.

No doubt he'll face a tough test from lawyers lining up with questions. But he previously faced the same group in the very same room.

Still, it's showtime for a PM who has performed confidently as hearing headliner.

— Nothing to see here: It was mission accomplished for Trudeau's top aides Tuesday if they hoped to walk away without making much news.

Last week, ZITA ASTRAVAS' testimony as former chief of staff to then-Public Safety Minister BILL BLAIR spawned only more questions — an outcome that could not have been a best-case scenario for a longtime staffer who rarely wants to be the story.

It was more or less crickets after chief of staff KATIE TELFORD, deputy chief BRIAN CLOW and senior global affairs adviser PATRICK TRAVERS testified.

Their three-headed responses to commission counsel and a coterie of lawyers, including at-times-testy exchanges with the Conservative Party's lawyer, successfully produced a nothingburger ahead of Trudeau’s appearance this morning.

That was likely a relief after a long weekend of work, including a very late Friday night as federal officials met Indian counterparts in Singapore.

— Scraps: CBC's ELIZABETH THOMPSON covered Telford's view that all party leaders should get security clearances to fight foreign interference. National Post's CHRIS NARDI dug out a story from witness interview summaries with commission lawyers.

A message from Google Canada:

MEDIA ROOM

— Top of CBC News this morning: More layers of India's alleged covert operation likely to be exposed as RCMP probe continues: sources

— From the Globe: U.S. urges India to co-operate with Canadian criminal investigations linked to New Delhi

— Reuters' KRISHN KAUSHIK and DAVID LJUNGGREN report: Deepening Canada-India standoff seen as a short-term boost for Modi, Trudeau.

— Nunatsiaq News followed along when an Air India flight bound for Chicago performed an emergency landing in Iqaluit. CBC News reported that an online bomb threat prompted the precautionary measure. Canadian Armed Forces are flying passengers the rest of the way.

— From the Calgary Herald : Alberta's government has launched a C$7-million "scrap the cap" ad campaign calling on Ottawa to abandon plans for an oil and gas emissions cap.

— StrategyCorp's GARRY KELLER brings home takeaways from the Warsaw Security Forum — including lessons for Canada on, say, increased LNG exports.

PROZONE

For POLITICO Pro subscribers, our latest policy newsletter by KYLE DUGGAN and SUE ALLAN: The never-ending media bailout.

In other news for Pro readers:

— Washington is offering money to move. Don’t expect North Carolina residents to bite.

— Push to regulate private equity in health care stalls.

— Harris’ rural health plan would face congressional hurdles.

— Gavin Newsom signs law to rein in gas prices.

— Q&A: Former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative MICHAEL BEEMAN.

PLAYBOOKERS

Birthdays: HBD to Health Minister MARK HOLLAND (50!) and Counsel senior consultant CHASE TRIBBLE.

Movers and shakers: Plan International Canada, which "advocates for gender equality and children's rights," posted a September meeting with PM JUSTIN TRUDEAU … Proof Strategies is leaving its longtime digs at the Château Laurier for a Bank Street space.

— Mini-shuffle: PMJT has tapped DANIEL ROGERS as the new head of CSIS, part of a public service senior-ranks shuffle. Rogers was most recently Trudeau's deputy national security adviser.

Associate Deputy Minister of Fisheries KEVIN BROSSEAU will replace Rogers. Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs TUSHARA WILLIAMS will become the new deputy secretary to the Cabinet for operations, while KAILI LEVESQUE, who currently holds that role at PCO, takes on an ADM role at Fisheries and Oceans.

PHILIP JENNINGS, an executive director at the IMF, is the new deputy minister of Innovation. TRICIA GEDDES moves up from associate deputy minister at Public Safety to deputy minister.

Deputy PCO Clerk CHRISTIANE FOX adds deputy minister of intergovernmental affairs to her bailiwick.

— Outside the public service: The PM’s former national security and intelligence adviser, JODY THOMAS, is now a senior fellow at uOttawa’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs.

So too are DAN COSTELLO, a former foreign and defense policy adviser to PMJT, and MARIE-CLAUDE LANDRY, former chief commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

— Justice Minister ARIF VIRANI announced a spate of appointments to the Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission: DOUGLAS HODSON, ANNE GIARDINI and GRAHAM FLACK — a longtime deputy minister who retired this year.

Virani also made judicial appointments: KELLI POTTER to His Majesty’s Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba (Family Division); LINDA SHIN, a judge of the Superior Court of Justice of Ontario in Toronto; and PIERRE SOUCY , a judge of the Superior Court of Quebec for the district of Trois-Rivières.

— The Manitoba PCs approved OBBY KHAN's candidacy for the party leadership, CP reported. WALLY DAUDRICH's application is still in the review process.

Got a document to share? A birthday coming up? Send it our way.

Spotted: Actor MARK HAMILL, praising MICHAEL DE ADDER as “one of the all-time great political cartoonists.”

A pair of incoming ambassadors, Ireland’s JOHN CONCANNON and the EU’s GENEVIÈVE TUTS, presenting their credentials to GG MARY SIMON.

Noted: The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced Samidoun's designation as a terrorist entity — a "joint action" with Canada, which published its own notice soon after.

In memoriam: The legendary BOB FULFORD has died. Here is the Globe’s obituary.

WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY

Find the latest House meetings here . The Senate schedule is here.

TRIVIA

Tuesday’s answer: Volunteer firefighter BRYAN MITCHELL was describing Hurricane Hazel, which hit Toronto Oct. 15, 1954, when he said: “There was nothing I could do, nothing anybody could do. The water was so deep, up to our chins.”

Props to MARCEL MARCOTTE, CHRIS RANDS, JOHN MERRIMAN, GREG MACEACHERN, BOB HOWSAM, ROBERT MCDOUGALL, LAURA JARVIS, MALCOLM MCKAY, JENN KEAY, JONATHAN BUCHANAN, RAY DEL BIANCO, BARRIE FRIEL and DANIEL MARQUIS

Wednesday’s question: Former Prime Minister JEAN CHRÉTIEN announced on Aug. 21, 2002, that he would not seek reelection. How many months elapsed until he formally resigned as prime minister?

Answers to ottawaplaybook@politico.com

Writing tomorrow's Playbook: NICK TAYLOR-VAISEY and MICKEY DJURIC

Playbook wouldn’t happen without: POLITICO Canada editor Sue Allan, editor Willa Plank and Luiza Ch. Savage.

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