On Background

We go On Background with Stevie O'Brien, Counsel at McMillan LLP, Senior Advisor at McMillan Vantage, and former Chief of Staff to multiple Ministers in the Liberal government. Maintaining caucus discipline is an ongoing battle for any government or leaders’ office, and the combination of social media and the modern political climate have made it more challenging than ever before. Stevie and Fred discuss the delicate dance of caucus discipline including how the Trudeau government can keep the team together despite their recent woes, and how Poilievre's government-in-waiting can avoid any costly mistakes.

We go On Background with Dimitri Soudas, former Director of Communications for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, to demystify Quebec's current political landscape . The latest polls have Pierre Poilievre leading Justin Trudeau in every province, with one exception. Fred and Dimitri discuss what it will take for Conservatives to win the hearts of Québécois voters, and how volatile provincial politics could bring back the National Question.

In an ode to the countless hard working political staffers, we go On Background with former Liberal, Conservative and NDP staffers to discuss the highs and lows of working on Parliament Hill:

Steve Outhouse is a former federal Conservative Staffer, and Founder of  Intercede Communication and Just Campaigns.

Melissa Cotton is a former Liberal staffer for the federal and Ontario governments, and currently Director for Government Affairs (Canada) at CN Rail.

Mélanie Richer is a former federal NDP staffer, and currently a Senior Consultant at Earnscliffe Strategies.

Matthew Conway is a former Conservative staffer for the federal and Ontario governments, and currently the National Vice President of the Conservative Party, as well as President of Conway Direction Public Relations.

We go On Background with Dave Sommer, Associate Creative Director at Creative Currency and VP at Enterprise Canada, former Deputy Director of Communications, Digital, for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and former Head of Politics and Government at Instagram. Dave played a major role in Liberals’ 2015 majority winning campaign, where the party’s digital strategy was well ahead of their opponents. He and Fred discuss why Trudeau should return to the authenticity of his earlier campaigns to counter Poilievre's populist appeal.

We go On Background with Cole Hogan, digital strategist and Principal at Earnscliffe Strategies. Fred and Cole dissect Pierre Poilievre’s recently released housing mini-documentary that has received millions of views online, discussing how the Conservatives are winning the social media war with content and messaging that is resonating with Canadians. Also not to be missed: a passionate discussion on the correlation between the current state of Canadian politics and pro wrestling.

We go On Background with Tausha Michaud, SVP at McMillan Vantage, and former Chief of Staff to the Leader of the Official Opposition. Is it majority or bust for Pierre Poilievre? Tausha and Fred discuss their experience working with opposition parties under Erin O’Toole and potential strategies for forming a government as a Conservative leader in a minority Parliament.

We go On Background with Glen McGregor, award-winning journalist, with decades of experience on Parliament Hill and covering federal election campaigns. Glen and Fred trade war stories as they battled through some of politics’ biggest “scandals” in this century, and talk about what the relationship between media and campaigns could look like with Pierre Poilievre.

We go On Background with David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data, to discuss MRP, an innovative polling method that offers a more accurate look at the state of Canadian politics at a riding-by-riding level, and what it could mean for the future of campaigning.

We go On Background with Karl Bélanger, veteran NDP campaign strategist and President of Traxxion Strategies, to discuss the elephant in the room – should Justin Trudeau stay on as leader or make way for another Liberal to take on Pierre Poilievre.

We go On Background with spark*insights' Alex Kohut, an expert in public opinion research at the highest levels of Canadian politics, to look at the leadership of Poilievre and Trudeau, and what the polls are really telling us about who will be Prime Minister after the next election.