Luke LeBrun

While National Newswatch does not keep an archive of external articles for longer than 6 months, we do keep all articles written by contributors who post directly to our site. Here you will find all of the contributed and linked external articles from Luke LeBrun.

The Liberal ‘button’ scheme was a colossal self-own. That’s not the worst part of it

The Liberal ‘button’ scheme was a colossal self-own. That’s not the worst part of it

It’s bad enough Canada already faces myriad threats to our democracy from covert foreign influence campaigns and online disinformation. Now, Canadians apparently also need to worry about Liberal operatives sneaking around planting fake evidence about their political opponents.

Pierre Poilievre has dropped multiple candidates. Here are two others who should go

Pierre Poilievre has dropped multiple candidates. Here are two others who should go

As Donald Trump continues waging his dizzying trade war against Canada and sends global markets spiraling, ordinary Canadians could be forgiven if they missed an extraordinary milestone in our ongoing federal election.Just recently, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre set what is perhaps a new Canadian election record by dropping not one, not two, but three candidates all on one day.

Conservative Candidate Used a Secret Signal Group Chat With Freedom Convoy Leaders, Right-Wing Media and Far-Right Influencers

Conservative Candidate Used a Secret Signal Group Chat With Freedom Convoy Leaders, Right-Wing Media and Far-Right Influencers

Andrew Lawton was a member of the “clandestine” group chat used to coordinate convoy messaging on social media. One of Pierre Poilievre’s high-profile Conservative candidates was a member of a secret group chat used by Freedom Convoy leaders and their lawyers to coordinate messages on social media with right-wing alternative media personalities and far-right social media influencers.

CTV Cancelled a Fact-Checking Segment in Response to Political Pressure From Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives

CTV Cancelled a Fact-Checking Segment in Response to Political Pressure From Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives

Audio recording shows CTV cancelled an ‘election misinformation’ segment with journalist Rachel Gilmore after online backlash from conservatives.CTV has cancelled a segment on its national morning show fact-checking “election misinformation” after an online backlash from Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives and right-wing alternative media outlets targeting a prominent journalist.

Canada Proud Launches Attack Ads Linking Mark Carney to ‘Notorious Pedophile’ Jeffrey Epstein

Canada Proud Launches Attack Ads Linking Mark Carney to ‘Notorious Pedophile’ Jeffrey Epstein

Pierre Poilievre’s office won’t say if it condones conservative group’s ads juxtaposing prime minister with a “global child sex trafficking ring.”

Pierre Poilievre Signals Plan to Extend Government Subsidies to Right-Wing Media Websites

Pierre Poilievre Signals Plan to Extend Government Subsidies to Right-Wing Media Websites

If Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives form government after the next federal election, Poilievre will defund the CBC and expand government funding arrangements to include right-wing alternative media outlets.Speaking to right-wing online media personality Candice Malcolm with the website “Juno News” last week, Poilievre indicated he would, in his words, “depoliticize news media finance.”

Struggling to follow the Ontario election? Thank Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg

Struggling to follow the Ontario election? Thank Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg

Ontario is in the middle of an election. But amidst a trade war and chaotic news environment, it would be no surprise if voters are having trouble paying attention. After voter turnout reached historic lows in 2022, we may again be sleepwalking towards a similar outcome. Part of this is by design. After all, Doug Ford did call a snap...

Canada and Greenland are just the start. If you listen to what Trump, Musk and their friends are really saying, it gets much scarier

Canada and Greenland are just the start. If you listen to what Trump, Musk and their friends are really saying, it gets much scarier

It’s getting harder and harder to shrug off Donald Trump’s talk of annexing Canada. Canadian officials assured us the incoming U.S. president was just “telling jokes” when he first floated the idea of making Canada the 51st American state during dinner with Justin Trudeau last month. But as Trump keeps fantasizing about Canada and threatens “economic force” to gain control...

Canada’s newest MP is an anti-abortion social conservative who promoted creation “science.” I blame Justin Trudeau for letting her in

Canada’s newest MP is an anti-abortion social conservative who promoted creation “science.” I blame Justin Trudeau for letting her in

As Justin Trudeau takes time over the holidays to contemplate his future as prime minister, right-wing forces are seizing the moment and riding a wave of anti-Trudeau sentiment into power. The victory of a hardline social conservative candidate in a federal byelection last week, on the same day as Chrystia Freeland abruptly resigned as Trudeau’s Finance Minister and Liberal MPs...

Europe is leaving Donald Trump’s America behind. Should Canada do the same?

Europe is leaving Donald Trump’s America behind. Should Canada do the same?

As American democracy dives into darkness, Canada is facing difficult choices.The consensus among Canada’s political and business establishment is that the number one priority must be to protect Canada’s all-important trade relationship with the United States.

A fringe party packed with conspiracy theorists could soon be leading one of Canada’s largest provinces. Here’s why I’m not surprised

A fringe party packed with conspiracy theorists could soon be leading one of Canada’s largest provinces. Here’s why I’m not surprised

British Columbia’s provincial election is getting extremely weird, and it might be a sign something’s deeply broken in Canadian democracy. The Conservative Party of B.C. — led by a man who had to issue a mea culpa after discussing the idea of prosecuting doctors in “Nuremberg”-style COVID-19 trials — has been surging in the polls. The party now looks set...

BC Conservative Candidate’s Campaign Shared Graphic Comparing Public Health Policies to Nazi Holocaust

BC Conservative Candidate’s Campaign Shared Graphic Comparing Public Health Policies to Nazi Holocaust

A BC Conservative candidate who is facing calls to be removed from the ballot also shared a graphic comparing public health policies to the Nazi Holocaust. Brent Chapman, the BC Conservative candidate for Surrey South, shared a graphic on one of his campaign’s official social media account a little over a month ago that equates public health “harm reduction” strategies...

The Pentagon and NORAD Respond to Danielle Smith: Nope, We’re Not Spraying Chemicals Over Alberta

The Pentagon and NORAD Respond to Danielle Smith: Nope, We’re Not Spraying Chemicals Over Alberta

The Pentagon and NORAD are responding to a recent suggestion from the Premier of Alberta that the US Department of Defence could be responsible for alleged reports of chemtrails over Edmonton, Alberta. At a recent town hall, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith fielded a question from one attendee who wanted an explanation about lines they’ve been looking at in the sky...

Leaked Dossier Reveals 200 Pages of Conspiracies and Controversial Statements From John Rustad’s BC Conservative Candidates

Leaked Dossier Reveals 200 Pages of Conspiracies and Controversial Statements From John Rustad’s BC Conservative Candidates

British Columbia’s soon-to-be defunct centre-right BC United Party prepared a nearly 200-page dossier of opposition research on John Rustad’s far-right BC Conservatives – and now the entire document has leaked onto the Internet in the middle of the election campaign.

The scary truth behind this viral video of Jagmeet Singh

The scary truth behind this viral video of Jagmeet Singh

There’s something cathartic about watching bullies get put in their place.That’s likely a big reason why a video showing NDP leader Jagmeet Singh confronting and schooling a far-right heckler is resonating with so many people after going viral last week.

Conservative MP Michael Cooper Parties With Far-Right Group That Mobbed MPs, Disrupted Terry Fox Ceremony

Conservative MP Michael Cooper Parties With Far-Right Group That Mobbed MPs, Disrupted Terry Fox Ceremony

One of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative MPs was spotted at an after-party for a far-right group that has been mobbing parliamentarians, disrupting ceremonies honouring Terry Fox and getting into altercations with NDP leader Jagmeet Singh.

Canada’s Foreign Interference Inquiry Asked to Examine Far-Right Media Outlet Allegedly Funded by Russia

Canada’s Foreign Interference Inquiry Asked to Examine Far-Right Media Outlet Allegedly Funded by Russia

A Russian-Canadian diaspora group is asking Canada’s public inquiry into foreign interference to examine new evidence surfaced in a US Department of Justice indictment alleging a far-right media outlet run by a Canadian YouTuber received $10 million from Russia to interfere in the 2024 US Presidential vote.

I cover the far right for a living. This is why I wasn’t surprised to find Canadian names all over the latest alleged Russian propaganda scheme

I cover the far right for a living. This is why I wasn’t surprised to find Canadian names all over the latest alleged Russian propaganda scheme

Luke LeBrun is the editor of PressProgress. His reporting focuses on federal politics, right-wing media and far-right extremism.Canadians often worry about Trump-style politics crossing our southern border and interfering with our elections, but readers may be surprised to learn a number of Canadians are actually at the centre of an alleged foreign plot targeting the 2024 US Presidential vote.

Far-Right Media Outlet Linked to Secret Russian Influence Campaign Produced 50+ Videos Focused on Canada

Far-Right Media Outlet Linked to Secret Russian Influence Campaign Produced 50+ Videos Focused on Canada

The far-right media outlet at the centre of a US Department of Justice indictment over an alleged foreign influence campaign involving covert funding from Russia also produced dozens and dozens of videos this year focused on Canada.

‘Massive Conflict of Interest’: Opposition Parties Say LCBO President Should Resign, Face Investigation Over Role With Big Business Lobby Group

‘Massive Conflict of Interest’: Opposition Parties Say LCBO President Should Resign, Face Investigation Over Role With Big Business Lobby Group

Ontario’s opposition parties are calling for the LCBO’s President to resign and face an ethics investigation over a “massive conflict of interest” over his conflicting roles running a public crown corporation at the same time as he sits on the board of a big business lobby group.

Europe is in the middle of a ‘greenlash.’ If Canada doesn’t put workers first in its green transition, we could be next

Europe is in the middle of a ‘greenlash.’ If Canada doesn’t put workers first in its green transition, we could be next

Seven in 10 Canadians say they’re worried about climate change, so you might think it’s strange to hear Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives railing against “woke” green policies and vowing to “axe the tax.” But Canadians who want to see action on climate change should pay closer attention to what’s happening in Europe, where a cost-of-living crisis, and far-right populists are threatening...

Pierre Poilievre Meets with Far-Right Extremist Group at Nova Scotia-New Brunswick Border

Pierre Poilievre Meets with Far-Right Extremist Group at Nova Scotia-New Brunswick Border

Canada’s leader of the official opposition pulled over on the side of a highway Tuesday evening and paid a surprise visit to a group of far-right extremists who have staged protests at the Nova Scotia–New Brunswick border for the last three years.

Conspiracy Theorist Alex Jones Insists Pierre Poilievre is ‘Saying The Same Things as Me’

Conspiracy Theorist Alex Jones Insists Pierre Poilievre is ‘Saying The Same Things as Me’

American far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is doubling-down on his recent endorsement of Pierre Poilievre, insisting he and the Conservative Party of Canada leader share identical views on the “anti-human globalist agenda.” The conspiracy theorist, best known for losing a $1 billion defamation lawsuit brought by the families of murdered Sandy Hook elementary students, also rejects suggestions that Poilievre is...

Conservative MP Says He Trusts Porn Companies Won’t Leak Digital IDs of Canadians Who Visit Porn Websites

Conservative MP Says He Trusts Porn Companies Won’t Leak Digital IDs of Canadians Who Visit Porn Websites

One of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative MPs says Canadians who visit porn websites can trust companies won’t leak their personal information or viewing histories if a plan to mandate digital IDs for porn websites becomes law. According to Conservative MP Garnett Genuis, the invisible hand of the free market would prevent such data breaches from ever happening in the first place...

Conservative MP Helped Draft Text of Conspiratorial United Nations Petition, Author of Petition Says

Conservative MP Helped Draft Text of Conspiratorial United Nations Petition, Author of Petition Says

Man behind Leslyn Lewis’ petition believes UN wants to enslave humanity and modify DNA to turn humans into ‘different creatures.’ A British Columbia man affiliated with a group that believes the United Nations wants to enslave humanity and turn humans into a different species says a Conservative MP had a hand in drafting the text of his petition calling for...

How Canada’s Right-Wing Pivoted From COVID-19 Conspiracies to Conspiracies About Gender in 2023

How Canada’s Right-Wing Pivoted From COVID-19 Conspiracies to Conspiracies About Gender in 2023

Canada’s far-right began 2023 wandering aimlessly in the freezing cold.Following a high from the 2022 Freedom Convoy, Canada’s far-right quickly found itself falling back down to earth as many convoy leaders found themselves in prison and their activities under increased police surveillance.

‘Save the Children Convoy’ Says Conservative MP Invited Them Into House of Commons as ‘VIP’ Guests

‘Save the Children Convoy’ Says Conservative MP Invited Them Into House of Commons as ‘VIP’ Guests

Members of the controversial “Save the Children Convoy” say they were invited into the House of Commons as “VIP” guests of one of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative MPs before being suddenly kicked out following questions from PressProgress.