Dominic LeBlanc is Doug Ford’s new ally in Justin Trudeau’s cabinet
When Dominic LeBlanc once confided to Doug Ford that he used to babysit Justin Trudeau as a child, the Ontario...
Robert Benzie
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 Robert Benzie.
Doug Ford hosting meeting with premiers to discuss response to Trump trade threat
Canada’s provincial and territorial leaders are meeting Monday to discuss U.S. president-elect Donald Trump‘s threatened 25 per cent tariffs against...
Justin Trudeau takes a swipe at Donald Trump ahead of first ministers’ meeting
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took an indirect dig at Donald Trump ahead of a first ministers’ meeting Wednesday on how...
Doug Ford’s Tories leading as potential election looms, survey shows
As Premier Doug Ford mulls gambling on an early election, a new poll suggests that might be a safe bet...
Ford government launches multimillion-dollar U.S. ad blitz as Trump threatens tariffs
Released Monday, the ad will run throughout the U.S. over Christmas and into the new year ahead of Trump’s Jan...
Trudeau government’s ‘Team Canada’ approach to Donald Trump is already on shaky ground. Here’s why
It’s Show-Don’t-Tell time. The Trudeau government’s strategy in the face of Donald Trump’s latest 25 per cent tariff threat is...
Canada’s premiers want Justin Trudeau to do a trade deal with the U.S. that excludes Mexico, Doug Ford says
Ford, chair of the Council of Federation of premiers, said “there’s a clear consensus that everyone agrees that we need...
Insiders say Doug Ford will use the spectre of Trump to justify an early election
Ontarians are expected to go to the polls this spring in an early election that Premier Doug Ford will contend...
Doug Ford warns of the perils of protectionism on the eve of U.S. election
Ahead of Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election, Premier Doug Ford is warning that protectionism would hurt Ontario, America’s third-largest trading partner...
Doug Ford spending nearly half of Ontario’s tax windfall on $200 ‘rebate’ cheques
Premier Doug Ford is spending nearly half of a $6.9-billion tax windfall on $200 pre-election “rebate” cheques. Bolstered by higher...
Doug Ford poised to send out pre-election cheques to 16 million Ontarians
Premier Doug Ford is poised to send cheques to 16 million Ontarians to offset rising costs as a possible early...
Is Justin Trudeau fated to lose just like Kathleen Wynne’? We asked MPs who were there for the last days of her government
Is it déjà vu all over again? That’s a loaded question for the half dozen Liberal MPs who were part...
Doug Ford has faced controversy after controversy — yet remains as popular as ever. Here’s why Ontarians say they still like him
Premier Doug Ford appears to be the Teflon Tory. In his lucky seventh summer as Ontario premier, Ford is emerging...
Bonnie Crombie embraces prominent critics of Justin Trudeau as she distances her Ontario party from the federal Liberals
Justin who?Bonnie Crombie is distancing her provincial party from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s struggling federal Liberals.
Doug Ford names new education minister after Todd Smith resigns just 10 weeks into the job
Todd Smith’s surprise resignation after just 10 weeks as education minister has forced Premier Doug Ford to shuffle his cabinet...
‘We have nothing to hide,’ Doug Ford says as RCMP interviews potential witnesses linked to Ontario government in Greenbelt criminal probe
RCMP detectives investigating the $8.28-billion Greenbelt land swap scandal are interviewing witnesses linked to Premier Doug Ford’s government. As first...
Doug Ford’s football friend Tim Walz is Kamala Harris’s running mate
Two months ago, Premier Doug Ford was talking trade and tossing a football around his Queen’s Park office with Minnesota...
LCBO strike seems to have given Doug Ford’s Tories a boost, but government’s poor approval rating is a warning sign, survey shows
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives will drink to that. The first strike in LCBO history appears to have boosted the...
Internal poll for Doug Ford finds strong support for booze liberalization plan — and striking LCBO workers
Ontarians overwhelmingly support more liberalized alcohol sales even though a majority back the LCBO strikers, according to internal government polling...
Doug Ford would upset nearly half of all Ontarians with an early $150M election, poll suggests
Nearly half of all Ontarians would be “unhappy” or “very angry” if Premier Doug Ford called an early $150-million election...
Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives managed to breach Fortress Toronto. Here’s how they did it — and what it might mean for the party
Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives began campaigning for the Toronto—St. Paul’s byelection with the goal of rattling the foundations of Fortress Toronto...
Canada’s EV strategy will cost $6B more than announced, watchdog says
Canada’s EV-building strategy will cost Ottawa and provinces about $6 billion more than announced, the federal parliamentary budget watchdog says...
Tory insiders say fear of a Pierre Poilievre victory has Doug Ford considering an early election call
Premier Doug Ford is considering an early election call before the scheduled 2026 vote over concerns about cuts a future...
Ford’s Tories dip slightly but still lead Liberals and NDP, survey shows
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives have dipped slightly in the latest Abacus Data poll, but still enjoy a healthy lead...
‘He didn’t need to pick sides’: Behind closed doors, kaffiyeh ban exposes divisions in Doug Ford’s Tory caucus
Premier Doug Ford’s message to Progressive Conservative MPPs was clear. Behind closed doors last week in the second-floor government caucus...
Bonnie Crombie hurt by Progressive Conservatives’ ad blitz, poll suggests
The Progressive Conservatives’ multimillion-dollar advertising blitz is helping Premier Doug Ford and hurting Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie, a new poll...
Queen’s Park and Ottawa caught off guard by Ford’s delay of EV manufacturing in Ontario
Queen’s Park and Ottawa, which have jointly pledged billions in electric vehicle manufacturing subsidies, were jolted by Ford Canada’s move...
Doug Ford criticizes Justin Trudeau's carbon levy — even as Ontario's own levy collects $146M
As Premier Doug Ford rails against the "federal carbon tax," he is quietly collecting more than $146 million annually from...
Pierre Poilievre's popularity is giving Doug Ford's Tories a boost, poll suggests
Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's current popularity appears to be having a halo effect on Premier Doug Ford, a new...
Doug Ford has made 'almost no progress' on pledge to build new homes, Trudeau government charges
Premier Doug Ford's failure to meet federal affordable housing targets is jeopardizing $357 million in funding from Ottawa, Housing Minister...
Bonnie Crombie distances her Liberals from Justin Trudeau's carbon levy
Crombie, who has pledged to not impose a provincial carbon levy if she defeats Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives in...
Bonnie Crombie promises no provincial carbon tax if her Liberals defeat Doug Ford's Tories
Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie says there will be no provincial carbon tax if she topples Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives...
Newly elected Tory MP slams 'liberal elites' at Queen's Park, ruffling feathers in Ford government
There appears to be no love lost between Premier Doug Ford's governing Progressive Conservatives and Pierre Poilievre's federal opposition Conservatives...
Doug Ford's Tories are surging at the expense of Marit Stiles' New Democrats, poll suggests
Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives are riding high at the apparent expense of Marit Stiles' New Democrats, a new poll...
Are Doug Ford's Conservatives obsessed with Bonnie Crombie?
Call it the Conservatives' Crombie compulsion. Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives have spent the early days of the new legislative...
'Pierre is going to win': PC insiders privately fear more MPPs will abandon Doug Ford for Team Poilievre
Blindsided by Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre poaching one of his provincial cabinet ministers to run federally, Premier Doug Ford is...
Doug Ford's Tories are ahead, but ominous signs are on the horizon, poll suggests
Premier Doug Ford's governing Progressive Conservatives appear to be holding their own, but there are some potentially ominous signs for...
Internal email suggests Doug Ford's office knew Greenbelt land swap details earlier than claimed
A recently discovered internal email related to the $8.28-billion Greenbelt scandal suggests Doug Ford's office "was far more involved" in...
Former Doug Ford cabinet minister in political limbo as RCMP probes Greenbelt scandal
MPP Kaleed Rasheed, ejected from Premier Doug Ford’s cabinet and caucus over the Greenbelt scandal, will be stuck in political...
Canada is fighting to get Honda's massive EV expansion. Here's why it's a tough sell
Are the days of multibillion-dollar government subsidies over in Canada for international automakers making the hot new thing — electric...
Doug Ford's Tories set to abandon lucrative fundraiser in wake of Greenbelt scandal
In the wake of the Greenbelt land swap scandal, Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives are poised to scrap their most...
Bonnie Crombie smashes fundraising target as Liberals collect $1.2M
Rookie Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie has eclipsed her target of raising $1 million in a month for the third-place party...
Bonnie Crombie is exposing vulnerabilities in Doug Ford's Tories, poll suggests
Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives are comfortably ahead in the latest Abacus Data tracking poll, but a new Liberal leader...
Doug Ford poised to reverse decision to dissolve Peel Region: sources
Premier Doug Ford is poised to cancel his plan to dissolve Peel Region, breaking his deathbed promise to former Mississauga...
Doug Ford's Tories claim Bonnie Crombie is out of touch with 'everyday people' and vacations 'in the Hamptons'
Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives are wasting no time attacking new Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie, claiming the Mississauga mayor is...
Bonnie Crombie as Liberal leader would give the party a boost — but not enough to beat Doug Ford, poll suggests
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives are weathering the Greenbelt scandal, but a storm cloud in the form of Bonnie Crombie...
Doug Ford’s Tories brace for the next wave of Greenbelt scandal
Premier Doug Ford’s $8.28-billion Greenbelt land swap scandal — already under criminal investigation by the RCMP — is about to...
Ford government says it won’t pay legal fees for ex-staffers caught in Greenbelt probe
The Progressive Conservatives will not pay the legal bills for any ex-staffers caught up in the Greenbelt land swap scandal...
Tory insiders fear the RCMP’s Greenbelt probe could hinder Doug Ford’s next re-election campaign
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives believed they had weathered the worst of the $8.28-billion Greenbelt land swap scandal. The Royal...