The Buzz April 26th 2025: Two More Sleeps Until Election Day

The Buzz April 26th 2025: Two More Sleeps Until Election Day

Welcome to the weekend and welcome to The Buzz.

Well, here we are. Two more sleeps until election day. Then we’ll know what the real poll says.

So, aside from determining the winner, these two questions will also be answered on Monday. First: Will Mark Carney end the run of new, but unelected prime ministers (John Turner, Kim Campbell) who surged to polling leads at the beginning of a campaign but then lost on election day? And second: Will Pierre Poilievre, who was measuring the drapes for his new office just two months ago, stand alone on Monday night knowing some of his own party members will be measuring the planks for his political coffin if he’s blown a 25-point lead? Politics can be a rough game.

Media can be a rough game too, and there will be a certain accounting after all this is over. Which organizations did well, which reporters did well? Did the profession do its job? Has trust in media been re-established?

But all that will come after this weekend. Today and tomorrow are, especially for the broadcast networks, a time to prepare for the biggest night many of them get to do. Election night. The country is watching, and as journalists, you get to tell the story as it happens.

I remember my first like it was yesterday. It was 1972, and I was sitting at the local anchor desk in Winnipeg alongside the veteran CBC Winnipeg news host Bill Guest. He was the main commentator; I was the rookie political analyst. I was nervous, very nervous. I could feel my heart pounding, and was convinced viewers would see it pulsating through my suit jacket. A minute to polls closing in Manitoba, I watched the seconds tick off to airtime. I looked over at Bill to see the calm, cool, collected air of a pro. But when I glanced at his hands, they were …. shaking. I was stunned.

“Bill”, I said, “Are you nervous?”

“Listen, kid,” came the response, “The day you’re not nervous is the day you should quit the job!”

And then, boom, we were on the air and off to what turned out to be a pretty good broadcast night. I’ve never forgotten that moment, and it served me well for many election nights and big shows to come. Good luck to all this time, too.

So, as you get up this Saturday morning, there are still two full days of campaigning yet to go.

But one has to assume that most people have made up their minds by now, millions have even voted already, leaving The Buzz to try to answer this question: where do things stand now?

The final week, before Orange Man got in the game again (more on that later), was really all about adding up the promises of the two main contenders. No matter who you’re cheering for, the numbers are all pretty big, and to those who worry about deficits, they are scary. But how different are they really? Let’s start with Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne:

🔒 The Conservatives’ dilemma: their policies aren’t different enough from the Liberals’ to make up for the leadership gap

Want a different view?

Try this from Kelly McParland in the National Post:

Kelly McParland: Carney, Poilievre talk fiscal prudence, but offer the opposite

Those are journalist takes - time to bring in an economist.

That’s what the Toronto Star did with Carleton Professor Christopher Worswick:

🔒 Opinion | Conservative Economic Plan Most Likely to Lead to Progress

Enough with the big city takes, let’s go to the heart of the country and Deveryn Ross in the Brandon Sun:

Not the change Canadians want

Poor Donald Trump. He loves being the lead item on any newscast, but he’s dropped down the lineup this weekend.

Not far enough if you’re Pierre Poilievre. Every time Trump opens his mouth about Canada, it seems to cost Poilievre votes.

For the past few weeks, he kept quiet on Canada, but the temptation was apparently just too great, and Wednesday he let out more 51st state stuff:

Trump reinserts himself into Canadian politics, saying 'as a state, it works great'

There’s lots more on all this on our YouTube shows this weekend. You can catch Chantal Hebert and Rob Russo on Good Talk right here. And you’ll find Bruce Anderson and Fred DeLorey on Smoke, Mirrors and The Truth right here.

What would an election edition be without at least some discussion about how the media did covering it?

You want that? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Check this out from Senator Andrew Cordozo in National Newswatch:

2025, the year the Canadian media died!

Before we go, something non-political.

And this one is pretty remarkable, if even possible. You know the old saying, “Don’t mess with Mother Nature?” Well ….. consider this.

One way to impact climate change would be to turn down the heat of the sun’s rays hitting Earth. Ya, but really? Yes, really. At least that’s the plan:

Experiments to dim the Sun will be approved within weeks

I mean, nothing could go wrong now, could it? Enjoy the weekend, enjoy The Buzz, and get ready for a Super Election Monday. I’m sure we’ll have lots to talk about in seven days.

The Buzz is a weekly publication from National Newswatch that shares insights and commentary on the week’s developments in politics, news and current affairs.