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    • What a Kamala Harris presidency means for Canada

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    They say a week is a lifetime in politics, but wow — what a month. Leaving the RNC in Milwaukee just weeks ago, it felt like the U.S. election was Donald Trump's to lose. After the last four days in Chicago, I don’t think anyone can say what will happen with any certainty.

    The Democrats’ new candidate is Kamala Harris and Harris’ VP pick — made just about two weeks ago — is Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. As Americans try to figure out what the new ticket means for them, Canadians are doing the same.

    A month into their campaign, it’s as clear as mud. There are two issues that remain at the top of the relationship between our two countries — trade and security — and there is more clarity on the latter than the former.

    Nothing was mentioned on trade this week in Chicago, but I think it’s fair to try and glean what Harris might do from what she and the people around her have done so far. That’s where we meet our first red flag: the ‘new’ NAFTA, otherwise known as CUSMA or the USMCA. Harris was one of just 10 senators who voted against it. At the time, she said it was because it didn’t go far enough to address climate change.

    “By not addressing climate change, the USMCA fails to meet the crises of this moment,” she said in 2020.

    Harris has also said, though, that she would not have voted in favour of the original NAFTA, either.

    Canada’s Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman attended the DNC (as well as the RNC) and told CTV News she’s well aware of Harris’ vote — and is trying to figure out what the nominee’s position is now.

    “I think that's a really important discussion for us to continue to have with her,” Hillman said.

    “But I think it's important for Canadians to remember that she voted against it explicitly because she felt it didn't go far enough on the environment. It wasn't because she was anti-trade with Canada.”

    Hillman adds that the prime minister met with Harris in Philadelphia in June and they talked for ‘quite some time’ about building ‘resilient supply chains’ between Canada and the U.S. The ambassador says she and her team have met with people in the vice president’s current office, as well as people who used to work with her when she was a Senator, but there’s no immediate clarity.

    Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff list to First Lady Jill Biden speak during the Democratic National Convention Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

    And lest it seem like the worry is for nothing, look no further than this month’s doubling — yes, doubling — of softwood lumber tariffs on wood coming into the U.S. from Canada.

    There is some potential comfort though, in the form of Tim Walz. The governor is well acquainted with Canada and our economy — his state exports $7 billion of goods here annually, and Canada is Minnesota’s top export destination. Walz, in fact, was in Toronto earlier this year to meet with Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Upon news of Walz’ selection as VP nominee, Ford said he was "happy as punch" about the pick.

    Another factor to consider: labour. Dozens of unions have endorsed Harris for president, and there was a massive labour presence at the DNC. While trade didn’t really get a mention in Harris’ keynote speech, labour did.

    Her progressive stance on climate and labour means CUSMA’s review — slated for 2026 — could take on a very different tone and tenor under a different government on this side of the border. It’s also worth noting in her 2019 debate with former U.S. vice president Mike Pence, Harris insisted she was ‘not a protectionist Democrat.’ Take that for what you will.

    On security and defence, Harris made many of her positions clear in that same convention speech. She spoke of standing by Ukraine and NATO, addressed the war in Gaza and, to me at least, the line that stood out the most was when she told Democrats assembled that “as Commander-in-Chief, I will ensure America always has the strongest, most lethal fighting force in the world.”

    A long line of presidents has urged allies to spend more on defence. The war in Ukraine has expedited the process for most NATO allies and until very recently, Canada was lone among them for its lack of a timeline to reach the defence spending benchmark of two per cent of the national GDP.

    That changed in July, days before the NATO summit in Washington, when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the federal government now planned to meet the target by 2032.

    Former Liberal finance minister Bill Morneau, in attendance for the final day of the DNC, told CTV he thinks his former boss should accelerate that timeline.

    Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris is seen on a video monitor after the roll call during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    “We need to think about what really matters to Americans. We need to think substantively about our approach to defence. The world is more dangerous. We're not meeting up to the challenges that we need to meet up to as a country," Morneau said.

    "That matters enormously to the United States."

    When asked about the cost of acceleration, at a time when Morneau has also urged the government to exercise more fiscal restraint, he insisted both are possible by making "tough choices."

    “Yes, it's expensive. Yes, it's roughly $15 billion more a year, and that's a lot of money, but think about the importance of our trading relationship with the United States,” Morneau said.

    “Think about the need for us to ally ourselves with our partners.”

    It’s fair to say, given the events of the last month, a lot of Canadians are thinking about that as the race to the White House enters its final ten-week stretch.

    IN DEPTH

    Opinion

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    opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike

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    The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.

    An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

    Canada

    • In the middle of the small crowd — near the tents, the lineup of kids awaiting face painting, the snack table — stood a jubilant Chiara Padovani. 'When I say 'tenant, you say 'power,'' she commanded to several dozen tenants, who chanted back with gusto. What looked like a summer block party in front of two north-end Toronto apartment buildings last month was a celebration of what renters who withheld payments for months called a 'huge victory.'

    • The University of Ottawa's special advisor on antisemitism says he has resigned following posts he made on social media celebrating the pager explosions in Lebanon this week.

    • B.C.'s police watchdog is investigating the death of a woman who was shot by the RCMP after allegedly barricading herself in a room with a toddler early Thursday morning.

    • Friends and strangers have set up a makeshift memorial outside the home of a five-year-old boy who was found dead yesterday in Coteau-du-lac.

    • The lawyer for a B.C. RCMP officer convicted of obstruction for telling a witness to delete cellphone video following the violent 2017 arrest of Dale Culver has requested a stay of proceedings.

    World

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    Entertainment

    • Lawyers representing the producers of 'Russians at War' say they may pursue legal action against Ontario's public broadcaster for pulling support for the controversial documentary amid outcry from the Ukrainian community and some Canadian politicians.

    • Viewers of Jeopardy got a chance to test their knowledge of trivia about B.C.'s biggest city Wednesday night.

    Business

    Lifestyle

    • They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

    Sports

    • Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he's been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season's playoffs.

    • Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette returned to the 10-day injured list Thursday due to a right middle finger fracture.

    Autos

    • An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

    • Video of a brazen daylight auto theft which shows a suspect running over a victim in a stolen luxury SUV has been released by police west of Toronto.

    • The plant was expected to produce batteries for a million electric vehicles a year. Once up and running, it was supposed to create hundreds of permanent jobs in a small southeastern Ontario municipality. But two years later, spending on the construction of the Umicore plant has been delayed in what the company calls a "significant worsening of the EV market context."

    Local Spotlight

    They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

    Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

    The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

    The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

    It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

    A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

    David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.

    Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.

    A daytrip to the backcountry turned into a frightening experience for a Vancouver couple this weekend.

    • B.C.'s police watchdog is investigating the death of a woman who was shot by the RCMP after allegedly barricading herself in a room with a toddler early Thursday morning.

    • Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

    • The 'Namgis First Nation says a fish farm it owns near Port McNeill shows the potential of land-based aquaculture in B.C.

    • An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

    • For the last seven-and-half months, Toronto resident Heather McArthur has been living out what she describes as her “worst nightmare.”

    • Toronto police say a driver who crashed into a house in the city’s west end early Friday morning has been arrested on suspicion of impaired driving.

    • Kananaskis Improvement District is planning to build fireguards to help shield area housing and infrastructure from wildfire.

    • The Parole Board of Canada says a man who assaulted a young pregnant woman and left her for dead remains too dangerous to be released into the community.

    • Five bison are dead at Elk Island National Park east of Edmonton following an early Thursday morning collision.

    • BREAKING NEWS

      BREAKING NEWS

      A man has been taken to hospital in life-threatening condition following a stabbing incident that happened on Baseline Road in the early hours of Friday morning, according to the Ottawa Paramedic Service.

    • Police say a man who was taken to hospital in critical condition after being shot Thursday night has died.

    • Higher than average temperatures are in the forecast for Ottawa this Friday.

    • The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.

    • Premier François Legault's approval rating continued to rise this summer, according to the Angus Reid Institute. After reaching a low at the end of 2023, his support rose by three percentage points over the summer to 39 per cent.

    • A harrowing video has been presented to a jury at the trial of three men facing first-degree murder charges.

    • Five bison are dead at Elk Island National Park east of Edmonton following an early Thursday morning collision.

    • An Edmonton man who is charged with sexually assaulting a teen boy is a member of the Alberta sheriffs, CTV News Edmonton has confirmed.

    • The mayor of Fort Saskatchewan apologized on Thursday for comments she made earlier this week about killing feral cats.

    • Gas prices increased in all three Maritime provinces for the first time in more than a month.

    • A section of Herring Cove Road in the Spryfield area of Halifax is closed to traffic in both directions following a single-vehicle collision Friday morning.

    • Police are asking people to avoid the Dartmouth Commons area in Dartmouth, N.S., as they assist with a wildlife call for a bear.

    • Manitobans are continuing to mop up after a deluge of rain hit southern Manitoba earlier in the week.

    • Shamattawa RCMP are searching for a missing six-year-old boy who hasn’t been seen since Wednesday morning.

    • A Winnipeg pet rescue is putting out a warning to dog owners across the city about a possible parvovirus in the province.

    • A social media post of purple apples “growing” in Saskatchewan has sparked a lot of attention. However, garden experts say there's no such thing.

    • A case involving stolen funds from a Saskatchewan business being used to purchase cryptocurrency will be heading back to the courts, thanks to a new decision by Saskatchewan's Court of Appeal.

    • Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has confirmed a tornado touched down Wednesday evening near Langbank, Sask.

    • Amber and Adam Brueckner have a pool-shaped hole in their backyard – and their wallets.

    • New details have been shared about a missing family that was last seen on Sept. 1 in Kitchener, Ont.

    • Police are trying to identify a man who approached a woman and child in Wellesley.

    • A gym teacher at a private Christian school in Saskatoon has been charged. Terra MacEwan, 44, is charged with assault with a weapon. A Saskatoon mother who spoke with CTV News says her autistic son was MacEwan's victim.

    • Thomas Hamp says he believed secret police were out to kidnap, torture, and kill him when he fatally stabbed his girlfriend Emily Sanche in February of 2022.

    • A social media post of purple apples “growing” in Saskatchewan has sparked a lot of attention. However, garden experts say there's no such thing.

    • James Bay Ontario Provincial Police have charged four commercial vehicle drivers with impaired, including one who was hauling 36,000 kilograms of ammonia hydrate.

    • As northern Ontario gets ready to welcome autumn this weekend, it’s still feeling a lot like summer as provincial forest fire crews continue to battle blazes.

    • An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

    • Police say just before 7:00 p.m. four teens entered a business in the 1000 block of Adelaide Street North.

    • Police were focusing their attention on the northeast corner of Richmond and Horton, with members of the emergency response unit taking up positions at the scene.

    • Shedden, southwest of London, hasn’t changed much in decades – but word is spreading that hundreds of new residents could soon be calling the town home.

    • Two men from Barrie have been charged after a deadly shooting at a park in Keswick on Wednesday.

    • A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

    • Ontario Provincial Police executed a search warrant in Walkerton.

    • Standing up, speaking out, and showing solidarity — survivors and supporters gathered in the core to take back the night in Windsor. The city is just one of a growing list of communities that have declared intimate partner violence (IPV) an epidemic.

    • The Windsor Police Service (WPS) has seized over $56,000 in drugs and have arrested one suspect.

    • SERVEONE Canada, a global procurement solution company, has begun Canadian operations in Tecumseh.

    • In a rare move, the Greater Victoria School District Board of Education has been slapped with a ministerial order from the province requiring it to update a student safety plan – drawing concern around political posturing leading up to an election.

    • The Union of B.C. Municipalities is asking the provincial government to make transit free for teenagers.

    • To appreciate why Mimi Vandermolen is so pleased to notice one particular vehicle she’s walking past, you need to know that seeing this many cars in one place would have been unimaginable when she was growing-up in the post-war Netherlands.

    • A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.

    • The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.

    • Animal protection officers in British Columbia have rescued three pit bulls – including one that gave birth to 10 puppies – from a rat-infested home in Kelowna.

    • A Vulcan, Alta., man has been charged with a Lethbridge woman's murder after her body was found in the Oyen area.

    • A Lethbridge couple got a good reminder as to why you should keep your vehicle doors locked at all times.

    • Lethbridge residents who live near the police range can expect to hear plenty of shots fired Wednesday and Thursday.

    • A new community health profile in the Algoma District shows the area is significantly below provincial averages in a number of health metrics.

    • North Bay Police Service says one person has died following an industrial accident at the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission Rail Yard on Tuesday.

    • Three northern Ontario residents are charged with drug trafficking after the vehicle they were in got stuck along a bush road off Highway 17 on Monday.

    N.L.

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