Canadian Crossing

Mike Pence is briefly on Canadian soil but not a whole lot happened

This U.S. regime is not a big fan of Canada. There have now been 2 brief visits to Ottawa, so brief that they woke up and slept in the United States.

The Mike Pence visit was not as shaky as the John Kelly appearance in 2017 but that was very low bar.

The exchange between Pence and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was full of symbolic words that 1) didn't mean a whole lot and 2) weren't really true. We know politicians lie a lot but this was a distinct kind of dance.

Pence said "the relationship between the United States and Canada has never been stronger." This ignores the vast majority of the U.S.-Canada relationship since 1867. Better than during the War of 1812, but far worse than say Trudeau and then U.S. President Barack Obama.

Canada is a safer place for abortion though access should be improved

Canadian notebook: Celebrating Victoria Day 2019

Canada laid the groundwork this week to go through the approval process of USMCA | CUSMA. The timing was done on purpose to appease the visit.

Pence spoke of a "hard bargain" that Trudeau drove on the trade deal and of a "win-win-win." The Canadians did negotiate as well as they could with the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads. This deal is not a win for Canada.

Trudeau told the Democratic representatives in the U.S. House to go ahead and pass the deal. Trudeau and the Canadians can't want that. The Dems are the last bastion of hope to sink the trade deal.

Trudeau also said the words of the name of the deal where Canada goes last, a concern in Canada however symbolic.

"If he (Pence) just gets up and starts talking about trade … then I don’t think he's addressing the elephant in the room," Bruce Heyman, former U.S. ambassador to Canada, said. "Somebody within the administration has to recognize the damage they've done."

Outside the trade deal, Trudeau spoke of concern with having the U.S. help free Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who was essentially kidnapped by China in retaliation for the arrest of Meng Wanzhou. Despite Pence saying "we're going to continue to urge China to release the Canadian citizens" — words that are pretty meaningless — proof of a sincere effort doesn't exist.

Trudeau also brought up concerns for strict anti-abortion laws in U.S. states. Despite Trudeau's concerns, Pence will have forgotten those words before the plane landed back in Washington.

The two also spoke of the concerns in Venezuela.

Trump threat to withdraw from NAFTA should lead back to original Canada-U.S. free trade agreement

NAFTA 2.0, er, USMCA is a nightmarish trade deal for Canada

Despite childish threats by Donald Trump, Canada should hold out for a good NAFTA deal

Canada still has the threat of the return to steel and aluminum tariffs, the current tariff on softwood lumber, and the looming threat of tariffs on uranium. The automobile tariff threat still hangs over Canada. The U.S. hasn't stood up to China for its retaliation against Canada. This is why Canada played nice for the Mike Pence visit.

Pence's boss tweeted that the U.S. will impose a 5% tariff on all Mexican imports as of June 10. The threat increases to as much as 25% by October 1. There is a school of thought that he doesn't have the power to unilaterally introduce tariffs but no one seems to stop him. There is a reason why Canada should be scared.

Canada will take small steps to look like they are passing the trade deal. The fall election will likely come and go before that makes progress in the legislative realm.

Pence has made a push for the summer. The Washington Post reported that the White House has plans to trigger a process to allow the trade deal to go to Congress within 30 days. Congress won't be in session to even try and deal with this until the fall.

Betsy DeVos canceled Canada trip shows her views were not wanted

Trump cabinet member finally sets foot in Canada but not a good impression

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian politics coverage

CanadianCrossing.com Donald Trump coverage

Betsy DeVos was vilified for even thinking about coming to Canada. John Kelly spread lies and commotion in only a few hours on Canadian soil, such as "dozens and dozens and dozens of ongoing plots to get to the United States or blow up airplanes” by terrorists.

Pence said little beyond his standard lies. The Trudeau Government told their own lies back at him. That may sound like an improvement but you would be hard-pressed to convince Canadians that is true.

photo credit: CBC News

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA Finals preview

As diverse group of fans as you’ll ever see.

Singing O Canada together.

This is Toronto. #WeTheNorth @cbcsports @CBCToronto pic.twitter.com/NjCclBhEYL

— Devin Heroux (@Devin_Heroux) May 26, 2019

The Toronto Raptors current 4-game playoff winning streak was sparked by bench contributions. The Raptors bench outscored the Milwaukee Bucks bench 48-23 in Game 4. Fred VanVleet had 7-9 from beyond the 3-point arc in Game 5.

If you are looking for a commonality for why Fred VanVleet suddenly started sinking 3s in the last 3 playoff games, look to a new beginning. VanVleet's girlfriend gave birth to a baby boy in between Game 3 and Game 4.

VanVleet has been able to spend more time with his new baby from Sunday to Thursday with the luxury of remaining in Toronto all week.

The TNT announcers noted the contrast with the Raptors when before Game 3, Toronto Coach Nick Nurse moved Kawhi Leonard to cover Giannis Antetokounmpo, aka Greek Freak. The overall team defence improved as well. Antetokounmpo didn't have the offence impact the team previously had and his teammates struggled to make up the difference.

The Milwaukee series could have been a brotherly battle with Marc Gasol (Toronto) and Pau Gasol (Milwaukee). The older brother was out injured and couldn't suit up for the Bucks.

NBA Finals home-court advantage is determined by regular season record: The Toronto Raptors finished 58-24, 2 games behind Milwaukee. Golden State was the top team in the West at 57-25.

The Raptors have had a rougher road to the finals. Toronto has lost 6 playoff games while Golden State has only lost 4 games. The Raptors had that disadvantage in the Milwaukee series and that worked out fine.

Toronto gained some endurance with a double OT win in Game 3. The Dubs are 1-1 in overtime in the playoffs, both in the first OT.

Kevin Durant will make the trip to Toronto but we don't know when he will play for Golden State. Durant injured his right calf in Game 5 of the second-round Houston series on May 8. DeMarcus Cousins has also been injured. The Dubs have plenty of talent remaining, including Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala.

Curry has a Toronto connection. His father Dell played for the Toronto Raptors from 1999-2002.

This will be the final games at what is now known as Oracle Arena in Oakland. The team is scheduled to start playing at the new Chase Center in San Francisco just south of the San Francisco Giants ballpark. Golden State has even played at the Cow Palace in San Francisco and a year in San Jose while arena renovations were made in Oakland. The Oakland arena was also the home of the NHL California Golden Seals.

Toronto Raptors make first trip ever to NBA Finals and will play Golden State

Toronto Raptors advance to NBA Eastern Conference finals for first time since 2016

The DeMar DeRozan deal with San Antonio brought Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green. Jonas Valanciunas was well loved but traded with C.J. Miles and Delon Wright to Memphis for Marc Gasol at the trade deadline.

Serge Ibaka also came through a trade in 2017. Kyle Lowry (7 years) and Norman Powell (4 years) even came through long-ago trades. Lowry is the only Raptor who was in Toronto when team president Masai Ujiri took over.

The team has 2 draft picks on the roster: Pascal Siakam (2016, 27th overall) and OG Anunoby (2017, 23rd overall). Free agents include VanVleet, Chris Boucher, Jeremy Lin, Jodie Meeks, Malcolm Miller, Patrick McCaw, and Eric Moreland.

The lasting image of Drake in the last series was the neck massage of Toronto Coach Nick Nurse. You saw how he got into the head of Milwaukee fans in the last series. Drake, who has been the Toronto Raptors global ambassador since 2013, has a world stage with the NBA Finals. ESPN/ABC may not know that many Canadian hip-hop artists but they do know Drake.

Milwaukee radio station WXSS 103.7 got some cheap publicity by pulling Drake from their playlist during the Milwaukee-Toronto series. The music fans were likely glad to have Drake back on the airwaves even though the Bucks lost the series.

Toronto Raptors move on to Philadelphia in 2019 NBA playoffs second round

0 arrests. Toronto Raptors fans certainly had a jubilant celebration on the streets of Toronto after the Game 6 win, especially in and around Jurassic Park. Toronto police say it's "impressive" that there were no arrests. The police were there to preserve order and that is what happened.

This isn't to say that Canadians are always polite. Just that with a similar event in smaller U.S. cities, there would have been plenty of arrests. Toronto, one of the 5 biggest cities in North America, had a clean celebration.

Opponent	Rogers Sportsnet	TSN
Orlando	1-1 (via Sportsnet One)	3-0
Philadelphia	3-1 (1-1 on Sportsnet One)	1-2 (1-0 on CTV)
Milwaukee	2-1	2-1
Golden State	Games 1, 3, 5, 7	Games 2, 4, 6

Rogers Sportsnet and TSN split the Toronto Raptors playoff telecasts. Rogers had the scheduled advantage against Philadelphia and Golden State while TSN had the scheduled advantage against Orlando and Milwaukee.

Each network has carried 9 playoff games with a 6-3 record for the Raptors.

There was a temptation for Rogers and Bell Media to share their signals on their over-the-air networks Citytv and CTV, respectively. CTV sim subbed Game 4 of the Philadelphia series since ABC also carried the game. The only way to watch the local feed is on cable in Canada.

CTV2 will simsub the ABC coverage. Unlike CTV, CTV2 has limited over-the-air availability. CTV2 is available over-the-air in Ontario and British Columbia:

Ontario: Toronto (Barrie); Ottawa (Pembroke); London; Windsor

British Columbia: Victoria; Dawson Creek; Terrace

CTV2 has a cable-only signal in Alberta and Nova Scotia (Halifax). My impression is that you can only simsub in markets where the station is over the air. Citytv has similar holes in its over-the-air coverage.

This is a bit of a surprise in that the summer schedule has kicked in and CTV could certainly move programming around for 2 (possibly 3) games. Bell Media could have moved CTV shows to CTV2 and cover more ground with the Raptors. But this may also be why CTV never carries the Grey Cup.

ESPN produces the content on ABC for the NBA. The Toronto Raptors coverage in the United States has been mostly good. ESPN has a definite bias toward Golden State, especially knowing the team after 5 consecutive years in the NBA Finals (we are looking at you, Stephen A. Smith). A lot of that ESPN programming runs on TSN in Canada.

There were some ESPN mishaps in 2016. Hopefully Brian Windhorst, if he is back in Toronto, will have learned something about Canada since 2016.

The game telecasts have been much better. We do hope the network has done its research on the (to them) relatively unknown Toronto Raptors.

John Saunders would have been able to help them. The pride of Canada, Saunders worked on the ESPN and ABC coverage on play-by-play in 2002-2004 and 2007 and was the studio host from 2004-2006. Saunders did television play-by-play for the Toronto Raptors from the team's inception in 1995 through 2001.

Saunders passed away in 2016 at the relatively young age of 61.

Canoe Landing Park is just west of Scotiabank Arena. The city of Toronto painted a huge Raptors logo in the park just before Game 2 of the Milwaukee series.

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs scoreboard

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs preview

CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage

Thursday is an intriguing sports day in the city of Toronto. The Blue Jays are traveling on a highly strange road trip from Tampa to Denver. The Toronto Argonauts had their only home CFL preseason game scheduled for 11 am against the Montréal Alouettes. The morning game is up at Varsity Stadium. So Toronto fans can catch the Argos in the midday and then wait in line to be part of the crowd at Jurassic Park.

The NBA was gracious in scheduling Games 3 and 4 in Toronto on either side of Victoria Day. That might have been coincidental. Still, the scheduling worked out well around a Canadian holiday.

Toronto Raptors playoffs history

2019	Milwaukee	4-2
2019	Philadelphia	4-3
2019	Orlando	4-1
2018	Cleveland	0-4
2018	Washington	4-2
2017	Cleveland	0-4
2017	Milwaukee	4-2
2016	Cleveland	2-4
2016	Miami	4-3
2016	Indiana	4-3
2015	Washington	0-4
2014	Brooklyn	3-4
2008	Orlando	1-4
2007	New Jersey	2-4
2002	Detroit	2-3
2001	Philadelphia	3-4
2001	New York	3-2
2000	New York	0-3

Twitter capture: @Devin_Heroux
photos credit: NBA/Rogers Sportsnet; NBA/TNT; CBC News

2019 CBC television upfront preview

The 2019 CBC upfront gives us a much more streamlined fall lineup than we saw last year with most of the new shows working their way in the winter months.

Battle of the Blades is not new but we haven't seen the skaters since 2013. The only new prime time show in the fall is sketch comedy from TallBoyz II Men — Tim Blair, Guled Abdi, Franco Nguyen, and Vance Banzo. They were precede the Baroness von Sketch Show on Tuesday nights.

We only have the official fall schedule for now. Let's go to the highlights.

In a highly pleasant fashion, Monday nights are the same with Murdoch Mysteries and Frankie Drake Mysteries. Baroness von Sketch Show moves to 9:30 pm on Tuesdays to make room for Tallboyz.

The Great Canadian Baking Show remains as the early show on Wednesdays. Daniel Levy and Julia Chan are out with new hosts Aurora Browne and Carolyn Taylor (Baroness von Sketch Show). Northern Rescue seems anti-climatic as the late show on Wednesdays. Those watching on CBC Gem (Canada) and Netflix (United States) have been able to watch all the episodes since March.

Battle of the Blades is back for its 5th season but hasn't been seen since 2013 due to budget cuts. Dragons' Den moves back an hour to complete the Thursday lineup.

Marketplace and In the Making start out Fridays. The latter show profiles Canada’s most extraordinary creators. The Nature of Things moves from Sundays to Fridays.

Heartland returns to the fall lineup on Sunday nights followed by Anne with an E. The Fifth Estate remains on Sunday nights.

CBC Fall 2019

Monday

Murdoch Mysteries 8p
Frankie Drake Mysteries 9p

Tuesday

Still Standing 8p
This Hour Has 22 Minutes 8:30p
Tallboyz 9p
Baroness von Sketch Show 9:30p

Wednesday

The Great Canadian Baking Show 8p
Northern Rescue 9p

Thursday

Battle of the Blades 8p
Dragons' Den 9p

Friday

Marketplace 8p
In The Making 8:30p
The Nature of Things 9p

Saturday

Hockey Night in Canada 7p

Sunday

Heartland 7p
Anne with An E 8p
The Fifth Estate 9p

bold indicates new series; ital indicates new timeslot

Outside of prime time, CBC Arts: Exhibitionists returns on Friday nights at 11:30 pm. Gerry Dee will host Family Feud Canada "with a Canadian spin" in late fall Tuesdays-Fridays at 7:30 pm. Your tax dollars at work.

CanadianCrossing.com CBC coverage

CanadianCrossing.com television coverage

While we don't have a defined winter schedule, we know Schitt’s Creek, Kim’s Convenience, Workin’ Moms, Diggstown, Burden of Truth, Coroner, The Detectives, and CBC Docs POV are on the list.

The Trickster will be one of the new winter dramas on CBC. The story is based on award-winning Canadian writer Eden Robinson's novel Son of a Trickster. This will be the first CBC show developed based on books by an Indigenous author.

Fortunate Son is about the matriarch of an American activist family who helps smuggle Vietnam war deserters and draft dodgers across the border to Canada. The Sounds is a co-production between Canada and New Zealand about the happenings in Pelorus Sounds. Reality-type shows include Back in Time for Winter, Fridge Wars, and High Arctic Haulers.

Northern Rescue streaming on both sides of the border

We featured Street Legal as the top photo for the 2018 CBC television upfront review. There wasn't much of a chance for the reboot to continue beyond the 6 episodes. The reboot did have an unfortunate distinction of being cancelled before the finale aired. Haven't watched the original or the reboot, but from what I've read, there wasn't much of the old show in the new show.

Little Dog did make it for 2 seasons and 15 episodes. Crawford (12 episodes) and Cavendish (8 episodes) each lasted a brief season. I did see most of Season 1 of Little Dog (all but the season finale). The show was a bit rough in the telling but felt very Newfoundland somehow.

I watched a few episodes of Crawford and the show didn't quite click. Crawford was still better than a lot of U.S. sitcoms. CBC presented the entire show online on Groundhog Day 2018 before airing the show in the following summer.

For Canadians, this is why CBC Gem exists. Can't speak to Cavendish but the other two comedies are definitely worth sampling.

Mary Kills People debuts final season in Canada but doesn't have a U.S. TV home

While we cover the CBC, we do acknowledge Canadian TV on other networks. We wrote earlier this month on the saga that is Mary Kills People in the United States as well as Season 3 of Private Eyes. Both shows air on Global in Canada.

If you have a Canadian TV show in question over being renewed (whether or not CBC carries the show), you should check out the tv-eh.com renewal scorecard. They do really fine work.

Season 2 of Burden of Truth debuts on the CW on June 2 at 8 pm Eastern on The CW. The U.S.-based network has also agreed to pick up Season 3 of the CBC program. See. Lifetime: that is how a show gets picked up.

CanadianCrossing.com radio coverage

This is a CBC television upfront but we have to pass along this CBC Radio news. Anna Maria Tremonti has been with the CBC for 35 years, the last 17 years as the only host in the history of The Current. Tremonti is leaving the show to start a pair of new CBC podcasts.

The new podcasts will have Tremonti hosting a 1-on-1 long-form interview show along with "a serialized story" where she might be one of a few voices.

The new podcasts will start this fall. The final day for Tremonti on The Current will be June 20. We will have more on this story when CBC announces Tremonti's replacement.

The Current airs at 8:30 am local time (9 am in Newfoundland) on CBC Radio One.

photo credit: Geoff George/CBC

Monia Chokri wins a prize in her directorial debut at 2019 Cannes Film Festival

Monia Chokri's directorial debut La femme de mon frère | A Brother's Love shared in the Un Certain Regard Heart Prize with The Climb from Michael Angelo Covino (United States) at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. The top Un Certain Regard prize went to The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão | A vida invisível de Eurídice Gusmão from Karim Aïnouz (Brazil).

Xavier Dolan's Matthias et Maxime competed for the Palme d'Or, the top prize at Cannes. The top Palme d’Or prize went to Parasite from Bong Joon-ho (South Korea).

A very touching end of screening for MATTHIAS ET MAXIME (MATTHIAS AND MAXIME) by Xavier Dolan, "the child of Cannes". #Cannes2019 #CannesMoments #XavierDolan pic.twitter.com/deXR21ztSN

— Festival de Cannes (@Festival_Cannes) May 23, 2019

The last film that Dolan presented at Cannes that didn't win a significant prize was Tom à la ferme | Tom at the Farm. Dolan won the Jury Prize for Mommy and a tie for the Grand Prix for Juste la fin du monde | It's Only the End of the World.

J'ai tué ma mère | I Killed My Mother won the CICAE, Regards Jeunes and SACD Director’s Fortnight at Cannes. Les Amours imaginaires | Heartbeats won the Regards jeunes prize. Mommy won the Jury Prize. It’s Only the End of the World took home the Grand Jury Prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury.

He went out of his way to skip the Cannes Film Festival with The Death and Life of John F. Donovan.

The consensus from the festival was that Matthias et Maxime was good but not good enough to rank well. Vulture had its top 15 films from the festival and Dolan's entry didn't make that list.

"Of course it’s not a problem for me to film heterosexual love, but I’m here as a human being, making films that are very close to me, and there’s no reason for me to feel coy about my sexuality. Making Matthias and Maxime was a way for me to tell a love story about two men, which I realized I had never really done," Dolan said in an interview with The New York Times.

We still don't have a U.S. release date for The Death and Life of John F. Donovan. Dolan told The New York Times that he doesn't think Matthias et Maxime will get U.S. distribution. "I don’t think I will. No. You want to bet? One hundred thousand dollars."

Xavier Dolan is back with a new film at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival

Xavier Dolan is not giving up on Quebec for future films

Xavier Dolan's new film won't debut at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival

Xavier Dolan wins Grand Prix at 2016 Cannes Film Festival

Xavier Dolan wins coveted Cannes Jury Prize for 'Mommy'

Without having seen the new Xavier Dolan film, we shouldn't make much of him not faring well at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. Filmmakers take paths where they need to go. That said, I still want his last 2 films.

Dolan's influence extends to Chokri, who won her prize in her directorial debut. The trailer for her film looked pretty funny. Chokri was one of 13 female directors in the festival.

The film stars Évelyne Brochu, one of our favourite Canadian actresses.

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

It Must Be Heaven, a France-Canada co-production in the Palme d'Or category, got good notice in the festival. Nova Scotia got some hearty praise as an unofficial co-star in The Lighthouse, a U.S.-Canada co-production with Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson. The movie was shot in Yarmouth and Cape Forchu in Nova Scotia.

The 2019 Cannes Film Festival ran May 13-25.

photo credit: La femme de mon frère film
Twitter capture: @Festival_Cannes
video credit: YouTube/cophinebw

Toronto Raptors make first trip ever to NBA Finals and will play Golden State

The Toronto Raptors become the first Canadian team to reach the NBA Finals with a 100-94 win over the Milwaukee Bucks Saturday night. The Raptors went on a 26-3 run late in the 3rd quarter and early in the 4th quarter to take command in the Game 6 clincher.

"It's taken a long time to get here in my career, 13 years, seven years here," Raptors guard Kyle Lowry said. "I'm going to savour the moment, but I'm not satisfied. Our goal is to win the NBA championship."

Kawhi Leonard led the way with 27 points and 17 rebounds for the Raptors.

Golden State got past the Los Angeles Clippers 4-2, Houston Rockets 4-2, and Portland Trail Blazers 4-0 to advance to the NBA final.

The Raptors took both games with the California team in the regular season. Toronto won 131-128 in overtime at home on November 29. The Raptors won in Oakland 113-93 on December 12.

Toronto Raptors advance to NBA Eastern Conference finals for first time since 2016

Toronto Raptors move on to Philadelphia in 2019 NBA playoffs second round

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs scoreboard

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs preview

CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage

Rogers Sportsnet will carry the odd numbered games while TSN carries the even numbered games. ABC will carry the whole NBA Finals in the United States.

This is Golden State's fifth straight trip to the NBA Finals. The team won the NBA title in 2015 and 2017-2018.

The Raptors are now the sixth team to win a conference final after losing the first 2 games.

Game 1 of the 2019 NBA Finals will start Thursday at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

We will have much more in our NBA Finals preview on Thursday.

Toronto Raptors playoffs history

2019	Milwaukee	4-2
2019	Philadelphia	4-3
2019	Orlando	4-1
2018	Cleveland	0-4
2018	Washington	4-2
2017	Cleveland	0-4
2017	Milwaukee	4-2
2016	Cleveland	2-4
2016	Miami	4-3
2016	Indiana	4-3
2015	Washington	0-4
2014	Brooklyn	3-4
2008	Orlando	1-4
2007	New Jersey	2-4
2002	Detroit	2-3
2001	Philadelphia	3-4
2001	New York	3-2
2000	New York	0-3

photo credit: NBA/Rogers Sportsnet

2019 CFL preseason schedule

Date	Game	Time	Cdn TV
May 26	BC @ Edmonton	4p
May 30	Montréal @ Toronto	11a
May 31	Edmonton @ Winnipeg	8:30p
May 31	Saskatchewan @ Calgary	9p	TSN
June 1	Hamilton @ Ottawa	7p	TSN
June 6	Toronto @ Hamilton	7:30p
June 6	Ottawa @ Montréal	7:30p	TSN
June 6	Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan	9p
June 7	Calgary @ BC	10p	TSN
All times Eastern. TSN broadcasts are available on ESPN+.

If you are seeing this CFL preseason schedule, the league and players got smart and came up with a new contract. Barely.

TSN will carry 4 CFL preseason games. Ottawa and Calgary have both of their preseason games on TV. Toronto, Winnipeg, and Edmonton won't be on TV. The TSN games are available on ESPN+ in the United States.

Your eyes work fine: the lone Toronto home game is before lunchtime. Toronto Argonauts will play their home exhibition game at Varsity Stadium. Some years have had different locations for preseason games but the Toronto date is the only variance to the CFL exhibition schedule.

The price of the ESPN+ service has not changed: $4.99/month or $49.99/year. There is a 7-day free trial. The CFL is only part of the ESPN+ service: lots of MLS games plus several MLB and NHL games per week.

CFL risked a lot in delaying negotiations for a new contract with players

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

The regular season starts June 13. We will cover all of the extensive off-season changes in our CFL preview.

logo credit: CFL

Canada is a safer place for abortion though access should be improved

The United States has been under attack with severe anti-abortion state bills designed to practically eliminate legal abortion in those states.

You might come to the conclusion that abortion rights are in way better shape in Canada than the United States.

Having covered American and Canadian politics, there is a yes-and-no answer that is worth having a column to explain and contrast policies in the side-by-side neighbours.

Roe vs. Wade gave the United States the edge in that federal abortion rights have existed since 1973. Canada doesn't get that federal standard until 1988 in what is known as the Morgentaler ruling. The Supreme Court of Canada said the then-abortion law violated women's Section 7 Charter rights to "life, liberty and security of person" and that the law "clearly interferes with a woman’s physical and bodily integrity."

The Conservative Party in Canada, whether in power with Stephen Harper or as the opposition party under Andrew Scheer, has been in the record as not wanting to reopen the abortion debate. There are backbenchers who feel otherwise but they haven't convinced their leadership to change that stance.

Prince Edward Island eases abortion restrictions (2015)

Abortion definitely an issue in New Brunswick election (2014)

In Canada and the United States, the battle is being fought on the state/provincial level. Provinces control health care though they receive money from the federal government for health care.

Prince Edward Island was in a land of its own until 2016. The province had refused to provide that form of health care on its land. The province would reimburse medical costs but not travel costs to places such as Halifax (NS) or Moncton (NB). The province sets medical abortions at 9 weeks and surgical abortions to 12 weeks, 6 days. Those requirements apply to abortions in the province.

Up until February 5, 2018, Nova Scotia required a physician referral to schedule an abortion. That was particular onerous for younger women who might not be able to find a physician that would support an abortion.

In 2014, New Brunswick required a woman to have written certification from 2 doctors that the procedure was medically necessary and the abortion must be done by an obstetrician/gynecologist in approved hospitals (only in Moncton and Bathurst). Currently, the province will only fund abortions at hospitals, not clinics.

Ontario funds abortions at some clinics, but not all of them.

Travel is a consideration for a lot of remote areas in Canada. Even in not so remote areas, travel is a concern. In the entire province of Alberta, there are lone clinics in each of the two largest cities: Edmonton and Calgary.

The anti-abortion crowd in Canada might be quieter but they do exist.

Politically, the difference is that the U.S. law is federal. Those who want to overturn Roe vs. Wade know that large U.S. cities (and their states) will still have abortion access. They want to have the right as individual states to install draconian laws against abortion.

The proposed laws are often drafted to make having an abortion across a state line a significant problem, especially if the female hasn't reached the age of majority.

In Canada, the law is still federal but provinces have a wide range of control from access, limits on number of weeks, and covering costs.

The United States prohibits federal Medicaid funding of abortions thanks to the Hyde Amendment. Canada will generally pay for abortions, an advantage thanks to the single-payer health care system.

Those who have financial means and/or live in large cities won't have to worry about abortions. Those without financial means and/or in rural areas will struggle more.

The abortion pill was supposed to be a benefactor for girls and women where access was limited. Access to the abortion pill is often lacking in the areas where it is most in need.

Canada has a major advantage over the United States: stability of the Supreme Court. Conservatives know that the Supreme Court of Canada will never overturn the 1988 ruling. The appointments of several Supreme Court justices in the United States under controversial circumstances tips the court in a direction where political, not legal, rulings are likely or possible.

Women's rights are better protected in Canada under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The United States is a state short of approving the Equal Rights Amendment.

We saw under the Harper Government that even though Harper appointed the vast majority of justices that the Court ruled unanimously against the Harper Government on key decisions. That lack of bias doesn't exist on the United States Supreme Court.

CanadianCrossing.com Prince Edward Island coverage

CanadianCrossing.com health care coverage

Ireland legalised abortions in a referendum about a year ago. The government later made the procedure free for Irish women. Those women and girls in Northern Ireland have it more like Alabama's new law; those able to travel to England can get an abortion. Poland has one of the most extreme takes on abortion in Europe.

Here is to hoping abortion, birth control, contraception, and women's health care become medical issues, not political footballs.

video and photo credit: Full Frontal with Samantha Bee/TBS

Canadian presence on 2019 U.S. TV upfronts

Here is our wrapup of the U.S. TV upfronts for the 2019-2020 television season where major networks determine which shows are cancelled, renewed, or might get a new run either as a midseason replacement or on another network. Within that world, we look at where Canadians are in the U.S. TV landscape.

Cobie Smulders will be the lead in Stumptown on ABC based on the graphic novels. Smulders will play returned home Army vet Dex Parios who becomes a private eye.

Smulders had an impressive 9-year run on How I Met Your Mother and also starred for 2 years on Netflix's Friends From College, which featured Canadian Sarah Chalke in Season 2.

Tantoo Cardinal's "overnight success" continues. Cardinal will play Sue Lynn Blackbird on Stumptown. Her recent films include The Grizzlies, Through Black Spruce, Angelique's Isle, and Falls Around Her.

Kim Cattrall stars as the wife and matriarch in a southern TV evangelical empire when her husband (apparently) dies in a plane crash and they discover 3 new children outside the marriage. Filthy Rich will debut in the midseason on Fox due to film commitments with writer/director/executive producer Tate Taylor.

Cattrall is known for Sex in the City but Cattrall also did 2 seasons of the dark comedy Sensitive Skin for HBO Canada and Netflix in the United States.

Will Sasso is part of the couple with two young kids in the spotlight of United We Fall, a midseason comedy on ABC. They get a lot of flak from their parents as well as others who cross paths in their lives.

Lilly Singh proves a Canadian can host a daily late-night talk show

As we previously noted, A Little Late with Lilly Singh will debut on NBC in September in the 1:35 am Eastern timeslot.

Here are Canadian actors returning to U.S. shows in the fall or winter:

• Kids in the Hall alum Mark McKinney as well as Lauren Ash on Superstore (NBC) for Season 5
• Nathan Fillion in the lead role of The Rookie (ABC) for Season 2
• Norm Macdonald on The Orville (Fox) for Season 3
• Grace Park on A Million Little Things (ABC) for Season 2
• Tyler Labine on New Amsterdam (NBC) for Season 2
• Bruce Greenwood on The Resident (Fox) for Season 3
• Jessica Paré on SEAL Team (CBS) for Season 3
• Athena Karkanis on Manifest (NBC) for Season 2 [midseason]
• Eric McCormack on Will & Grace (NBC) [midseason]
• Kevin O'Leary on Shark Tank (ABC)

Colin Mochrie, who has been on every single episode of the American version of Whose Line Is It Anyway, is back with the show on the CW. The debut of the Season 15 (Season 7 for the CW) is June 17.

A potential Season 3 of Ransom featuring Nazneen Contractor will depend more on Global in Canada rather than CBS in the United States. If Global gives the green light, CBS will likely fit the show in on Saturday nights.

Molly Parker will be back for Season 2 of the Lost in Space reboot on Netflix. She is also in Deadwood: The Movie based on the HBO series from 2004-2006. The film premieres on HBO in the United States on May 31.

Tricia Helfer made a quick return to TV. We last saw Helfer on Lucifer on Fox about a year ago. Though Lucifer got a fourth season on Netflix, Helfer was not part of the cast. Helfer will join Van Helsing in the role of Dracula for Season 4 on Syfy.

The Detour had a really nice Season 3 with Alberta subbing for Alaska. The 4 am settings in broad daylight were really hilarious. The Season 3 episode Water was a waste of the viewers time. Every other episode used the outsiders approach rather well. The show gave Tony Award winning actress Laura Benanti more of a presence in Season 3 to the delight of the viewers. Season 4 of The Detour premieres June 18 on TBS.

Jason Jones and Samantha Bee are executive producers for The Detour and the ongoing Full Frontal with Samantha Bee on TBS.

Canadian presence on 2018 U.S. TV upfronts

CanadianCrossing.com television coverage

Here are shows featuring Canadian actors that were cancelled this season:

• Rachelle Lefevre got a chance to shine as Olivia Bloom in Mary Kills People and got a chance to be the lead in Proven Innocent on Fox. The show only lasted a single season. Hopefully. Lefevre made her way back to Season 3 of Mary Kills People.
• Midnight, Texas featured Dylan Bruce of Orphan Black fame and only lived for 2 seasons on NBC.

We also say goodbye to the The Big Bang Theory theme song by Barenaked Ladies, at least in new episodes. The song and reruns continue in syndication.

photos credit: Stumptown/ABC; Filthy Rich/Fox
video credit: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert/CBS

Canadian notebook: Celebrating Victoria Day 2019

Editor's note: The column was updated to reflect the impact of the detention of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig in China in the struggle with Canada and the United States.

Happy Victoria Day 2019. The day theoretically applies to Queen Victoria's birthday falling on the Monday before the actual birthday (May 24). In reality, this is the start of Canadian summer.

CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage

Staying up later to watch the Toronto Raptors win their first game of the NBA Eastern Conference finals 118-112 in double overtime was easier if you didn't have to go to work today. The Raptors are now 1-0 in double OT in the NBA playoffs.

This was Milwaukee's first road loss in the playoffs. Milwaukee only has 2 playoff losses this season. Game 4 is Tuesday night at 8:30 pm Eastern on TSN in Canada and TNT in the United States.

The New York Times introduces Americans to butter tarts and more Canadian food

IFC should applaud the unique drink that is a Caesar

Celebrating the Caesar

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Caesar. Dan Aykroyd in the Toronto Sun video above talks about how the Caesar is Canada's drink and you would have a tough time arguing otherwise.

Read the stories above. Watch the video. Google a recipe or two. You don't have to be at the cottage to enjoy a Caesar. The drink is a taste of Canada.

The opposite of that might be Mayochup, a combination of mayonnaise and ketchup from Kraft Heinz. The U.S. product recently came into Canada.

The product doesn't sound all that great. You could combine the two without having to buy a specific separate product.

The funny part comes with the name Mayochup, which in the Cree language isn't so funny. The rough translation of Mayochup is "shitfaced" or "shit is on my face."

If you are having a picnic, bring both condiments separately and let your guests make up their own minds.

Trump threat to withdraw from NAFTA should lead back to original Canada-U.S. free trade agreement

NAFTA 2.0, er, USMCA is a nightmarish trade deal for Canada

Despite childish threats by Donald Trump, Canada should hold out for a good NAFTA deal

Deal in place to (finally) lift damaging #steel #aluminum #tariffs on #Canada. Do not let that be a reason to consider ratifying #CUSMA #USMCA https://t.co/Y8mPU8cl8K #cdnpoli #cdntrade

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) May 17, 2019

Let's start with the good news: the U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs — 25% on imports of steel and 10% on aluminum — are gone as are Canada's retaliatory tariffs.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland is still worried about future tariffs from the United States. "Eternal vigilance is required."

The steel and aluminum industries aren't the only ones to feel the wrath of the angry toddler. There were the 292% tariffs against Bombardier over its C-Series aircraft. The only reason why that isn't an issue any more is that the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled unanimously that "100- to 150-seat large civil aircraft from Canada do not injure U.S. industry."

Boeing has had other issues lately rather than fighting the Canadian airplane industry.

The softwood lumber tariffs are the centre of a battle Canada is fighting with WTO and NAFTA.

The Trudeau Government is going "full steam ahead" — in Freeland's words — to ratifying the new USMCA | CUSMA trade deal. Canada was diligent in not considering the approval of the trade deal without the lifting of the steel and aluminum tariffs.

Parliament almost certainly won't approve the deal before the summer recess. We argue that Canada should receive considerable concessions to consider ratifying the trade deal, despite the lifting of the specific tariffs, especially when there isn't a guarantee that the tariffs won't return.

A long-term softwood lumber deal would be a start. The deal would have to be thorough and reasoned, traits that haven't existed in the U.S. trade delegation.

A no-more-tariffs promise would be ideal, though the current U.S. administration can't be counted on to keep a promise. A name change to the deal would help symbolically. An apology for the steel and aluminum tariffs is less likely than a pipe dream.

Though a short-term deal isn't a lot against long-term trade damage, the U.S. putting pressure on China to release Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig would be helpful. The United States is the reason why Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada and the reason why Spavor and Kovrig were essentially kidnapped.

Canada's passage means nothing if the Democratic legislators in the U.S. House don't approve the deal. Canada's passage of the deal, even if it doesn't go into effect, shows tremendous weakness. No one will come along to bail Canada out of the horrible USMCA | CUSMA trade deal.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. brings a lot of excitement to Toronto Blue Jays

CanadianCrossing.com MLB coverage

I saw Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the first time in person. His fourth HR of his career, the first one not to dead centre field, gave the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead on the way to a 5-2 win. I saw his father play for the Montréal Expos in the same ballpark on the South Side of Chicago. Good memories on both sides of the family equation.

Billy McKinney (solo HR) and Danny Jansen (2-run HR) contributed to the offence to give Toronto a split in that series. MLB Network in the United States will have the Blue Jays this afternoon at 1 pm Eastern; Rogers Sportsnet carries the game in Canada.

Xavier Dolan is back with a new film at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival

La femme de mon frère | A Brother's Love has already played at Cannes. Xavier Dolan's Matthias et Maxime makes its world debut Wednesday at 4 pm local time. (10 am Eastern).

photo credit: me
video credit: Toronto Sun
Twitter capture: @canadian_xing

Liberals to form minority government in Newfoundland and Labrador

Dwight Ball and the Liberal Party are in a new reality with only the second minority government in the brief history of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Liberals won 20 of the 40 seats in the House of Assembly in St. John's. This was a far cry from the 31 seats the Liberals won in the 2015 election.

The Progressive Conservatives remain in opposition, moving up to 15 seats. The New Democratic Party had neither incumbent running (2 seats) and now have 3 seats. There are 2 independent MHAs. The new NL Alliance produced 0 seats.

The previous minority government came in 1971. That lasted less than 6 months. The dynamics are much different in the 2019 election.

The Canadian media, including the CBC, has pounded the point of incumbent governments losing, implying that will also happen federally in October. What they have missed is that this is the 3rd straight election in the Atlantic provinces that have gone to a minority government.

Progressive Conservative Party leader Ches Crosbie gave one of the most bizarre speeches in modern Canadian politics history. We criticized Jason Kenney for his angry speech in winning the Alberta election. Crosbie had a lot more anger in a far shorter speech.

"Constitutional conundrum." "I am not conceding victory to the Liberals." "They will have to struggle for the next months and years to hang on to power." He also vowed Ball would be out as premier and Liberal leader within a year. Crosbie also went after the integrity of Lieutenant Governor Judy Foote.

[In Canada, the lieutenant governor is the equivalent of the governor general, representative of Queen Elizabeth II. That person handles what happens during a minority government as far as which party will form government.]

John Crosbie, father of Ches, was the lieutenant governor of Newfoundland and Labrador from 2008-2013.

Crosbie implied that the PC party won the popular vote when that wasn't true.

Stunned is an understatement. You might hear that kind of speech if you run for class president in Grade 7. Even then, you would think that person should know better.

Alison Coffin had a much better night. The new NDP leader had 0 incumbents and only 14 candidates running. Coffin won her seat in St. John's East-Quidi Vidi. The party also won seats in St. John's Centre (Jim Dinn) and Labrador West, the latter where Jordan Brown won by 5 votes.

NL Alliance party leader Graydon Pelley barely got his party registered in time. The party wasn't a factor in any district.

The two independents have more potential power in a minority government. Eddie Joyce and Paul Lane were re-elected as independents. Joyce was a long-time Liberal who was kicked out of caucus over harassment allegations. He was later cleared of that charge. Lane used to be in the PC and Liberal parties.

Turnout was about 60%, an improvement over the 2015 election with a 55.2% turnout.

As we saw in the Prince Edward Island election, party leaders can be friends in real life. The Newfoundland and Labrador election said hold my beer.

The Dinn family featured Jim (left), the older brother, who won in St. John's Centre for the NDP in his first race. Paul (right), won re-election in the Topsail-Paradise district for the PCs. Mom (centre) couldn't vote for either son since she lives in the Waterford Valley district.

Speaking of the Waterford Valley district, Tom Osborne won re-election for the Liberals. Osborne has been in the House of Assembly since 1996 as a PC and later switched to the Liberal party. His older brother Bob Osborne ran in his first race in Windsor Lake for the Liberals but lost to Crosbie.

Their mother, Sheila Osborne, was a MHA from 1997-2011 representing St. John's West for the PC party.

Ches Crosbie won his seat but his sister Beth lost in her race in the Virginia Waters-Pleasantville district for the PC party. She also ran and lost for the same district in 2015. Turns out she lives in her brother's district.

The number of women in the House of Assembly dropped from 10 to 9. The PCs doubled their total from 1 to 2. The Liberals fell from 7 to 6.

The NDP had 2 female incumbents but both were not running in 2019: Lorraine Michael (St. John's East-Quidi Vidi) and Gerry Rogers (St. John's Centre). Coffin won in Michael's former district. The party won Rogers' old district, but that was where Jim Dinn won.

And then there were none: the lack of female premiers in Canada

They were like "watching two bowls of vanilla ice cream melt in the sun."

This is how veteran political reporter and Newfoundland native David Cochrane described the debate between Ball and Crosbie. Front Burner with Jayme Poisson had Cochrane and Newfoundland native Tom Power of Q for a discussion about the election.

We learned a bit about Muskrat Falls, a huge power plant that was designed to lower electricity costs but instead has become a financial boondoggle. We also learned that the demographics make things difficult to get enough money to reduce the crippling debt.

The Simpsons and others should learn Newfoundland before cracking jokes

2019 Newfoundland and Labrador election preview

Red Liberal wave runs through Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly

2019 Canadian politics preview

The PC party and the NDP spent time complaining about the election being moved from fall to spring. Even I knew the election was getting moved up. There was a concern about having the provincial election so close to the federal election. The 2015 Newfoundland and Labrador election was after the federal election. Heads up to those in the province: the 2023 election, unless an election is called earlier, will be in the spring.

Canadian notebook: Newfoundland and Labrador developing anti-book reputation

The first Liberal budget after the 2015 election featured a 10% provincial tax on book sales with only a few exceptions. That lasted until January 1, 2018. When we wrote about this in 2016, Newfoundland and Labrador had the lowest literacy rate in the country.

That budget proposed that over 50% of the libraries in the province be closed within 2 years. After a long struggle, that proposal was taken off the table.

In a consensus government, the Liberals won't be able to make such dramatic moves.

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian politics coverage

CBNT, Channel 8 in St. John's, stayed with election coverage through the first 2 periods of the Boston NHL playoff game. Hockey fans could have followed on Rogers Sportsnet, another CBC station through cable or satellite, or streaming at cbcsports.ca. Newfoundland and Labrador has only 2 stations, both in St. John's.

photos credit: CBC News Network