Blogger walks into Convention Centre for the 2022 New Brunswick Liberal Leadership race!!!
Blogger returns to the New Brunswick Liberal Leadership race at the Convention Centre!!!
First ballots are announce for the 2022 New Brunswick Liberal Leadership Race!!!!
2nd round of Ballets are announce for the 2022 New Brunswick Liberal Leadership Race...
2.36K subscribersPolitical Commentators views after Susan Holt wins the New Brunswick Liberal Leadership Race!!!
Blogger tries to find out if Green Party David can be beaten by Liberal Leader Susan Holt?
President and CEO Susan Holt from the NB Business Council chat with Blogger about Shale Gas
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---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Bergen, Candice - M.P." <candice.bergen@parl.gc.ca>
Date: Sat, 6 Aug 2022 17:19:34 +0000
Subject: Automatic reply: Hey Higgy Methinks the Fat Lady will be sing
about the latest LIEbrano leader at about Chineses Dentist Time (Tooth Hurty)
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
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---------- Original message ----------
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Sat, 6 Aug 2022 14:17:27 -0300
Subject: Hey Higgy Methinks the Fat Lady will be sing about the latest
LIEbrano leader at about Chineses Dentist Time (Tooth Hurty) N'esy Pas?
To: "blaine.higgs" <blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, Louis.Leger@gnb.ca,
"Roger.L.Melanson" <roger.l.melanson@gnb.ca>, "kris.austin"
<kris.austin@gnb.ca>, "Arseneau, Kevin (LEG)"
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Friday, 5 August 2022
Onetime Liberal cabinet minister hits comeback trail with bid for party leadership
Need I say that I disagee with Higgy's blogging buddy Chucky Baby as usual?
Methinks TJ Whatshisame ain't got a payer nor does Madame Holt whether
or not Coon opts to run again in Fat Fed City Eveybody knows the
LIEbranos know that the SANB would never condone another Anglophone
being their leader afte the buffoon Vickers ha his ki at the can when
nobody else wanted to be the boss. Futhemoe Brian Murphy and the
Bakoom Boy poed that in spades when they gave Seamus Byrne the boot
N'esy Pas?
Hence in my humble opinion it boils down to the arshole Chucky Baby
loves to kiss and Higgy former Deputy Premier FTW I betting that the
arsehole pulls it out o the ba ecause his is one of the Backroon Boyz
ad Gauvi is just another clown who turnedcoat like Cady and Lamock et
al
https://youtu.be/kV0tPnUZF0M
Blogger Charles LeBlanc gives his prediction on the 2022 New Brunswick Liberal Leadership race!!!
Deja Vu Anyone???
https://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.com/2022/05/nb-liberal-leadership-race-drops-to-4.html
Friday, 6 May 2022
N.B. Liberal leadership race drops to 4 candidates as 5th hopeful appeals
---------- Original message ----------
From: "Higgs, Premier Blaine (PO/CPM)" <Blaine.Higgs@gnb.ca>
Date: Fri, 6 May 2022 19:01:37 +0000
Subject: RE: Hey Higgy Methinks Teddy's neighbour Seamus Byrne and I
should have a long talk sometime soon N'esy Pas? "I must look like a
crazy, crazy person" Too Too Funny
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https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/nb-liberal-party-leader-1.6543739
Susan Holt elected as New Brunswick Liberal leader
Holt is 1st woman to win the N.B. Liberal leadership
In a historic victory Saturday, Susan Holt has been chosen as the new leader of the New Brunswick Liberal Party.
She is the first woman to win the party's leadership in the province.
She won on the third ballot with 51.67 per cent of the vote. Former Liberal MP T.J. Harvey was the runner-up.
Holt will lead the party into the next election against the governing Progressive Conservatives now led by Premier Blaine Higgs.
Holt is shown after her victory on Saturday. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
The former business leader and one-time adviser to former premier Brian Gallant pitched herself as someone who would bring a fresh approach to politics, a theme she repeated in her victory speech.
"The people of New Brunswick have told us they are tired of politics as usual. They are tired of the conflict and the fighting. They are tired of partisanship," she said.
"They want to see something different. We can be the party that leads a change for a new politics in New Brunswick that is transparent, authentic, empathetic and collaborative."
In part, Holt's victory was based on being the second or third choice of two of the other candidates.
The party used preferential balloting, meaning members voting over the past week ranked their first, second, third and fourth choices for leader. In order for a winner to be decided, a candidate needed 50 per cent of the vote.
Former cabinet minister Donald Arseneault and current MLA Robert Gauvin were the others on the ballot.
During the first round of balloting, Harvey had 33.9 per cent, Holt had 32.12 per cent, Gauvin had 19.76 per cent and Arseneault had 14.22 per cent of the points awarded in the party's weighted voting system.
Arseneault was dropped off the ballot and the votes were redistributed.
Harvey polled 39.58 per cent in the second vote while Holt had 36.76 per cent and Gauvin had 23.67 per cent. Gauvin fell off the ballot.
Holt said she had "a lot of conversations" with people who chose Gauvin or Arseneault first, but who were also interested in her as a potential leader.
Harvey non-commital
Harvey said despite his defeat, he was optimistic about Liberal prospects, though he wouldn't commit to being a candidate in the next election.
"Certainly it's not the outcome that we had hoped for," he said. "At the end of the day, we're all still a family and I think it's been really healthy for the party."
Harvey said his support over the first two rounds was around where his team thought it would be, but with two candidates eliminated at that point "it's really difficult to estimate where you think third-ballot support could go."
University of Moncton political scientist Roger Ouellette said Holt's victory was a watershed moment for the Liberals.
Saint John MLA Shirley Dysart briefly led the party as interim leader in 1985 but Saturday's result is the first time party members have elected a woman to the role.
"Maybe we'll see after the next general election that we'll have another first with a female as premier," Ouellette said.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/nb-liberals-new-party-leader-1.6542976
New Brunswick Liberals set to choose new party leader
Members using weighted, ranked balloting to choose leadership winner
Members have been voting remotely all week, but several hundred Liberals are expected to gather at an in-person convention in Fredericton, where the four candidates will speak and the results will be announced.
Members can also vote at the convention. Balloting will end at 2 p.m. and the party will announce first-round results around 2:15 p.m.
Former cabinet minister Donald Arseneault, current MLA Robert Gauvin, former MP T.J. Harvey and former adviser to the Brian Gallant government Susan Holt are on the ballot.
The winner will lead the party into the next election against the governing Progressive Conservatives now led by Premier Blaine Higgs.
Leadership candidate Donald Arseneault used to be the MLA for Campbellton—Dalhousie. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
It's a decisive moment for the Liberals, who have failed to win a majority of seats for two consecutive elections.
And the race may produce some surprises.
The Liberals are using a preferential ballot system, which means members voting over the past week have ranked their first, second, third and fourth choices for leader.
If no one wins a majority on the first count, the last-place candidate is dropped, and the second choices on their ballots are redistributed to the other candidates.
MLA Keith Chiasson, who is supporting T.J. Harvey, says members' second
choices for leader are also important. (Jacques Poitras/CBC News)
If that second tally still doesn't produce a winner with more than 50 per cent support, the candidate in third place is dropped and their second-choice votes are assigned to the remaining two candidates.
The system has existed since the 2012 Liberal leadership race, but this is the first time it is expected to be a factor in the outcome.
It has prompted the four campaigns to hustle to be the second or even third choice of many party members.
This week, volunteers have been contacting their candidates' supporters to remind them to vote. But they've also been contacting people who said their candidate was their second choice.
MLA Robert Gauvin, a former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister,
is one of four candidates for the Liberal leadership. (Héloïse
Bargain/Radio-Canada)
"Their vote is also very important," said Liberal MLA Keith Chiasson, a Harvey supporter.
The Tracadie MLA said the system has led to some confusion among some members.
"Obviously, we've been courting them from the beginning to encourage one candidate, and now all of a sudden they're faced with the fact they've got to rank them from one to four, so we've had some explaining to do."
Adding to the complexity, the Liberals are also using weighted voting, which is designed to give all 49 ridings in the province an equal say, regardless of the number of party members registered there.
Each riding is worth 100 points, so 4,900 points are up for grabs. The winner needs 2,451.
T.J. Harvey, the MP for Tobique—Mactaquac from 2015 to 2019, is running for leader of the provinial party. (Submitted)
It means ridings with fewer Liberal members are more lucrative for candidates on a per-voter basis.
For example, there are only 75 party members signed up to vote in Riverview, so a candidate that wins the support of 60 of them would get 80 points.
But 60 Liberal votes in Caraquet would yield only 13 points, because the party has 446 party members there. In that riding, a candidate would need 357 votes to get 80 points.
Chiasson said the merit of the system is that the candidates are forced to seek support across the province, not just in party strongholds where there are large numbers of Liberals.
Susan Holt, who was an adviser to former premier Brian Gallant, now wants to be leader herself. (Jacques Poitras/ CBC)
"Instead of focusing on one region of the province and getting as many Liberals in that region to vote, I think it encourages them to tour the province and engage with as many Liberals as they can," he said.
"It's a good preparation for the next step, which is the general election. If you've toured the province, if you engage with Liberals from up north, down south, east and west, it's kind of like a foundation for the next process or the next step, which is the general election."
The next provincial election is scheduled for Oct. 21, 2024.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
You made me look........
good one !!
Is a fearful and paranoid leader appropriate?
One member equals one functioning brain cell. 9500 functioning brain cells is something akin to a miracle.
Now go ahead and tatletale on me, see if I care.
Anyone is more qualified than Higgs. She's the only one that will beat him.
REALLY ???
Clearly many people dismiss Gauvin because he switched sides. I can understand that but don't share that view and stated some reasons beyond it being just my opinion. 1. He left the Higgs government because he was unhappy with Higgs' plan to close ERs. 2. He would make finding ways to bring in foreign trained health professionals.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/donald-arseneault-liberal-leadership-1.6542614
Donald Arseneault talks up experience, minimizes baggage in bid for Liberal leadership
'I think I got the political experience to rejuvenate the party'
One of the four candidates vying for the Liberal Party of New Brunswick's leadership says his experience and appetite to resolve issues make him the right person for the job.
Donald Arseneault will be on the ballot for the party's top job when members vote on Saturday.
Arseneault served as a Liberal MLA for 14 years in the now-defunct riding of Dalhousie-Restigouche East, and later for Campbellton-Dalhousie. He served as a minister in both the Shawn Graham and Brian Gallant governments.
"I think I got the political experience to rejuvenate the party, and that's going to be one of the main focus for the next two years, to really work on the party and make sure that we're election ready for 2024," said Arseneault.
"The governance experience for me is really important because we are facing big issues as a province and people are expecting … governments of the day to be able to resolve those issues."
Experience and baggage
Arseneault has more electoral and public service experience than his rivals, surpassing them by at least a decade.
But he also comes into the race with more political baggage.
He was a minister in the Graham government when the province struck a controversial deal to sell N.B. Power to Hydro-Quebec.
Arseneault was a cabinet minister when the plan to sell N.B. Power to
Hydro-Quebec was announced. (Jacques Boissinot/Canadian Press)
The deal later fell through, and contributed to the defeat of the one-term Graham government — at the time, the first one-term government in the province since Confederation.
But Arseneault said he is fine with defending the record of previous governments he's served in.
"I don't look at it as baggage," said Arseneault.
"When I was in opposition or within government, I was one of those who stood up when others didn't stand up."
Lobbying job
Arseneault also faced controversy in his own career.
In 2017 he took a second job as a government relations manager for Canada's Building Trades Unions, which would've involved lobbying governments, while he was still an MLA.
The province's integrity commissioner said there was nothing in the rules forbidding an MLA from taking a second job of that nature, but Arseneault resigned as MLA that November.
Donald Arseneault speaks to reporters after announcing he was resigning
as the MLA for Campbellton-Dalhousie. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
While the move was controversial at the time, he said it hasn't been an issue on the campaign trail.
"I wanted to experience Ottawa, the federal government scene," said Arseneault.
"After two years while in Ottawa, I realized that, you know, I missed provincial politics."
Health care top concern
Like all the other candidates vying for the leadership, Arseneault cites health care as a major issue for New Brunswick.
He said recruitment and retention of doctors and nurses is a major issue for the province, and said the government needs to look beyond the regional health authorities for solutions.
"Municipalities want to participate as well, community chambers of commerce want to participate as well," said Arseneault.
"Let's get them around the table and develop an action plan, a very aggressive action plan, in order to address that because that's where, really, the focus needs to be."
Arseneault says it’s important to get more voices around the table when
it comes to fixing health care. (Rocketclips Inc./Shutterstock)
Arseneault says the province needs to be aggressive and creative when it comes to recruiting more doctors and nurses, two things he said he's not seeing from the current government.
But he also said the province needs to grow its economy to have more money to spend on attracting medical professionals.
He said the economy has been a weak spot for the party with voters, something he wants to change.
"We need to be fiscally responsible," said Arseneault.
"If we're going to get credibility with the public, especially in areas where we've been weak politically over the last 10 years, I think that's one area that we need to focus on."
With files from Information Morning Summer Edition
Onetime Liberal cabinet minister hits comeback trail with bid for party leadership
Donald Arseneault sees his length of time in office as competitive advantage
Arseneault says his time in office, including two stints in cabinet under two Liberal premiers, will be an advantage against other, less experienced leadership candidates.
"I understand that some people look at me like I've been around for a bit," he said. "But I want to take that as a positive, because I know how to get things done. I've done it and I've got good experience with it."
Arseneault said however he's surrounding himself with "fresh faces," because there are many New Brunswickers "who've never really got involved but who've got great ideas. They don't know how to maybe bring it to the next step. I can make that happen."
Former federal Liberal MP T.J. Harvey is the only other officially declared candidate in the race so far. Harvey served one term as MP for Tobique-Mactaquac before leaving politics.
Campaign marks return to politics after controversy
Arseneault's entry represents a comeback four years after he quit the legislature during a conflict-of-interest controversy.
He resigned a year ahead of his planned retirement after it was revealed he was taking a part-time job as a trade union lobbyist in Ottawa while planning to continue as an MLA.
That didn't violate New Brunswick's lax conflict-of-interest rules, but the opposition argued it created a "perceived" conflict. Then-PC Opposition leader Blaine Higgs called the affair "an example of politics at its worst."
Premier Brian Gallant eventually said the same thing and insisted Arseneault either quit the new job or resign his seat.
Donald
Arseneault speaks to reporters in 2017 after announcing he was
resigning as the MLA for Campbellton-Dalhousie as a result of a conflict
of interest controversy. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Arseneault pointed out Thursday that the conflict of interest commissioner at the time "gave me the okay and that was made public as well."
"Unfortunately in politics, politics is perception. They made an issue in the legislature and I decided at that time I didn't want to take attention away from the real issues we had to deal with at the time."
History in N.B. politics
Arseneault was first elected in 2003 and quickly became known for his combative and partisan style.
He was part of the Shawn Graham cabinet that tried to sell NB Power to Hydro-Quebec and that awarded $50 million in loans and loan guarantees to the Atcon group of companies.
In 2015, back in power under Gallant, Arseneault resisted calls for more funding for a new investigation by Auditor-General Kim MacPherson into Atcon.
"She can do more work with the resources she has within her budget," he said.
Competition against former federal Liberal M.P.
Harvey, who announced his leadership campaign in June, called Arseneault a friend and welcomed him into the race.
But he contrasted his own private sector experience and a single four-year term in the House of Commons with Arseneault's long tenure in the legislature.
T.J. Harvey was the M.P. for Tobique-Mactaquac from 2015 to 2019. (Submitted)
"Everybody brings different qualities to a leadership race and certainly my qualities are informed by my life experiences and my work in the private sector, in agriculture, in transportation and in processing and manufacturing," he said.
"Don's absolutely right, he was a sitting MLA and minister under Shawn Graham's government and Brian Gallant's government. He brings a lot of experiences based on his time in office and I think his record speaks for itself."
Harvey declined to characterize that record, but said his own approach in government would be more inclusive than Graham and Gallant had been as premiers.
During the 2017 controversy over his part-time lobbying job, he revealed he'd held a paying position with the same union from 2010 to 2014, when he was an opposition MLA.
That income was not listed on Arseneault's public conflict declaration forms during that period. Members list other employment under a section called "financial and business interests."
Arseneault helped run the 2020 provincial Liberal campaign that saw Premier Blaine Higgs turn his minority government into a majority in the legislature.
Looking to better provincial government
He said Thursday voters were happy with how Higgs and Dr. Jennifer Russell had managed the COVID-19 pandemic and "they didn't want to take a chance to change government at that time. We felt that."
Now he says Higgs has divided the province, alienating Indigenous people and front-line health-care workers. He accused the premier of using federal transfers meant for COVID relief and health care to pad his budget surpluses.
"Here's a man and a government that has a calculator where their heart should be," he said.
Arseneault said he'll focus on "people, families and the economy" if he becomes premier and said affordable housing, soaring property assessments and other cost-of-living issues will be part of his agenda.
The provincial Liberals haven't set a date yet for the leadership vote.
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give him a glowing recommendation ?
Southwest Magazine: Donald Arseneault Interview
3 Comments
Donald arseneault followed rules with second job: integrity commissioner
New Brunswick Liberal Leader Candidate Donald Arseneault being silly at State of Province Address!!!
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Southwest Magazine: NB Liberal Leader Candidates
1 Comment
Gauvin's Liberal leadership pitch — to help internationally trained doctors and nurses work in N.B.
Shediac Bay-Dieppe MLA prioritizing health care in leadership run
New Brunswick needs more doctors and nurses, and Shediac Bay-Dieppe MLA Robert Gauvin wants to make it easier for internationally trained health-care workers to fill those roles — if he's given the chance.
"We have hundreds of people in New Brunswick right now that come from other countries," Gauvin told CBC Radio's Information Morning in the Summer.
"They would be able to work in British Columbia and Ontario in health care, but they cannot in New Brunswick because ... of red tape."
Gauvin said nurses in New Brunswick need relief from staffing shortages immediately before "the elastic snaps."
He said British Columbia and Ontario appear to have a better plan for hiring internationally trained professionals, and said it's "not logical" to him that officials in New Brunswick aren't calling officials in those provinces for advice.
Vacancies
in nursing positions have caused shortages in hospitals and created
added stress for the health-care workers left to fill in the gaps. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
Asked about the bureaucracy that might be slowing that down, Gauvin acknowledged consultations must be done with health-care unions, but also blamed Premier Blaine Higgs' government for the state of the province's health-care system.
"The relationship with this present government and people in health care, OK, is very difficult. So that's one reason why people are leaving [the health-care field]."
From Progressive Conservative to Liberal
The Progressive Conservative-turned-Liberal MLA is in a four-way leadership race, running against Susan Holt, who was a top adviser to former premier Brian Gallant, former Liberal cabinet minister and MLA Donald Arseneault, and former Tobique—Mactaquac MP T.J. Harvey.
A winner will be declared when the votes by Liberal party members are tallied on Saturday.
Gauvin said he "feels right at home" with the Liberals, and shares the party's values of inclusion and open-mindedness.
But in 2018, Gauvin won the Shippagan-Lamèque-Miscou riding as a PC candidate, and was later appointed deputy premier and minister of tourism with Higgs' minority government.
His allegiance to the party ended in 2020, when he quit to sit as an Independent MLA after his government proposed cuts to rural emergency rooms.
He ran as a Liberal that fall, winning the riding of Shediac Bay-Dieppe.
"Like I said, I feel right at home here. I'm very happy and looking forward to move ahead with the team and be able to take on the PC government in 2024," he said.
Gauvin said his other priorities include environmental protections and improving the education system.
"I would bring back trades in schools. We have taken trades out of school. A generation later, we have problems staffing in those jobs in New Brunswick," he said.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Harvey touts federal experience, private sector bona fides in Liberal leadership run
Former Tobique-Mactaquac MP T.J. Harvey 1 of 4 candidates running for provincial Liberal leadership
Perth-Andover's T.J. Harvey is one of four people running for the leadership of the centre-left party.
The party will hold the leadership election at a conference on Saturday.
Harvey previously served as the Liberal MP for Tobique-Mactaquac.
He was first elected as an MP in 2015, but only served one term before deciding not to run in the 2019 federal election.
But Harvey said he's also worked in "large scale agriculture, transportation, food processing, heavy civil construction" and has run his own businesses.
That experience on the national stage, combined with his private sector past, he said makes him the right candidate.
"For myself, I think that's one of my strengths," said Harvey.
"I have a varied career that's allowed me to see both sides from both within government and from the private sector."
Healthcare
Like other candidates running for the party's leadership, health care is at the top of the agenda for Harvey.
He said the province should be doing more to attract doctors and nurses, adding other provinces are doing a much better job of it.
"If my oldest daughter was taking nursing in Nova Scotia right now, what incentive is there for her to come back to New Brunswick and be a nurse here in New Brunswick," said Harvey.
Harvey said his experience in both government and the private sector
gives him a perspective that would help the party. (Submitted)
"She can make more money and get full time — full-time placement in Nova Scotia … We need to be at the table and offering competitive salaries and full-time hours of service if we want to attract new people to come to New Brunswick and have a career here in health care."
Harvey said he wants to see more effort put into digitizing medical records, so they can be accessible anywhere in the province.
He also said dealing with mental health issues that have popped up, partly because of the isolation imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, is a priority.
Focus on economy
Besides health care, Harvey said a Liberal Party led by him would also focus heavily on economic issues affecting regular New Brunswickers.
"I think the other real sleeper issue … that really hasn't been top of mind for New Brunswickers, that we're hearing about as we travel, is the economy," said Harvey.
"For me, when I say economy, I'm talking about the cost of living."
Harvey said rising food costs, interest rates and inflation mean a lot of New Brunswickers are starting to "feel the pinch."
He said what the province needs is a "long-term vision" and he thinks he's the candidate who can offer that.
"I
think it's been a long time since we had a government focused on the
long-term prosperity of the province and how we not only grow our
economy, but how we grow our province holistically for a brighter
future," said Harvey.
With files from Information Morning Summer Edition
Holt's 'fresh' message woos Liberals, but is it a winning pitch?
Susan Holt in four-way race to take over as N.B.'s Liberal leader
But it won't be clear until Saturday's result how real — or ephemeral — that support will be.
Holt is relentlessly promoting social media posts on Twitter by New Brunswickers who describe her as a fresh face, different from conventional politicians.
"I can't say I've even put much thought into why I have this feeling, but she's giving me hope for politicians in general and for government in the province," said Jamie Nason, a resident of Tracy, a rural community outside Fredericton.
Nason is a self-described progressive voter, as is Douglas Mullin, a longtime NDP candidate and volunteer who recently bought a Liberal membership to vote for Holt.
"For the Liberal Party, what she's presenting is definitely fresh," he said.
J.P. Lewis, a political scientist at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John, said the Holt groundswell on social media doesn't necessarily reflect reality but "these are our best cues to what's going on. … It can be the only information that we can clearly see."
J.P.
Lewis, a political scientist at the University of New Brunswick Saint
John, said Holt's support on social media doesn't necessarily reflect
reality but could be 'our best cues to what's going on.' (Graham Thompson/CBC)
'New' is a common theme
All four candidates in the leadership race are promoting themselves as new in one way or another.
Former MP T.J. Harvey is posting messages of support on his Facebook page from ordinary New Brunswickers. Liberal MLA Robert Gauvin's history as a former Progressive Conservative underscores his own unique form of newness.
Even former Liberal cabinet minister and MLA Donald Arseneault is arguing he purposely built a campaign team made up of people from outside the party's old guard.
But Arseneault is warning that the temptation to choose a brand-new leader has caused the Liberals grief in the last two provincial elections.
Holt is "definitely a strong candidate. She does have a lot of qualities that would make her a great leader," Arseneault said.
But "we went with fresh faces in the past. The last two [leaders], we went through fresh faces, and look where we are now."
Former premier Brian Gallant, left, and former Liberal leader Kevin
Vickers. (James West/The Canadian Press (left) and Mike Heenan/CBC
(right))
He was referring to former premier Brian Gallant, who failed to win a second majority in 2018 and lost power, and to Kevin Vickers, a political newcomer who failed to unseat the Progressive Conservatives in 2020.
Nason couldn't identify a specific policy or issue that Holt has raised that won her over.
"It's the fact that she's acknowledging that people have concerns at all," she said.
"I can't even say that there's any specific issue that she's come out on where I've said 'That thing really needs taking care of.' It's more general than that — that she's talking about people at all. … It feels different, at the very least."
Leap of faith
Mullin said he knows NDP-leaning voters have been persuaded to cast strategic votes for Liberals in the past, only to be disappointed.
But he said he's known Holt for more than a decade, so he's taking a leap of faith she'll live up to what she's promising.
"I believe what's she saying in the moment. So in the moment I'm putting my trust in that."
We know she's definitely not the first politician to say they're going to bring a fresh approach to politics- J.P. Lewis
But the new interim leader of the New Brunswick NDP, Alex White, said it's unlikely Holt would really break the mould.
"Regardless of the leadership of the Liberal Party … the policies have very rarely changed or brought improvements to the lives of everyday Canadians," White said.
Lewis called Holt's message "pretty abstract, and we know she's definitely not the first politician to say they're going to bring a fresh approach to politics."
Nason said she doesn't personally know people who are as excited as she is by Holt, though she sees a lot of them online, especially on Twitter.
"Maybe it's just because she's been smart enough to have a heavy social media presence," Nason said.
"It's worked before. Social media stardom has taken politicians where they wanted to go. Maybe that's all it is. But it feels different. … It feels like she is what I want a politician to be."
Lewis said the wavelet of enthusiasm for Holt can't be ignored, even if it may dissipate between now and the next election in 2024 — and that's assuming Holt wins at all.
If Holt doesn't win, it's not clear the people she has attracted to the party will want to stick around for a different leader. Mullin said he hasn't decided what he'll do if that happens.
Arseneault said while "new blood" is important for a political party, long-time party supporters can't be taken for granted.
"We can't just shove them aside," said the former cabinet minister, who argues election campaigns are major efforts that are complicated to organize. "It takes people with experience as well."
Holt has also been endorsed by a large number of old-guard Liberals, including former cabinet ministers Aldéa Landry, Bernard Thériault, Bernard Richard, Roly MacIntyre and Mary Schryer.
She also worked in former premier Brian Gallant's government.
Still, Lewis said the buzz about Holt from non-Liberals is a positive sign for a party that hasn't enjoyed much good electoral news since 2014.
"The New Brunswick Liberal Party needs any excitement it can get," Lewis said.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
---------- Original message ----------
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Tue, 2 Aug 2022 19:08:48 -0300
Subject: Attn Susan Holt I just called and left a voicemail after you
made another splash in CBC Now why not ask Higgy et al about my right
to Health Care???
To: info@susanholt.ca, hannah.rudderham@cbc.ca, susan@susanholt.ca,
"Robert. Jones" <Robert.Jones@cbc.ca>, info@donaldarseneault.ca,
info@tjharvey.ca, oldmaison <oldmaison@yahoo.com>, andre
<andre@jafaust.com>, andrew <andrew@frankmagazine.ca>
Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, "blaine.higgs"
<blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, briangallant10 <briangallant10@gmail.com>,
"bruce.fitch" <bruce.fitch@gnb.ca>, "robert.mckee"
<robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, "robert.gauvin" <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>,
"kris.austin" <kris.austin@gnb.ca>, david.coon@gnb.ca,
"Roger.L.Melanson" <roger.l.melanson@gnb.ca>, "benoit.bourque"
<benoit.bourque@gnb.ca>, pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, "Katie.Telford"
<Katie.Telford@pmo-cpm.gc.ca>, "Arseneau, Kevin (LEG)"
<kevin.a.arseneau@gnb.ca>, "Mitton, Megan (LEG)" <megan.mitton@gnb.ca>
---------- Original message ----------
From: "Higgs, Premier Blaine (PO/CPM)" <Blaine.Higgs@gnb.ca>
Date: Sun, 26 Dec 2021 20:51:13 +0000
Subject: RE: Attn NORMAN J. BOSSÉ Q.C. RE My right to Health Care I
got a call yesterday at about 4 PM from private number claiming to
speak for YOU True or False??
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Hello,
Thank you for taking the time to write.
Due to the volume of incoming messages, this is an automated response
to let you know that your email has been received and will be reviewed
at the earliest opportunity.
If your inquiry more appropriately falls within the mandate of a
Ministry or other area of government, staff will refer your email for
review and consideration.
Merci d'avoir pris le temps de nous écrire.
En raison du volume des messages reçus, cette réponse automatique vous
informe que votre courriel a été reçu et sera examiné dans les
meilleurs délais.
Si votre demande relève plutôt du mandat d'un ministère ou d'un autre
secteur du gouvernement, le personnel vous renverra votre courriel
pour examen et considération.
If this is a Media Request, please contact the Premier’s office at
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S’il s’agit d’une demande des médias, veuillez communiquer avec le
Cabinet du premier ministre au 506-453-2144.
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Tel./Tel. : (506) 453-2144
Email/Courriel:
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https://www.facebook.com/
Susan Holt for NB Liberal leader
Susan Holt - candidate à la chefferie libérale
Page · Political Candidate
New Brunswick
(506) 238-0583
info@susanholt.ca
susanholt.ca
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Susan Holt emphasizes health care in Liberal leadership campaign
Susan Holt is the first woman to seek leadership of New Brunswick Liberal Party
The first in a series of stories this week on the four New Brunswick Liberal leadership candidates
Liberal leadership candidate Susan Holt says one way to attract and hold onto doctors in New Brunswick would be to eliminate mandatory hospital rounds.
Holt said the amount of time family doctors in the province must spend at local hospitals takes them away from their practices.
She said this system is slowly being replaced with another model, in which physicians known as hospitalists work solely in the hospital.
But Holt said she's spoken to new physicians who find the hospital rounds that are still required are a deterrent.
Holt has made health care a key part of her campaign for the leadership, which the party will decide this coming Saturday.
She said recruitment of doctors and other health-care workers is only part of the solution to the shortages in the New Brunswick system.
Medical professionals also need to be able to practise using all of their skills, she said in an interview on Information Morning in the Summer.
"It's not just a recruitment solution because if we're recruiting people in, but they're exiting on the back end, we have to fix the culture and the reasons why people are leaving the system," said Holt.
Advised Brian Gallant
Holt was a top adviser to Brian Gallant, who was premier for four years until Blaine Higgs and the Progressive Conservatives took power in 2018.
"I think I bring a fresh perspective and energy and a real focus on transparency and accountability [and] that is what the people in New Brunswick are saying that they want from government," she said.
But Holt said she doesn't think she would reverse Higgs's decision last month to fire Horizon Health Network's CEO and dissolve both health authority boards.
She said she'll be watching the impact of those decisions over the next few years.
Favours role for public
"I don't love our knee-jerk reaction to just reverse what previous parties or governments have done, so it's something I think that would take careful thought," she said.
"But I do think having great leaders in the health-care system is important. But I also think having the public's participation in those elected roles on boards is important."
In addition to health care, another challenge "near and dear" to Holt's heart is New Brunswick's carbon footprint.
She said the climate crisis has been looming, changing the world in the process.
But the government can do a few things to help, Holt said, such as going green with its own operations, including transportation, government buildings and procurement.
4 seeking top job
The other candidates in the leadership race are MP T.J. Harvey, former MLA Donald Arseneault and current MLA Robert Gauvin.
Roger Melanson, MLA for Dieppe, has been serving as interim party leader since shortly after the 2020 provincial election, which the Liberals lost under the leadership of Kevin Vickers. Vickers resigned on election night after the party won only 17 of 49 seats in the legislature.
Holt is the first woman to run for the provincial Liberal leadership, though Saint John Liberal MLA Shirley Dysart was interim leader of the party in 1985.
Holt ran for the Liberals in Fredericton South in the 2018 election but came second to Green Party Leader David Coon.
She said an ideal situation if she won the leadership race would be to have a byelection and be elected to lead the party from a position in the legislative assembly.
She said she's not sure yet where she'd run in 2024 if she became leader, or whether she'd run for a seat if she didn't win.
Holt said she's been drawn to politics for many years, so she doesn't think that feeling will go away, but she also said the decision to run for leadership was a big one for her family.
"I can't quite predict where the five of us will be in two years and whether my husband will be on board for going through this again," she said.
"I really believe that this is the time for a change in politics and government. We need to do things differently at a personal level."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Information Morning in the Summer
Commenting is now closed for this story.
Lord help us if thats the best idea she has. There are so many more systemic issues wrong with the healthcare system than this itsy bitsy tiny one. I can see now why we are in such horrible shape. Ive got about 20 ideas that would make a bigger impact than that gem of an idea.
Not saying much about Gallant !!
I was surprised Ms. Holt was a " top advisor"
to Brian Gallant !!
It's true....he only took advice from Ottawa !!
It seems to me that the squeaky wheel gets the grease EH Mr Jones?
Family demands answers after Fredericton ER sends man home hours after he broke neck
Motorcycle crash left John Barnet with broken neck vertebra, broken sternum
Now his family is demanding answers as to why the 41-year-old man was discharged from the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital in Fredericton hours after crashing his motorcycle, and with little in the way of followup care for injuries that could have long-term effects.
"It's unacceptable," Taylor Grandy, his wife, said in an interview Friday.
"He should still be in the hospital. He really should be, you know, at least for a week or more."
Barnet recently purchased a motorcycle and went out for a ride with a friend on Tuesday afternoon, Grandy said.
Shortly after crossing the Princess Margaret Bridge on Route 8, Grandy said, her husband hit some gravel, lost control of his bike and hit the highway median.
Paramedics took him to the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital around 8 p.m., where he was treated for a broken C7 vertebra in his neck, a broken sternum, a broken nose, a split tongue and broken teeth.
Grandy said she rushed to the hospital fearing the worst.
Taylor Grandy has been taking care of her husband since he was
discharged from hospital in the early hours of Wednesday. (Submitted by
Taylor Grandy)
When she got there, a nurse warned her of the severity of Barnet's injuries before wheeling him back into the emergency room on a stretcher following his CT scan.
"He was in so much pain. So much pain. He said, 'Taylor, I think my back's broken,' and it was just a mess."
Grandy said once the results of the CT scan confirmed the broken vertebra in his neck, staff started giving her instructions for maintaining the brace her husband had around his neck.
Then without explanation, they informed the couple Barnet would be discharged from the hospital later that evening.
"They wanted to sit him up in the bed … to kind of get him up moving, and they were like, 'You can go home tonight'.
"And even John couldn't believe it."
John Barnet and Taylor Grandy live in Fredericton with their five
children. He's pictured before the accident. (Submitted by Taylor
Grandy)
Grandy said she called Barnet's sister at around 1 a.m. to help get him up and out of the hospital. After a 90-minute struggle to move him without hurting him, they had him loaded into the family minivan with their five children and were on their way back to their home in Fredericton.
Staff sent Barnet home with a few Tylenol tablets, prescriptions for naproxen and morphine, and a referral to a neurosurgeon in Saint John, Grandy said.
It's a decision that, even two days later, still has her perplexed considering the severity of his injuries.
"And the doctor did tell me that if he moves a certain way or if he takes the [brace] off or anything like that, he could be paralyzed."
Grandy also said she's called the neurosurgeon Barnet was referred to the day after, only to find out he's away from work for the next week and a half.
In a statement to CBC News, Horizon Health Network said Barnet's discharge wasn't related to bed availability or staff shortages.
"This patient was medically discharged from our ED after the physician completed their assessment using clinical judgment and consulting with peers," wrote Margaret Melanson, Horizon's interim president and CEO.
Both patient representative services and the hospital have been in contact with the family about their concerns, Melanson said, and a specialist is following up with the patient for further medical assessments.
"Horizon apologizes for any part of the care experience that did not meet their expectation," Melanson said. "We look forward to continuing to provide care to this patient as they recover."
Grandy is the second person this month to publicly criticize the Chalmers hospital.
John Staples said he witnessed an older man die while waiting to receive care in the hospital's waiting room in the early morning hours of July 12.
It prompted Horizon to launch a review into what happened, and later prompted Premier Blaine Higgs to fire Horizon CEO John Dornan, and replace the board of directors for both Horizon and Vitalité with individual trustees.
Seeking action from premier
Aside from his wife, Barnet's parents are also demanding answers and action in light of the decision to discharge him hours after arriving at the hospital.
Dave
and Nancy Barnet, parents of John Barnet, are calling on Premier Blaine
Higgs to look into why their son was discharged from hospital. (Submitted by Dave Barnet)
"The action of the hospital leaves us with disgust and anger," Dave and Nancy Barnet said in a letter they sent to Higgs on Thursday.
"Why was our son not kept for observation for at least 24 to 48 hours after being told he could be paralyzed? Why was he sent home in his condition after six hours?"
In an interview Friday, Dave Barnet said he hadn't heard back from Higgs, adding he's not just looking for an explanation, but action to improve the care offered at the hospital.
"I'm hoping to hear that some kind of statement or news comes out, that they're going to find more money or allocate resources or transfer money and get more nurses and or doctors in the [Chalmers] to resolve this critical situation," Barnet said.
In an email statement to CBC News, Higgs said he has received the Barnets' letter and will be contacting them to learn more about their experience.
"It's not something I will comment further on in the media as I would prefer to speak with them directly," he said.
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1119 Comments
Commenting is now closed for this story.
Jonathan Symthe
We were promised that health care would be universally accessible.
Apparently we were never promised that the care would be of good quality.
After more hospital complaints, Higgs gets involved in health-care system — again
Nancy Barnet says Higgs, Horizon Health CEO both called after complaints about son's treatment at hospital
Dave and Nancy Barnet had demanded answers last week about why their son John was discharged from the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital in Fredericton just hours after breaking his neck in a motorcycle crash.
Following their public complaints, Nancy Barnet said the premier called her and her husband at their home in Pictou, N.S.
She said Margaret Melanson, interim president and CEO of Horizon Health Network, also called and arranged to have a doctor examine John at home. He was later taken by ambulance to a hospital in Saint John.
John Barnet broke the C7 vertebra in his neck as well as his sternum, but was sent home after six hours of care in Fredericton. His parents wanted to know why he wasn't kept for at least 24 hours for observation of injuries that could have left him paralyzed.
Nancy Barnet said Higgs called twice over the weekend — first on Saturday and again on Sunday — and left voice messages, as she and her husband weren't home to answer the phone.
Dave
and Nancy Barnet, John's parents, received two calls from New Brunswick
Premier Blaine Higgs after they sent him a letter asking him to look
into how their son was treated at the hospital in Fredericton. (Submitted by Dave Barnet)
Not up to Higgs to run health authorities
The move comes after a July 15 news conference during which Higgs, responding to the death of a man in the emergency department waiting room of the same hospital, said it wasn't up to him to run the health authorities but it was up to him "to ensure that the right people are in the positions to do so."
That incident prompted Higgs to fire the former president and CEO of Horizon Health and to replace its board of directors with a single trustee. He also replaced the province's health minister.
Horizon Health didn't answer questions about whether Higgs played a role in the followup care provided to Barnet.
In an emailed statement, Melanson said she felt it was important to personally follow up with Barnet to determine how he and his family were faring, and whether there was anything she could do to help.
Meanwhile, Nancy Barnet said they appreciate whatever the premier did.
"As a matter of fact, I'm planning to give [Higgs] a call myself today to thank him," she said. "I do believe that without his support, things may not have moved as quickly as they did."
Barnet declined to share what Higgs said in his voice messages.
John
Barnet's parents received two missed phone calls from Higgs after they
wrote him a letter complaining about the treatment he received at a
Fredericton hospital. (Pat Richard/CBC)
She said her son has since been discharged from hospital in Saint John and is back home in Fredericton — in pain, but recovering.
CBC News requested an interview with Higgs about his involvement in the case and is waiting for a response.
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Mike May
Funny how they only care when it gives them negative press!
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