What We’re Watching: Carney heads to Washington, D.C. to meet with Trump as Conservative caucus gathers in Ottawa – iPolitics

A week and a day after leading the Liberal Party to a fourth consecutive term in government, albeit just shy of the 172-seat threshold required for a working majority in the House of Commons, Prime Minister Mark Carney will make his way to the White House for what may be one of the most high-stakes meetings of his professional career: namely, his first-ever tête-à-tête with U.S. President Donald Trump. (Tuesday)

So far, few details on either the exact timing or the format have been released, although Carney’s office has confirmed that he’ll be travelling to Washington, D.C., on Monday — a day ahead of the meeting, which “will focus on both the immediate trade pressures and the broader future economic and security relationship between the two sovereign nations,” according to the advisory.

During his first post-election press conference last week, Carney framed the meeting as the starting point for “difficult but constructive discussions,” but made it clear that he “doesn’t expect the U.S. president to immediately back down from his threats to impose crippling tariffs on imports from Canada,” iPolitics reported.

“When asked by iPolitics why he expects Trump to engage in good faith negotiations, considering the White House’s public position that Canada should be annexed, Carney said the meeting’s prompt organization suggests both countries are equally willing to engage.

“’I’ve had the direct conversation with [Trump]… and we agreed to have those negotiations,’ said Carney. ‘The time allocated to our meeting and the seniority…, I mean, he’s the president so that’s as senior as you get, but the other members of his administration who will be assisting at those meetings suggests the seriousness of the discussion.’”

In a separate exchange, he noted that he’s “not pretending those discussions will be easy,” adding: “They won’t proceed in a straight line. There will be zigs and zags, ups and downs, but I will fight for the best deal for Canada and only accept the best deal for Canada and take as much time as necessary.”

Conservative MPs, senators hold first post-election meet-up

Back in the (Canadian) capital, Conservative MPs and senators are set to assemble for the first time since the party fell short in its third-and-counting bid to oust the Liberals from office, but nevertheless managed to secure its highest share of the cross-country vote in decades and boost its seat count from 120 to 143 even as their leader, Pierre Poilievre, went down to defeat in his erstwhile home riding of Carleton, Ont.

As of Sunday morning, multiple media outlets were reporting that the extended closed door session will take place on Tuesday, although as per longstanding Conservative tradition, no formal notice had been provided to the media. (Tuesday a.m.)

At the top of the to-do list: A series of potentially critical votes on whether to opt in to some— or all — of the  provisions outlined in the Reform Act, a backbench bill initiated by Conservative MP Michael Chong during the final months of then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government aimed at rebalancing the power dynamics between party and caucus leadership and rank-and-file MPs.

In addition to sections that, if adopted, would give the caucus the final say over expelling or readmitting caucus members, it also “includes the ability to elect an interim leader if one dies, resigns or is incapacitated,” and establishes a process to “launch a leadership review to either endorse or replace a leader of the party,” The Globe and Mail noted last week.

“The vote on a leadership review is held by secret ballot, the same process that led to the ouster of former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole after he lost the 2021 election to Justin Trudeau’s Liberals.”

Another time-sensitive question that’s likely to come up during the back-and-forth: Who should temporarily take on the title of Leader of His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition until Poilievre is back in his front-and-centre row seat in the House of Commons — which, it’s worth noting, is now all but certain to happen before the fall sitting gets rolling after two-term Conservative MP Damien Kurek served notice that he intends to step down as MP of the solidly Conservative riding of Battle River – Crowfoot, Alta., which would clear the way for a byelection this summer.

“It’s not yet clear if Poilievre will throw his support behind a particular candidate — or if it’s even necessary to do that as there may be a consensus pick,” CBC News reported last week.

“Some names that have been floated by Conservative sources are deputy leader Melissa Lantsman, House leader and former party leader Andrew Scheer and Michael Barrett, the party’s ethics critic. Those three have been trusted Poilievre lieutenants throughout his tenure. They have been given leeway to speak for the party publicly, including during the election — a work assignment given to few other MPs or candidates.”

Perhaps most crucially, they “all endorsed Poilievre’s continued leadership in social media posts in the hours after the election loss,” CBC notes.

As yet, there’s no word on whether the caucus will anoint an acting leader this week or hold off until the new session gets underway on May 26, 2025.

Elsewhere in the precinct: With just three weeks to go until the 45th Parliament officially opens for business,  the nonpartisan House of Commons Administration kicks off the opening round of “group orientation sessions” traditionally offered to newly elected MPs, which, according to the notice, will include “personalized meetings (with) subject matter experts who will advise them as they set up their constituency and Hill offices” by providing an “overview of the parliamentary precinct, human resources and staffing, financial resources, security and digital infrastructure.” among other “key topics.” (Monday a.m.)

Also on the radar: Amnesty International secretary general Agnès Callamard hits the West Block press theatre alongside Amnesty International Canada representatives France-Isabelle Langlois and  Ketty Nivyaband, where, in addition to promoting the group’s “latest global annual report,” Callamard will “warn about the rise of authoritarian practices around the word, particularly in the United States,” as per the advisory, as well as “highlight opportunities for the next federal government to present itself as a leader in the defence of human rights both at home and abroad.” (Monday a.m.)