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POLITICS BRIEFING

By Chris Hannay (@channay)

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It's been nearly six months since Justin Trudeau was sworn in as prime minister, and so far the challenges of governing haven't taken a toll on his popularity.

According to Nanos Research's weekly polling, Mr. Trudeau has stayed at the high level of popularity he's enjoyed since winning the fall election. The Liberals' brand score has remained constant, well above their rivals, and Mr. Trudeau himself has consistently won the support of half or more respondents on the question of who their preferred prime minister is. (No doubt Mr. Trudeau gets some boost from the fact that the other two largest parties in the House are without permanent leaders.)

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS MORNING

> B.C. Premier Christy Clark is being paid tens of thousands of dollars a year by the B.C. Liberal Party, on top of her legislative salary, The Globe's Gary Mason reports.

> The failure of the Catholic Church to raise $25-million for residential-school survivors has let other churches off the hook in their fundraising efforts.

> Mr. Trudeau categorically denied Canada would pay a ransom for hostages kidnapped by terrorists, which raises the question of a Canadian rescue mission in the Philippines.

> The inside story of Canada's $15-billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia. (for subscribers)

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> The Liberals have ruled out a referendum on electoral reform, but could they hold an assembly of citizens?

> The aid group Kairos, whose federal funding was famously lost with a Conservative minister's "not," is trying to make inroads with the new Liberal government.

> Who is Garnett Genuis, the rookie Conservative MP who's already spoken more than 44,000 words in the House?

> And in the U.S., it's becoming more and more certain that Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton will emerge as the presidential nominees.

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WHAT EVERYONE'S TALKING ABOUT

"Terrorist ransoms provide governments with very few good options. If a government decides to facilitate a payment, it risks directly, if also unintentionally, facilitating terrorism and political instability. Cash provides militants with access to weapons and recruits. In this particular case, Abu Sayyaf sought millions of dollars, useful for patching up its faltering insurgency. The associated risk is diplomatic fallout. The Philippine government was unusually blunt. Only last week it "encourage[d] everyone to observe" its "no ransom policy" with local militants. Manila's strategic objective is to end the insurgency and stabilize the country. Canadian ransom money flowing into Abu Sayyaf's coffers would be a hard sell." – Alex Wilner.

Adam Radwanski (Globe and Mail): "But while [Tony] Clement's apparent lack of self-awareness is easy to snicker at, it is emblematic of a persistent problem for both the Conservatives and the Liberals in pushing for openness and accountability when they are out of power. And it points to potential opportunity for the NDP, as the third party tries to set itself apart."

Tim Powers (Hill Times): "Conservatives can howl at the moon, as they did in the last election, and stand pat on the criminalization of marijuana, or they can take a strong, mature, proactive role in dealing with this inevitability."

Matt Gurney (National Post): "Unfortunately, indications suggest the Liberals have opted to ignore the obvious focus of the anniversary – Confederation itself, and the astonishing progress Canadians have achieved since then – in favour of four issues that are currently fashionable in "progressive" ranks: the environment, youth, inclusion and diversity, and reconciliation with native people."

Michael Den Tandt (Postmedia): "As one season turns to another and the planet spins on its axis, the Montreal-based aerospace giant [Bombardier] is pressing its substantial, state-subsidized girth to the trough once again, buttons popping, hands outstretched for another bowl of nosh. It is the people's duty, we are told, to fork over $1-billion of our collectively borrowed money (because Ottawa is, of course, running at a $30-billion deficit) for the furtherance of the company's CSeries passenger jet."

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