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William Watson

William Watson

Financial Post

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William Watson: Our goal should still be access to the U.S. market

William Watson: Our goal should still be access to the U.S. market
yesterday 1

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: Don’t give up on the U.S. market just yet

William Watson: Don’t give up on the U.S. market just yet
previous day 10

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: Equal-time leaders' debates are unfair to voters

William Watson: Equal-time leaders' debates are unfair to voters
27.03.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: To raise productivity, let Canadians profit from it 

William Watson: To raise productivity, let Canadians profit from it 
26.03.2025 10

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: 51st state? With the 47th president? No thanks, eh

William Watson: 51st state? With the 47th president? No thanks, eh
20.03.2025 10

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: Let’s not build pipelines to nowhere just to annoy Trump

William Watson: Let’s not build pipelines to nowhere just to annoy Trump
18.03.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Do we fight Trump to our last sacred cow?

William Watson: Do we fight Trump to our last sacred cow?
13.03.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: One thing the election won’t be about — how to handle Trump

11.03.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Trump's tariff reciprocity could be OK for us

06.03.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Let's hope Poilievre 'cuts, cuts, cuts.' Someone’s going to have to

04.03.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Elites and populists are both right and wrong about each other

27.02.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Return of the ugly American

26.02.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Our Trump transition plan should focus on safety nets

20.02.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Does our net export of hockey players mean U.S. tariffs are coming?

19.02.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Washington going policy-crazy doesn’t mean we should, too

11.02.2025 10

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: Please, no ministries of trade diversification

06.02.2025 4

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: The U.S. tariff order focuses on fentanyl. That's our off-ramp

04.02.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Thinking about tariffs can induce migraines

30.01.2025 6

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William Watson

William Watson: Ottawa tells Amazon be more like Canada Post

28.01.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Beggar-thy-customer is a lousy idea Mr. Trump

23.01.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Compared with the U.S., our ship of state is barnacled with ministries

21.01.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Searching for ways to poke Trump in the eye 

16.01.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: My plan for domestic political interference in the Liberal leadership race

14.01.2025 10

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William Watson

William Watson: Make the states provinces, Donald, and be PM for life

11.01.2025 3

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William Watson

William Watson: Trudeau was a consequential prime minister, alas

10.01.2025 10

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: Liberal GST holiday fiasco may lead to tax sanity

A change of leader, eventually of government, is the right time to shift the tax system toward simpler rules, broader bases and lower rates You can...

07.01.2025 7

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: Good news in 2025 would be governments saying 'No!'

Any new federal government needs to channel the Chrétien-Martin years and focus on spending restraint and fiscal responsibility You can save this...

02.01.2025 2

Financial Post

William Watson

Pierre Poilievre — take note of Liz Truss's ensnarement: How FP columnists saw it in 2024

Read excerpts from columns that appeared in July, August and September 2024 in FP Comment. This in the third instalment in a series You can save...

27.12.2024 5

Financial Post

William Watson

'Rich people pay lots of tax' and a 'woke' Statistics Canada: How FP columnists saw it in 2024

Read excerpts from columns that appeared in April, May and June 2024 in FP Comment. This in the second instalment in a series You can save this...

26.12.2024 2

Financial Post

William Watson

'Reality will continue to swamp the Liberal regime': How FP columnists saw it in 2024

Read excerpts from columns that appeared in January, February and March 2024 in FP Comment You can save this article by registering for free here....

24.12.2024 5

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: You’re a mean one, Mr. Trump!

In countering the tariff threat it's best not to go as Grinch-like as he does but rather stick with an approach true to our values You can save...

20.12.2024 5

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: If this is how America treats its friends …

Our goods-trade surplus with the U.S. is not them subsidizing us. If anything, it's the reverse: they send us paper and promises for goods You can...

18.12.2024 5

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William Watson

William Watson: Show me the numbers in the prevention/cure trade-off

In health care and crime we're told to spend more attacking root causes. But how exactly will a policy improve results? You can save this article...

12.12.2024 6

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William Watson

William Watson: The tragedy of the one-carry-on commons

The real problem with carry-on is that your ticket doesn't assign a defined space in the overhead bin. Property rights are urgently needed You can...

10.12.2024 3

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William Watson

William Watson: Don't blame Canada for the U.S. trade deficit

It's not that big a deal. Plus we account for only seven per cent of it — five per cent if you add in services trade, as you should You can save...

05.12.2024 4

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William Watson

William Watson: Trump, Trudeau and the art of the irrational deal

Starting negotiations with a Mar-a-Lago dinner at which you make nice and find out the price of removing the tariff threat isn't crazy You can save...

03.12.2024 4

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William Watson

William Watson: Are we sure we shouldn’t panic about the Trump tariff?

If a 25% tariff is just a bargaining chip, that's one thing. But if it's in place for any length of time, it will be a disaster You can save this...

28.11.2024 4

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William Watson

William Watson: Christmas bribes? What kind of people do the Liberals think we are?

A government that's flat broke asks our kids to pay for Christmas bribes that will get us to vote for it again. What chumps we must be! You can...

26.11.2024 4

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William Watson

William Watson: Sorry, Pierre Poilievre — reason beats rhyme in policy-making

The federal Conservatives should put good policies in their election platform, even if they can't be summarized in a rhyme You can save this...

21.11.2024 3

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William Watson

William Watson: In Trump’s Fed we may or may not trust

A study finds that Americans' trust that the Fed can manage inflation and unemployment is not high. Surprisingly, Trump doesn't make it worse You...

14.11.2024 3

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William Watson

William Watson: Fifty ways to lose an election

Why did Harris lose? We'd have to ask the one-in 25-voters who cost her the election. Their answer is likely to involve many things You can save...

06.11.2024 4

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William Watson

William Watson: And now the world holds its breath

Whoever becomes U.S. president is likely to have less than 50% of the vote, for the 20th time since 1824 You can save this article by registering...

05.11.2024 2

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William Watson

William Watson: Make sure pension changes don’t discourage work

A new study of the incentive effects of retirement income programs like CPP, OAS and GIS finds they matter a lot. Policy-makers beware You can save...

31.10.2024 4

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William Watson

William Watson: Politics in 2024 — slander, pander, weave and deceive

Presidential politics has a long history of insult, falsehood and electoral payoffs. But you'd think we'd be better than that now You can save this...

29.10.2024 3

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William Watson

William Watson: Do you still dislike inequality even when it’s earned?

A new U.S. study shows that big differences in how much people work lead to big differences in their lifetime earnings. Is that a problem? You can...

24.10.2024 3

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William Watson

William Watson: Is Ottawa trying to game Canadians?

From votes of non-confidence to charges of foreign interference, it seems clear that politicians are playing their own games, not ours You can save...

22.10.2024 5

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William Watson

William Watson: Alas, even Canada's soft power doesn't impress the world

A new IMF study ranks us 14th on a 'global soft power index.' Even worse, the U.S., global hard-power champ, is seven spots ahead of us You can...

17.10.2024 2

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William Watson

William Watson: Cultivate your own productivity, keeping Ottawa out of it

The productivity numbers haven't been good lately. The federal government trying to plan productivity could make them even worse You can save this...

15.10.2024 3

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William Watson

William Watson: Enough of the job-creation myths from politicians working to get votes

Graph U.S. employment over time and it's hard to see the mark of individual presidents. Trends dominate. Politics should recognize that You can...

10.10.2024 2

Financial Post

William Watson

William Watson: To encourage growth, fire all the lawyers?

Two obstacles to growth, glacial approval of mega-projects and that old millstone, interprovincial barriers, won't be so easy to overcome You can...

08.10.2024 4

Financial Post

William Watson