Toronto Star · The Globe and Mail · Ottawa Citizen · Edmonton Journal · Vancouver Sun
David McLaughlin
Publishing · On our record since 2012
Where this writer stands
Energy2 pieces
Restrict new oil and gasExpand production and export
“"A country that cannot feed itself, fuel itself or defend itself has few options. When the rules no longer protect you, you must protect yourself."” Read the piece
Defence2 pieces
Restrain spending and deploymentsHigher spending and more capability
“"A country that cannot feed itself, fuel itself or defend itself has few options. When the rules no longer protect you, you must protect yourself."” Read the piece
Trade1 piece
Diversify away from one partnerDeeper continental integration
“That's why we should put American products back on LCBO shelves — so I can walk right by them.” Read the piece
Foreign affairs1 piece
Alliance restraintAssertive alliances and sanctions
“"Middle powers must act together because if we're not at the table, we're on the menu."” Read the piece
Only opinion columns and editorials are scored. Each piece is read twice by a language model, which records the author's own stance on a policy topic only where the piece argues one, with a quote that must appear in the piece. An author's position on a topic is the average of their pieces, weighted by the model's confidence. News reporting is listed but never scored.
Recent work
- On Donald Trump, Doug Ford needs a strategy, not a shtickOpinion · Toronto Star · Sep 2, 2026
- Want Canada to stand up for itself? Put U.S. booze back on the shelvesOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 13, 2026
- Mark Carney’s new majority challenge? A potentially unruly backbench. This is how he can keep them in lineOpinion · Toronto Star · Apr 16, 2026
- This is Mark Carney at his most sincereOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 22, 2026
- Mark Carney’s Davos speech shows what ‘elbows up’ will really look likeOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 21, 2026
- Carney faces a growing risk that he’s promising more than he can deliverOpinion · Toronto Star · Nov 6, 2025
- We’re all Ernie Clement nowOpinion · Toronto Star · Oct 31, 2025
- Mark Carney’s real test starts nowOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 22, 2025
- Mark Carney has had it easy so far. Now, he has to deal with Pierre PoilievreOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 21, 2025
- Opinion: Michael Sabia faces an uphill climb in reforming Canada’s civil serviceOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jun 24, 2025
- Opinion: Mark Carney’s bulky and performative cabinetOpinion · The Globe and Mail · May 12, 2025
- When Mark Carney speaks everyone listens. I’m a speechwriter and here are some tips he should use to connect with CanadiansOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 29, 2025
- Canada’s future is supposed to be at stake in this election. Will somebody please tell that to the people running to be prime minister?Opinion · Toronto Star · Mar 26, 2025
- The 2025 federal election is the most important of our lives. I hope it starts soonOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 25, 2025
- The Liberals are on the verge of a remarkable comeback. There’s one thing the new leader must do to clinch a winOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 8, 2025
- Poilievre excelled at taking people down. Can he lift people up?Opinion · Toronto Star · Feb 18, 2025
- Opinion: A secret sitting of Parliament could shed light on foreign interferenceOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Nov 5, 2024
- Opinion: There’s a troubling amount of churn at the top of Canada’s public serviceOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 17, 2024
- Opinion: Canada may be headed for a populist government – but how would it govern?Opinion · The Globe and Mail · Jun 9, 2024
- Opinion: Four years on, has Canada learned anything from the COVID-19 pandemic?Opinion · Ottawa Citizen · Mar 25, 2024
- Opinion: To avoid ArriveCan-style fiascos, the Canadian government should create a COO positionOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Feb 20, 2024
- Opinion: Health care requires long-term fixes, and far more than one first ministers’ meetingOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Feb 6, 2023
- Opinion: The trust that binds Canada together is crackingOpinion · The Globe and Mail · May 29, 2022
- Opinion: Let us praise vaccine mandates before we bury themOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Feb 13, 2022
- Opinion: Every minister of every cabinet across Canada must be vaccinatedOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Nov 15, 2021
- Opinion: If you’re making a land acknowledgment, make sure you mean itOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Feb 10, 2020
- Opinion: The sole premier to stand up against Bill 21Opinion · The Globe and Mail · Nov 30, 2019
- Crown corporations and Manitoba Hydro: Who speaks for the public?Opinion · The Globe and Mail · Mar 22, 2018
- Will Doug Ford go big or stay home?Opinion · The Globe and Mail · Mar 11, 2018
- Why Atlantic Canada risks losing its seat on the Supreme Court benchOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Aug 3, 2016
- Why Atlantic Canada risks losing its seat on the Supreme Court benchOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Aug 3, 2016
- Tenors: Our anthem is too important to change on a whimOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 13, 2016
- Tenors: Our anthem is too important to change on a whimOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 13, 2016
- Tenors: Our anthem is too important to change on a whimOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 13, 2016
- Alberta the natural fit for Kenney’s conservatismOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 7, 2016
- Alberta the natural fit for Kenney’s conservatismOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 7, 2016
- Alberta the natural fit for Kenney’s conservatismOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 7, 2016
- Not so sunny ways: Scuffle just the latest in Liberal spectacleOpinion · The Globe and Mail · May 18, 2016
- Liberal move on electoral reform: Big on goals, short on principlesOpinion · The Globe and Mail · May 12, 2016
- If Canada wants pipelines built, five hard truths are in orderOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jan 28, 2016
- Canada’s climate policy must move from rhetoric to realityOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Nov 24, 2015
- What his cabinet show tells us about Trudeau’s visionOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Nov 4, 2015
- Cabinet-making tips for the novice PMOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Oct 25, 2015
- Time and strategy were on the Liberals’ sideOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Oct 14, 2015
- Ground-game strategy: Get out the voteOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Oct 7, 2015
- How to play the campaign endgameOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Sep 30, 2015
- In today’s tight election campaign, Quebec matters more than you thinkOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Sep 27, 2015
- The campaign quest for an economic narrativeOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Sep 17, 2015
- For all parties, a crucial point in the campaignOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Sep 10, 2015
- Why Harper’s campaign needs a mid-election rebootOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Sep 8, 2015
- It feels like five elections, not oneOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Aug 19, 2015
- The long campaign is the strategyOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Aug 12, 2015
- Not one debate, but four – which did you watch?Opinion · The Globe and Mail · Aug 6, 2015
- ‘Toxic’ Senate will have to heal itselfOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jul 31, 2015
- Why Harper’s G7 signature is no green epiphanyOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Jun 9, 2015
- Is this the kind of Conservative government MacKay envisaged?Opinion · The Globe and Mail · May 31, 2015
- Canada needs a new approach to protecting groundwaterOpinion · The Globe and Mail · May 27, 2015
- A provincial patchwork is the worst way to tax carbonOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Apr 30, 2015
- The U.S. is moving on climate. That’s a problem – for CanadaOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Apr 30, 2015
- By grasping at the Holocaust, our politicians set a toxic toneOpinion · The Globe and Mail · Mar 10, 2015