‘Foreign actors’ less threatening to elections than homegrown

Public trust in politics takes a more sustained beating from legitimate political leaders every day than from any foreign bot, online troll, or basement-dwelling saboteur.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is doing a commendable job of emphasizing the threat of western Canadian separatism. Maxime Bernier is hard at work motivating xenophobes and angry white minorities. Justin Trudeau's Liberals are pouncing on, and magnifying, any whiff of social conservatism from Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer’s followers. And Mr.Scheer routinely accuses Mr. Trudeau of corruption, betrayal, and contempt for Alberta and its primary industry. Just another day in politics. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY SUSAN RILEY

July 22, 2019

CHELSEA, QUE.—There is a bustling cottage industry in Ottawa intent on preventing “foreign actors” from subverting the Oct. 21 federal election. Security experts issue regular warnings that malign forces are targeting our democracy. They provide anti-hacking advice—“always practise good cy...

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