Who will blink first? Did someone forward you this newsletter? Sign up here to get it delivered weekday mornings. Yesterday, Tory leader Erin O'Toole modified his party's motion to create an anti-corruption committee to pester Liberals. Fine, he said, we'll call it something different. Pablo Rodriguez, the government House leader, took to a mic shortly after and declared the motion—remember, this would simply create a committee—a matter of confidence. Later, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau repeated that interpretation . Either the opposition can make Parliament work, said the PM, or it can't. If MPs pass the Tory motion, Trudeau would then walk across the Rideau Hall grounds to request an election. The Bloc Québécois will support the Conservatives. That means the New Democrats will, as is so often their fate in these minority days, cast pivotal votes.The balance-of-power party hasn't been clear on its plans. NDP MP Charlie Angus lashed out at Liberals yesterday, saying they "would rather go to the polls than actually have the decency to answer questions." NDP leader Jagmeet Singh preemptively blamed Trudeau for the non-stop brinkmanship: "If there is going to be an election, it is going to be because the PM has found a way to do it," he said. But he wouldn't commit either way on the vote. Barring an unforeseen negotiated breakthrough, we could find out the fate of this Parliament after question period today if, as planned, the House goes ahead with a vote on the Conservative motion. Paul Wells on Trudeau's motivation: It's possible that the Liberals are so comfortable with the prospect of an election because New Brunswick's premier just turned his minority government into a majority, and British Columbia's premier could soon pull off the same feat. Or, writes Wells, it's possible the sitting PM just doesn't like Parliament very much. Whatever the reason, Justin Trudeau has seemed edgy for months, his behaviour somewhere close to astonishing. He fired his finance minister after letting his staff wreck the man’s reputation. He prorogued Parliament with promises of a bold new plan that never materialized, which, given the track record of this government’s bold plans, is probably for the best. He’s happy to spend as long as he doesn’t have to budget . He welcomes questions until he hears them. He’s gambling with his political fate, but is it really gambling if you’re likely to win and you wouldn’t mind losing? Here's a milestone that'll warp your understanding of the space-time continuum: The last federal election was just a year ago today. Let's say another trip to the polls is in the offing. How do the parties measure up? 338Canada's projections have the Liberals winning an average of 169.5 seats—which is, yes, o.5 seats short of a majority government. Trudeau's team has a 95 per cent chance of winning, and just over 50 per cent odds of nabbing a majority seat haul. Angus quits Twitter: "Don't get me wrong; I am a huge fan of social media. And I do have a very thick skin. But are these really the kind of 'conversations' I want to participate in? Being on Twitter is like being badgered by a drunk on a 24-hour bus ride," Angus wrote in the Huffington Post. But check the date stamp on that op-ed and you'll see it's from 2012. Angus eventually returned, before leaving again yesterday. Just a reminder that, save for rare and precious moments of levity or kindness, Twitter has always and forever been a hellsite that comes for your mental health. Normally, this would be huge news: Somebody leaked emails to CBC News featuring a political aide to Justice Minister David Lametti complaining that the Prime Minister's office was micromanaging judicial appointments. The staffer, François Landry, worried about "what PMO requires us to do prior to a judicial appointment"—namely, consult widely with top federal Liberals. Former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould said she felt the need to "insulate" the consultation process from the PM's inner circle and other partisan-types during her tenure. Un-ranked: The Ford government will end one Ontario city's effort to pioneer a new voting system. Most of Bill 218 is all about protecting some organizations, including long-term care homes, from legal action related to the spread of the coronavirus. But the legislation's "Schedule 2" removes the ability of municipalities to use ranked ballots to elect their local councils. Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark says cities shouldn't "experiment with costly changes" to their next elections—which are two years away—during the pandemic. London already elected its local leaders using a ranked ballot (the very same method used to elect Doug Ford as PC party leader). Remember those Ottawa scientists who were tracking the measured amounts of COVID-19 in city wastewater? Their data appears to indicate a drop in viral signal, which could mean community spread is slowing in the nation's capital. But don't draw any conclusions just yet. Researchers are waiting for more data. —Nick Taylor-Vaisey | 
