— The dominant view: Canada's political establishment overwhelmingly supported Israel. In a statement, Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU "unequivocally condemned Hamas’ terrorist attacks against Israel and expressed Canada’s full support for Israel’s right to defend itself." The flag on the Peace Tower flew at half mast over the weekend. An image of Israel's flag lit up the tower after nightfall. Niagara Falls and Montreal's Champlain Bridge were lit in blue. Almost every provincial premier condemned Hamas. Only Newfoundland and Labrador's ANDREW FUREY hadn't posted a statement online. The Israeli flag flew on poles next to major city halls. Mayors who denounced Hamas included Vancouver's KEN SIM, Calgary's JYOTI GONDEK, Winnipeg's SCOTT GILLINGHAM, Vaughan's STEVEN DEL DUCA, Montreal's VALÉRIE PLANTE and Ottawa's MARK SUTCLIFFE. — Words matter: Toronto Mayor OLIVIA CHOW called a pro-Palestinian rally at the city's Nathan Phillips Square “unsanctioned" and "deplorable." Chow also "unequivocally" condemned Hamas' attacks following earlier statements on social media — since deleted — that were slammed by both pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian voices online as one-sided. Edmonton Mayor AMARJEET SOHI took heat online for a nuanced statement: "When events unfold across the globe, they can have a deep impact on people who live in our city. The attacks taking place in Israel and Gaza targeting innocent civilians are horrific. I know that many Edmontonians have friends and family in these areas, and I am extending my support and empathy to them. We stand with you and share in your hope for a just and lasting peace in the region." — More views: Filmmaker and political activist AVI LEWIS posted on X that he was "struggling to express my feelings about the war in Israel/Palestine," he wrote, amplifying a statement from the Independent Jewish Voices advocacy group. IJV's proposal: "Canada must call for a ceasefire, condemn Israeli apartheid and work towards a peaceful resolution that upholds the rights to life and freedom of both Palestinians and Israelis." — On the horn: Trudeau spent the weekend talking to regional leaders, including Israeli PM BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, United Arab Emirates President MOHAMED BIN ZAYED AL NAHYAN and KING ABDULLAH II of Jordan. — The view from Canada's embassy: Conservative politicians pounced on Canadian Press reports that Ottawa’s mission in Tel Aviv was closed for Thanksgiving weekend. Frantic travelers who hoped to escape the hostilities complained of being bounced between an emergency hotline and the embassy's main line, with the promise of a returned phone call only this morning. Tory deputy leader MELISSA LANTSMAN claimed "more than one hundred" Canadians had turned to her constituency office in suburban Toronto for help: "The Prime Minister must immediately commit more people and resources to ensure that Canadians who are seeking help to get home receive the assistance that they deserve from their government." Ottawa denied the embassy was closed, insisting its staff at a 24/7 response center and on the ground in Israel had responded to hundreds of requests for assistance. Sen. PETER BOEHM, a former diplomat, was incredulous at claims the feds took a long weekend off. — Next questions: Expect more questions on embassy staffing, including written questions on the order paper that require a response within months, and access-to-information requests that could take much longer to resolve. — A missing signature: A Monday evening statement from every G-7 nation except Canada and Japan — the "Quint group," comprising the U.S. and four biggest western European nations — reiterated their collective support for Israel and condemnation of Hamas. It's not uncommon for those nations to exclude Canada. The question of the night back home: Why was Canada missing from the signatories? Or was there nothing to see here? The Prime Minister's Office insists the Canadian side has been engaging with G-7 partners in the Middle East. CONVENTION TIME — The old joke about political conventions is that Conservatives get drunk, Liberals get laid, and New Democrats talk policy. Sure, controversial Conservative policy makes all the headlines, woeful Liberals drink these days like there's no tomorrow, and not every New Democrat memorizes policy resolutions. But nobody debates policy with the ferocity of a lineup of wonkish NDPers. Liberals had their biennial confab in May. The Tories met in September. This weekend, New Dems will fill the Sheraton Hotel in Hamilton, Ont. — a city on every major party's target list. — Power meets principle: Pharmacare is shaping up as a red line for the NDP this autumn. Many of the negotiations that power the party's confidence-and-supply agreement with the Liberals stay behind closed doors. But DON DAVIES outed the Liberals' first draft of promised pharmacare legislation as insufficiently universal. Party activists are angling to hash out the thickness of the NDP's line in the sand this weekend. A proposed emergency resolution that could be debated Sunday wants to maximize the party's leverage on the issue. The message: Universal drug coverage or bust. "We must loudly tell our party that we support them in the fight for pharmacare, even if that means risking an election," the activists insist. The party's brain trust appears to be in violent agreement, telling iPolitics that leader JAGMEET SINGH agrees with Davies' critique — and that it expects the Liberals to play ball. — Power versus principle: It's the forever debate when the grassroots meets the establishment at NDP conventions. On one side, idealists. On the other, pragmatists. The party's socialist caucus always tries to make noise. The left wing of the left wing opposes Canada's contributions to the war in Ukraine, wants to scrap the governing deal with the Liberals, and wants police forces disbanded and defunded. The caucus rarely gets its way but is never far from a mic on the debate floor. — The full lineup is out today: The 2023 convention website came alive this morning with a lineup of speakers. On the docket: Toronto Mayor OLIVIA CHOW, B.C. Premier DAVID EBY, Hamilton Mayor ANDREA HORWATH, Ontario NDP Leader MARIT STILES, Canadian Labour Congress president BEA BRUSKE, German Social Democratic politician THORSTEN KLUTE, Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux president ROBERT COMEAU, Saskatchewan NDP MLA JENNIFER BOWES, Edmonton school trustee TRISHA ESTABROOKS, Alberta NDP MLA JANIS IRWIN, Gatineau city councilor TIFFANY-LEE NORRIS PARENT, Sooke Mayor MAJA TAIT, Ontario NDP MPP MONIQUE TAYLOR, Indigenous and workers' rights advocate JOANNE WEBB, and Thunder Bay-Rainy River federal candidate YUK-SEM WON. Expect the full list of policy resolutions today. COURT SHOWDOWN — It's Alberta v. Canada Week, and the Liberals' signature impact assessment law is on trial. The Supreme Court will rule this Friday morning on the constitutionality of the Impact Assessment Act, once known as Bill C-69 and permanently branded the "No More Pipelines Act" by conservative detractors in Ottawa and Edmonton. — The backstory: The Alberta government, then led by premier JASON KENNEY, was convinced that provinces are solely responsible for impact assessments fully within their own borders. The law assigned certain projects to federal jurisdiction. Kenney referred the law to the Court of Appeal of Alberta, which found last May that C-69 was, in fact, unconstitutional. The justices weren't unanimous, but they weren't far off. Only SHEILA GRECKOL concluded the feds weren't overstepping their bounds. — If the province wins: Premier DANIELLE SMITH would claim a massive victory over a national government she accuses of overreach. PIERRE POILIEVRE will restock his question period arsenal. Funds will be raised all 'round. — A stake in the ruling: A long list of interveners on both sides will speed-read the ruling for insta-reaction and pore over the details for its nitty-gritty consequences. → The provinces: Attorneys general of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Manitoba, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador; Hydro-Québec. → Indigenous groups: Indian Resource Council, File Hills Qu'Appelle Tribal Council and Pasqua First Nation, Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, Ecojustice Canada Society, Woodland Cree First Nation, Mikisew Cree First Nation, First Nations Major Projects Coalition, and Lummi Nation. → NGOs: World Wildlife Fund Canada, Nature Canada and West Coast Environmental Law Association, Canadian Taxpayers Federation, Canadian Constitution Foundation, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, Environmental Defence, Advocates for the Rule of Law, Oceans North Conservation Society, Canadian Environmental Law Association, Centre québécois du droit de l'environnement, and Miningwatch Canada. → Business groups: Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, Business Council of Alberta, Independent Contractors and Businesses Association, Alberta Enterprise Group, and Explorers and Producers Association of Canada. | 
