With four weeks to go in the longest campaign in modern Canadian history, Stephen Harper was in Ontario today, pausing along the way for a one-on-one live chat with CP24’s Stephen LeDrew.

Among several things, Harper was asked about the criticisms he has faced about the state of the current Canadian economy.

Harper told LeDrew, “I wouldn’t deny for a second that we are in a challenged global economy.” Harper repeated his affordable low tax plan and warned, “The other guys are going to spend a helluva lot more and they’re going do it through permanent deficits and tax increases.”

To watch the full interview, click here.

The Conservative leader also defended the length of the campaign. He said in the 1990s federal campaigns got too short and there wasn’t time to get to all the significant places around the country. “I think the longer election campaign will help people to reflect on their choice,” he said

Harper began his day in the Conservative held riding of Kitchener-Conestoga. The Tories won the riding easily in 2011 with more than 50 per cent of the vote. Harper then drove along the 401 stopping in Whitby and then in Peterborough to bolster the campaign of Michael Skinner who is running in the riding of Peterborough-Kawartha. That’s the riding of former Conservative MP Dean Del Mastro who was found guilty of campaign violations in the last election.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau started the day in Toronto. Once again he went downtown to the riding of Spadina-Fort York. It was his fifth stop in the riding where Liberal MP Adam Vaughan is in what could be a very close race against the NDP’s Olivia Chow. Chow is trying to win back the seat she gave up for her run as mayor of Toronto.

When political parties start looking for money it’s always an easy target to look to military spending. That happened yesterday when the Liberal leader, Justin Trudeau, said his government would not buy the F-35 fighter jet. The cost of these jets is now put as high as $49 billion over many years. Today Trudeau was asked about the cost to Canada if the contract is cancelled. He didn’t really answer the question but repeated that Canada was “never obliged to buy them” and with costs “skyrocketing” he said it “no longer makes sense to have a stealth, fifth generation fighter.”

One of the five questions in the morning session with reporters this morning was about the F-35. Harper grabbed the opportunity to slam Trudeau. He said the Liberal party is “living in a dream world if they think we could pull out of the development project of the F-35 and not lose business. I mean I don’t know what planet they are living on.” It was harsh attack and Harper went on to allege that killing the F-35 will cost jobs in the aerospace industry, much of it based in Montreal. Harper pointed out Trudeau’s own riding is in Montreal and said it “will crater an industry in their own backyard without any plan for it.”

Mulcair was in Atlantic Canada stopping in Nova Scotia riding of Sackville-Preston-Chezzetcook. It too was an easy win for the NDP in 2011 for Peter Stoffer. Mulcair made a half-billion dollar commitment over four years to improve better care for veterans suffering from PTSD and other long term services for veterans. From there Mulcair went on to campaign in Prince Edward Island.

A question on the F-35 controversy found NDP leader Tom Mulcair once again trying to find the middle ground between Harper and Trudeau. Mulcair acknowledged that Canada needs a new fighter jet. He called for an open tender competition to choose the new jet. He said he was surprised at Trudeau’s position. Mulcair asked, “How can he decide in advance before the process?” Muclair called for the decision on the fighter jet purchase be “fact-based decision making…we are about long term planning.” Muclair said Canada is in a “tough bind” and needs a new fighter as part of its defense.”

Michael Byers is the Canada Research Chair in Global Politics and International Law at the University of British Columbia. Byers has repeatedly criticized the F-35 purchase. In a column last week he weighed in again and called the F-35 “unaffordable” because the falling Canadian dollar makes an expensive plane even more costly. Byers wrote in the National Post, “Is it any wonder that Conservative Leader Stephen Harper has avoided mentioning the need for new fighter jets recently? For this $3.2 billion in additional costs will require a tough decision by any prime minister committed to balanced budgets.”

I spoke with Byers after Harper’s comments. He said Harper “is disingenuous” to suggest “that cancelling the program will cost the aerospace industry jobs.” Byers said any competition among fighter jet manufacturers would include a commitment to invest in Canada and create jobs. Byers said the F-35 is not the only plane Canada could buy. He said the Super Hornet is another option and pointed out it’s the plane the U.S. is using today in the fight against ISIS.

The campaign turn to military spending will probably get a fuller airing a week from today when the leaders gather in Toronto for a single topic debate sponsored by the Munk Centre on foreign affairs.

Polls released this afternoon suggest it’s still a very close race but there are some indications the NDP are trending down. A Forum Research poll put the Conservatives ahead nationally with 33 per cent and the Liberals tied with the NDP at 29 per cent each. An Ipsos poll has the Liberals at 33 per cent of decided voters followed by the NDP with 29 per cent and the Conservatives with 27 per cent of the decided vote. The Nanos Research daily tracking poll suggests those willing to consider voting NDP is also trending down. However when the margin of error is taken into account it’s definitely still anyone’s to win with 28 days to go.