The post-Trudeau era in Canadian politics will represent a return to normalcy.
It is true that Canadian politics – and Canadian society at large – is more divided than we have been in quite some time.
Whereas previous divides tended to be regional – Quebec Separatism, Western Alienation – we now have regional divides. ideological divides, and economic divides all at once.
Furthermore, the world is a far more dangerous place than it was in the time between 1990-2022, so Canada can ill-afford to be as divided as we are.
Now, you’ll often see Trudeau supporters claim that the increase in division is due to the Conservatives moving further to the right, but that doesn’t hold up under scrutiny.
Former Prime Minister Stephen Harper governed Canada for nearly a decade, and turned the Conservative Party into a reliable governing option with widespread national support (the CPC was won the national popular vote in every election between 2006 and 2021 with the sole exception of 2015). That’s 2006, 2008, 2011, 2019, and 2021.
The CPC under Andrew Scheer wasn’t any more right wing than the party under Harper, and under O’Toole the CPC arguably struggled because they were seen as trying to be too much like the Liberals.
By contrast, the Liberals have moved more and more to the left under Justin Trudeau.
Canada’s second NDP PM named Trudeau?
Pierre Trudeau was seen by some as Canada’s first NDP Prime Minister, someone who was more of a socialist than a Liberal, but used the Liberal Party as vehicle for his ambitions.
That sure sounds familiar.
Justin Trudeau is following in his father’s footsteps, moving the Liberals in a more and more socialist direction, empowering radicals like Steven Guilbeault, inflaming regional tensions, seeking to wreck the oil & gas sector, and forming a Pact with the socialist NDP.
Trudeau has also proving shockingly weak when it comes to China, and now seems to be actively resisting CSIS’ efforts to protect Canada from China’s election interference.
Under Trudeau, the once venerable Liberal Party is allowing our democracy to be subverted by China as the PM looks the other way and seeks to benefit from that interference.
Yet, when you look at the composition of the House of Commons – including past votes on whether to call China’s treatment of the Uyghurs a genocide and the divide between Liberal backbenchers and the Trudeau cabinet – it becomes clear that there is indeed a majority in the House of Commons for a tougher approach to China.
Add up the Conservatives – who have long been demanding a tougher approach on China – and Liberal MPs who have previously broken with Trudeau on China, we can see that it’s not public opinion or the opinion of most MPs who are standing in the way of protecting Canada from China’s influence, it’s Justin Trudeau himself.
Justin Trudeau’s desire to pander to China and allow China to gain influence over Canada makes him an outlier among MPs and among the broader Canadian public.
Unfortunately, he’s an outlier in a position of immense power, and the partisan leader-centric nature of our political system means that he is able to get most of the Liberal/NDP Pact to go along with him on China.
With that said, there is one long-term positive thing to consider:
Once Trudeau is out of office and is no longer leading the Liberal Party, there should be a return to more historic political normalcy for Canada. But until then, Canadians will have to push back against our own PM in order to protect our national interests.
Spencer Fernando
