Justin Trudeau is returning to the same 24 Sussex Drive address that he left as a small child. It will complete the first father-son dynasty in the history of Canada’s federal government. Just not ready? Oh, how that one back-fired! He’s ready.
While many Canadians are embracing Trudeau’s ‘sunny’ lead following the Liberal win, some hard-line Conservatives are choosing the snarky route; they suggest that Canadians voted for such a sweeping change based on Trudeau’s lineage or the “unicorns and rainbows” they call his election promises. I call that nothing but the sour grapes of the soundly trounced.
Justin Trudeau and his team deserve all the credit for roaring into first place from the nearly stone cold ashes of a demoralized Liberal Party. Ontario played a pivotal role in a Liberal win as did Kathleen Wynne despite fears that she might taint the brand. She and Trudeau stayed the course and Wynne has gone from being the nemesis of Stephen Harper to the new BFF of Justin Trudeau.
The Liberals ran a nearly flawless campaign but it was helped along by some Conservative missteps not the least of which was the longest election campaign since the election of 1872.
The Harper government thought it could bankrupt the Liberals and the NDP and expose their lack of experience over such a long course but it back-fired.
A shorter campaign would probably have had the Liberals still winning the most seats but I’m not sure that they could have achieved a majority without it.
The push for Canadians to vote strategically also helped the Trudeau Liberals as much as it hurt the NDP and the Green Party. I feel for both of those party leaders and their followers but the majority of left-leaning Canadians just weren’t willing to take a risk on not ousting the Conservatives and/or Stephen Harper. That doesn’t take anything away from the stellar job the Liberals did but a strategic vote may have contributed greatly to a majority. Our daughter, a small business owner who lives in a small mountain town in the B.C. interior, recounted that she felt “disloyal” when she decided to follow the strategic voting plan to oust the decades-long hold Conservatives had on her region. In her case it meant putting her X beside an NDP candidate despite her Liberal leaning. It worked because the Liberal candidate did poorly and the NDP candidate took the election from a 40-year Conservative stronghold by a wide margin.
Maybe the strong voter turn-out and the crushing defeat will send a message to the Reform Conservatives that a return to its more Progressive Conservative roots should be up for discussion.
Author and Globe & Mail columnist John Ibbitson believes that Stephen Harper was an effective PM. But he says that there are three broad things that Canadians won’t miss about Stephen Harper. First, they won’t miss the secretive, introverted, often petty Stephen Harper. Next, they won’t miss the autocratic nature of his government. Last, they won’t miss his punitive and often cruel law and order agenda. I’ll leave it at that because it doesn’t matter any more….although the list seems much longer to me.
Trudeau had a message of hope for which Canadians were apparently hungry. As inexperienced as he is Trudeau often sounded statesmanlike while Mr. Harper often came off as cold, stiff and negative.
As Canadian political author Lawrence Martin opined, “With the election Monday, the bold right-wing experiment ends and the traditional Canada – a Canada of moderate big-tent governance – is reborn.”
I think he is right. So let the navel gazing end and a new way of governing begin. Good luck Mr. Trudeau. Canada and the world is watching – and cheering – you on.
By Dale Peacock
Following a career in the hospitality sector and the acquisition of a law and justice degree in her 50s, Dale embarked on a writing career armed with the fanciful idea that a living could be made as a freelancer. To her own great surprise she was right. The proof lies in hundreds of published works on almost any topic but favourites include travel, humour & satire, feature writing, environment, politics and entrepreneurship. Having re-invented herself half a dozen times, Dale doesn’t rule anything out. Her time is divided equally between Muskoka and Tampa Bay with Jim, her husband of 7 years and partner of 32 years. Two grown ‘kids’ and their spouses receive double doses of love and attention when she’s at home.
Well said! He was certainly ready for the election but only time will tell if exhibits Leadership.The Test Dale is not being elected but whether he leaves this Country a better place for all Canadians. He has 4 years to show If he is Ready !….Old Grey Haired White Guy.
I voted Conservative – and am proud of it. However contrary to your opinion of being “snarky”, Dale, I believe it is those of the Liberal party who cannot let go. The vitriol spewed out towards Mr. Harper, who served his country for almost a decade as PM, is amazing (“secretive, introverted, autocratic, petty, etc. etc.). The fact that they do not agree with his policies does not mean Mr. Harper is a “bad person” (and the fact that I disagree with Mr. Trudeau does not make him a “bad person” either) – they simply have different visions for our country – and that is why we have elections! As a Canadian for over 7 decades who has been a member of both parties over the years, I wish Mr. Trudeau and his government well as I would wish any new PM from any party well who won an election in a democratic manner. I would also remind you that Mr. Trudeau had the support of less than 40 % of the voters in spite of the huge majority of seats (about the same % as Mr. Harper had in the last election), and that 1 in 3 Canadians still voted for the Conservatives. Vicious attacks against all of us are frankly beneath you and your compatriots, in my opinion.
I don’t pretend to know a lot about politics, but I did follow this election pretty closely. I had the same conflict your daughter had. For the majority of the campaign I intended to vote Green with the hope that over time support would increase their seats. However, ‘the strategic vote’ got to me. I was so intent on getting rid of the Conservatives, I decided to Liberal. Don’t get me wrong, I think Trisha Cowie would have done an amazing job and I look forward to see what she does next, but had the campaign had been short I don’t think I would have made the change. It’s an internal conflict with which I’m still not entirely comfortable.
Regardless, I have faith in Trudeau’s platform and am looking forward to seeing how he changes Canada’s reputation on an international level.