From Poster-Boy to Punching Bag: Trudeau's Waning Political Charm
Chief Editor's Column: Recent scandals have put the Canadian Prime Minister’s political legacy at risk. A special rapporteur will not be his saving grace. It is imperative that he comes clean.
By Aftab Ahmed
IT IS A TOUGH TIME to be Justin Trudeau. He is struggling (and refusing) to answer difficult questions about China’s interference in Canada’s political landscape. And his once-sterling and carefully crafted reputation as a champion of democracy, accountability, and transparency, is taking a serious hit.
At his peak, Trudeau was framed as the quintessential defender of Western liberalism. Perhaps forgotten now, the Prime Minister possesses a remarkable set of political skills that should not be overlooked. Over the years, he mastered an innate capacity to say the right things, at the right time, and in the right place. As destiny would have it, Canada fell in love with the charismatic son of the country’s most maverick politician.
Younger, urban, and cosmopolitan Canadians related to the Liberal brand of social media-savvy politics. But the rosy and charming image which Trudeau has cultivated for himself, and something which he values deeply, has lost appeal amongst voters – especially after a series of bombshell revelations about his entanglements with the WE Charity affair and the SNC Lavalin scandal.
You would think someone of Trudeau’s political calibre would recognize that voters have grown weary of catchy phrases like “a Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian”. A jaded nation wants clarity on its future and less of the ambiguous speeches and tokenistic declarations about how the country is a beacon of multiculturalism, diversity, and all things good.
In the early days of his career, Trudeau was poised to be a positive disruptor to the political system. Today, he embodies a shadow of that firebrand spirit. The Prime Minister’s detractors and his loyal voting base have not minced words in calling him out for the increasingly dubious, hypocritical, evasive, and undemocratic tone with which he has sought to dodge tough questions in recent years.
Trudeau’s unwavering faith towards health experts and his overarching approach to governance during the pandemic, was initially well received by a majority of the electorate. But the hangover effects of COVID-19 are not exactly helping his case. The rise of populist sentiments, the return of war in Europe, a cost-of-living crisis, a healthcare system in tatters, and now, the revelations about China, have ambushed the Liberals with a plethora of complex challenges.
Therefore, the question arises: Is Trudeau the principal architect of Canada’s contemporary economic, social, and political problems? The country is divided into partisan segments in trying to answer this. Alberta’s decision to pick a fight with Ottawa provides ample evidence to suggest that the Prime Minister’s dwindling popularity will be extensively exploited by his opponents in the coming months.
Politics aside, everyone can agree that the least Trudeau could do in this environment is to display honest leadership. Clearly, he has been failing on this front. The public’s message towards their Prime Minister is harsh: he is out of touch with reality and anything he says will be taken with a grain of salt.
A quick scan of tweets and comments about Trudeau’s supposed “fake-ness” and sanctimonious attitude reinforces that Canadians, whether they support him or not, are fed up with his tactic of sweeping things under the rug with the hope that those problems magically disappear. Whether this is true or not, you cannot blame people for having such a perception.
Trying to noodle his way out of answering testing questions about national security and democracy is possibly the worst thing that Trudeau could have done. So, the next question we ask ourselves is: How will the revelations of Chinese interference affect the Prime Minister’s aspirations?
Amongst other findings, Canada’s intelligence community uncovered Beijing’s plans to direct electoral funds towards the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. Given China’s rise as a networked authoritarian state and their disruptive efforts to impede the political processes of other countries like Myanmar, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka, the act itself should not be seen as a surprise.
When the Globe and Mail broke the story, it sent shockwaves across the journalistic community and triggered interrogations about whether Trudeau and the PMO knew about the interference attempts and importantly, if and why they failed to act. In what has become somewhat of a norm, the Liberal supremo responded via a carefully scripted statement, where he announced that a special rapporteur on foreign interference would be empowered to navigate the government’s next steps.
A special rapporteur is a fancy way for Trudeau to delay the inevitable. He has appointed his family friend and former Governor General David Johnston (chosen by Stephen Harper as the Queen’s vice-regal representative in 2010) to oversee a confidential inquiry to determine whether there is a need for a public inquiry. Nothing against Johnston, who is an accomplished Canadian and well-respected across the political aisle – but recent polls suggest that the public are fed up with the unnecessary level of bureaucracy and instead, want an open inquiry.
Critics argue that the Prime Minister could have done more to address the issue head-on. For starters, the CSIS revelations are a major blow to his reputation as a leader who stands up to foreign meddling and protects democracy – which is his basic duty as head of the federal government.
Maybe he did take necessary steps to beef up the national security architecture. But how can Canadians know this unless their Prime Minister clarifies his position? What he has done so far has resulted in significant blows to the Liberals. Already facing a barrage of unanswered questions about the economy, the party’s hold on power is flimsy, to say the least.
So, what could Trudeau have done differently in handling this? For starters, as Andrew Coyne writes in a recent column, the Prime Minister should have taken the allegations of interference more seriously from the outset. When the story first broke, he could have launched a public inquiry and answered the questions that were being asked. By failing to do so, he left the impression that he had something to hide, which is only making the situation worse.
Secondly, he ought to have been transparent about what he knew and when he knew it. Rather than being evasive and mobilizing his party confidants to filibuster in Parliament, simply answering the questions directly and honestly would have calmed the nerves. Unfortunately, that ship has sailed.
As for the mood in the Liberal camp, it is naturally tense. Trudeau's team is scrambling to contain the fallout from the scandal, but the party seems concerned that their leader’s half-answers, half-truths, and opaque political proclivities are playing into Pierre Poilievre’s hands. With so much at stake, the Liberals need to act quickly and decisively to regain public trust. Doing so will be immensely difficult.
This being said, Trudeau has not committed treason. He does not “hate” Canada, as some would like to believe. So, let us not count him out. His communications and public engagement skills have traditionally been top-notch, and this has saved him on more than one occasion. Whatever electoral fortunes his party has had in the past decade should be credited to him. Meaning, he is still very much their greatest asset.
Having lost two consecutive elections, the Liberals were a third-tier force during the Harper era. By fostering a distinct image of himself through clever branding strategies, the Prime Minister revived his party’s fortunes in 2015. In more ways than one, the Liberal Party of Canada, both in principle and practice, is nothing more than the Justin Trudeau party. His colleagues have very few options but to stand by him.
Down the line, do not be surprised if Trudeau is lauded for driving forward ground-breaking policy reforms. The successful implementation of carbon pricing schemes, the Canada child-benefit program, the legalization of marijuana, and the scale, magnitude, and speed of pandemic-related financial relief interventions will define Trudeau’s ultimate legacy.
The Prime Minister has always been a good talker, but his dilly-dallying on China makes him sound anything but convincing. But even his opponents will admit that Trudeau is a shrewd and dexterous operative who knows how to meander his way out of political crises, make dramatic comebacks, and win elections.
Therefore, all is not lost for the Liberals. Their future depends on whether their captain comes clean and suspends his bizarre attempts to straddle difficult questions on China. Alternatively, if he chooses to continue in this current path, it may very well signal the demise of the Prime Minister’s long and eventful tryst with Canadian politics. And this, the Liberals cannot afford.
The ball is in Justin Trudeau’s court. And the truth shall set him free.
Aftab Ahmed is the Chief Editor of The Bell and a Master of Public Policy candidate with the Max Bell School of Public Policy at McGill University. He is a regular columnist for two major Bangladeshi media platforms and his interests lie in global affairs, international development, and political trends in the Asia-Pacific.