Kelly McParland: The number of Trudeau true believers is a shrinking circle

It's likely only a few apostles remain.

Published Sep 07, 2024  •  Last updated 0 minutes ago  •  4 minute read

Justin Trudeau

As near as I can figure, this is how things stand as far as the fortunes of the federal Liberal party are concerned:

Viewpoint one: Every gauge routinely used to measure political prospects indicates the party is facing disaster in the next election. Liberal prospects are so poor that the Toronto Star, which as usual would really really really prefer another Liberal victory, ran a recent column by one of its keenest Ottawa observers stating bluntly that “short of the Conservatives causing self-inflicted wounds, there is no visible path for growth for Canada’s ruling party. Trudeau’s Liberals appear to be headed for a bloodbath.”

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Viewpoint Two: Everyone is wrong except Justin Trudeau, who remains the party’s best hope and greatest asset, compelled by destiny and personal conviction to remain at the helm no matter the outlook or potential consequences. People who believe this include Justin Trudeau and maybe Katie Telford, his chief of staff and fiercest apostle.

People who don’t believe it may include the man assigned to bring about said victory, who tendered his resignation Thursday, saying he needs to spend more time with his family. The Star says someone it won’t identify told it that Jeremy Broadhurst informed the prime minister it was best that he stand aside because he no longer thinks Trudeau can win the election.

Broadhurst wouldn’t confirm that in his resignation statement, though he did spend time arguing that Canadian voters are sadly misguided if they seriously plan on replacing the Liberals.

“I have said throughout this experience [as campaign director] that I consider this election to perhaps be the most critical federal election of my life,” he wrote.

“Canadians will be faced with a stark choice as to the role of government in this country. Will we choose to be a government that seeks to be a partner with us; to lift us up when we struggle; to lay the foundation of a sustainable 21st century economy that benefits us all? Or will we allow a party to govern that is banking on the assumption Canadians are willing to forsake our commitment to fairness, equality, justice and progress for an agenda that is little more than simple slogans and cheap shots?”

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It’s a fascinating statement in that it says so much it doesn’t put in print. If this is the most crucial election in history, a choice between good and evil, lightness and dark, “fairness, equality, justice and progress” versus a forced march to Mordor, why is Broadhurst quitting now, in the home stretch, just when everything is on the line and all hands should be on deck, fending off the barbarians? Especially if Broadhurst does in fact think Trudeau is on the right track and there’s still a chance to win?

Broadhurst doesn’t identify the party that is spoiling the hopes of another Trudeau mandate, but it’s a fair bet he means the rival Conservatives and their leader, Pierre Poilievre. He may not appreciate it, but his statement offers a pretty good indication of the glaring flaw at the heart of the Trudeau brand, a weakness that has done much to bring the party to its current state of deep unpopularity but which evidently remains invisible to the small band of loyalists still fervently guarding their leader.

It’s the attitude. Trudeau Liberals are good, fair, honest and open-minded. Conservatives are cynical, glib, conniving and untrustworthy. They’re enticing gullible voters with cheap promises and false hopes. Placing Canada in their hands would forever ruin an otherwise fine and upstanding country.

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No doubt Broadhurst and the remaining 25 per cent of voters who say they still support the Liberals are sincere in this belief. The problem is that it rejects the possibility that any of Trudeau’s challenges might be his own fault, that his unpopularity might be the result of actions he’s taken, decisions he’s made, the record he’s built up over nine years or the ability of Canadians to assess that record and make a rational decision thereupon.

In other words, it treats people like dimwits. Canadians have had almost a decade to observe this government on a daily basis, yet the only reason the Liberal high command can conceive of for their fall from grace is the foolishness of voters in allowing themselves to be swayed by Conservative charlatans.

It’s a useful conceit. Dismissing any views but their own as alien to the Canadian ethos enables Trudeauites to avoid taking them seriously or making any effort to address the issues they reflect. Over its nine years in power it’s been their default tactic. Public discomfort over the sharp rise in immigrant numbers was denounced as racism until the system became so obviously unbalanced a panicked reversal was ordered with a cap on temporary residents and students permits. In the same manner, any possibility the trucker convoy on Ottawa might reflect some legitimate grievances was sidelined in favour of attacks on the cranks in their midst, leaving local authorities to struggle with the situation until it was suddenly declared a national emergency. Poilievre’s pledge to focus on recovery programs rather than “safe supply” drug policies was rejected by Trudeau as “unnecessarily criminalizing and further marginalizing people” despite public outcries about the destructive effect of crime and open drug use on surrounding neighbourhoods.

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Maybe it’s just a coincidence that Broadhurst’s departure comes just hours after Jagmeet Singh announced his New Democrats would no longer prop up the Liberals, increasing the chances an election could come sooner than October 2025. Or just days after 52 Liberal staff members in Montreal refused to participate in a crucial upcoming byelection in protest over Trudeau’s handling of the war in Gaza. Or as one of his few recognizable cabinet ministers is reportedly preparing to jump ship for a provincial post in Quebec. Or after Trudeau’s effort to recruit Mark Carney and his presumed star power fizzled.

Or maybe Broadhurst, like many other Canadians, simply isn’t blind to realities. We should know by this time next year who’s right, the prime minister or almost everyone else.

National Post

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