This is not the total disaster I had feared. Liberal, World Economic Forum golden boy Mark Carney was parachuted in to save the Liberal Party of Canada from the disaster known as Justin Trudeau. Notice he wasn't parachuted in to save Canada, but to save the Liberal Party. Pick your theatrical villain, this guy is it:
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| Yep, that's him with the associate of you-know-who. |
Sadly, Canada is full of uninformed people (due largely to our lock-step Leftist media), weak-willed cowards with a knee-jerk reaction to president Trump's tariffs.
Going into the election, the Conservative party had a somewhat charismatic (in an understated way) leader unafraid to take on the media, unafraid to talk common sense. He was winning so much support, it looked possible that the Liberal party could be actually wiped out entirely. Less than four months ago, Conservatives were a certainty. Meanwhile the Liberals had historically unpopular Justin Trudeau. A global laughing stock of a leader. After a decade people tend to tire of the incumbents, that's true anywhere not just Canada.
There was a lot that went wrong with Canada's populist revival, and it was a perfect storm of sh@% that resulted in a Liberal 4th consecutive term, albeit barely. What happened? Three things mainly.
One - Too soon, too personal
Well the first problem was the Conservative party's strategy worked too well. Once Pierre Poilievre was elected leader of the party the strategy to demonize Justin Trudeau starting years before the election date worked. It worked so well, that along with Justin Trudeau's own contribution of ineptitude and horrible policies, the Liberals approval ratings were near flatline. The problem though was twofold. Firstly they started way too early. The other problem; it was too Trudeau-centric. The Conservative popularity soared and Trudeau's waned abysmally as he deserved. But because this happened a year before the mandated latest election date, and because it was so closely tied to Trudeau, the Liberal party was able to jettison Trudeau and solve both problems at once. A 'fresh' 'new' face cleared punted the problem for the Liberals.
True, nobody wanted Trudeau, not even liberal voters. But he was no longer on the ballot. The Conservatives were a victim of their own early success. Liberals had time to present themselves, along with a compliant media as revitalized and different. It's not true, as has often been pointed out, but it became the perception. Liberal voters flocked back to Liberal support, abandoning the other parties (mostly the NDP) they had drifted towards.
Two - I have to say it; Donald Trump
At one point probably 60% of conservative voters in Canada were very much pro-Trump for America. President Trump coming in and going after Trudeau with tariffs was a real miscalculation. Canadians didn't see it as an attack on the Trudeau they for the most part detested. They saw it as an attack on Canada. We've been a loyal friend to the United States for over a century. This about face made no sense. There are trade issues on both sides for sure, but we're not China.
Trump created a climate of fear in Canada that permeated the election cycle. It was now about Canadian sovereignty. That gave Pierre Poilievre a no-win hand to play. Endorse Trump and seem anti-Canadian to most of the country or talk tough and say Canada First. He had to chose the latter or get decimated in the election. But choosing the latter meant that he was just like the Liberals. This may have also been a strategic mistake. There was probably a third path; a path of reconciliation with America. A path of let's address the concerns of both countries. But it would have taken an enormous campaign to get that message through and per point one; the Conservatives went through a lot of budget before the election even got started and probably couldn't muster the resources to carry that off.
President Trump inserted himself into a Canadian election in a way that hurt Conservatives' election chances. It may have been a deliberately gamble to help the Conservatives but if so, it failed. Badly. While addressing trade grievances and fentanyl issues are certainly important and admirable, this was ill-timed and will end up hurting working class and middle class Canadians who are suffering badly already thanks to their Liberal overlords. I know, I am one of them. The Canadian economy for ordinary Canadians is on the ropes. This could spell the death of Canadian middle class.
Three - Jagmeet Singh
The clown of a leader for the New Democratic Party (socialists), Jagmeet Singh was so self-serving that for years he propped up Justin Trudeau, holding on as long as he thought was possible. If he had had any backbone, Canada could have held an election any time over the last two years. Didn't happen. He kept Trudeau in power long enough to give the Liberals time for an alternative. Singh earned himself enough tenure for a lucrative lifetime government but he lost his own seat in parliament in the election as a result. He decimated his own party to a rump in parliament with virtually no power anymore. And it cost Canada. If he'd been less a Trudeau lacky Canada would have had a conservative Prime Minister and his NDP party would have been better off too. His selfish and progressive ambitions have made Canada a country on life support.
There's your trilogy of reasons for the disaster. There's a trilogy of disastrous outcomes for Canada, we are stuck with more World Economic Forum leftist leadership. We have a squandered opportunity for conservative populism and for a reinvigorated relationship with the United States
Not all is lost
I started by saying this was not the complete disaster it could have been. It's true. The Liberals do not have a majority government in parliament. Support from the ruined NDP party won't be enough to keep them in power now. They are subject to a non-confidence motion and a snap election at any time. The conservatives and the Bloc Quebecois (who don't like the Conservatives but detest the Liberals) will likely see to it that the government lasts 18 months or less. My gut says 9 - 12 months. People will have time to see Carney is every bit the villain that Justin Trudeau was. A conservative majority is still a looming possibility, perhaps merely delayed.
